A campaigner for migrant workers’ rights who is from Spalding is fundraising to clear his name in Qatar after being arrested on arrival.
Andy Hall says he didn’t know that during the 2022 men’s football World Cup, hosted by Qatar, he was tried and sentenced in absentia to a month in prison and a £1,000 fine.
He says the conviction was based on ‘false allegations that he made defamatory statements about human rights violations by a Qatari company when forwarding two email complaints’.
He said he only found out there was a problem after flying into the country’s capital Doha on July 1 and held in custody for several hours.
Andy (pictured) was eventually allowed to fly home but is now looking to raise £8,600 to cover legal costs to fight the charges.
“I did not even write the emails the court and prosecution relied on in pursuing this criminal case against me,” he said. “I never received any formal notice of the investigation, charges, or trial relating to this unjust conviction.
“I wasn’t able to immediately access a lawyer in person, an independent translator or any consular assistance from the UK government.
“At the airport, I was continually pressured to sign legal documents in Arabic—a language I do not understand—under threat of immediate imprisonment if I refused.
“Legal experts advised me remotely that signing these documents could have triggered detention, so I politely refused and stood my ground.
“Thankfully, perhaps due also to pressure from diplomats, lawyers, activists and UN officials, I was eventually released from detention, my passport returned to me and I was told that I was allowed to leave Qatar.
“I bought a new flight ticket and immediately flew out of the country, absolutely confused and exhausted, on the same day as I had arrived.
“But this saga is not over. I have on my record an unjust criminal conviction under Qatar’s cybercrime laws. This conviction may also prevent my freedom of movement around the world for my important work to defend migrant rights.
“A criminal conviction can also trigger other unpredictable negative consequences.”
The fundraiser is at https://fundrazr.com/fundrazerforandyhall?ref=tw_9EIdS2_ab_8GCpnNzdN2R8GCpnNzdN2R
