The UN has called on Qatar to abolish the kafala system that ties migrant workers to their employers, amid trenchant criticism of the conditions endured by those working in a construction boom in the runup to the 2022 World Cup.
In a report (pdf) by the special rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, François Crépeau, the UN general assembly has added to the pressure on the Gulf state to fundamentally reform and properly enforce its labour laws.
Reports in the Guardian and by human rights groups have consistently warned of the exploitation and abuse of up to 1.2 million migrant workers, who are propping up a £123bn construction boom over the next four years.
The UN report found that exploitation was "frequent", confirming that migrants often worked without pay and "live in substandard conditions", and also called for changes to the recruitment process. Domestic workers, currently excluded from labour laws, and the majority of whom are women and girls, were "extremely vulnerable to violence and abuse" it said.
"The recruitment process for migrants needs to be further formalised in order to prevent exploitation, and legislation must be enforced in order to ensure their rights are respected. The kafala system, which links a work permit to a single employer, is a source of abuse and exploitation of migrants and should be abolished."
Qatari officials have promised recent visiting delegations of MEPs and human rights groups that they are planning to introduce reforms, but are likely to stop short of abolishing the kafala system.
A report commissioned by the Qataris from the law firm DLA Piper, following the Guardian’s original reports, is due to be published shortly.
Many workers arrive in Qatar heavily in debt, having paid huge sums to middlemen to secure contracts in the fast-growing Gulf state.
There are an estimated 1.2 million migrant workers in Qatar. Those from India make up 22% of the total, with a similar proportion from Pakistan. About 16% are from Nepal, 13% from Iran, 11% from the Philippines, 8% from Egypt and 8% from Sri Lanka.
Figures from the Nepalese and Indian embassies show that 36 workers died in Qatar in February, although not all of those death may have occurred on building sites. Data from the Indian embassy showed a further 26 Indian migrant workers died in March.
In February, the Guardian revealed that more than 500 Indian migrant workers had died in Qatar since January 2012 and more than 380 Nepalese had died in 2012 and 2013.
The Qatar World Cup organisers insist that by holding their contractors to higher standards, they can create momentum for change, and that improved rights for workers could be one legacy of hosting the tournament.
But the International Trade Union Confederation, which warns that 4,000 workers could die before a ball is kicked in 2022 if Qatar does nothing to reform its laws, called the new workers’ charter a "sham".
Last month, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) published a critical report and called on Qatar to make changes as international pressure builds.
The three-person ILO panel – comprising a government representative from China, an employee representative from the United Arab Emirates and a worker representative from Nepal – called on the Qatari government to ensure sufficient sanctions were imposed on the contractors and middlemen who exploit the kafala system.
Amid mounting concern, Fifa has belatedly urged Qatar to improve conditions for migrant workers, while at the same time claiming that it can do little to intervene.
"They have a problem and we know that, but this is not a question for Fifa,” said the governing body’s president, Sepp Blatter, in Hong Kong this week, in the face of protests against Qatar’s treatment of migrant workers. "It is one which the state of Qatar must handle as well as all the construction companies who are responsible for the workers."
The UN report said the hosting of the World Cup could act as a catalyst for change, provided Qatar extended a new workers’ charter introduced by the 2022 organising committee to all construction projects.
