Vocal Kenyan blogger being held incommunicado in Qatar

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 21- A Kenyan blogger, known for speaking out against the poor working conditions of migrants in Qatar is being held incommunicado, 2 weeks after he was arrested.

Malom Bidali was arrested days after he spoke to human rights organisations on the continued abuses of workers, mostly migrants, in the peninsular Arab country.

Where is Bidali and is he safe?

For two weeks, Bidali has not been seen and the Qatar authorities are yet to either arraign him or say his whereabouts.

“Detaining Bidali incommunicado is causing too much anguish to his family, friends, colleagues, and members of civil society organisations who cannot reach him and have no way of knowing the conditions under which he is detained. Such detention also means Bidali is denied the right to legal representation,” the Kenya Human Rights Commission said in a statement, on Friday.

The lobby group wants authorities in Qatar to reveal his whereabouts and whether is safe.

Bidali works in the country as a security guard and was arrested on May 4, after allegedly violating Qatar’s “security laws and regulations.”

“Malcolm is an activist and blogger whose articles have given deep insight into the working and living conditions of migrant workers in Qatar. He has been on the front line fighting to reform Qatar’s labour laws by sharing his own experiences as a migrant worker in the country,” the Lobby group said.

KHRC said if the blogger is not being prosecuted, he should be released without conditions.

After all, the lobby group pointed out that, “the issues that Bidali has been raising through social media are in the public domain, so it is preposterous for the authorities to pick on him.”

“The Qatari authorities must also guarantee his safety and security under Qatar and international laws. Specifically, the right to be protected from torture, ill-treatment and right to access justice and a fair trial must be guaranteed,” KHRC said.

In 2017, Human Rights Watch made a series of recommendations in relation to migrant worker deaths and called upon the Qatari authorities to release data, conduct investigations, reform laws to protect workers from heat and perform autopsies.

“None of these recommendations have ever been implemented. Two years later in June 2019, Fair Square asked FIFA to call publicly on the Qatari authorities to commission an independent investigation into worker deaths,” he said.

In August 2020, a migrant worker from Kenya told Human Rights Watch (HRW) that he has been overworked, underpaid and left with the choice of either sticking it out, or returning to Kenya drowning in debt, adding that most of the reforms have not materialised.

“The government talks about reforming labour laws but most of it feels like it is only on paper. People on the ground are really suffering and rogue employers are getting away with gross injustices,” the worker told HRW.

Migrant workers make up around 95 percent of the total labour force in Qatar, many of whom are working on the construction of the stadiums, hotels, and services for the FIFA World Cup, set to take place in 2022.

Migrant workers are currently banned under Qatari law from joining unions and taking part in strikes.