German Interior Minister Nancy Weiser, who is also in charge of sports affairs, on Tuesday strongly criticized statements by one of Qatar’s ambassadors at the 2022 World Cup, in which he described homosexuality as a “disorder of the mind”.
“Statements like this are outrageous,” Weisser said at a news conference.
Khaled Salman, a former Qatar international footballer and one of the 2022 World Cup ambassadors, described homosexuality as a “mental disorder” in an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF.
“A lot of things will happen in the country during the World Cup. Let’s talk about gays,” he said.
“The most important thing is that everyone comes here, but they have to accept our rules,” he added in an excerpt from the interview, which will be broadcast in full on ZDF on Tuesday evening.
He added that homosexuality is “haram, because it is a disturbance of the mind” before being boycotted.
But Weisser stressed that he still trusted the security guarantees for all fans, including LGBT people, which he received from the Prime Minister and Interior Minister of Qatar, Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa Al Thani, during his recent visit to Doha. .
“It was the Prime Minister who gave it to me, I have no new indications from him that anything has changed in this context,” he said.
Last week, Weisser confirmed to Qatar that he would witness Germany’s first match in the 2022 World Cup against Japan on November 23.
The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, confirmed on September 21 that his country will welcome “without discrimination” all fans of the FIFA World Cup, which Qatar will host from November 20 to December 18, in apparent desire to reassure gay and transgender arrivals.
Qatari law criminalizes homosexuality, but organizers stressed that “everyone is welcome” during the World Cup.
FIFA reiterates that rainbow flags, symbolizing LGBT people, will be allowed in stadiums, but Qatari authorities are calling for caution outside.
Leaders of several European teams, including England, France and Germany, will wear colored stripes with the message “OneLove” as part of an anti-discrimination campaign.
