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Militias and the Future of the Iraqi State. Multimedia Series. Haniya Javed. The blockade against Qatar has had a disproportionate economic impact on foreign workers, though increased self-sustainability efforts may provide new employment opportunities. The flight he arranged for me was an eight-hour journey from my hometown.
I had paid him to secure me a job as a security guard, but after the non-refundable payments were made, when he handed me my paperwork hours before my departure, I discovered my visa and employment contract were for a cleaning position.
Not to worry, he said, when I get to Qatar I can change jobs. My Qatar dream was finally in motion as the plane powered into the gloomy night sky.
I was greeted by the architectural masterpiece that is Hamad International Airport. Things were bound to pick up now, I thought. But my employer, who was supposed to meet me, was nowhere to be found. After numerous frantic phone calls, he told me to get a taxi and go to my accommodations. Inside my room, at the shoebox accommodations I found four other workers who seemed miserable. The place was rundown, with no beds, only used mattresses and soiled duvets which harbored an insect colony. I willed myself to be optimistic and decided to talk to my employer in the morning about changing jobs.
My employer heard my concerns and took me for an interview at a local security services company. I was offered an employment contract that seemed fair. While for me, it was a smooth process, other workers have told me how difficult it was for them, and how employers often use the power they have over workers to further exploit them.
My new company made it a point to inform me that they themselves never give workers the permission to change jobs. In retrospect, I wish I had.
The new housing was better than where I had been living, but still not up to bare minimum standards. Ten of us were stacked in a stuffy room. About 15 people shared a toilet, and about 60 shared the communal kitchen, which was built for a handful of people. Since then, with different assignments, I have lived in various places. At one point I was sleeping in the educational facility I was guarding.
For the last month I have been sharing my room with five other men from my company, and for a while, water from the air conditioner was leaking onto our beds. I have not been paid for May, June, and July. I have been here for more than six months, but I have not been issued a Qatar Identity Card, which is mandatory for migrant workers.
Other employees tell me it takes eight to ten months for our company to issue Identity Cards. I desperately need a few days off to fight the fatigue that is dragging me down.
Today, it's 4. What does the government think about all of this? Well, as far as the UN is concerned, their position is clear:. On population growth from until very recently, Qataris felt that growth was too low and needed to be raised.
In , it deemed population growth 'satisfactory' and sought to maintain it. On age Never deemed an issue before, the size of the working age population has been flagged as a minor concern and the general aging of the population as a major concern. Which is the main reason why in it advocated policies aimed at increasing national fertility rates. On urbanisation Where once this was satisfactory, it's now 'too high' and they are seeking to actively lower the frequency of moves away from rural areas.
On immigration They might still hold no policy on emigration but when it comes to immigration, Qatar's emirs have made it clear that it is too high and should no longer be maintained at its current levels. Population is such a key issue for the future of the country, that in , the government set out specific policies in a page pdf.
It's not yet clear whether they will be able to resolve the country's deep-rooted tension between its need for, and lack of rights for, its migrant population. Turn autoplay off Turn autoplay on. Jump to content [s] Jump to site navigation [0] Jump to search [4] Terms and conditions [8]. News Datablog. Qatar's migrants: how have they changed the country? Qatar has become almost unrecognisable from the tiny nation it once was.
We look at the data to find out how migration changed everything and what happens when a nation swells so quickly. Read our exclusive on Qatar's World Cup slaves. A Qatari investor follows the stock market activity but whose keeping an eye on demographics? Population size Early on, Qatar's expansion was fast - it's population grew at a rate of
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