Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and sports journalists« associations have signed a document »calling on the Qatari authorities to respect journalists« covering the World Cup. The signatories call on the Qatari authorities »to refrain from blocking« or »suspending restrictions on the taking of images of certain sites« and ask Fifa »to ensure that the commitments it has made are respected". The text also has the endorsement of the Union of Sports Journalists in France (UJSF) and its Swedish counterpart, Svenska Sportjournalistförbundet.
The testimonies of «sports journalists, concerned, who have been subjected to arrest, violence, or even arbitrary detention, are multiplying», as the World Cup starts today (it will last until 18 December).
They mention «the invitation to an American journalist to delete his photos for the media accreditation centre» or even the case of «a Danish journalist» «who was interrupted by security agents while reporting live and prevented from continuing filming on a public street».
Journalists have been targeted by hackers hired to protect Qatar's reputation in the context of the 2022 World Cup, the British newspaper Sunday Times recently revealed.
Lawyers for the Qatari government, interviewed by the newspaper, denied Qatar's involvement in this massive hacking operation.
The host country of the 2022 World Cup is at the centre of an intense polemic on human rights, the environment or even discrimination.
Β. Christi
