Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) Brussels morning asked the Belgium government for comments on the new ILO report which praised Qatar migrant workers’ reforms contrary to the Media reports published by the UK media.
Experts told Brussels Morning that “attacks” on Qatar are extraordinary and much more what Russia and China were exposed to when they organized World Cup and the Olympics.
Qatar admitted from the early beginning of 2010 that they had major issues and started fixing their system which now yielded major changes such as removing the sponsorship system and ensuring minimum wage.
Nicolas Fierens Gevaert, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belgium, said to Brussels Morning that the situation of migrant workers in Qatar is an issue to which Belgium and the European Union attach particular importance and which they systematically address with their Qatari interlocutors.
“This issue is of a structural nature and scope that goes beyond the context of the World Cup; the challenge is to improve the situation of migrant workers in Qatar in a sustainable and lasting way. The question is also how and to what extent Belgium and its partners can contribute to the sustainability of the reforms in Qatar“, the spokesperson added.
Mr. Fierens Gevaert pointed out that Belgium recognizes the efforts made by Qatar in recent years to improve the situation of migrant workers, such as the abolition of the Kafala system, the introduction of a minimum wage, the ban on working during the hottest hours, the abolition of preliminary approval to change jobs, the creation in some companies of “joint committees” for social consultation, etc.
On the other hand, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belgium asserted that his country insisted on the need to deepen these reforms, highlighting that the recommendations of the ILO in its November 2021 report give some examples of what this could be.
“The last two ILO reports, issued on 1st November, confirm our assessment regarding the situation of migrant workers in Qatar. Substantial efforts have been made by Qatar to improve the working and living conditions for workers, although additional efforts are needed. The reforms decided in Qatar are thus an objective fact. It is now important to support their full and effective implementation in a sustainable manner after the World Cup. In the framework of its critical and constructive dialogue with the Qatari authorities, Belgium is ready to contribute to this objective“ affirmed Nicolas Fierens Gevaert.
Concerning the boycott calls, the spokesperson clearly referred to earlier comments of Minister Lahbib that she remains in favor of a nuanced approach to this issue and Belgium remains firm on respect for human rights and working conditions, but we must also support Qatar’s efforts to improve these working conditions.
