FIFA creates advisory panel to address Human Rights

World football governing body FIFA has announced the establishment of an independent advisory body dedicated to human rights, a move that world football’s governing body claims is a first for sports federations.

Stung by criticism that it overlooks human rights in countries staging its tournaments, the Human Rights Advisory Board is to be composed of international experts from the United Nations, trade unions, civil society and business and will be tasked with providing FIFA with advice on all issues that the board members consider appropriate for meeting its human rights responsibilities.

South Africa and Brazil, which hosted the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, were criticised over alleged human rights violations while there are also concerns about Russia and Qatar which are staging the next two global showpiece tournaments.

In particular, the plight of migrants in 2022 hosts Qatar has alarmed human rights and labour organisations.

The Board, which will come together for the first time at FIFA headquarters in Zurich (pictured) on Monday, is scheduled to meet at least twice a year. After each meeting, a report will be published with the board’s recommendations to FIFA and an update from FIFA on how it is addressing previous recommendations from the Board.

Issues on which the Board will be expected to provide advice include labuor standards, health and safety, property rights, security, discrimination and freedom of expression.

The Board will include representatives from FIFA sponsors adidas and Coca-Cola, corruption watchdog Transparency International, the United Nations (UN) and the world players' organisation FIFPro.

Commenting on what the Board aims to achieve, Lene Wendland, UN advisor on business and human rights stated “football has a huge global following, cutting across all social boundaries.

"There is therefore huge potential for FIFA to play a dynamic role in standing up for human rights."

Amnesty International reported an increase in police harassment of informal traders, homeless South Africans, and refugees and migrants living in shelters or inner-city areas before the 2010 tournament.

Meanwhile, human rights groups condemned the detention of protesters, including lawyers and professors, in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo during the 2014 tournament, and evictions of slum residents related to building work in the run-up.

Russia, the host of next year's World Cup, has been frequently criticised for its record on racism in soccer and its treatment of gay people.

Qatar has faced criticism of its treatment of foreign workers from Amnesty International, the Building and Wood Workers' International organization and others.

The Qatari government introduced a new law in December which it said would replace the controversial ‘kafala’ or sponsorship system that forces foreign workers to seek their employer's consent to change jobs or leave the country.

The board is part of a systematic push by FIFA to step up its human rights efforts. Among various other initiatives, a firm human rights commitment was included in the FIFA Statutes in February 2016 and figures prominently in the newly published organisational strategy FIFA 2.0: The Vision for the Future. For the upcoming editions of the FIFA World Cup™, elaborate monitoring processes for labour standards have been developed in cooperation with the Local Organising Committee in Russia and the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy in Qatar.

FIFA has also successfully launched an Anti-Discrimination Monitoring System and is working on the integration of human rights criteria into the bidding process for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

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