Gay Australian footballer 'scared' to play in Qatar

Yahoo – AFP, 8 November 2021 

Australian footballer Josh Cavallo has said he would be scared to play in
Qatar (AFP/Handout)

Australian footballer Josh Cavallo, who came out as gay last month, has revealed he would be scared to play at the upcoming World Cup in Qatar because of the country's criminalisation of homosexuality. 

The 21-year-old, who plays for Adelaide United in Australia's A-League, is the only known gay footballer playing in a top-flight men's league. 

His announcement last month won plaudits from around the world, including from legendary Swedish forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic and US talk show host Ellen DeGeneres. 

But the midfielder -- who has played for Australia at the under-20 level but has yet to be called up for the senior side -- indicated he was not sure what he would do if he were selected to play at the 2022 World Cup. 

"I read something along the lines of that [they] give the death penalty for gay people in Qatar, so it's something I'm very scared [of] and wouldn't really want to go to Qatar for that," he told the Guardian's Today in Focus podcast. 

"And that saddens me. At the end of the day the World Cup is in Qatar and one of the greatest achievements as a professional footballer is to play for your country, and to know that this is in a country that doesn't support gay people and puts us at risk of our own life, that does scare me and makes me re-evaluate -- is my life more important than doing something really good in my career?" 

Since being selected as host in 2010, Qatar has faced searing criticism for its treatment of LGBT people, as well as its record on women's rights and labour issues. 

Last year a report from the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) said sources indicated the death penalty could potentially be used as punishment for consensual homosexual sex in Qatar. 

The chief executive of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Nasser al-Khater, said in 2019 that "any fan, of any gender, (sexual) orientation, religion, race (should) rest assured that Qatar is one of the most safe countries in the world -- and they'll all be welcome here". 

However, he stressed that "public displays of affection are frowned upon, it's not part of our culture -- but that goes across the board to everybody". 

The last World Cup was held in Russia, where queer activism was severely restricted under a 2013 "gay propaganda" law forbidding the promotion of "non-traditional sexual relationships" to minors. 

Despite football's immense popularity worldwide only a few male footballers have ever come out as gay, mostly after retirement to avoid the prospect of taunts from the terraces. 

The first professional player to come out while still playing was Britain's Justin Fashanu in 1990, but he never found acceptance in the game and hanged himself in 1998.

Philippines' Nobel Prize winner Ressa says award for 'all journalists'

Yahoo – AFP, 9 October 2021 

Philippine journalist Maria Ressa (pictured after her arrest in 2019) says her
Nobel Peace Prize is for 'all journalists around the world' (AFP/TED ALJIBE)

Veteran Philippine journalist Maria Ressa on Saturday said her Nobel Peace Prize was for "all journalists around the world", as she vowed to continue her battle for press freedom. 

"This is really for all journalists around the world," Ressa, a vocal critic of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, told AFP in an interview. 

"We do need help on so many fronts -- it is so much more difficult and dangerous to be a journalist today." 

Ressa, co-founder of news website Rappler, and Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their efforts to "safeguard freedom of expression". 

Philippine press groups and rights activists hailed Ressa's award as a "triumph" in a country ranked as one of the world's most dangerous for journalists. 

Since Duterte was swept to power in 2016, Ressa and Rappler have endured what media advocates say is a grinding series of criminal charges, investigations and online attacks. 

Duterte has called Rappler a "fake news outlet", and Ressa has been the target of abusive messages online. 

Ressa, 58, said she hoped the prize would provide a protective shield for her and other journalists in the Philippines against physical attacks and online threats. 

"This 'us against them' was never the creation of the journalists, it was the creation of the people in power who wanted to use a type of leadership that divides society," Ressa said, describing the award "like a shot of adrenalin". 

"I hope this allows journalists to do our jobs well without fear."

