Rotterdam, Amsterdam politicians against World Cup public screenings over Qatar abuses

Political parties in Rotterdam and Amsterdam have reservations about showing the World Cup in Qatar on big screens. GroenLinks in Rotterdam wants to ban such public screenings because of the "morally and ethically reprehensible" human rights situation in the country. D66 in Amsterdam argues in favor of only organizing public screenings if there is also attention to "the dark side" of the World Cup.

At least 6,500 migrant workers have died in constructing various stadiums for the World Cup in Qatar, human rights groups including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International reported. And using air conditioning to cool the stadiums during matches will result in a lot of energy wasted unnecessarily during the event in the Gulf state.

Paris and other cities in France have already restricted the broadcasting of World Cup matches. GroenLinks sent a letter to the Rotterdam city council asking for a similar measure.

D66 in the Dutch capital wants every match on a big screen to actively pay attention to the exploitation of migrant workers. According to the party, this can be done by showing an information screen before the start of the match,d during halftime, and afterward, within formation about the human rights violated for the realization of this World Cup.

It is not yet clear whether Rotterdam or Amsterdam plans any public screenings for the matches. The World Cup kicks off on Sunday, November 20. The Netherlands’ first match is against Senegal at 5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 21.