With just over a month to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, controversy strikes again. International media banned from filming living conditions as part of stringent measures on media coverage.
According to a report by British newspaper, The Guardian, living conditions of migrant workers, government buildings, hospitals, places of worship, and universities are prohibited from filming by the local government. Capturing films near these institutions is also banned, along with recording on any privately owned property.
Is there trouble looming?
The new terms of filming permits issued by the Qatar Government are a major blow to leading broadcasters such as BBC and ITV. In a statement, a spokesperson for BBC has said that the broadcasting company has a “proven record of addressing topical issues as part of our coverage. This World Cup will be no different.” ITV has also stated that their “World Cup tournament coverage will focus on the football, but will not shy away from the controversies off the pitch.”
How it all started
Qatar has had a tainted history with foreign journalists over the past decade. In 2015, a group of BBC reporters was arrested in Doha while covering the migrant workers’ crisis. They spent two nights in prison.
In November 2021, two Norwegian journalists investigating the living conditions of migrant workers were arrested and detained for a reported 36 hours.
Human Rights Organisations Raise Concern
Chair to the Council of Europe, Lord George Foulkes, has said, “The number of tragic accidents continues to run into the hundreds. And enforcement of new rules isn’t sufficiently effective. Workers don’t have the right of assembly.”
Restrictions on where to film are likely to complicate investigative reports such as the mistreatment of migrant workers and very sensitive topics such as LGBTQ rights.
World football governing body, FIFA, has stated that they are “working with the supreme committee and relevant organizations in Qatar to ensure the best possible working conditions for media attending the tournament, as well as ensuring that broadcasters continue to report freely without any restrictions”.
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Where To Film
Qatari authorities are reported to have compiled a list of conditions that Broadcasters must ‘acknowledge and agree’ to when applying for filming permits to “capture photography and videography of the most popular locations around the country.” According to The Guardian, this statement on their website has been updated.
The report also states that Broadcasters will not produce content that may be “inappropriate or offensive to the Qatari culture, Islamic principles” or “may arouse ethnic or religious disturbances,” adding that if in violation, the outlets will be “held responsible for criminal and civil liability for any breach of the above-mentioned provisions when filming.”
Only three locations in Doha will be exempt from these restrictions. They include the Corniche waterfront promenade, the West Bay area, and the Towers area.
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