Sat, October 29, 2022 at 1:55 PM·2 min read
Canada Soccer has defended their position on human rights in Qatar after campaigners accused them of not doing enough over issues ahead of next month's World Cup.
Minky Worden, director of Global Initiatives for Human Rights Watch said this week that Canada Soccer had been "completely missing in action” on labour rights, women's rights LGBTQ and human rights issues in the Gulf nation.
Worden said that Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have called for FIFA and the Qatari government to set aside no less than US$440 million dollars as a fund to compensate migrant workers.
In a statement, Canada Soccer did not address the issue of the compensation fund but said that it had been heavily involved in discussions over rights issues.
"From the moment our Men’s National Team qualified for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Canada Soccer have been actively engaged on these issues," read the statement.
"We met with the Canadian Embassy in Doha, Qatar in April, July and in September of this year, focusing on cultural awareness, local education, and event preparation. At every meeting, discussions also included the latest updates on human rights and matters of inclusivity in Qatar.
"In recent months, we have also met and were provided presentations by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and Amnesty International where good discussions and updates were shared from both organisations," the statement added.
FIFA awarded the World Cup to an Arab country for the first time after a contentious bidding process in 2010. Qatar has since faced constant scrutiny over its treatment of foreign workers as well as LGBTQ and women's rights.
The Canadian federation said it had made the "conscious decision" to partner with vendors in Qatar "whose shared values and principles are aligned with our shared Canadian values." THERE ARE NONE OH SORRY YOU MEAN CAPITALIST VALUES
Qatar has said they have made a number of reforms in recent years, particularly in the area of rights for migrant workers and Canada Soccer said they could prove to be effective.
"Through our ongoing dialogue in recent months, it is our understanding that Qatar’s legal reforms, if fully implemented, have the potential to have a real impact and further improve protections for workers’ rights across the country.
"We encourage all partners to continue their efforts to implement recent labour reforms and continue to address and resolve past labour abuses."
Canada will be playing in their first World Cup finals since 1986 and the federation said they would represent their country's values.
"Canada enjoys a global reputation as a defender of human and LGBTQ2S rights, anchored on a record that is seen as one of the leaders globally.
"Canada Soccer will continue to uphold that reputation, build on what we have already started, and like so many other sporting bodies internationally, continue to ensure our players and fans are safe, included, celebrated and treated equitably."
Canada Soccer urged to join push for compensation of World Cup migrant workers in Qatar
Hundreds of thousands of migrants worked on projects in
years leading up to pending tournament
Canada Soccer is being urged to support calls to compensate the migrant workers whose labour made the upcoming World Cup in Qatar a reality — and cost some of them their lives.
Hundreds of thousands of migrant workers have been involved in preparing for the upcoming World Cup, according to Amnesty International.
The human-rights organization wants $440 million US — a total matching the World Cup prize money — provided to compensate workers who suffered human-rights abuses while working on projects in the years leading up to the tournament.
But so far, Canada's governing body for the sport has stayed silent on the issue. It's spurred soccer fans and human-rights advocates alike to blow the whistle on the organization's lack of engagement.
'Highly disappointing'
"It's not only surprising but highly disappointing," said Ketty Nivyabandi, the secretary general of Amnesty International Canada.
Nivyabandi said at least seven national soccer federations — including the U.S., England, France and the Netherlands — have spoken up on this issue. But not Canada's own team, or its governing organization.
She believes many soccer fans want their national team "to speak up against these violations and to recognize that this is happening at the expense of migrant workers in in Qatar."
Canada Soccer did not respond to a request from CBC News for comment on Thursday.
One national men's team player, Lucas Cavallini, told CBC News that he hasn't had conversations with other players about controversies in Qatar.
"We're just all basically distracted with the tournament and how things go for us and just worrying about playing football … We're there to compete in a tournament, so it's basically all we need to focus on."
The issue has taken on a higher profile with members of Denmark's national team, whose players will have an alternate jersey to wear to pay tribute to the migrant workers who lost their lives.
Fan club 'alarmed'
A prominent group of national team supporters in Canada, known as the Voyageurs, is calling on both the organization and the national team to step up.
The Voyageurs told CBC News its members have had to weigh their concerns about the treatment of migrants in Qatar against the desire to support their national squad.
"Our goal is to cheer on our players anywhere they play. In qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, this means supporting our men's team in Qatar," the fan club said in a statement.
"The human rights issues and the treatment of migrant workers have been well documented," the statement said, noting this has meant club members have had to make personal decisions on whether to travel to Qatar.
The Voyageurs also expressed concerns about other human-rights issues in Qatar, beyond those directly connected to the soccer tournament preparations.
"We are alarmed with the Qatari government's treatment of the LGBTQ+ population in the country and the many deaths that have occurred in building the World Cup stadia and infrastructure," the club said, saying it joins with other public calls for compensation to be offered to the families of migrants workers who have died.
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