Qatar Affirms Sports’ Role in Promoting Human Rights Values, Principles

The State of Qatar affirmed that sports, as a universal language, play a significant role in promoting human rights values and principles such as equality, tolerance, cooperation, and solidarity, pointing out that through the rules of mutual respect, acceptance of defeat, and celebration of victory that govern the game, it is possible to overcome all social, cultural, and economic barriers and differences between communities and peoples. This came in the State of Qatar's statement delivered by First Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Al Suwaidi during the panel on promoting human rights through sport and the Olympic ideal, part of the 56th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. Al Suwaidi said that sports have a great potential to achieve positive results with regards to supporting many of the main sustainable development goals, pointing out that sports effectively contributes to good health, promoting noble values and principles, and enhance education quali ty. He said that the State of Qatar pays great attention to sports, as reflected in the third National Development Strategy 2024-2030, which aim to create a sporty society with a high standard of living, in fulfillment of the Qatar National Vision 2030, in addition to dedicating a national day for sports, marked on the Tuesday of the second week of February annually. He added that through a strategic approach to sports, the Qatar Olympic Committee is working on enhancing sports culture and instilling the Olympic spirit in the State of Qatar, in accordance with the Olympic Charter. Al Suwaidi stressed that throughout all of the sports tournaments it hosted, the State of Qatar sought to promote inclusiveness, offering equal opportunity for participation, adding that the State of Qatar is proud of having organized in 2022 the most accessible FIFA World Cup edition for people with disabilities in history, which it did through taking into consideration the needs of people with disabilities in all of the tournam ent's aspects. Source: Qatar News Agency