Activist Peter Tatchell has been arrested after staging the first-ever LGBT+ protest in Qatar less than a month away from the FIFA World Cup.
Tatchell took to the Middle Eastern state to stage a peaceful demonstration against the country’s treatment of gay people.
He wore a shirt that read a simple message: “#QatarAntiGay.”
He also brought with him a white placard that read: “Qatar arrests, jails & subjects LGBTs to ‘conversion’.”
The decision to enlist Qatar as the host nation of the 2022 World Cup tournament has resulted in years of criticism toward both FIFA and the Middle Eastern state.
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The nation’s criminalisation of LGBTI+ people and stance against same-sex relationships has long been controversial.
Tatchell, who has long been a human right campaigner, touched down in Qatar and stood on the streets for more than an hour with his message.
However, he soon announced that he had been seized by Qatar police for his demonstration, but later freed.
He spoke from Qatar in which he stated: “There can be no normal sporting relations with an abnormal regime like Qatar.
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"It is a homophobic, sexist and racist dictatorship.
“Qatar cannot be allowed to sportswash its reputation. It is using the World Cup to enhance its international image.
“I did this protest to shine a light on Qatar’s human rights abuses against LGBT+ people, women, migrant workers and liberal Qataris. I am supporting their brave battle against tyranny.”
Qatar had denied that Tatchell had been arrested and called the accusations ‘completely false and without merit’, according to The Sun.
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The 70-year-old later released a statement in reply to their response.
He said: “A colleague and I were held by police and state security services for 49 minutes.
“Photos and videos of the protest on a mobile phone were deleted by police and the detainees were nto allowed to leave.
“We were interrogated about our trip. Then we were told we must be on our onward flight to Sydney.
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“It’s a shame the Qatari government is trying to deflect attention from their diabolical human rights abuses by misrepresenting a peaceful protestor.”
Tatchell had previously been detained in Moscow for a similar protest ahead of the 2018 World Cup.
Topics: Football, Football World Cup, FIFA, Qatar
Jayden Collins