Tournament organizers confirmed that football fans "will not be able to buy or consume alcohol in Qatar’s streets and public spaces during the 2022 World Cup," according to Scott & Sheble of DOHA NEWS. Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy Secretary General Hassan Al Thawadi said that there would be no consumption of alcohol allowed "on the streets, squares and public places, and that is final." Al Thawadi emphasized that alcohol would "still be available to fans in certain places." However, availability during the tournament would be "commensurate with our customs and traditions." An SCDL spokesperson said that the committee's position had "never really changed" on alcohol and that it would be "available, but not readily available like in other countries." Al Thawadi said that he was "personally against the provision of alcohol in stadiums," but did not go as far as ruling out its sale at the venues. Budweiser "is a major FIFA sponsor." Referencing the pressure faced by other World Cup hosts, Al Thawadi said that Qatar had "not yet discussed the issue with FIFA." But he added that his country has "a very clear position" on alcohol. He also said it had "laws and traditions that are not to be compromised" (DOHA NEWS, 11/9). TIME's Dominique Rowe reported how the conservative Muslim country would deal with the question of alcohol at the tournament has "long been a point of conjecture, and the latest development is not going to sit well with many foreign fans who are already disgruntled" at FIFA's decision to move the World Cup to winter, to avoid Doha’s searing 113°F desert summers. While alcohol is not "strictly illegal" in Qatar, consumption and sales are restricted. Foreign nationals living in the country "can apply for licenses allowing them to drink, and hotels are permitted to serve alcoholic beverages" (TIME, 11/9).
HUMAN RIGHTS: In London, Peter Walker reported Amnesty Int'l has criticized a U.K. trade minister for traveling to Qatar to seek contracts for British companies ahead of the 2022 World Cup "without apparently highlighting the human rights abuses faced by migrant workers building venues for the event." Greg Hands, junior minister at the Department for Int'l Trade, was in Qatar on Wednesday for a conference in Doha called Sport is Great, billed as an opportunity "for UK companies to meet with key decision-makers and buyers actively looking to procure services to support projects in the run-up to the 2022 Fifa World Cup." Amnesty Int'l said that it was "extremely disappointing" that Hands had not spoken out about human rights ahead of the visit, saying Qatar's construction sector was "rife with abuse" (GUARDIAN, 11/9).
