People calling for a boycott of the World Cup in Qatar are from a handful of countries that do not represent the rest of the world which is looking forward to the tournament, HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani has said.
"There is a lot of hypocrisy in these attacks, which ignore all that we have achieved," HE Sheikh Mohamed told Le Monde, as reported by agencies and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweets yesterday.
"They are being peddled by a very small number of people, in 10 countries at most, who are not at all representative of the rest of the world. It is frankly unfortunate. The reality is that the world is looking forward to this celebration. Over 97% of the tickets have been sold.
"Our ambition is to do things that bring people together and unite them. Sport is an important tool to achieve this goal. Our country is ready to host major sporting events. The World Cup is just one example of these.
"We are a very welcoming people, and the entire world is welcome in our country. All we ask is that fans respect our laws, just as we are expected to respect yours when we visit you. Our security forces will ensure a safe World Cup, and there will be no confrontations unless certain behaviours put people in danger. That is the only situation in which they would intervene.
"We hope this tournament will be a celebration, where everyone can discover our country and our culture. Our people are very hospitable and tolerant. If players want to express their opinion, they will be free to do so, we will never stop anyone from expressing themselves.
"We recognised the problems with workers' welfare. We even invited NGOs to come and observe our system. We have come a long way in reforming our legislation. Such reforms take time. This is true for any country; it is not unique to Qatar. Of course there are still flaws and we are determined to fix them," he said.
HE Sheikh Mohamed pointed out that Qatar gathers and publishes mortality figures every year, broken down by age, gender, cause of death and type of employment.
"Of course, the majority of these deaths are not work-related. They reflect the demographic structure of Qatar, which has a very diverse population. We are currently reviewing this data to get an accurate figure for work-related deaths. What is clear is that the figures cited by the media are false or misleading," he stated.
HE Sheikh Mohamed also said that although the stadiums are air conditioned, it will not be operational during matches due to Qatar's winter climate.
"Temperatures in Qatar in November-December are almost cooler than the temperatures in Europe during the summer. So, air conditioning will not be used," he added.
"There is a lot of hypocrisy in these attacks, which ignore all that we have achieved," HE Sheikh Mohamed told Le Monde, as reported by agencies and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweets yesterday.
"They are being peddled by a very small number of people, in 10 countries at most, who are not at all representative of the rest of the world. It is frankly unfortunate. The reality is that the world is looking forward to this celebration. Over 97% of the tickets have been sold.
"Our ambition is to do things that bring people together and unite them. Sport is an important tool to achieve this goal. Our country is ready to host major sporting events. The World Cup is just one example of these.
"We are a very welcoming people, and the entire world is welcome in our country. All we ask is that fans respect our laws, just as we are expected to respect yours when we visit you. Our security forces will ensure a safe World Cup, and there will be no confrontations unless certain behaviours put people in danger. That is the only situation in which they would intervene.
"We hope this tournament will be a celebration, where everyone can discover our country and our culture. Our people are very hospitable and tolerant. If players want to express their opinion, they will be free to do so, we will never stop anyone from expressing themselves.
"We recognised the problems with workers' welfare. We even invited NGOs to come and observe our system. We have come a long way in reforming our legislation. Such reforms take time. This is true for any country; it is not unique to Qatar. Of course there are still flaws and we are determined to fix them," he said.
HE Sheikh Mohamed pointed out that Qatar gathers and publishes mortality figures every year, broken down by age, gender, cause of death and type of employment.
"Of course, the majority of these deaths are not work-related. They reflect the demographic structure of Qatar, which has a very diverse population. We are currently reviewing this data to get an accurate figure for work-related deaths. What is clear is that the figures cited by the media are false or misleading," he stated.
HE Sheikh Mohamed also said that although the stadiums are air conditioned, it will not be operational during matches due to Qatar's winter climate.
"Temperatures in Qatar in November-December are almost cooler than the temperatures in Europe during the summer. So, air conditioning will not be used," he added.