Qatar defends new labour law as accused of abusing migrant workers
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Qatar defended its labour law reforms on Monday after coming under attack from a human rights group that said the changes won't end the abuse and exploitation faced by migrant workers in the country—and may even make it worse.
The Qatari government said a new law coming into effect on Tuesday will replace the controversial "kafala" or sponsorship system that forces foreign workers to seek their employer's consent to change jobs or leave the country. Rights groups said the kafala system has forced workers to live in squalor and toil under dangerous, sometimes fatal, conditions which amount to modern-day slavery.
Qatar is spending billions of dollars on infrastructure related to hosting the World Cup in 2022 and has imported hundreds of thousands of construction workers from countries such as India, Nepal and Bangladesh for building projects.
