Qatar human rights record
Qatar, Culture, 3/10/2001

A report by the US government on human rights describe the current various conditions in Qatar. Here are some excerpts from the report.

Qatar, an Arab state on the Persian Gulf, is a monarchy with no constitution or political parties. Qatar is governed by the ruling Al-Thani family through its head, the Amir. The Amir holds absolute power.

The Amir generally legislates after consultation with leading citizens, an arrangement institutionalized in an appointed advisory council that assists the Amir in formulating policy. In 1999 the Amir convened a constitutional committee to draft a permanent constitution that would provide for parliamentary elections. The committee has met regularly and is projected to complete its recommendations by 2002.

In March 1999, citizens were permitted to participate in the election of a national body, the Central Municipal Council, for the first time.

The judiciary is nominally independent, but most judges hold their positions at the Government's pleasure.

The Government generally respected its citizens' human rights in many areas, and there were improvements in freedom of expression.

however, its record was poor in areas, such as citizens' right to change the Government. Citizens do not have the right to change their government.

Despite female suffrage, in practice women's rights are restricted by social customs. Domestic servants are mistreated and sometimes abused. Noncitizens, who make up the majority of the residents of the country, face discrimination in the workplace.

The Government officially proscribes torture; however, there were one or two reports of alleged torture. There were unconfirmed allegations in previous years that some of the defendants in the trial of the 1996 coup plotters had been tortured while in police custody; government officials have denied the allegations

The law prohibits arbitrary arrest; however, the police have the discretion to arrest persons based on a low level of suspicion, and arbitrary detention in security cases remains a problem. The authorities generally charge suspects within 48 hours.

The accused is entitled to legal representation throughout this process. Suspects who are detained in security cases generally are afforded access to counsel; however, they may be detained indefinitely while under investigation. There were no known cases of incommunicado detention during the year.

In 1998 Ministry of Education official Abdulrahman Al-Nuaimi distributed a letter criticizing the Amir's decision to allow women to vote and run for office in the Municipal Council elections as well as other purportedly anti-Islamic actions. The Amir ordered the arrest of Abdulrahman Al-Nuaimi, and he remains in detention.

The judiciary is nominally independent; however, most judges are foreign nationals who hold residence permits granted by the civil authorities, and thus hold their positions at the Government's pleasure. The number of citizen judges is increasing.

There are two types of courts: The civil courts, which have jurisdiction in civil and commercial matters, and the Shari'a courts, which have jurisdiction in family and criminal cases. There are no permanent state security courts; however, although there have been no cases before these courts since the Amir assumed power, they have not been abolished formally by law and remain an option. Defendants tried by all courts have the right to appeal. The original case and the appeal in Shari'a courts are no longer heard by the same judge, and procedural loopholes that permitted this practice in the past are to be closed as part of a pending judicial reform package.

The legal system is biased in favor of citizens and the Government. A Muslim litigant may request the Shari'a courts to assume jurisdiction in commercial or civil cases. Non-Muslims are not allowed to bring suits as plaintiffs in the Shari'a courts; however, they may file suit in the civil courts. This practice prevents non-Muslim residents from obtaining full legal recourse.Trials in the civil courts are public, but in the Shari'a courts only the disputing parties, their relatives, associates, and witnesses are allowed in the courtroom. Lawyers do not play a formal role except to prepare litigants for their cases. Although non-Arabic speakers are provided with interpreters, foreigners are disadvantaged, especially in cases involving the performance of contracts. However, provided that the foreign defendant's sponsor or embassy agree, the defendant is entitled to legal representation throughout the trial and pretrial process.

Defendants appear before a judge for a preliminary hearing within 7 days of their arrest. Judges may extend pretrial detention for 1 week at a time to allow the authorities to conduct investigations. Lengthy pretrial detention is not known to occur.

There are no known political prisoners.