Malaysian mothers hail win for equality in citizenship case

 Yahoo – AFP, September 9, 2021

A group of Malaysian mothers won a landmark case overturning unequal
citizenship rules in the Southeast Asian country (AFP/Handout)

A group of Malaysian mothers won a landmark legal challenge Thursday, overturning what they described as discriminatory citizenship rules affecting women who gave birth overseas. 

The rules had meant a woman with a foreign spouse who had a child abroad was barred from automatically passing on her Malaysian nationality. 

Similar restrictions did not apply to men from the Southeast Asian country, who enjoy a straight path to citizenship for their offspring. 

Socially conservative Malaysia was among only a handful of countries worldwide with such rules, with campaigners long complaining they were discriminatory. 

But on Thursday, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur ruled in favour of a challenge brought by six Malaysian mothers, who argued the regulations breached the constitution. 

"This judgement recognises Malaysian women's equality, and marks one step forward to a more egalitarian and just Malaysia," said Suri Kempe, president of NGO Family Frontiers, which helped bring the case to court. 

The judgement applies to all Malaysian mothers, not just the plaintiffs in the case, she said. 

The lawyer for the mothers, Gurdial Singh Nijar, hailed a "momentous decision", saying the rules had "disrupted family structures". 

There was no immediate reaction from the government, and it was not clear whether they would appeal the ruling. 

Campaigners said the law had sometimes left women trapped in abusive relationships. 

If they brought their children back to Malaysia, the youngsters faced obstacles in accessing public services like free education and healthcare. 

Women could apply for their overseas-born children to be granted citizenship but authorities rarely agreed. 

According to Family Frontiers, the home ministry received over 4,000 applications between 2013 and 2018, but only approved 142. 

The government had sought to get the mothers' challenge dismissed, insisting the rules were in line with the constitution. 

But campaigners said they breached constitutional guarantees to equality before the law, and the court allowed the case to proceed.

Myanmar shadow government wants ASEAN crisis talks invite

Yahoo – AFP, Sun, 18 April 2021 

The coup in Myanmar has sparked mass protests against the military junta

Myanmar's shadow government on Sunday urged Southeast Asian leaders to give it a seat at the table during crisis talks next week, and not to recognise the military regime that seized power in a February coup. 

Junta leader Min Aung Hlaing is expected to join a special ASEAN summit on Myanmar on Saturday in Jakarta -- his first official overseas trip since the putsch that ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. 

The army has moved to quell mass protests against its rule, killing at least 730 people according to a local monitoring group. 

Min Aung Hlaing's invitation to the meeting of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations has drawn scorn from activists who have urged foreign leaders not to formally recognise the junta. 

Moe Zaw Oo, deputy minister of foreign affairs for the parallel "national unity government" -- formed Friday by ousted lawmakers mostly from Suu Kyi's party, as well as ethnic-minority politicians -- said ASEAN had not reached out to them. 

"If ASEAN wants to help solve the Myanmar situation, they are not going to achieve anything without consulting and negotiating with the NUG, which is supported by the people and has full legitimacy," he told Voice of America's Burmese service. 

"It's important that this military council is not recognised. This needs to be handled carefully." 

Meanwhile, the junta continued targeting the media on Sunday, arresting Japanese freelance reporter Yuki Kitazumi. 

He was arrested at his home in Yangon on Sunday evening, his assistant said in a message. 

In February, he was beaten up and briefly detained during a crackdown on protesters but was later released. 

The number of reporters arrested so far has totalled more than 65 and at least 34 remain in custody, according to monitoring group Reporting ASEAN. 

Authorities announced Sunday night on state-run television 20 more celebrities and 20 more doctors would be added to their arrest warrant list of 420 prominent people. 

Earlier unrest continued across the country on Sunday, with protesters rallying in Mandalay, Meiktila, Magway and Myingyan, showing support for the national unity government. 

At Palaw in the country's south, demonstrators brandished banners that read: "Military dictators should not be allowed to rule. The dictatorship will be uprooted. Support the national unity government." 

Young demonstrators also staged motorbike rallies while carrying flags in Hpakant and Sagaing. 

