Veteran human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell was arrested in Qatar while staging a one man protest, his charity has said. He has since been released.
Mr Tatchell was arrested near the national museum in Doha as he staged a demonstration against “one of the most homophobic regimes on Earth”, the Peter Tatchell Foundation said.
The country’s record of anti-LGBT abuse and discrimination has been further thrown into the spotlight ahead of the World Cup, which begins on November 20.
Same-sex relations are illegal in the country, with those convicted facing jail sentences, and even potentially the death penalty.
Mr Tatchell had been holding a placard reading: “Qatar arrests, jails & subjects LGBTs to ‘conversion’ #QatarAntiGay,” the charity said.
Speaking after his release, Mr Tatchell said: “This protest was to shine a light on the abuse of human rights in Qatar.
LGBT+ campaigner @PeterTatchell freed by #Qatar police after staging first LGBT+ protest in the homophobic Gulf state. @FIFAcom awarded the #WorldCup to Qatar where LGBTs can be jailed & executed. #QatarAntiGay
— Peter Tatchell Fdn (@PT_Foundation) October 25, 2022
More info: https://t.co/iFwJ3VXOYh Please Retweet pic.twitter.com/vrjmb2kuC9
“This is the first-ever LGBT+ protest ever in Qatar or any Gulf state. But also I sought to draw attention to the abuse of the rights of women and migrant workers as well.
“I stand in solidarity with those brave Qatari human rights defenders who cannot express their view because they fear arrest, jail and possibly even torture.”
Neil Coyle, MP for Bermondsey and Old Southwark, had said that he would be asking the embassy in London about his constituent on Tuesday.
“I’ll be asking (the Qatar Embassy) about my constituent today and hope he is returned to the UK ASAP," he said.
The foundation said in a press release that Mr Tatchell was arrested near Qatar’s national museum while staging the first ever public LGBT+ protest in the country.
Mr Tatchell has campaigned for decades on human rights abuses, including notably attempting to perform a citizen’s arrest on former Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe.
According to Human Rights Watch, a campaign group, Qatari officials have detained LGBT people in the run-up to the World Cup. It had interviewed six LGBT Qataris about their mistreatment at the hands of state officials, who reported both mental and physical abuse.
A Qatari official said in a statement that the group’s allegations “contain information that is categorically and unequivocally false,” but did not give any specific evidence to refute the claims.
