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Qatar
Qatar has experienced a low level of domestic dissent compared to its neighbors, but following its successful bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, international criticism of the mistreatment of low-paid migrant workers has grown. Labor reforms enacted 2015 still require workers to secure their employer’s permission to change jobs or leave the country, preventing them from lawfully leaving abusive situations. Restrictions on international media have increased: In 2016 authorities closed down an independent news website and they have detained and interrogated journalists who have attempted to report on migrant workers’ living and working conditions.
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