Women sue Qatar after horror experience – VG

The incident took place in October last year, when a number of women who were to leave the airport in Doha were set aside for a gynecological examination. The background was that an abandoned newborn child had been found at the airport, and that the mother of the child was being searched.

Thirteen Australian women were among those investigated, and seven of them are now suing Qatar for damages.

“They want to send a clear message to Qatar that women can not be treated like this,” said Damian Sturzaker of the law firm Marque Lawyers in Sydney.

– These women were subjected to a serious assault that night, and they still suffer with trauma and ailments as a result of what happened, he says.

Requires compensation

The Australian women demand a formal apology and compensation from Qatar, as well as an assurance that something similar will never happen again at the airport in Doha.

Qatar is an ultra-conservative Muslim monarchy, and childbirth out of wedlock can be punished by imprisonment.

The country will host the World Cup next year and is already in a difficult situation as a result of accusations of human rights violations, including the treatment of guest workers who build the stadium facilities to be used in the World Cup.

The Prime Minister apologizes

Qatar’s prime minister has apologized for the treatment the women received, and the police officer who made the decision to investigate the women has been fired.

The Australian women, on the other hand, have not received any personal apologies, nor have attempts at mediation been successful, according to Sturzaker. That is why they are now suing, according to him.

“Despite the fact that Doha airport and the national airline appear modern, travelers must be aware that such things have happened there, and that there is no guarantee that it will not happen again,” says Sturzaker.

Neither the Qatari embassy in Canberra nor Qatar Airways has responded to AFP’s inquiries into the matter.

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