NHRC ChairMaryam bint Abdullah Al Attiyah with UN Under-Secretary-General for Policy Guy Ryder in New York.
New York: Chairperson of the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) H E Maryam bint Abdullah Al Attiyah met with Under-Secretary-General for Policy Guy Ryder and UN Women Deputy Executive Director for UN Coordination, Partnerships, Resources and Sustainability Moez Doraid.
During the two meetings held at the United Nations in New York, Al Attiyah presented an overview of the NHRC as an independent national institution that enjoys “A status”, the highest status that can be granted to a national institution in the world in accordance with achieving full compliance with the Paris Principles in terms of financial and administrative independence and transparency.
Al Attiyah explained the committee’s role in protecting and promoting human rights and its contributions to the legislative development movement in Qatar in line with its obligations in international agreements and human rights charters.
Al Attiyah also shed light on some of the experiences learned from Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in terms of human rights and its impact on the State and its legislative and procedural system such as setting special standards to protect workers in World Cup facilities and developing an occupational health and safety plan in cooperation with the International Labour Organisation.
She also noted the NHRC’s role in holding the first national forum entitled the role of law enforcement agencies in protecting human rights during the World Cup as well as the role of the NHRC in following up and monitoring respect for human rights during the tournament and the continued development of the human rights achievements that have been achieved after the tournament.
In her meeting with Guy Ryder, Al Attiyah called for strengthening cooperation in the areas of developing and implementing capacity-building programmes to enhance the capabilities of individuals, organizations and institutions in Qatar in human rights. This may include training workshops, seminars and knowledge exchange initiatives in addition to developing and implementing education and training programs in the field of human rights either in Qatar or internationally.
During the meeting, the NHRC Chairperson highlighted the most prominent achievements related to workers’ rights in Qatar and the legislative developments and their well-known applications in abolishing sponsorship system and exit permits, creating wage protection system, issuing law on minimum wage, establishing labour dispute resolution committee, and establishing workers’ insurance fund.
With regard to persons with disabilities, she stressed the great importance attached by NHRC to the rights of persons with disabilities, highlighting the most prominent recommendations of the 2nd National Forum for Human Rights about “Human rights of persons with disabilities: current reality and prospects for protection and empowerment.”, and pointing out that the Forum’s most distinguishing feature was the broad participation of people with disabilities. She added that the UN Under-Secretary-General for Policy praised Qatar’s achievements and legislative advancements when it comes to its labour law.
During her meeting with Moez Doraid, Al Attiyah expressed her appreciation for the great role played by UN Women in its efforts to empower women around the world, calling for the establishment of a bridge partnership between NHRC and UN Women to promote Women’s rights nationally, regionally, and internationally.
Al Attiyah said that NHRC and UN Women could launch joint advocacy campaigns and initiatives promoting women’s rights, nationally and internationally, in addition to strengthening the capacities of local institutions, civil society organisations and individuals in Qatar in areas related to equality, including providing training on women’s rights, preventing gender-based violence, empowering women economically, as well as collaborating on research projects related to women in Qatar.
Al Attiyah explained that the Committee sets its priorities by selecting basic and important issues on women’s rights, such as preventing administrative discrimination practices. She said that women make up more than half of the workforce in Qatar, with their share in public sector jobs in 2019 reaching 69.3 percent, and 56.6 percent in the private sector.
Moreover, Qatar has achieved equality in opportunities at primary and secondary education, with females outnumbering males in university and higher education enrolment.
