(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Mohammed Osman / The Peninsula
A delegation from the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) led by Chairman Dr Ali bin Sumaikh Al Marri will begin from today a European tour to visit Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, the Netherlands and France to explain to international human rights organisations the consequences of the siege imposed by three Gulf countries on Qatar. The total number of complaints on violations of human rights has reached 2,451, he added.
Speaking at a press conference, Dr Al Marri said the committee will hire an international Swiss law firm in Geneva on Saturday to coordinate with a number of Qatari law firms, national courts in Europe and the NHRC to follow up on the cases of Qataris as well as citizens of the three countries who were affected by the siege and the consequent collective punishments and rights violations in line with the principle of force majeure. He added that the law firm will have choices to act and carry out its task.
NHRC will hold an international conference on July 24 and 25 in Doha to discuss the management of risks facing freedom of speech, protection of journalists and the right to access information, Dr Al Marri said, adding that a number of partners of the committees will cooperate with it to organize the conference, including the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ).
He said that 200 media and rights organisations will participate in the conference in addition to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, and UN special rapporteurs including, UN special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and other international human rights arms. The conference will discuss and study suggestions and topics related to protecting journalists and the obstacles they face.
Dr Al Marri said that the conference comes as the continuous violations of the freedom of speech and assaults on journalists, in addition to calls for shutting down satellite channels.
The NHRC Chairman said the claims made by the siege countries alleging that the siege and its consequences are not aimed at the Qatari people were untrue. He refuted them saying that families, students and businessmen are part of the population, hence all these sanctions are aimed at the Qatari population, residents of Qatar, and some citizens from siege countries. He added that the escalation threats made by the UAE ambassador to Moscow constitute explicit acknowledgment that such collective sanctions affect the people.
Asked about the GCC secretary general's silence on the matter, Dr. Al Marri said if he is absent from the political scene, he should not be absent from the humanitarian side of the issue.
Dr. Al Marri criticized the silence of the Arab League's Arab Charter on Human Rights, which includes independent experts, and the OIC's Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission, saying that they did not carry out their duties in this regard.
He added there are tens of expatriate domestic workers who were with their employees in Saudi Arabia working in farms, homes, looking after livestock have been banned from traveling to Qatar with their deported employers.
Majority of these domestic workers are from four Asian countries including Nepal, India, Bangladesh and , and they have been left without food or shelter or salary. Money transfer to these countries is not allowed so far he added. The NHRC has contacted their embassies here in Qatar to intervene to ease the living condition of these domestic helps in Saudi Arab, Bahrain and UAE.
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