{"id":11249,"date":"2022-11-15T12:12:42","date_gmt":"2022-11-15T12:12:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eritrea\/all-news\/a-desert-world-cup-blighted-by-a-dust-storm-of-controversy"},"modified":"2022-11-15T13:00:18","modified_gmt":"2022-11-15T13:00:18","slug":"a-desert-world-cup-blighted-by-a-dust-storm-of-controversy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eritrea\/all-news\/a-desert-world-cup-blighted-by-a-dust-storm-of-controversy","title":{"rendered":"A desert World Cup blighted by a dust-storm of controversy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Eritrea. <\/strong><\/span>Now is All\u2019 is the official Qatar World Cup slogan. A message, perhaps, to focus on the present \u2014 and the on-field action that is about to begin. To move on from the past. If only it were that simple.<\/p>\n

It says a great deal that Qatar 2022 is considered by many to be the most controversial sports event in a very long time. After all, the competition for such a title is considerable.<\/p>\n

Over the past 20 years, China has twice played host to the Olympics. In the past decade, meanwhile, Russia has staged both the Winter Games and the 2018 football World Cup.<\/p>\n

Yet despite the scale of the human rights atrocities that both those countries stand accused of \u2014 and fears such events have been used to embolden their autocratic regimes \u2014 it is arguably Qatar that has provoked most dismay and anger during the 12 years since world governing body Fifa shocked the world by handing it the right to organise football\u2019s showpiece event.<\/p>\n

A key ally of the West \u2014 unlike China and Russia \u2014 and now reportedly the 10th biggest landowner in the UK, with Heathrow, Harrods and the Shard among its many British investments, Qatar insists the notoriety of its World Cup is unfair.<\/p>\n

The promise is this first Middle Eastern World Cup will be a spectacular, ground-breaking tournament that should be celebrated. An event that will welcome all, grow the sport, inspire youth, boost tourism, diversify the country\u2019s economy, and promote sustainability.<\/p>\n

And with regional tensions partly eased by the lifting of an economic blockade by Qatar\u2019s neighbours last year, there are hopes it could also prove a unifying force.<\/p>\n

But there is no denying the build-up to this tournament has been especially troubled.<\/p>\n

The bid and the fallout<\/b><\/p>\n

As soon as the since-disgraced former Fifa president Sepp Blatter announced Qatar\u2019s victory back in 2010, there was deep suspicion over how precisely this tiny desert state \u2014 with no history in the World Cup, and scorching summer temperatures \u2014 had won.<\/p>\n

Allegations of corruption, vote-swapping, and links to trade deals at the highest levels of government have always been denied by organisers and remain unproven.<\/p>\n

But it cannot be overlooked that of the 22 Fifa executive committee members who voted on that fateful day 12 years ago, with two other officials already suspended at the time after a newspaper expose that alleged the pair had asked for cash in return for World Cup votes, most have since been accused, banned or indicted over allegations of corruption and wrongdoing.<\/p>\n

As recently as 2020 \u2014 as part of the FBI\u2019s vast corruption probe into the governing body \u2014 US prosecutors accused three former senior Fifa officials of receiving bribes for voting in favour of Qatar.<\/p>\n

Qatar was cleared of corruption by Fifa several years ago, but many people have made their minds up, believing the country effectively bought the World Cup. Blatter himself has suggested the vote was partly the result of an arms deal between the country and France.<\/p>\n

There was then concern over how players and fans would cope with the extreme summer temperatures they were originally told they would face, followed by exasperation over the unprecedented upheaval the subsequent rescheduling of the event has caused the football calendar.<\/p>\n

There have been worries over player welfare as a result of squeezing it into the middle of the European season, and the security operation in an Islamic country with strict rules over alcohol, and no experience of policing anything on this scale.<\/p>\n

