More than 6,500 migrant workers have died in Qatar since it was chosen to host the 2022 World Cup

Since the appointment of Qatar as the location of the next Fifa World Cup, there have been all kinds of controversies and scandals. And one of the most recurrent is directly linked to the inhuman conditions in which luxurious stadium workers in which the competition matches will be played. As reported The Guardian, they are already more than 6,500 immigrants who have died since its designation as headquarters.

The English newspaper reported that the figure corresponds to people from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, according to government sources. This means that an average of 12 immigrant workers have died every week since December 2010, when Qatar was chosen to host the World Cup.

Since India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka they revealed that there was 5,927 deaths of workers over the period 2011-2020. For its part, Pakistani Embassy in Qatar reported other 824 deaths Pakistani workers over the past decade. And the total death toll would be considerably higher, as these figures do not include the deaths of workers from other countries that send large numbers of workers to Qatar, such as Philippines Yes Kenya. Neither are the lives lost in recent months.

Over the past 10 years, Qatar He has made the front page of an unprecedented number of works. In addition to build seven new stadiums, they built a new airport, roads, public transport systems and hotels, to ensure the smooth running of the World Cup from November 21 to December 18, 2022.

Among the main causes of sampling, the most common are known as “Natural deaths”, usually attributed to a acute heart or respiratory failure. According to data obtained by The Guardian, the 69% of deaths among Indian, Nepalese and Bangladeshi workers are classified as natural. Among the only Indians, the figure is 80%. Although the English newspaper explains that such classifications are done without autopsy and they do not provide a legitimate medical explanation. Behind the statistics lie countless stories of devastated families left without their main breadwinner, is now fighting for compensation and with few responses.

“We asked Qatar change its autopsy law to request forensic investigations into all sudden or unexplained deaths, and pass legislation requiring all death certificates to include a reference to a medically significant cause of death, ”said Hiba Zayadin, the organization’s Gulf investigator. Human Rights Watch. “There is a real lack of clarity and transparency around these deaths. Qatar must strengthen its security standards and occupational health, ”added May Romanos, of Amnesty International.

From the government of Qatar they say the number of deaths, which is not disputed, is proportional to the large number of immigrant workers involved in the project. “The death rate in these communities is within the expected range by the size and demographics of the population. However, every life lost is a tragedy and no effort is spared to try to avoid every death in our country ”, they communicated via a spokesperson, according to The Guardian.

The official added that all workers have access to free first-rate medical care and that there was a steady decline in death rate between the “Guest workers” over the past decade.

Deaths related to COVID-19[feminine, qui sont restés extrêmement faibles Qatar, n’ont pas eu d’incidence significative sur les chiffres, avec un peu plus de 250 morts parmi toutes les nationalités.

Pour sa part, quand Le gardien consultés le comité d’organisation à propos de ces décès, ils ont répondu: «Nous regrettons profondément toutes ces tragédies et nous enquêtons sur chaque incident pour nous assurer que les leçons sont apprises. Nous avons toujours maintenu la transparence sur cette question et nous contestons les affirmations inexactes sur le nombre de travailleurs décédés dans nos projets ».

PLUS SUR CE SUJET: