Nepalis Feel the Human Toll of Qatar’s World Cup

Far from demanding accountability from Qatar, South Asian governments have often been mute spectators to the plight of workers and their families at home.

Twenty-four-year old Tej Narayan Tharu dreamt of buying a small plot of land and building a concrete house using his earnings as a scaffolder in a football stadium being built for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Born to a poor landless family of peasants in Morang, in Nepal’s eastern lowland bordering India, Tharu did not want his 4-year-old daughter to grow up in a mud hut or cut short her education due to financial problems like he did.

Tharu died long before he could see his dreams turn into a reality, using the “blood money” that Qatar paid his family as compensation.

Tharu’s family now lives in a cement building and owns a small plot of agricultural land where they grow paddy and corn. Samiksha, his daughter, studies in a private school. Renuka Chaudhary, Tharu’s wife, has cleared off the debt acquired during Tharu’s visa processing.

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