Qatar is Western Asian country which is sovereign. Its borders are occupied by Bahrain, the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabia. Even though it is sovereign, it is not a democracy. It is a monarchy which is absolute. This state achieved its independence from Britain in 1971. In 1995, after a peaceful coup by Sheikh Khalifa who deposed his father Sheikh Al Thani, he became the Emir. Only until recently has this country emerged as a global player in the world. Through its vast oil reserves, it has become the world’s wealthiest country as far as per capita is concerned. This has boosted not only is image in the world, but also its human development record. This Arab country hosted the Asian games in 2006 and is set to host the World cup in 2022. In addition, it has an expanding media station called Al Jazeera which is a global contributor of news. Its economic prospects are therefore very promising. However, it is not all joy and merry in the country. It has a number of problems which are not only linked to its colonial masters, but also to post Ottoman borders, nationalism as well as religion and racism.
One of the issues facing this great country is its human rights violation. Linked to its Islamic religion and beliefs, this country has continually denied women their rights, including the right to vote. In addition, migrant workers are not only denied basic necessities, but also the right to freedom and the right to own property. Incidences of forced labor are also very rampant. Wages are very low. This cannot be blamed on religious beliefs only, but the scars left by their colonial masters who promoted the vice of slavery.
Another of the country’s problems is linked to the post Ottoman borders. Since oil is very vast in the Asian countries, most of them have had problems handling this black gold. Qatar is not the only Asian country which has had problems. From Iraq to Saudi Arabia, civil unrest as well as international wars have had very unfortunate effects. Qatar has not suffered what Iraq, Iran and Saudi Arabia have suffered in terms of internal wars. However, its borders are always under dispute. Saudi Arabia is one of its neighbors. The two nations have continually had disputes and international mediators have been called to help solve them.
In addition, this country is having a demographic crisis. This can be linked to both religion and nationalism. Private business is highly discouraged in the country since the government is pro-nationalism. Nevertheless, there is boom in the private sector. Thus, there is an influx of foreign nationals who come into the country as expats. Thus locals have started to complain since the available jobs go to the more educated and skilled foreign nationals. The competition for the available opportunities is feared to be heading to a national crisis and the country may begin to defy international policy by refusing entry into the country by foreigners. Another demographic problem faced by the country is the male/female ratio. Islam as a religion and the major religion in Qatar promotes the development of the boy child than the one for the girl child.
In conclusion, though the country is promising economic wise and otherwise, it has a number of problems which it must look into if it is to prosper and develop more.
Works Cited
Dietl, Gulshan. Democracy and Democratization in the Gulf. Delhi: Shipra Publications, 2010. Print.
Qatar. Petaluma, Calif: World Trade Press, 2010. Print.
Walt, Vivienne. "As labourers Die, Qatar Fights to keep Woorld Cup." Time News100.09 (2013): 4-9. Web. 23 Jan. 2014.