Traditional attitudes of respect for the sanctity of the home and the privacy of women provide a great deal of protection against arbitrary intrusion for most citizens and residents. A warrant must be obtained before police may search a residence or business, except in cases involving national security or emergencies. Search warrants are issued by judicial authorities. There were no reports of unauthorized searches of homes during the year.

The police and security forces are believed to monitor the telephone calls of suspected criminals, of those considered to be security risks, and of selected foreigners.

With prior permission, which is usually granted, citizens may marry foreigners of any nationality and apply for residence permits or citizenship for their spouses.

Although the Government reduced restrictions on freedom of speech and of the press in 1996 and permitted a noticeable expansion of press freedom, some restrictions still remain. The Government lifted formal censorship of the media in 1995, and since then the press has been essentially free of government interference.

There were no reports of instances of political censorship of foreign news media or broadcasts of foreign programs on local television over the past year. The Censorship Office in the Ministry of Information was abolished (together with the Ministry) in 1996.

Citizens enjoy broad freedom of speech. Various government ministers are regularly criticized on a popular radio talk show. A Ministry of Education official who wrote a letter in 1999 critical of the Amir's decision to allow women to vote and run for office in the Municipal Council elections remains in custody.

Customs officials screen imported print media, videocassettes, and other such items for pornography, but have stopped blocking the importation of non-Muslim religious items.

There is no legal provision for academic freedom. Most instructors at the University of Qatar exercise self-censorship.

The Government severely limits freedom of assembly. The Government generally does not allow political demonstrations.

The Government severely limits freedom of association. The Government does not allow political parties or membership in international professional organizations critical of the Government or of any other Arab government. Private social, sports, trade, professional, and cultural societies must be registered with the Government. Security forces monitor the activities of such groups.

There is no constitutional protection for freedom of religion. The state religion is Islam, as interpreted by the conservative Wahhabi order of the Sunni branch. The Government officially prohibits public worship by non-Muslims; however, it tolerates and protects services conducted privately with prior notification to the authorities. The Government allows Shiaa Muslims to practice their faith freely; however, community leaders have agreed to refrain from certain public practices, such as self-flagellation.

During the year, the Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox churches in effect received de facto official recognition. However, formal recognition apparently has not yet been granted. There reportedly is a verbal commitment by the Government to allow the churches to operate openly in a manner that apparently reflects de facto government recognition. For example, priests of the three churches have been asked to wear their clerical garb and may apply to be sponsors for visitor visas for other church representatives. In addition, church representatives may import reasonable amounts of Bibles and other religious literature for use by their congregations. In February the Government identified a parcel of land on which it plans to allow the construction of three churches, one each for the Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox communities. Officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Agriculture met with diplomats and representatives of the churches to discuss initial design plans. The Government recognizes and allows marriages between non-Muslims to be conducted by the Roman Catholic Church. Such progress for Christians is due, in large part, to their status as "people of the book" in that the Koran accords special status to Christians and Jews. The Government intends to permit Hindus and Buddhists neither to worship openly nor to establish temples because it claims that there is no Koranic justification for tolerance of polytheistic religions.

Non-Muslims may not proselytize, and conversion from Islam is theoretically a capital offense. However, there is no record of an execution for such a conversion since independence in 1971.

The Government formally prohibits the publication, importation, and distribution of Bibles and other non-Islamic religious literature. However, in practice individuals generally are not prevented from importing Bibles and other religious items for personal use.

There are no restrictions on internal travel. However, men may prevent female relatives from leaving the country by providing their names to immigration officers at ports of departure. Technically, women employed by the Government must obtain official permission to travel abroad when requesting leave, but it is not known to what extent this regulation is enforced. Citizens critical of the Government face restrictions on their right to travel abroad.All citizens have the right to return.

Citizens do not have the right to change their government or the political system peacefully. The political institutions combine the characteristics of a traditional Bedouin tribal state and a modern bureaucracy. Under the amended Provisional Constitution, the Amir must be chosen from and by the adult males of the Al-Thani family. There are no political parties or organized opposition groups. However, in 1999 citizens had the opportunity for the first time to choose officials for the Central Municipal Council in free and fair elections.