The previous night, there were violent clashes in the central gem-producing city of Mogok when security forces cracked down on protesters. 

According to an AFP-verified video filmed by a resident, soldiers crouched on a street as their commanding officer shouted that he wanted "deaths". 

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) verified two deaths at Mogok. 

Much of Myanmar remains under a curfew imposed shortly after the coup, running from 8 pm to 4 am every night. 

Late Saturday, a young man was shot and killed in Kyaukme town in northern Shan state while riding his motorbike during the curfew. 

"He was shot by the authorities when he and other his friends drove motorbikes around 9 pm. He was shot in the head," a rescue worker told AFP, adding that his funeral would take place Sunday.

Chinese citizen journalist jailed for Wuhan virus reporting

Yahoo – AFP, 28 December 2020 

Authoroties said former Chinese lawyer and citizen journalist
Zhang Zhan had spread "False remarks" online.

A Chinese citizen journalist was jailed for four years Monday for her reporting from Wuhan as the Covid-19 outbreak began, her lawyer said, almost a year after details of an "unknown viral pneumonia" surfaced in the central China city. 

Zhang Zhan, a former lawyer who arrived at court in a wheelchair, was sentenced at a brief hearing in a Shanghai court for allegedly "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" during her reporting in the chaotic initial stages of the outbreak. 

Her live reports and essays were shared on social media platforms in February, grabbing the attention of authorities, who have punished eight virus whistleblowers so far as they curb criticism of the government's response to the outbreak. 

Beijing has congratulated itself for "extraordinary" success in controlling the virus inside its borders, with an economy on the rebound while much of the rest of the world stutters through painful lockdowns and surging caseloads a year on from the start of the pandemic in Wuhan. 

Controlling the information flow during an unprecedented global health crisis has been pivotal in allowing China's communist authorities to reframe the narrative in their favour, with President Xi Jinping being garlanded for his leadership by the country's ruling party. 

But that has come at a serious cost to anyone who has picked holes in the official storyline. 

The court said Zhang Zhan had spread "false remarks" online, according to one of her lawyers Zhang Keke, but the prosecution did not fully divulge its evidence in court. 

"We had no way of understanding what exactly Zhang Zhan was accused of doing," he added, describing it as "a speedy, rushed hearing." 

In return the defendant "didn't respond [to questions]... She refused to answer when the judge asked her to confirm her identity." 

The defendant's mother sobbed loudly as the verdict was read out, Ren Quanniu, another member of Zhang's defence team, told reporters who were barred from entering the court. 

Concerns are mounting over the health of 37-year-old Zhang, who began a hunger strike in June and has been force-fed via a nasal tube. 

Her legal team said her health was in decline and she suffered from headaches, dizziness and stomach pain, and that she had appeared in court in a wheelchair. 

"She said when I visited her (last week): 'If they give me a heavy sentence then I will refuse food until the very end.'... She thinks she will die in prison," Ren said before the trial. 

"It's an extreme method of protesting against this society and this environment." 

China's communist authorities have a history of putting dissidents on trial in opaque courts between Christmas and New Year in an effort to minimise Western scrutiny. 

Example made

The sentencing comes just weeks before an international team of World Health Organization experts is expected to arrive in China to investigate the origins of Covid-19. 

Zhang was critical of the early response in Wuhan, writing in a February essay that the government "didn't give people enough information, then simply locked down the city". 

"This is a great violation of human rights," she wrote. 

Rights groups and embassies have also drawn attention to her case, although diplomats from several countries were denied requests to monitor the hearing. 

"Zhang Zhan's case raises serious concerns about media freedom in China," the British embassy in Beijing said, urging "China to release all those detained for their reporting." 

Authorities "want to use her case as an example to scare off other dissidents from raising questions about the pandemic situation in Wuhan earlier this year", added Leo Lan, research and advocacy consultant at the Chinese Human Rights Defenders NGO. 

A United Nations official following the trial also expressed "deep concern" about the verdict. 

