(Beirut) – Qatari authorities and FIFA should insist that a whistleblower at the heart of Qatar’s 2022 World Cup organization gets a fair trial as the case heads to Qatar’s final court of appeal, Human Rights Watch and FairSquare said today.
Analysis of the judgment of the appeal court, which upheld Abdullah Ibhais’ conviction on December 15, 2021, further reveals serious violations of his right to a fair trial, compounding the due process violations in his lower court trial.
“While it is Abdullah Ibhais who has been on trial, it is the Qatari justice system that should be scrutinized following such flawed judgments,” said Michael Page, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The Qatari justice system is responsible for protecting the rights not just of Ibhais, but of thousands of people connected with the World Cup.”
Ibhais’ family members have told Human Rights Watch and FairSquare that he plans to appeal his conviction for bribery at Qatar’s Court of Cassation on the basis that the court based his conviction on a tainted confession. Ibhais has previously said that he believes the case was in retaliation for his internal criticism of the handling of a migrant workers’ strike in Qatar in August 2019. The case was initiated after Qatar’s World Cup organizers alleged that Ibhais had harmed state security.
Ibhais was convicted on charges of “bribery,” “violation of the integrity of tenders and profits,” and “intentional damage to public funds.” The charges...
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