THE Welsh Liberal Democrats have reiterated their calls for the Welsh Government to shut their offices in Qatar after a British national was found hanged in the country.
An investigation by The Times newspaper alleges Marc Bennett was tortured by the country’s secret police weeks before he was found hanged in a hotel room in the capital Doha on Christmas Day 2019.
Mr Bennett, 52, was headhunted to boost Qatar’s tourism trade for the World Cup. He died in unexplained circumstances, 10 weeks after he had been arrested at the offices of his employer, Qatar Airways, and taken blindfolded and handcuffed to a state security detention centre.
Mr Bennett later described how he was stripped naked, blasted with high-pressure hoses, slammed against walls and subjected to sleep deprivation techniques while being held for three weeks.
In a Channel 4 interview, Mr Bennett’s wife Nancy said she disputed claims made by police in Qatar that he died by suicide and described “torture” her husband allegedly faced at the hands of authorities prior to his suspicious death.
The Government of Qatar has vehemently denied the allegations of mistreatment.
The calls from the Welsh Lib Dems come after they made a similar plea last October. Qatar has long come under intense scrutiny for its poor human rights record, particularly its treatment of workers on the construction of the World Cup stadiums – with many deaths reported.
“The Welsh Government should not be prioritising a friendly relationship with an authoritarian state that has been involved in the torture of a British national,” said Welsh Lib Dem leader Jane Dodds.
“This is on top of a range of human rights issues we have already highlighted, including homophobia, systemic discrimination against women and modern slavery.
“We are strongly in favour of Wales having a strong international footprint to promote our outstanding businesses and exports across the globe, but we also want to make sure Wales has an ethical trade policy that does not just consider raw profit, but also human rights and democracy.”
The Welsh Government currently has offices in 12 countries in the Middle East, including in the UAE’s second city Dubai and Qatari capital Doha. The Welsh Lib Dems believe that the offices should be reconsidered and the resources of Trade and Invest Wales potentially moved to countries with better records on human rights and democracy as part of an ‘ethical trade policy for Wales’.
Both Qatar and the UAE rank extremely poorly on several human rights metrics. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s World Democracy Index, Qatar ranks 126th out of 167 nations while the UAE ranks 145th, making both countries “authoritarian regimes”.
They both also perform poorly on woman’s rights, with a male guardianship system still in place that means most women still need the permission of a male guardian to carry out everyday tasks.
The Times’ investigation detailed how authorities in Qatar rushed to rule Mr Bennett’s death a suicide despite their counterparts in the UK declaring that there was “no specific evidence of suicidal intent”.
A Qatar police report said the cause of death was suicide but a UK coroner refused to record a conclusion of suicide, saying there was no evidence Mr Bennett had intended to take his own life.
Mr Bennett had been headhunted to set up Discover Qatar ahead of the Gulf state hosting this year’s World Cup. But after he told bosses he was leaving to work for a rival Saudi-owned company, he was arrested and detained, accused of stealing confidential documents from his employers.
Following Mr Bennett’s death, prime minister Liz Truss – then international trade secretary – visited Qatar and, within months, the Qatari government unveiled a £10 billion investment package in Britain.
The Welsh Liberal Democrats have argued that the revelations only prove their previous calls that Qatar is an authoritarian police state that should not be prioritized for friendly relations.
The Welsh Government currently operates a trade office in Qatar alongside one in the UAE which shares similar human rights concerns.
“I am not comfortable that the limited resources of Trade and Invest Wales are being used to promote trade in these two authoritarian nations where being part of the LGBT+ community can still be punished by execution and women’s rights a treated such little regard,” added Ms Dodds.
“I want Wales to be a confident and outward-looking nation, but I also want to see Wales stand up strongly for human rights, democracy and liberty. I would urge First Minister Mark Drakeford, as portfolio holder for international relations and trade, to urgently consider closing these offices.
“The resources could be moved to democratic nations with strong human rights records, we are still yet to see any international presence by Wales in Africa, Latin America or Oceania for example.”
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “We believe in engaging with countries that do not always share our values on human rights, LGBTQ+ rights, workers’ rights and political and religious freedom.
“Engaging with countries is an opportunity to develop a platform for further discussion, to raise awareness and to potentially influence a change in approach.”
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