When the State of Qatar decided to host the FIFA World Cup and won the right to host the mega sporting event in 2022, the country had and still has the realization of the magnitude of challenges and responsibilities that associate with hosting such a significant global event. Since the announcement of Qatar’s winning the bid to host the FIFA World Cup 2022, the accusations and allegations against it did not stop and included many aspects of life in the country sometimes under pretext of advocating workers’ rights and the protection of human rights at other occasions.
The incident of trespassing on private property by Norwegian journalists was the most recent strange act reflecting that pattern. The measures taken by the authorities concerned were based on a complaint submitted by owner of a private property that was infringed by journalists who filmed without his permission.
The commitment of the State of Qatar to protecting the rights of everyone, including journalists or others, does not need a testimony from anyone, as it is an established reality, and that the State has laws, regulations and customs that must be respected, and should not be violated under any pretext, and this was confirmed by Assistant Foreign Minister H E Lolwah bint Rashid Al Khater during her meeting yesterday via video conferencing with Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway to Qatar H E Sten Arne Rosnes.
H E Lolwah expressed Qatar’s disappointment with the announced reaction from the Norwegian side, noting that all official statements about the incident did not address the deliberate infringement of private property by journalists.
As the incident of encroachment by the two journalists on private property and filming in it took place without prior permission from the owner, he (owner) had the right to seek protection from unusual encroachment in Qatari society. Therefore, Al Khater stressed the need for the Norwegian embassy to play a role in informing its citizens, who visit the country, about the laws and regulations and the need to adhere to them.
Like any country of the world, trespassing is against Qatari law, of which journalist were fully aware of before entering the property. The GCO also made it clear on Wednesday that “these freedoms, however, do not override the rule of law. Qatar welcomes hundreds of international journalists and NGOs every year to report freely in the country. No journalist has ever been detained when Qatar’s laws have been respected.”