The environmental impact of the tournament is another issue. Fifa admits Qatar 2022 will leave a much bigger carbon footprint than any other World Cup, in one of the world\u2019s least sustainable countries. But experts are now suggesting emissions could be three times the official estimate, undermining claims this will be the first \u2018carbon neutral\u2019 World Cup.<\/p>\n

Organisers insist, however, that sustainability is at the heart of their tournament \u2014 pointing to the fact this World Cup is the most \u2018compact\u2019 ever, with it effectively taking place in one city, along with a fleet of electric buses, and an off-setting and carbon credits programme.<\/p>\n

There is also the legacy of the tournament\u2019s eight stadiums to consider. Seven new stadiums have been built. One, made from storage containers and named Stadium 974, will be dismantled at the end of the tournament and six others will be repurposed with some becoming hotels or community spaces.<\/p>\n

There is also uncertainty about the fan experience in Qatar. Apartments, hotel rooms, desert camping, villas, fan villages and even cabins on moored cruise ships have been made available. But some fans have complained of limited and expensive accommodation options.<\/p>\n

Organisers are making 30,000 extra rooms available, which they say is the equivalent of one million nights and will help provide 130,000 rooms in all. However, it remains unclear whether that will be enough to meet demand.<\/p>\n

Migrant worker deaths and LGBT fears<\/b><\/p>\n

Most damaging to the reputation of the event have been persistent fears over the human toll of building the infrastructure required in such a short period of time and in such a climate, along with discriminatory laws which prohibit homosexuality, and curtail women\u2019s freedoms through male guardianship rules.<\/p>\n

The authorities say there have been three \u2018work-related\u2019 deaths on actual stadium construction sites since work began in 2014 \u2014 and 37 more off-site fatalities that are not \u2018work related\u2019. The Supreme Committee vows worker welfare is a priority.<\/p>\n

Official figures show 15,000 non-Qataris died in the country between 2010 and 2019. The authorities insist that figure is commensurate with the size of the migrant workforce. But how many of those deaths were linked to work \u2014 and whether that work was linked to the World Cup \u2014 is both disputed, and unclear.<\/p>\n

Human rights campaigners say thousands of deaths are effectively unexplained because of a lack of investigation. Last year, the Guardian found 6,500 migrant workers from five countries \u2014 India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal \u2014 had died between 2010 and 2020, with 69 per cent of the deaths among Indian, Nepali and Bangladeshi workers attributed to natural causes.<\/p>\n

Regardless of the official statistics, or recent labour reforms, campaigners insist this tournament will always be blood-stained.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, organisers have always maintained all visitors will be welcome regardless of race, religion, gender or sexuality, but they have also said they expect their laws and culture to be respected, and many LGBT fans say they have not received the assurances over safety that they needed.<\/p>\n

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly was criticised for urging gay fans to show some \u201cflex and compromise\u201d, and since then the Sports Minister, Stuart Andrew, has \u201csought assurances\u201d from the Qatar authorities.<\/p>\n

A recent report by Human Rights Watch saying members of Qatar\u2019s LGBTQ+ community were detained and physically abused by the country\u2019s security services has done little to ease the tension.<\/p>\n

Nor did a World Cup ambassador\u2019s much-criticised comments that homosexuality is \u201cdamage in the mind\u201d. How all this can be reconciled with the promise of a \u2018World Cup for all\u2019 remains unclear.<\/p>\n

Can the World Cup bring social change?<\/b><\/p>\n

Qatar 2022 has certainly forced sport to consider to what extent such tournaments can bring about social change, whether compromise is incumbent on the host country \u2014 or those who visit \u2014 and the tensions that arise when global events expand into new territories.<\/p>\n

It is hard to argue that hosting major sports events in Russia and China, for instance, was a catalyst for change.<\/p>\n

Most agree amendments to Qatar\u2019s labour system in recent years \u2014 with more protection for workers, a minimum wage and the dismantling of the \u2018kafala\u2019 sponsorship system \u2014 have only happened because of the greater international scrutiny that has accompanied the World Cup.<\/p>\n

