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U.N. labor conference led by Qatari despite migrant worker controversy

Delegates from 187 nations set aside concerns about human rights and migrant workers for Qatar's labor minister to head the International Labor Conference.

Qatar's Labor Minister Ali bin Samikh al-Marri, left, and ILO Director General Gilbert Houngbo.
Qatar's Labor Minister Ali bin Samikh al-Marri, left, and ILO Director General Gilbert Houngbo, right, open the 111th Session of the International Labor Conference. (AN/Crozet – Pouteau/

GENEVA (AN) — The U.N. labor agency opened its annual conference focused on social justice but elected the labor minister of Qatar, whose nation has been widely criticized for human rights abuses and a lack of strong protections for migrant workers, as its conference president.

Qatar's Labor Minister Ali bin Samikh al-Marri was elected without opposition to preside over the 111th International Labor Conference at its opening on Monday in the Palais des Nations, the United Nations' European headquarters. The conference lasts 12 days.

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