Qatar’s foreign ministry summoned the German ambassador on Friday and handed him a protest note on the statements made by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser about the 2022 World Cup in his country. In an interview with ARD, the minister had previously criticized the human rights situation in Qatar and the fact that the country was awarded the World Cup. In the Federal Foreign Office, the appointment was confirmed on request.
From November 20, the World Cup will take place in the Gulf state, which is controversial both because of the date at the end of the year and because of human rights allegations against the country. Many workers are said to have died during the construction of the stadiums. During his visit to Qatar, Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke of progress in the treatment of employees, even if the conditions in Qatar did not correspond to those in Germany.
On October 31, Faeser wants to travel to Qatar together with the human rights commissioner of the federal government, Luise Amtsberg, the sports policy spokesman of the parliamentary groups in the Bundestag and a DFB delegation led by President Bernd Neuendorf. According to the Interior Ministry, she wants to meet with representatives of civil society and Interior Minister Sheikh al-Thani. On Thursday, when asked about the award of the World Cup to Qatar, she said on ARD: “There are criteria that must be adhered to and then it would be better not to award it to such states.”
“Kick-off Politics” is WELT’s daily news podcast. The most important topic analyzed by WELT editors and the dates of the day. Subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music or directly via RSS feed.
