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Qatar’s senior security leader has caused uproar among equality groups after warning that rainbow flags could be taken off fans at the World Cup “for their own protection”.
Major General Abdulaziz Abdullah al-Ansari said that LGBTQ fans and couples would be welcomed and accepted in Qatar during the tournament in November and December, despite same-sex relationships remaining a criminal offence in the conservative Gulf nation.
Fifa has previously said that rainbow flags would be permitted in stadiums but Ansari, the chairman of the National Counterterrorism Committee at the Ministry of Interior, said that there should be no promotion of gay rights.
He told the Associated Press: “If he [a fan] raised the rainbow flag and I took it from him, it’s not because I really want to, really, take it, to really insult him, but to protect him.
“Because if it’s not me, somebody else around him might attack. I cannot guarantee the behaviour of the whole people. And I will tell him: ‘Please, no need to really raise that flag at this point.’
“You want to demonstrate your view about the [LGBTQ] situation, demonstrate it in a society where it will be accepted. We realise that this man got the ticket, comes here to watch the game, not to demonstrate, a political [act] or something which is in his mind.
“Watch the game. That’s good. But don’t really come in and insult the whole society because of this.”
Ansari said that he was not telling LGBTQ fans to stay away from Qatar or warning them of possible prosecution.
“Reserve the room together, sleep together — this is something that’s not in our concern,” he added. “We are here to manage the tournament. Let’s not go beyond the individual personal things which might be happening between these people . . . this is actually the concept.
“Here we cannot change the laws. You cannot change the religion for 28 days of the World Cup.”
Chris Paouros, a member of the English FA’s inclusion advisory board and a trustee of the anti-discrimination group Kick It Out, expressed concerns over the comments.
“This inconsistency and the continued lack of detail in terms of how that [a safe environment] will be provided beyond the rhetoric of ‘everyone is welcome’ is concerning to say the least,” Paouros said.
Piara Powar, executive director of Football Against Racism in Europe, the anti-discrimination network, added: “The idea that the [rainbow] flag, which is now a recognised universal symbol of diversity and equality, will be removed from people to protect them will not be considered acceptable, and will be seen as a pretext.
“I have been to Qatar on numerous occasions and do not expect the local Qatari population or fans visiting for the World Cup to be attacked for wearing the rainbow flag. The bigger danger comes from state actions.”
