The head of state has published a tweet at halftime of the France-Danemark match in which he invites to “preserve the spirit of sport which must remain a space for rapprochement of peoples, around universal values” .
mo12345lemonde with AFP
“This football world cup, the first organized in the Arab world, testifies to concrete changes that are at work. Qatar has embarked on this path and must continue. It can count on our support” , tweeted the head of state at the half-time of the France-Denmark match, Saturday, November 26, while the organizing country of the 2022 World Cup is at the heart of criticism on human rights issues, of ecology or for its policy of penalizing homosexuality.
This football world cup, the first organized in the Arab world, testifies to concrete changes that … https://t.co/hitptp3cnc
Severely criticized for the dead, accidents and wages not paid to foreign workers involved in the construction of the World Cup infrastructure, Qatar has adopted reforms to improve safety and punish recalcitrant employers. The authorities also paid hundreds of millions of euros to compensate for unpaid wages. But for human rights associations, these reforms are late and insufficient.
“Universal values”
On November 17, on the eve of the start of the competition, Mr. Macron considered that we should not “politicize sport”. “In a world confronted with a succession of crises, we must preserve the spirit of sport which must remain a space for rapprochement of peoples, around universal values”, wrote again, Saturday evening, the President of the Republic, On Twitter .
The start of the competition was however marked by political gestures on the grounds and outside. In particular, the players of the German national team put their hands on their mouths during their first match, to testify their disagreement with the rules set by FIFA which prohibited the wearing of a brassard symbolizing the fight against Discrimination.