Reacting to the growing pressure on FIFA from its own members, led by the Norwegian Football Association, for it to remedy human rights abuses connected to the 2022 football World Cup, Amnesty International’s Head of Economic and Social Justice Steve Cockburn said:
“With so many of Qatar’s migrant workers still lacking any compensation for abuses suffered ahead of the 2022 World Cup, it is encouraging to see FIFA members asking the organization to discuss remedies by putting it on the agenda at its upcoming congress.”
“Despite widespread concern among football associations, players and sponsors, FIFA has still failed to commit to ensuring that migrant workers, who suffered wage theft, illegal recruitment fees, injuries and even death connected to the hosting of the tournament in Qatar are compensated for their suffering.
“It is past time for FIFA to be held accountable for its human rights commitments and for it to respond with a clear action plan that will deliver justice for workers and their families.
“On the eve of the tournament FIFA announced the establishment of the 2022 World Cup Legacy Fund, however it remains unclear how this will be used, and whether any of it will be deployed to remediate abuses. For any meaningful legacy, workers and their families must benefit directly from this fund.
“FIFA has so far sought to pass the buck on its human rights responsibilities, putting its faith in Qatar’s own remediation mechanisms, which in their current form are incapable of delivering remedy on the scale required – not least to workers who have already left the country, or families who have lost loved ones.
“This is an opportunity for Gianni Infantino, FIFA’s president, to finally put things right for the workers that made the tournament possible.”
