FIFA's secretary general Fatma Samoura has claimed that Qatari people are "the most hospitable people on earth" in a rare interview in which she attempted to allay the security fears of visitors to the Gulf state.
A day after details of a letter sent by the governing body's president Gianni Infantino and Samoura to the 32 representative FAs stressing the need to focus on football was reported, the secretary general has promised that all visitors to the country during the tournament will receive "the best hospitality that you can imagine" regardless of "social and sexual orientation."
Homosexuality is illegal in Qatar, leading to fears about the safety of any LGBT supporters who attend the tournament, while a Tory MP earlier this week told fans to not bring their mobile phones due to hacking fears.
"People can consider Qatar as a conservative society, like my own country in Senegal," Samoura said in a video recorded by the governing body's in-house media. "But let me tell you one thing: Qataris are the most hospitable people you can find on earth.
"The food is great. The tea is beautiful! And when you walk along this beautiful Corniche, you will see something that you have never seen before. You will see magic, you will see light, you will see flavour, you will see smiles.
"You will see the 32 teams [and their] fans with their jerseys, really enjoying the celebrations of their teams. You will [meet] people who will become your long-term friends after the World Cup. But, especially, you will enjoy one thing: the love of football and its unique power to unite people around the world.
"No matter your race, your religion, your social and sexual orientation, you are most welcome, and Qataris are ready to receive you with the best hospitality that you can imagine."
Samoura has also claimed that significant progress has been made around many of the human rights issues that have been raised since Qatar was awarded the tournament in controversial fashion 12 years ago.
She has gone as far to say that Qatar can be used as a role model for other countries in the Gulf when it comes to improving the rights of migrant workers.
An estimated 6,500 workers died during the building of the infrastructure for the tournament, though the Qataris insist that number is exaggerated, while campaign groups' calls for a compensation fund to be made available have been ignored by FIFA and termed a publicity stunt by political figures in Doha.
"Since Qatar [was] awarded the World Cup, there have been some challenges," Samoura added. "Measures have been taken over the past six years and especially by the new leadership of FIFA, let’s face it.
"The first thing that should really be highlighted for the people who are still thinking that the human rights issues have not been tackled in Qatar is the abolishment of the Kafala system.
"Measures have also been taken during the very hot period of the year to protect workers. Inspections have been carried out, on sites where workers are operating but also in the accommodation part and in hotels and restaurants where people will be going for their meals or for their accommodation.
"We have been working, over the past six years, with the International Labour Organisation, with the Building [and] Wood Workers’ International [and] with the Centre for Sport and Human Rights, and those entities are the ones saying: 'Yes, in terms of achievement, in terms of progress, Qatar can be designated as a model to follow [for] other countries in the region.'"
