(Geneva) - Qatari authorities should immediately free a Jordanian former media manager for the 2022 men's World Cup, Abdullah Ibhais, after a United Nations committee determined that he has been arbitrarily detained for nearly three years, FairSquare, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch said today.
Ibhais, a former media manager for the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, Qatar's World Cup organizing committee, was arrested in 2019, months after voicing concerns over the treatment of migrant workers on World Cup construction projects. FIFA, the international football governing body, refused to publicly support calls for Ibhais to receive a fair trial after he said that he had been the subject of a malicious prosecution. He was arrested again in November 2021 and is serving a three-year sentence for bribery.
"FIFA washed its hands of Abdullah Ibhais a month before the Qatar World Cup despite clear evidence of a grossly unfair trial in a prosecution instigated by their Qatari partners," said Nick McGeehan, co-director of FairSquare, which has followed the case from the beginning. "This highly authoritative decision should compel them to act and publicly call for him to be freed and allowed to return to his young family."
In August 2019, after a large group of migrant workers residing in the al-Shahaniya labor camp went on strike to protest unpaid wages, Ibhais provided evidence to his colleagues in the Supreme Committee that some of the workers were involved in stadium construction for the 2022 World Cup. He advised the committee to publicly acknowledge the involvement of their workers and focus on remedying the situation.
"Lying is not Qatar's way, and should not be," he told a senior colleague in one message. It was just weeks later, in November 2019, that Qatar's World Cup organizers submitted a report to the police alleging that Ibhais had been engaged in bribery with the intent to harm state security.
Ibhais sought support from FIFA via its online whistleblowing platform in September 2021. In November 2021, FIFA stated that "any person deserves a trial that is fair" and said it would "continue to follow this matter closely," but made no commitment to supporting Ibhais beyond this.
The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention took up the case after Ibhais' family submitted a request in December 2022 contending that he had been imprisoned arbitrarily, on the basis of a demonstrably unfair trial.
In an official decision made public earlier in July 2024, the Working Group published a 13-page opinion on the case. It concluded that there was no legal basis for his detention, that his deprivation of liberty resulted from his exercise of his rights, and that there were multiple violations of his right to a fair trial, which included refusing to investigate his allegations of a coerced confession, denying him legal assistance, and denying him the right to access evidence.
The Qatari government was given two months to reply to the Working Group and to contest its serious allegations but did not reply. The Working Group called on the Qatari government to "release Mr. Ibhais and accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law."
The UN determination aligns with reporting by FairSquare, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International that the case raised grave concerns.
Ibhais, a father of two boys, is due for release in October 2024, but because the court also imposed a fine alongside his custodial sentence, this could be extended to April 2025 if he cannot pay the fine.
Human Rights Watch has stated that the prosecution presented no credible supporting evidence that he committed any crime. The court of appeal confirmed that the only evidence they relied on was his confession, which he retracted in court, saying it was obtained by threats and coercion.
Amnesty International has called the trial unfair and stated that allegations that Ibhais was threatened and coerced into making incriminating confessions should be independently and effectively investigated.
"The UN Working Group has emphatically confirmed what many of us have been saying for years: that it is long past time for Qatari authorities to release Abdullah Ibhais, quash his conviction and ensure his right to an effective remedy, including adequate compensation," said Aya Majzoub, deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International. "Everything about his ordeal, from the lack of due process and denial of family visits to the use of a forced confession, represents a travesty of justice that must immediately be brought to an end."
The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has the mandate to investigate cases of deprivation of liberty imposed arbitrarily or inconsistently with the international standards set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, or the international legal instruments accepted by the states concerned. The Working Group consists of five independent experts of balanced geographical representation who investigate individual cases and produce reports and opinions to fulfil the mandate.
"Qatari authorities' lack of response to the Working Group's determination about the violations of fair trial rights in Abdullah Ibhais' trial speaks volumes," said Minky Worden, director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch. "Ibhais faced retaliation for simply raising concerns on widespread and well-documented migrant worker abuses like wage delays. Qatari authorities should immediately release him and compensate him for the unjust persecution he faced."
