FNV union says football body should have
demanded abolition of kafala migrant labour system ahead of 2022 World Cup
By Owen Gibson
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Construction workers line up for buses
back to their accommodation camp in
Doha, Qatar. Photograph: EPA |
FIFA is facing legal action in the Swiss
courts over its alleged complicity in the mistreatment of migrant workers in
Qatar ahead of the 2022 World Cup, the Guardian can reveal.
Since Fifa voted in December 2010 to hold the
World Cup in the tiny Gulf state, Qatar has faced intense criticism over the
plight of an army of migrant workers that soared to 1.7 million as the country
embarked on a construction spree to build the stadiums and infrastructure
required.
But the legal challenge, brought by the
Netherlands Trade Union Confederation (FNV) on behalf of a Bangladeshi migrant
worker called Nadim Sharaful Alam, is the first time that Fifa has been made
directly accountable in the Swiss courts.
In a letter sent to world football’s
governing body, which almost collapsed in the wake of a 2015 corruption
scandal, on Sunday night lawyers acting for FNV and Alam have given Fifa’s new
president, Gianni Infantino, three weeks to accept its complicity and pay
damages before going to court.
While the damages sought by Alam are
relatively modest, if the action is successful it could open the door for
hundreds of thousands of migrant workers to make similar claims that could run
into tens of millions of pounds.
Fifa has consistently argued that while it
does not have responsibility for wider “societal problems” in host countries,
it is doing what it can to make the Qatar World Cup a catalyst for change by
engaging with the Qatar government to ensure satisfactory conditions for
workers on World Cup stadium sites.
But critics including major NGOs and trade
unions have argued that Fifa should do more to use its influence to push for
improvement for workers on related infrastructure projects and for wider
changes to the kafala system that has been compared to a form of modern
slavery.
In a letter to Infantino accompanying a draft
writ that could be lodged in the Swiss courts, lawyers call on Fifa to
“acknowledge that it has acted wrongfully by awarding the World Cup 2022 to
Qatar without demanding the assurance that Qatar observes fundamental human and
labour rights vis-à-vis migrant construction workers whose work is related to
the 2022 World Cup”.
It says that Fifa should have demanded the
abolition of the kafala system, the guarantee of the right of migrant workers
to change jobs, freedom for them to leave Qatar if and when they chose to and
the right to unionise.
The letter adds: “Alternatively Fifa should
acknowledge that it should not have awarded the World Cup 2022 to Qatar.”
Infantino is also called upon to acknowledge
that Fifa violated the rights of Alam, a Bangladeshi who worked in Qatar as an
unskilled labourer between 2014 and 2016, and asks for compensation for
material damages of 5,390.53 Swiss francs and “just satisfaction to the amount
of CHF 5,000 for the hardships he endured”.
Under the heading “wrongful acts committed by
Fifa”, the summary of the writ says that “Swiss law, but also Qatari law and
international law oblige Fifa to respect fundamental human rights and refrain
from wrongdoing”.
It adds: “Fifa’s legal responsibility arose
at two distinctive moments in time: (1) when it allowed Qatar to participate in
the bidding contest for the World Cup 2022 and subsequently selected Qatar as
host of the 2022 World Cup; and (2) when it failed and still is failing to take
responsibility for the present fate of the migrant workers by not demanding
Qatar to reform its labour system.”
While the initial focus following the
controversial decision was on possible health problems for players and fans
associated with playing the tournament in temperatures of 45C and the
corruption allegations that surrounded the vote, a series of damning reports
from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and a Guardian investigation led
to a global outcry.
The Qatari government commissioned law firm
DLA Piper to write a report but more than two years after it was made public in
May 2014 its recommendations have not yet been implemented in full and no
progress has been made on cataloguing how many migrant workers are killed or
injured while working in the country.
Some practical changes have been made, such
as the requirement to pay salaries electronically, and new laws proposed, but
campaigners believe they will do little to address the underlying structural
issues and represent a rebranding rather than a repealing of the kafala system.
The 2022 organising committee has built much
improved accommodation for those working directly on stadium developments, but
for the vast majority of workers on related infrastructure projects conditions
remain abject.
Critics also complain that too little is
being done to clamp down on unscrupulous recruitment agencies in countries such
as Nepal, India and Bangladesh that charge large sums for workers to find jobs
in Qatar and then demand repayment.
As recently as June Qatar was accused of
“appalling treatment” of migrant workers by a critical Amnesty International
report.
Fifa, which earlier this year published a
report from human rights expert Prof John Ruggie of Harvard University and
promised to implement his recommendations, has continually claimed that it
can’t be held responsible for working conditions but hopes to use the World Cup
to bring about change. It has also attempted to suggest that its responsibility
only extends as far as the World Cup stadiums.
But the lawsuit argues that the World Cup has
“vastly accelerated Qatar’s construction development efforts”, pointing to new
metro lines, the new city of Lusail that will house the stadium set to host the
final and new highway and bridge projects.
“The World Cup 2022 is the motivating force
behind all these vast infrastructural projects, all scheduled to be completed
before the tournament, on time for the influx of tourists expected,” it says.
The writ further argues that Fifa has the
required mechanisms to force host countries to comply with whatever conditions
it sets down.
“In order to host the World Cup, Qatar had to
take part in a bidding procedure. Fifa defines the terms for participation in
the bidding procedure and is able to create legally binding obligations of the
host state vis-à-vis Fifa,” it said.
Prof Liesbeth Zegveld, an attorney for Dutch
human rights lawyers Prakken d’Oliveira, is bringing the case alongside David
Huesmann of Swiss law firm Shadenanwaelte.
“Fifa may claim that it can do nothing but
that is not the case. The union would rather see the World Cup stay in Qatar
and for the country to meet its responsibilities to migrant workers but Fifa
could still move the World Cup if it wanted to,” said Zegveld.
“We met with senior Qatari officials and they
said they needed time to introduce new laws. They may say they need time but in
reality they are just buying time. In any case, the new laws do too little to
change the fundamental problems facing migrant workers and will mean little
unless they are enforced.”
A spokesperson for FNV, the biggest union in
the Netherlands with 1.1 million members, said that while there had been some
progress towards improving conditions, things were moving far too slowly.
“The FNV takes the view that by awarding the
World Cup to Qatar, the suffering of migrants increases. In any case, in
situations like these, the number of migrant workers will increase. The FNV
holds the Fifa responsible for this and wants to address the issue by means of
this lawsuit,” the spokesperson said.
“Of course there have been improvements. Some
of the migrant workers have better housing. But it is moving too slowly for the
migrant workers themselves. It is really going too slowly. Migrant workers die
under suspicious circumstances every year,” added the spokesperson.
“The world must do everything that is
possible in order to change this situation. And if you expect the world to do
this, you have to begin by taking responsibility yourself. That is why FNV is
taking the matter to its source, and is holding the Fifa responsible.”
The new Fifa council, rebranded from the old
disgraced executive committee and expanded to 36 members, meets in Zurich this
week. Since Infantino took over from Sepp Blatter in February, he has insisted
that Fifa is turning over a new leaf.
“While Fifa cannot and indeed does not have
the responsibility to solve all the societal problems in a host country of a
Fifa World Cup, Fifa has taken concrete action and is fully committed to do its
utmost to ensure that human rights are respected on all Fifa World Cup sites
and operations and services directly related to the Fifa World Cup,” said
Fifa’s head of sustainability, Federico Addiechi, in June in response to the
critical Amnesty International report.