"We raised her case with the authorities throughout 2020 as an example of the excessive clampdown on freedom of expression linked to #COVID19 & continue to call for her release," the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said in a tweet. 

Zhang is the first of a group of four citizen journalists detained by authorities after reporting from Wuhan to face trial. 

Previous attempts by AFP to contact the other three -- Chen Qiushi, Fang Bin and Li Zehua -- were unsuccessful. 

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Qatar faces scrutiny after women 'forcibly examined'

Yahoo – AFP, Gregory Walton, October 27, 2020 

Qatar Airways crew prepare to enter Sydney international airport to fly a repatriation
flight back to France on April 2, 2020, amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Qatar Airways crew prepare to enter Sydney international airport to fly a repatriation flight back to France on April 2, 2020, amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Revelations that passengers flying through Doha were forced to endure vaginal inspections have upended Qatar's efforts to boost its reputation before the Gulf state hosts World Cup 2022, experts say. 

Officers marched women off a Sydney-bound Qatar Airways flight earlier this month and forced them to undergo intimate examinations after a newborn baby was found abandoned in an airport bathroom. 

The incident sparked a diplomatic row between Australia and Qatar and comes as a setback for the gas-rich emirate, which has worked extensively to grow its soft power. 

Doha has invested heavily in its airline, Al-Jazeera broadcaster and social projects that include women's health and educational initiatives. 

But the conservative Muslim monarchy, where sex and childbirth out of wedlock are still punishable by jail, has struggled to reassure critics that its promises on women's rights, labour relations and democracy are credible. 

Mark Gell, founder of Sydney-based consultancy Reputation Edge, said "it could get out of hand from a reputational point of view for the airline", the state-run Qatar Airways. 

"Was it the airline's responsibility? We don't know. But absolutely it could impact their business," he told AFP. 

"If I shared this with my wife, I'm sure she'd turn around and say 'I'm never going through there again'." 

Adverts packed with top-flight footballers including Neymar have aired worldwide, touting Qatar Airways' extensive network, ultra-modern aircraft and glitzy Doha airport hub. 

World Cup 2022 host Qatar has struggled to reassure critics that its promises
on women's rights, labour relations and democracy are credible

Australia is a particularly important market for the carrier, which before the coronavirus pandemic served six cities Down Under and promoted repatriation flights for stranded nationals when other airlines grounded their fleets. 

'Avoid Qatar Airways' 

Alex Oliver of Sydney-based think tank the Lowy Institute said Australians -- especially women -- would "avoid Qatar Airways like the plague" after the October 2 incident. 

"It's a shocking move from a country that has spent billions of state funds on attempting to convey perceptions of a more liberal Gulf state," she said. 

But it is sport on which Qatar has staked its reputation, winning not just the 2022 World Cup and bidding for summer Olympics but also pouring cash into developing sport in poorer countries. 

Qatar has nonetheless had to contain several public relations crises in recent years linked to its shock victory in the competition to host the 2022 football tournament. 

As it began to ramp up construction, rights groups condemned Qatar's treatment of the hundreds of thousands of migrant labourers recruited from South Asia and other developing countries. 

Activists have long called on Qatar to decriminalise "love cases", women who become pregnant outside of marriage and give birth without the help of medics who are required to report such cases. 

Human Rights Watch told AFP Qatar should "examine the policy that led to the event in the first place".

Doha has invested heavily in its airline, Al-Jazeera broadcaster and social
projects to boost its image

'Betrayed' 

The ultra-wealthy country of 2.75 million people has also faced scrutiny over LGBT rights, jihadist fundraising, and its overseas military interventions since its 2010 victory in the battle to host the global soccer spectacle. 

Qatar's government has yet to address the airport allegations, despite a furious rebuke by Australia's Foreign Minister Marise Payne who called the incident "grossly disturbing, offensive (and) concerning". 

Late on Sunday, airport management released a statement claiming that "individuals who had access to the specific area of the airport where the newborn infant was found were asked to assist in the query". 

