UN agency calls for release of Qatar whistleblower

(Geneva)- Qatar The authorities should immediately release Jordan Former Media Manager for the 2022 Men’s World Cup, Abdullah IbaisFair Place, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today that a UN committee found that he had been arbitrarily detained for nearly three years.

Ibrahimovic, who worked as media manager for the Qatar World Cup organizing committee’s Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, was arrested in 2019 months after he raised concerns about the treatment of migrant workers on World Cup construction projects. FIFA, football’s international governing body, has refused to publicly support calls for Ibrahimovic to receive a fair trial as he says he was maliciously prosecuted. In November 2021, he was arrested again and sentenced to three years in prison for bribery.

“Despite clear evidence that the trial of Abdullah Ibrahim, led by a prosecution partner in Qatar, was grossly unfair, FIFA abandoned the trial of Ibrahim just one month before the World Cup in Qatar,” said Nick McGeehan, co-director of Fair Place, which has been following the case from the beginning. “This highly authoritative decision should compel them to act and publicly call for his release and return to his young family.”

In August 2019, after a large number of migrant workers housed in the Shahaniya labour camp went on strike to protest against unpaid wages, Ibrahim presented evidence to his colleagues in the Supreme Committee that some of these workers were involved in the construction of stadiums for the 2022 World Cup. He suggested that the committee publicly acknowledge the involvement of its workers and focus on correcting the situation.

“Lying is not the Qatari way and it shouldn’t be,” he told a senior colleague in one message. Weeks later, in November 2019, Qatar World Cup organizers filed a police report accusing Ibrahimovic of bribery with intent to endanger national security.

In September 2021, Ibais sought support through FIFA’s online reporting platform. In November 2021, FIFA statement “No one deserves a fair trial,” he said, adding it would “continue to monitor this matter closely” but did not commit to further support for Ibaez.

In December 2022, Ibais’ family filed a request alleging that Ibais was arbitrarily imprisoned on the basis of a manifestly unfair trial, following which the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention took up the case.

in a Formal decision As early as July 2024, the Working Group published a 13-page opinion on the case. The opinion found that his detention had no legal basis, that his deprivation of liberty was the result of the exercise of his rights, and that his right to a fair trial had been violated on multiple occasions, including the refusal to investigate his allegations of forced confession, the refusal to provide him with legal aid, and the denial of his right to access evidence.

The Qatari government has two months to respond to the Working Group and dispute its serious allegations, but has not done so. The Working Group calls on the Qatari government to “release Mr. Ibuhaisi and grant him enforceable rights to compensation and other reparations under international law.”

The UN’s decision is consistent with reports from: Fair Square, Human Rights Watchand Amnesty International The case raises serious concerns.

Ibaisi, a father of two boys, was due to be released in October 2024, but because the court imposed a fine along with his prison sentence, his sentence could be extended to April 2025 if he is unable to pay the fine.

Human Rights Watch statement The prosecution did not present any credible evidence that he had committed the crime. The Court of Appeal confirmed that the only evidence they relied on was his confession, but he retracted it in court, saying it was obtained through threats and coercion.

Amnesty International calls for trial unfair It also said that allegations that Ibaisi was threatened and coerced into making a guilty confession should be investigated independently and effectively.

“The UN Working Group has powerfully confirmed what we have been saying for years: it is long past time for the Qatari authorities to release Abdullah Ibais, quash his conviction and ensure his right to an effective remedy, including adequate compensation,” said Aya Majzoub, Amnesty International’s deputy Middle East and North Africa director. “Everything he has been subjected to, from the lack of due process and the denial of family visitation to the use of forced confessions, represents a travesty of justice and must end immediately.”

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is mandated to investigate cases of arbitrary deprivation of liberty or deprivation of liberty in violation of international standards set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or in international legal instruments accepted by the State concerned. The Working Group is composed of five independent experts with balanced geographical representation who investigate individual cases and prepare reports and opinions in order to fulfill their mandate.

“The lack of response by the Qatari authorities to the Working Group’s finding that fair trial rights were violated in Abdullah Ibais’ case speaks volumes,” Minky WardenDirector of Global Initiatives at Human Rights Watch. “Ibhais has been retaliated against simply for expressing concern about widespread abuses against migrant workers, such as unpaid wages. Qatari authorities should immediately release him and compensate him for the unjust persecution he has endured.”