Qatar's Foreign Minister Calls Germany Double Standards On Criticism Of Human Rights And The World Cup

Illustration of Qatar's 2022 World Cup. (Twitter/@FIFAWorld22Live)

JAKARTA - Qatar's foreign minister called Germany "double standards" on criticism of the 2022 World Cup hosts' human rights record, defending the summons of the German ambassador, in a newspaper interview published on Monday.

Qatar has faced strong criticism from human rights groups for its treatment of migrant workers, who along with other foreigners make up the bulk of the country's population.

Qatar's foreign ministry last month summoned the German ambassador over comments by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser who said a country's human rights record should be taken into account when selecting them to host the World Cup.

"On the one hand, the German population is misinformed by government politicians. On the other hand, the government has no problem with us in terms of energy or investment partnerships," Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper, in an interview, reported Reuters 7 November.

"We are upset by double standards," he said, adding that Qatar had faced a systematic campaign against it in the 12 years since being chosen to host the World Cup, which he said no other country had faced.

"It is ironic when this tone hits countries in Europe that call themselves liberal democracies. It sounds very arrogant, frankly, and very racist," he criticized the newspaper.

Al-Thani described the call for security guarantees for minorities, which Faeser had asked as a precondition before agreeing to attend the 2022 World Cup as redundant.

He said German politicians should focus more on hate crimes that occur within their own country's borders.