Only two weeks prior to the start of the soccer tournament in the Gulf state, a World Cup ambassador for Qatar described homosexuality as a “damage in the mind” in an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF, raising questions about the conservative nation’s treatment of gays and lesbians.
In an interview with a German reporter, former Qatari national team player Khalid Salman stated that he has a problem with gay people around children and that being gay is “haram,” which is Arabic for “forbidden.”
On Monday’s episode of the ZDF news programme Heute Journal, excerpts from the television interview were broadcast. The complete interview, which is a segment of a documentary, will air on ZDF on Tuesday.
Germany’s interior minister condemned Salman’s remarks.
Of course, such remarks are abhorrent, and for that reason, Nancy Faeser said on Tuesday, “We are working on things in Qatar in the hopes of improving.
Approximately 1.2 million foreign visitors are anticipated in Qatar for the competition, which has drawn criticism and scepticism ever since FIFA chose the gas-rich emirate as host in December 2010. Concerns about LGBTQ tourists attending the World Cup have also been expressed for a long time.
Salman added that homosexuality “is a spiritual injury” in the interview.
“A lot of things will come to this country during the World Cup. Let’s talk about gays,” Salman said in a TV segment’s simultaneous German and English dubbing.
“The most crucial factor is that everyone would tolerate their presence. But they’ll have to comply with our guidelines.
After Salman expressed his opinions on homosexuals, a media representative for the World Cup organising committee cut off the interview, according to ZDF.
During her visit to Qatar last week, Faeser, who is also in charge of sports, claimed that Qatar’s prime minister had given her a “safety guarantee” for spectators “no matter where they come from, whom they love, and what they believe in.”
The prime minister, who also serves as Qatar’s interior minister, hasn’t changed his position, according to Faeser. She intends to make the trip to see Germany play Japan in the World Cup opener.
Last month, Germany’s ambassador to Qatar was summoned by the government there after Faeser appeared to criticise the country for its human rights record..
Ambassador for Qatar at the World Cup: Homosexuality “damages the mind”
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