However, human rights groups also say these are yet to be fully implemented. And they are dismayed by the failure to set up a Migrant Worker Centre, and a compensation fund for the families of those killed or injured.<\/p>\n

Equally, while some politicians have said they will not travel to Qatar on principle, there are those who believe it is much better to take the World Cup to conservative Muslim countries like this and shine a light.<\/p>\n

But many see it as hypocritical of Fifa to state a commitment to non-discrimination in its statutes, while at the same time awarding the World Cup to hosts where it is against the law for some people to simply be themselves.<\/p>\n

Would it not be better, it is often asked, for equal rights to be a condition of staging such events \u2014 or at least considered? There was no mention of worker or human rights in Fifa\u2019s evaluation of the Qatar bid back in 2010, for example. Should demands over protections not have been put in place then?<\/p>\n

\u2018Focus on football\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n

It is a sign of the emotions that swirl around this event, and the divisions it has caused, that some of the game\u2019s highest-profile names have found themselves drawn into these debates.<\/p>\n

Former England defender Gary Neville, for instance, has been criticised for agreeing to commentate at the World Cup for a Qatar-owned TV network, while close friend David Beckham has drawn similar opprobrium \u2014 including Eric Cantona, another Manchester United great \u2014 for accepting a lucrative ambassadorial role for the event.<\/p>\n

Fifa, meanwhile, sparked an outcry by urging competing teams to \u201cfocus on football\u201d, rather than getting \u201cdragged into every ideological or political battle\u201d.<\/p>\n

With Russia already banned, there are also calls for the exclusion of Iran, whose drones are believed to be being used by Moscow to terrorise Ukrainian civilians, and which has launched a crackdown on protesters following the death of a young woman in the custody of the state\u2019s morality police.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, with a host of teams taking stands via videos, training tops and armbands, perhaps Fifa was worried about how and where to draw the line. No country is perfect, after all. And its stance received support from the football confederations of both Asia and South America.<\/p>\n

But as 10 European football associations suggested as they responded in a joint statement, in an era when players are increasingly keen to express their views on social and political issues, and human rights are regarded as universal and non-negotiable, Fifa\u2019s request that teams stay silent seems increasingly unrealistic.<\/p>\n

The hosts will be banking on the narrative shifting \u2014 as it always seems to do \u2014 once the action gets under way. But if this is an example of \u2018sportswashing\u2019 \u2014 an attempt to use sport to project a positive image of the country \u2014 is it backfiring?<\/p>\n

Over the past two years, much of the world\u2019s attention has been diverted \u2014 first by Covid, then the war in Ukraine. But in recent weeks, as the tournament has loomed into view, there has been a barrage of negative headlines, from reports of secret hacking operations to the revelation that fans were being paid to \u2018spy\u2019 on their friends – something that was denied by the tournament\u2019s organisers.<\/p>\n

The increasingly exasperated Qatari authorities have started to suggest their critics are not only hypocritical but perhaps even motivated by racism. The motto their bid team used in 2010 was \u2018Expect Amazing\u2019. Maybe they did not expect the constant scrutiny a winning vote would bring.<\/p>\n

And now, more than a decade on, as this World Cup in the desert finally gets under way, many will find it truly amazing if this event is ultimately remembered more for the football, than the ferocious dust-storm of controversy that has preceded it.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Eritrea<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Eritrea. Now is All\u2019 is the official Qatar World Cup slogan. A message, perhaps, to focus on the present \u2014 and the on-field action that is about to begin. To move on from the past. If only it were that simple. It says a great deal that Qatar 2022 is considered by many […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":11248,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[242,243,233],"class_list":["post-11249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-eritrea","tag-eritrea"],"yoast_head":"\nA desert World Cup blighted by a dust-storm of controversy - Eritrea<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Now is All\u2019 is the official Qatar World Cup slogan. 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