It gave no details about the procedures they were required to undergo and made no apology for the incident, but said the child was still alive and being cared for. 

Gell said it would not be enough for the airport management to downplay the allegations and suggest the women had merely been asked to help trace the abandoned baby's mother. 

"That's not going to hold up. In fact, that'll probably inflame it, to suggest that these women have voluntarily done this. I would find that difficult to believe," he said. 

Oliver said she was surprised the response "was so hardline and intransigent". 

"With the World Cup now getting very close, you would expect it to be back-pedalling madly." 

Expatriate women in Doha have reacted with shock and fear to the disclosures. 

"I can't help but think of my daughters if they had been on that plane," said one expatriate woman living in Doha who declined to be named for fear of retribution. 

"It makes me sick. I feel betrayed by the country I call home," said another.

Goldman Sachs fined US$350 million in Hong Kong over 1MDB

Yahoo – AFP, October 22, 2020 

Goldman Sachs Asia showed 'serious lapses and deficiencies in its management
supervisory' Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission said

Global financial titan Goldman Sachs was fined US$350 million by Hong Kong's securities watchdog on Thursday for its role in the massive 1MDB Malaysian bribery scandal, the latest in a growing list of global punishments the firm faces. 

Goldman Sachs Asia -- the Hong Kong-based compliance and control hub of the company -- showed "serious lapses and deficiencies in its management supervisory, risk, compliance and anti-money laundering controls", Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission said. 

The regulator added that Goldman had accepted the SFC's findings, leading to an early resolution of the disciplinary action. 

The SFC said Goldman's failures contributed to the misappropriation of US$2.6 billion from the US$6.5 billion that 1MDB raised in three bond offerings in 2012 and 2013. 

"Goldman Sachs Asia fell far short of the standards expected of a licensed intermediary in the 1MDB case and suffered not only reputational damage from its own failures, but also brought the securities industry into disrepute,” Thomas Atkinson, the SFC’s Executive Director of Enforcement, said. 

Goldman Sachs Asia received US$210 million -- or 37 percent of the total revenue -- from the 1MDB bond offerings, which was the largest share among the various Goldman Sachs entities.   

The SFC investigation concluded that Goldman Sachs Asia allowed the offerings to proceed despite numerous red flags not being properly scrutinised and answered. 

The fraud involved former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak and his cronies, and the cash plundered from state coffers bankrolled a global spending spree. 

It was used to buy everything from artwork to real estate to a superyacht. 

The Hong Kong announcement comes two days after the Wall Street Journal reported that Goldman is preparing to admit wrongdoing in the 1MDB scandal and pay the US government $2.8 billion. 

The deal would end the criminal probe into the corruption case involving the Malaysian government's investment fund, the newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the matter. 

The Justice Department has said more than $4.5 billion was stolen from 1MDB by high-level officials at the fund and their associates between 2009 and 2015. 

Two ex-Goldman bankers are accused of misappropriating billions, bribing officials and giving false statements in relation to bond issues they arranged for the fund. 

The Malaysian government dropped the charges against Goldman in July after reaching a $3.9 billion settlement with the financial giant. 

The firm, which posted profits of $3.5 billion in the latest quarter, had set aside more than $3.1 billion as of September 30 "for litigation and regulatory proceedings."

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'LGBTQ landmark': Tokyo opens Olympics Pride House

Yahoo – AFP, Kyoko Hasegawa, October 11, 2020

LGBTQ rights campaigners in Japan are hoping that Pride House Tokyo will
help tackle stigma and raise awareness of discrimination 

Tokyo on Sunday opened its first major community hub for LGBTQ people, part of a pre-Olympics project that campaigners hope will tackle stigma and raise awareness of discrimination. 

Pride House Tokyo is based on similar inclusive pop-up sites set up at past Olympics, but will offer a permanent meeting space and information centre, seeking to educate the public about sexual diversity and offer refuge to those suffering harassment or discrimination. 

