The State of Qatar Stresses Commitment to Ensuring Respect of Human Rights

The State of Qatar stressed Wednesday its commitment to guaranteeing human rights within its national legal system.

This came in the speech of the State of Qatar delivered by Deputy Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Office at Geneva Abdullah Hamad Al Nuaimi in an annual panel discussion on technical cooperation and capability building, as part of the 44th session of the Human Rights Council.

Al Nuaimi said that the State of Qatar, in its national legal system, assigns a high priority to ensuring the protection of human rights, particularly for those who have had their freedom taken away from them. He added that this is done by an active implementation of the related human rights standards, including the Nelson Mandela Rules for treating prisoners, and the Bangkok Rules for women prisoners.

He added that the designated authorities carry out training programs on a regular basis, noting that there was a training center for prison workers that is in charge of the training process in penal and correctional institutions. There are also specialized training courses at the Police Training Institute that focus on important fields such as security, the rights of prisoners, developing the skills of the workers, and using modern technologies. A total of 12 training courses were implemented in 2018, and 10 more in 2019, he said.

Al Nuaimi also said that as part of the efforts against the Coronavirus pandemic, the health and security authorities carried out since March a series of strict measures at the central prison to protect prisoners from the threat of infection. All prisoners carry out regular testing in order to discover new cases, in addition to handing out personal protective equipment such as masks and gloves to all prisoners on a regular basis.

He noted that, last April, there was an Amiri pardon of 500 prisoners, which helped lower the number of prisoners. The decision came in light of the medical and humanitarian conditions resulting from the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19).