Despite becoming part of two important Human Rights covenants, official announcing its adoption in the UN after the approval of its cabinet, Qatari citizens are deprived of independent press. Authorities in Qatar blocked the only independent news website, continues to ban a human rights advocate from traveling, who was defending prisoners of conscience, poet Mohamed Al Ajami, who was jailed for a poem he wrote. Another travel ban was issued against an Egyptian citizen for his opinions expressed on Facebook.
The following are examples of violations that took place in 2018
Blocking Doha News
Qatari authorities continued, for two years, to block the Doha News website, which is the only independent news website in Qatar. Doha News has been publishing news about Qatar for 8 years.
On 30 November 2016, Qatari authorities ordered Vodaphone and ooredoo, the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the country, to block the website inside Qatar.
Doha News is issued from the USA and is not registered in Qatar, yet, some journalists who are working for it do live in Qatar. A month before being blocked, the website published an opening demanding to amend cybercrimes law, to stop violations against freedom of speech and press freedom. The website is known for criticizing Qatari ministries.
Deleting Articles By the New York Times
Since April 2018 and till 1 August, Dar al Sharq, a partner for printing and distribution of The New York Times newspaper, deleted 12 articles on LGBTQ rights. The government responded that it had nothing to do with the deletion, it is the publisher’s responsibility.
The New York Times has been printing and distributing its international edition in Qatar since 2007. The publisher usually notes that the content was deleted and publishes a vacant paper.
The New York Times stated that 12 articles have been amended or deleted, adding that when an article is deleted “we ask the publisher to include a quotation with the headline which does is not subject to censorship and to put clear signs that the whole article is available online.”
Sharq company said it works in accordance with the Qatari law, therefore “we follow a general editorial policy that avoids any content that might be considered illegal, immoral or breaching local regulations or culture.”
A Travel Ban against An Egyptian who Criticized the Muslim Brotherhood
Nabil Mostafa Hussein, 59 years old, is an Egyptian citizen who used to work as an executive manager in a company subordinated by Sharq newspaper since December 2013. Hussein is under a travel ban in Qatar.
Hussein published a call on Facebook in June 2018 stating that he is under a travel ban and a semi-detention inside Qatar for two years because of his anti-Muslim Brotherhood political views, asserting that he is detained and banned from traveling for two years.
In his statement, he said that a number of Muslim Brotherhood members filed a complaint to the State Security against him in May 2016, for publishing posts on Facebook criticizing the group and the Qatari regime. He was summoned for investigation, then he was detained pending investigations.
Afterward he was released but he was fired from his job, moreover, the company for which he was working notified the National Qatari Bank to suspend his account.
Travel Ban Against Nabil Al Naeimi
Despite a court ruling lifting the travel ban issued by the Qatari public prosecutor against the prominent human rights defender, Dr. Naguib Al Naeimi, the authorities did not implement the court decision. On 28th April, Naeimi issued a statement saying “The public prosecutor in Qatar issued a travel ban against me, then he filed an arbitrary complaint against me… I then resorted to the judiciary and it lifted this ban, acquitting me from all false accusations alleged by the public prosecutor, moreover, the appeal court upheld the lift of the travel ban.”
He added “yet, the public prosecutor, with governmental approval, continued to breach constitution and law, despising human rights which they brag to hold international conferences to support it. They imposed a blockade on me that exceeds the blockade imposed on Qatar.”
It is worth mention that Security Administration of the Capital in Qatar notified Naeimi, on 26 June 2017, of renewing the travel ban imposed on him since the 7th of January 2017, despite that the appealing court canceled it.
Qatari authorities deprived Dr. Naeimi of travel without notifying him with reasons.
Dr. Naguib Al Naeimi, a human rights lawyer, who defended opinion prisoners in Qatar, including Mohamed al Ajami, who was sentenced to 25 years in 2011. The penalty was decreased to 15 years for writing a poem criticizing Qatari Emir. He was released five years later.
A Partial Victory for Foreign Labor in Qatar
On 4 September 2018, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad II, issued law no. 13 of 2018 to cancel the departure visa requested from certain foreign workers in order to acquire a working license in the country.
Numerous workers, who reached 2 million laborers, are working in the infrastructure projects in preparation for the 2022 World Cup.
Yet, the law did not include some sectors, like housemaids, who reached 174 thousand in Qatar and are not allowed to depart from the country except with permission from the employer.
A Step Forward
On 21 May 2018, Qatar submitted to the UN documents to join two fundamental human rights covenants after the approval of its cabinet on the 14 of March: “The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights”. This makes Qatar the third country in the Gulf region to join these covenants after Kuwait and Bahrain.
Despite this positive step, which may partially change political life in Qatar, it came following international pressure on Qatar because of the foreign labor crisis for those working in the infrastructure projects of 2022 World Cup. Moreover, Qatar seeks to improve its image, especially in the human rights file, because of the regional crisis after 4 Arab countries boycotted Qatar.