The Amir exercises most executive and legislative powers, including appointment of cabinet members. On March 8, 1999, citizens elected a 29-member Central Municipal Council. For the first time, men and women age 18 and older were permitted both to vote and to run as candidates. The Council is a nonpartisan body that addresses issues such as street repair, green space, trash collection, and public works projects. Its role is to advise the Minister of Municipalities and Agriculture. The Council cannot change policy on its own.

Women are underrepresented in government and politics. Women have the right to vote and run as candidates for the Central Municipal Council; none were elected to the Council in the 1999 elections.

The Government does not permit local human rights organizations to exist.However, Amnesty International and foreign embassies were invited to send observers to sessions of the public trial of those accused in the 1996 coup attempt. Foreign observers attended the trial sessions held during the year.

The law proscribes discrimination in the workplace; however, institutional, cultural, and legal discrimination based on gender, race, religion, social status, and disability exists. Women According to the Family Development Center, the country's leading nongovernmental organization (NGO) on women's issues, violence against women is not widespread.Some foreign domestic servants, especially those from South Asia and the Philippines, have been mistreated by employers. In most cases, the mistreatment involves late or nonpayment of wages , but also includes allegations of rape and physical abuse.

Women appear to receive equal pay for equal work; however, they often do not receive equal allowances.There is no independent women's rights organization, nor has the Government permitted the establishment of one.The Government demonstrates its commitment to children's rights through a well-funded, free public education system (elementary through university) and a complete medical protection program for the children of citizens.There is no societal pattern of abuse of children.

The Government has not enacted legislation or otherwise mandated provision of accessibility for the disabled, who also face social discrimination. The Government maintains a hospital and schools that provide high-quality, free services to the mentally and physically disabled.

Shiaa Muslims fill many positions in the bureaucracy and are prominent in business. However, they experience discrimination in employment in some sensitive areas, such as security.

The right of association is limited strictly, and all workers, including foreigners, are prohibited from forming labor unions. Despite this restriction, almost all workers have the right to strike after their case has been presented to the Labor Conciliation Board and ruled upon.The right to strike does not exist for government employees, domestic workers, or members of the employer's family. No worker in a public utility or health or security service may strike if such a strike would harm the public or lead to property damage. Strikes by expatriate workers are rare but do occur.

Workers are prohibited from engaging in collective bargaining. In general wages are set unilaterally by employers without government involvement. Local courts handle disputes between workers and employers.

child labor is rare. Education is compulsory for citizens through the age of 15. Very young children, usually of African or South Asian background, are used as jockeys in camel races. Little information is available on wages and working conditions for these children. The Government prohibits forced and bonded labor by children and generally enforces this prohibition effectively with respect to citizen children.

The Government has enacted regulations concerning worker safety and health, but enforcement, which is the responsibility of the Ministry of Energy and Industry, is lax.

The law prohibits trafficking in persons. On January 19, the Government arrested and repatriated several women from the former Soviet Union who were transported to the country to work as prostitutes.

Previous Stories:
  Qatar nominates a woman at the international committee   (2/1/2001)
  Qatar to allow demonstrators to WTO' s November meetings   (1/31/2001)
  Woman in Qatar gets the right to be lawyer for the first time   (2/17/2000)
  Qatar to have direct election for parliament   (11/10/1999)
  Qatar prohibits possession of unlicensed weapons   (7/30/1999)
  New permanent constitution for Qatar   (7/14/1999)
  On the municipal elections in Qatar   (3/9/1999)
  Qatar empower its men and women in first municipal elections today   (3/8/1999)
  Qatari women's municipal election, a new experience to the region   (2/5/1999)
  Permanent constitution to be enacted for Qatar   (11/17/1998)

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