As part of its candidature for the Council, Qatar submitted a "pledge" to protect human rights. Here's what a large majority of UN states evidently took seriously:
- "The promotion and protection of human rights is one of the pillars of the policy of the State of Qatar...The State of Qatar is addressing the issue of human rights in an integrated manner that takes into account the importance of fundamental freedoms and democracy, places human beings at the centre of State policy, respects freedom of expression and judicial independence, and promotes a culture of peace and acceptance of others."
- "The principal human rights problems were the inability of citizens to change their government peacefully, restriction of fundamental civil liberties, and pervasive denial of noncitizen workers' rights. The monarch-appointed government prohibited organized political parties and restricted civil liberties, including freedoms of speech, press, and assembly and access to a fair trial for persons held under the Protection of Society Law and Combating Terrorism Law. Other continuing human rights concerns included restrictions on the freedoms of religion and movement, as foreign laborers could not freely travel abroad. Trafficking in persons, primarily in the domestic worker and labor sectors, was a problem. Legal, institutional, and cultural discrimination against women limited their participation in society...There is no specific law criminalizing domestic violence... domestic violence against women continued to be a problem."