New Sponsorship Law to be issued in Qatar shortly
The Secretary General of National Human Rights Committee (NHRC), Simaikh Al Merri, revealed that a new law on sponsorship and residency would be issued shortly.
The new law will replace the Law No/3 of 1963, and the Law No.2 of 1984, which governs the exit permit and sponsorship, said Al Merri.
Al Merri mentioned that the recommendations for the new law has already been submitted, and will hopefully be taken into consideration.
"The workers rights and the employer-worker relationship is the main concern of the committee. Numerous complaints have been received by the committee, most of which are related to labour, and this is a major challenge faced by Qatar currently, due to its dependence on foreign workforce," said Al Merri.
NHRC has been successful in resolving about 80 percent of the complaints received. The rest which comprises about 20 percent of the cases, are required to fulfill the necessary legal conditions.
About 30 percent of the complaints received were from Qataris, on matters pertaining to housing for people with special needs, orphans, widows, divorcees and economically backward sections. There were also complaints related to healthcare, treatment, jobs, scholarships, education to study abroad. However, majority of the complaints were from expatriates, pertaining to issues such as termination of jobs, transfer of sponsorships, disputes with sponsors, detention and deportation.
Al Merri agreed that most of such cases are resolved amicably through co-ordination with the concerned authorities. He was of the opinion that such disputes do occur due to the nature of work in Qatar, but, the duty of the committee is to protect the rights of sponsors and workers, while also preserving the dignity of the concerned parties.
Al Merri asserted that the committee does not discriminate between he expatriates and the Qataris, while taking up human rights issues. However, the committee has the right to conduct surprise visits at labour camps and accommodations, without prior permission, due to the kind of political leadership in Qatar, said Al Merri.
Posted on 23/9/2007