World Cup 2022: what the Qatari media respond to criticism from Europe

Europe 1 with AFP 6:16 p.m., October 10, 2022

Qatari media, closely linked to the government, have in recent days denounced criticism, mainly European, of Doha's human rights record ahead of the 2022 World Cup. Since the awarding of the organization of the World Cup to Doha, the wealthy Gulf emirate is facing a lot of criticism aimed in particular at its environmental footprint, the place of women and LGBT+ minorities and the treatment of migrant workers.

"The European press leads a furious attack" against the World Cup

On Monday, to illustrate these criticisms, the Arabic-language daily

published a satirical drawing representing the World Cup trophy surrounded by arrows.

In an editorial,

newspaper said the European press had been waging "a furious attack on the World Cup in Qatar since it was announced in December 2010".

"Let's stop the smear campaigns and cooperate for a World Cup that unites people," the daily added.

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newspaper

also published an interview with former Algerian football star Lakhdar Belloumi who assured that "malicious campaigns will not discourage Qatar".

In an editorial, the newspaper denounced Sunday the "lies, rumors and calumnies" written in Europe on the preparations in Qatar.

There is, according to this text, a "systematic conspiracy" of the media of many European countries on the subject of the rights of migrant workers, "while these media have forgotten the miserable conditions experienced by workers in Europe".

"We find that these miserable media create these kinds of stories every time a country outside the Old Continent hosts the tournament,"

concludes .

Local authorities challenge human rights failures

In an op-ed for the English news site Doha News, artist Ghada Al-Khater writes: "Forgive me for doubting the intentions of European countries which over the past decade have watched migrants fleeing conflict , devastation and poverty drown at the bottom of the Mediterranean".

As the tournament, which begins on November 20 and will draw more than a million spectators to the emirate, approaches, international NGOs and European media are pointing to Qatar's human rights shortcomings, which the Qatari authorities dispute .

In protest, some French cities will not install a giant screen to broadcast matches in public.

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Qatar's emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, lamented attacks on Arab countries last month at the UN General Assembly, but said all supporters would be welcome "without discrimination".