The government of Qatar has failed to address the issues of migrant workers´ rights despite international outcry and incessant pressure from various international human rights groups, said Amnesty International (AI) on Wednesday. 

 

Releasing a report entitled ´No Extra Time´, on Wednesday, the AI even slammed the Qatari government for not implementing the promises into action and providing justice to migrant workers. “The Qatari government has failed to reform the systems that facilitate the abuse of migrant workers and has made only minimal progress on a number of plans it announced in May 2014,” reads a press statement issued by Amnesty International Nepal on Wednesday. 

 

After several reports of abuse of migrant workers´ rights and pressure from international community, the government of Qatar had appointed DLA Piper, an international law firm, to investigate allegations of abuse of migrant workers´ rights, in May, 2014. The law firm made a series of recommendations to the government in a wide ranging report that also criticized the sponsorship system.

 

AI has been repeatedly urging the Qatar government to cancel the exit-permit, which it says is a blatant violation of migrants´ rights that gives employers control over migrant workers´ movements and can lead to exploited migrants being trapped and unable to leave the country. It has also consistently called for reform of the sponsorship or “kafala” system- which ties workers to their employers and encourages forced labour.