| dc.description.abstract | The aim of this thesis is to analyse how the sponsorship system called kafala has developed throughout the last decade. Since Qatar in 2010 was elected host country for the football world cup in 2022, the state has received increasing attention on the international arena. This attention has been directed more and more towards migrant workers condition in the state, and how many suffer under the increasingly well renowned kafala system. The state’s population consists of more than 80 percent expatriate workers, and several international organizations and media agencies have criticised the state for violations of basic human rights, based on the treatment of many of these workers. The kafala system contains regulations that can supresses workers’ rights in many areas, which will be presented throughout the thesis. A study of Qatar’s migrant history combined with its economic history is done in effort to reveal how the system came to grasp such an incredible high number of migrant workers, and why they’re frequently excluded from the same rights as those who enjoy the title of citizens of Qatar. An overview of how the state historically have presented political reforms, and to what extent these have been followed up is also deemed necessary, for the sake of understanding the political basis of actual change in Qatar. Being pressured from almost every angle, Qatar have released several reforms of the labour law and the kafala system the last couple of years. Presented in this thesis is the state’s own review of these comprehensive reforms, and their extensive plans for the state’s future. In addition, there will be a study of how global pressure on changing the kafala system have increased over time since 2010, and how this has been interacted. An analysis of international actors’ comments on reform, and work to implement them is also presented. Finally, an overview on actual changes and implementation of new laws is revealed, alongside what remains to be done to silence critique on the global scene. In conclusion, factual changes can only be obtained by surveillance and implementation of new rules. | |