While Japan has some protections for sexual minorities, it remains the only G7 country that does not recognise same-sex unions, and many couples say they can struggle to rent apartments together and are even barred from hospital visits. 

Those challenges mean spaces like Pride House, set up in coordination with Tokyo 2020 Olympic organisers, are sorely needed in Japan, activists say. 

"Japan, not just in sporting circles but society as a whole -- including schools and workplaces -- is not friendly to LGBTQ people, and it is hard to come out," Gon Matsunaka, who heads the project behind Pride House, told AFP. 

While the centre is being set up under a recent Olympic tradition, the project is officially named "Pride House Tokyo Legacy", and activists hope its influence will extend beyond the Games.

The venue "will be a landmark that could change the landscape for LGBTQ people in Japanese society," Matsunaka said. 

The International Olympic Committee echoed hopes for a lasting legacy. 

"In sport, we are all equal," IOC President Thomas Bach said in a statement released Sunday. 

Gon Matsunaka, founder and president of the Pride House Tokyo Consortium,
says the venue will be 'landmark' for LGBTQ people in Japan

"We therefore welcome that Tokyo 2020 has embedded diversity and inclusion in the Olympic Games model," he said, wishing "the Pride House Tokyo success". 

'Unthinkable to come out'  

The first Pride House -- inspired by the tradition of Olympic hospitality centres for national teams -- was launched at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games. 

Temporary venues have since appeared at London 2012 and Rio 2016, and at other international sporting events like the Commonwealth Games. 

In 2014, Russian authorities denied a request to open a Pride House at the Sochi Winter Games, the organisation said. Instead, remote spaces were set up internationally for LGBTQ fans to gather. 

Those involved in setting up the Tokyo Pride House include Fumino Sugiyama, a former athlete who was on the national women's fencing team before coming out as a transgender man. 

"When I was fencing, it was unthinkable to come out in the sports community, which was particularly homophobic," said Sugiyama, 39. 

"I faced a dilemma between trying to do the sport I love, where I can't be myself, or trying to be myself and having to stop fencing," he said. 

While there are now several openly gay top sportspeople worldwide, from US women's soccer star Megan Rapinoe to British Olympic diver Tom Daley, "not a single top athlete has come out" in Japan, he said. 

The international Olympic Committee has wished Pride House Tokyo
success, saying: 'In sport, we are all equal'

The International Olympic Committee has wished Pride House Tokyo success, saying: 'In sport, we are all equal'

Some local governments, employers and universities in Japan have taken gradual steps in recent years to expand protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender citizens. 

In some cities, local districts recognise same-sex partnerships, and some employers and universities have specific protections against discrimination. 

'Growing number of allies' 

"Society has changed a lot, with a growing number of allies," Sugiyama said. 

"But there remains the fundamental issue of the lack of a legal system to ensure LGBTQ rights in Japan, for example, the right to get married." 

There is no widespread religious stigma against homosexuality in Japan, and some popular celebrities and TV personalities are openly gay. 

And activists have launched several legal challenges recently intended to expand rights for the community, including suits last year accusing the government of discrimination for failing to recognise same-sex unions. 

But success is not guaranteed. 

In 2019, the Supreme Court upheld strict rules on changing gender on legal documents including a requirement that a transgender person have no reproductive capacity, which can effectively force some to undergo sterilsation to change their documents. 

Sugiyama said it would be important for Pride House, in Tokyo's lively Shinjuku area which has a well-known gay district, to stay open beyond the Olympics. 

"LGBTQ people face various issues," he said. "Small and big, 24 hours, 365 days a year."

NKorea's Kim wishes Trump a speedy recovery: KCNA

Yahoo – AFP, October 3, 2020

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un "offered his sympathy" to US President Donald
Trump and his wife, the official Korean Central News Agency said speaks during a
meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of
Korea (WPK) in Pyongyang.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a message to Donald Trump after the US president's diagnosis with coronavirus, wishing him a quick recovery, state media said Saturday. 

