NHRC chairperson affirms robust relationships with Asia

Qatar National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) Chairperson Maryam bint Abdullah al-Attiyah has said that the NHRC shares robust relationships with its counterparts in the labour-exporting countries, including the Philippines, Nepal, and Bangladesh.Speaking to the Qatar News Agency (QNA), she said that such relationships would promote confidence in Qatar’s labour market, given the integrated system for protecting workers' rights, as these relationships are based on international co-operation for respecting human rights standards and relevant international human rights conventions, as well as the International Labour Organisation (ILO)'s standards and national legislations.Al-Attiyah added that the independence of the national human rights institutions (NHRIs) from governments creates another factor in fostering the strong labour market, as such institutions are entities that monitor the states' obligations to respect and protect human rights.She pointed out that there must be an integrated system in all labour markets to access justice and that Qatar possesses administrations and commissions that support and enhance this system, such as business relationship management, along with their role in settling labour disputes, in addition to the dispute resolution committee and competent judicial bodies.The NHRC, al-Attiyah said, is one of the national critical mechanisms that help workers access equity and justice, as it receives appeals and complaints and works to address them in collaboration with the competent authorities.The official stressed that this mission helps promote confidence in the labour market, adding that since its inception, the NHRC has been holding panel discussions and engaging the representatives of various communities to provide legal information to workers.Al-Attiyah added that the NHRC’s recent visits to the labour-exporting countries were aimed at engaging with counterpart institutions, civil society institutions and labour unions in those countries to further discuss issues of shared concern.