Has the Qatar brand profited or suffered from its hosting of the World Cup? While the World Cup is the most popular sports gathering in the world, and Qatar has done a fantastic job of building the needed infrastructure to host it, the event has drawn attention to the emirate’s treatment of expatriate laborers and its own domestic policies. That has thrown a dent in its otherwise positive PR promotion.
On December 1, close to eighty students, faculty and staff participated in a panel discussion to debate the pros and cons of the Qatar initiative. Three panelists led the discussion, Dr. Ramez Maluf, Ms. Amira Rafei, and Ms. Dima Tuffaha. Among the subjects raised were the $200 billion dollars allegedly spent on the construction of the eight stadiums and the necessary infrastructure, the treatment of laborers, the Qatari restriction on alcohol consumption, and the legal restrictions on the LGBT community.
A condition imposed by the organizers of the panel was that all discussion had to be done in English, in an effort to promote the use of that language on campus. The debates were heated, but on the whole participants all agreed that bringing the games to an Arab country was a very positive step.
And the English Language faculty were very pleased.
“A lot of the students have asked me to do more of these panel discussions, and we are already planning new ones,” said Ms. Afaf Yafi, coordinator of the English Language Program. Ms. Yafi says she already has another idea.