"He offered his sympathy to the president and the first lady," the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. 

"He sincerely hoped that they would be recovered as soon as possible. He hoped they will surely overcome it. He sent warm greetings to them." 

South Korea's Yonhap news agency said it was the first time Kim had sent well wishes to a world leader who tested positive for the novel coronavirus. 

Trump announced in the early hours of Friday that he had tested positive for Covid-19. Later in the day, he headed to a military hospital for further observation and treatment. 

Trump and Kim held three high-profile meetings starting in June 2018, after an uptick in tensions between Washington and Pyongyang at the start of Trump's term. 

But nothing concrete emerged in terms of Pyongyang's denuclearization, and talks have been officially at a standstill for months. 

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in mid-September that talks were ongoing behind the scenes. 

Trump has consistently portrayed his close relationship with Kim as one of his foreign policy achievements.

Qatar Enacts Key Worker Reforms Amid Criticism

Barrons – AFP, August 30, 2020

Workers on scaffolding at Khalifa International Stadium in the Qatari capital Doha.

Qatar on Sunday introduced a $275 monthly minimum wage and simplified the process for changing employers, the labour ministry said, following criticism of its treatment of foreign labourers.

It comes a week after a stinging Human Rights Watch (HRW) report highlighted the shortcomings of past efforts to improve conditions for the migrant labourers who make up almost 90 percent of the population.

The new rules, which were announced last October 16 but have only now been signed into law, abolish the requirement that workers obtain a "no objection" certificate from their employer to change jobs.

They require all workers, including domestic staff, be paid at least 1,000 riyals ($275) for a month of full-time work -- equivalent to around $1.30 an hour.

Employers are also required to either provide bed and board, or an additional 800 riyal a month allowance for food and accommodation and will have six months to implement the new minimum wage.

Previously, the temporary minimum wage was set at 750 riyals ($206) a month.

"The labour ministry has today taken a major step forward in its labour reform programme by introducing a non-discriminatory minimum wage and removing the no-objection certificate requirement," it said in a statement.

The ministry said the changes would "boost investment in the local economy and drive economic growth".

World Cup milestone

Qatar has made a series of reforms to its employment regulations since being selected to host the 2022 World Cup, which has required a vast programme of construction dependent on foreign workers.

Workers on scaffolding at Khalifa International Stadium in the Qatari capital Doha.

"Qatar is the first country in the Middle East to have a minimum wage for all workers without discrimination, whether domestic workers or private sector workers," Qatar's assistant under-secretary for labour affairs, Mohammed Hassan al-Obaidly, told AFP.

Rights groups have long said Qatar's system -- the same one used across the Gulf -- of private companies rather than the state sponsoring individual workers fuels abuses.

Amnesty International said the requirement to have an employer's agreement before changing jobs had "left migrant workers in Qatar at the mercy of abusive employers".

"We welcome the enactment of these laws, and now call on the Qatari authorities to ensure they are swiftly and properly implemented," said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty's head of economic and social justice.

Vani Sarasawthi, director of projects at the Migrant Rights non-governmental group, said she had already received a flurry of messages about the changes from workers.

HRW said last week that some workers in Qatar were struggling to eat because employers were illegally withholding salaries as economic conditions worsen amid the coronavirus crisis.

The government insisted HRW's survey of 93 migrant workers at 60 companies or employers was not representative and that "nearly all individuals who come to Qatar for employment never experience any form of wage abuse".

Qatar said on Sunday that penalties for non-payment of wages had been increased.

The UN International Labour Organization welcomed the package of reforms, calling them a "historic move".

"Qatar has delivered on a commitment. One that will give workers more freedom and protection, and employers more choice," said Guy Ryder, the ILO director general.

More than two million foreigners work in Qatar, many employed directly or indirectly on vast infrastructure projects for the World Cup.

"The World Cup is a milestone in Qatar's long-term development strategy. In the interests of our country, we will continue to introduce new reforms that benefit the economy, businesses and the people who come to work here," Obaidly said.