Exploitative kafala system has been abolished but fears remain that forced labour on Gulf state’s 2022 World Cup infrastructure will continue

Workers building 2022 World Cup stadiums in Qatar will remain at risk of forced labour because of “meagre reforms” that “barely scratch the surface” of the Gulf state’s exploitation of migrant labour, Amnesty International UK has warned.

A law change that comes into effect on Tuesday, which Qatar says guarantees greater flexibility, freedom and protection for workers, will not “significantly change the exploitative relationship between employers and workers”, said the rights group.

The Gulf state is spending an estimated $200bn on new transport infrastructure, housing and sports facilities, including six stadiums designed by architects including Lord Foster and the late Zaha Hadid. Construction for the 2022 World Cup will peak in the coming two years, and Spanish champions FC Barcelona are due to play an exhibition match in Doha on Tuesday.

But Qatar’s kafala system, which is used to recruit the majority of its workforce from countries including India, Nepal and Sri Lanka, has prompted international outcry because it prevents workers from changing jobs or leaving the country without a permit. It is alleged to have resulted in modern-day slavery for some workers.

Qatar said on Monday it was abolishing kafala and that it was “enormously grateful to the millions of workers who have come to Qatar to build our nation’s infrastructure during this period of rapid change”.

But James Lynch, deputy director for global issues at Amnesty, said the new law “may get rid of the word ‘sponsorship’ but it leaves the same basic system intact”.

“It is good that Qatar has accepted that its laws were fuelling abuse but these inadequate changes will continue to leave workers at the mercy of exploitative bosses,” he said.

Amnesty has warned Fifa that it “cannot continue to remain shamefully ambivalent to the plight of workers in Qatar” and said FC Barcelona “should make clear to their hosts their desire to play in a human rights-friendly environment. Players and clubs cannot live in a bubble”.

Lynch, a former British diplomat in Doha, said that in practice employers would still be able to stop migrant workers from leaving the country and that, by making it easier for employers to confiscate workers’ passports, the new law could make the situation worse.

“The tragedy is that many workers think that this new law will be the end of their ordeal,” he said.

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In a statement, the government of Qatar said it “fundamentally rejects Amnesty International’s claims”.

Issa bin Saad al-Jafali al-Nuaimi, a minister of labour, said Qatar was replacing “the kafala system with a modernised contract-based system that safeguards worker rights and increases job flexibility”.

The ministry of administrative development, labour and social affairs said migrant workers would be free to leave the country if their employer allowed them and could appeal to a committee if their request was rejected. Workers who have completed fixed-term contracts would be free to move jobs, while those on rolling contracts would be free to move if they have completed five years of service. Employers who confiscate passports will be fined up to QAR25,000 (£5,400). However, Amnesty says the new law also makes holding passports legal if a worker requests it in writing and argues that this could be abused because “employers in Qatar enjoy a disproportionate level of influence and control over their employees”.

“For a migrant worker, the prospect of being tied to one employer for up to five years, unable to change employer to secure better conditions or escape poor treatment or abuse, is not greatly different from their current position and will not significantly reduce the risk of coercion of workers by their employers,” said Lynch.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) is due to make a judgment in March on whether the forced labour of migrant workers in Qatar’s construction industry warrants further investigation.

Amnesty is now calling on the Qatari authorities to abolish the exit permit system, prohibit all passport confiscation and ensure that workers can change jobs without requiring the permission of their employer.

Al-Nuaimi said: “We urge the international community not to draw any definitive conclusions until there has been time to see the new law in action.”