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Qatar opens criminal probe over invasive search on Australian passengers
Qatar says it will prosecute those responsible for forcing Australian and other foreign women to undergo vaginal examinations after an abandoned baby was found at Hamad International Airport earlier this month.
The incident on October 2 has sparked a huge diplomatic row, with the Australian government expressing outrage at the incident and demanding Qatar investigate.
Qatari officials say the matter has been referred to prosecutorsCredit: AP
Qatar justified the searches, saying they were part of an investigation to "prevent the perpetrators of the horrible crime from escaping" but did express "regret" for any "distress on the personal freedoms of any traveler caused by this action."
But on Friday the government said what took place was "wholly inconsistent with Qatar's culture and values" and announced it had referred an unspecified number of officials, who were not named, to be prosecuted.
"This incident is the first of its kind at Hamad International Airport, which has served tens of millions of passengers without any issues like this before," the government communications office said in a statement.
"The subsequent procedures taken by the authorities at the airport, including examining a number of female passengers, revealed that standard procedures were violated," the statement said. "Those responsible for these violations and illegal actions have been referred to the Public Prosecution Office.
"I assure you that we will hold those responsible for these acts to account," Prime Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani said on Twitter. "We will undertake all measures to prevent a recurrence."
Foreign Minister Marise Payne welcomed the "sincere apology" issued on behalf of the state of Qatar to the women involved. She said she had personally She did not call for the women to be compensated, saying that was a matter for Qatar.
"We are very grateful the Qatari government has taken these steps to identify the individuals involved, to apply the appropriate provisions of the Qatari legal system and importantly to provide an assurance that this will never happen again," Senator Payne said on Saturday.
"Any further recompense through Qatari processes would be a matter for that government."
Senator Payne said in a statement Friday night that "the statement of the Government of Qatar is consistent with our expectations for contrition, accountability and determination to avoid any repeat of this disturbing episode".
She said she would seek updates on progress made by the Public Prosecution Office, a comment intended to underline that Australia expects Qatar to follow through on its pledge to prosecute those responsible.
The physical examinations of passengers bound for Sydney has triggered outrage in Australia, where the federal government denounced the searches as inappropriate and beyond circumstances in which the women could give free and informed consent. Rights activists say such exams conducted under duress amount to sexual assault.
DFAT Secretary Frances Adamson, left, and Foreign Minister Marise Payne told Senate estimates Australia had made intensive diplomatic representations to Qatar.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
As the reports came to light, the government of Qatar apologised and promised a full investigation to be shared internationally. It earlier called the discovery of the newborn buried in a plastic bag under trash "an egregious and life-threatening" act.
In Qatar, like much of the Middle East, sex and childbirth outside of marriage are criminalised. Migrant workers in the past have hidden pregnancies and tried to travel abroad to give birth, and others have abandoned their babies anonymously to avoid imprisonment.
The revelation that women on a total of 10 flights in Doha earlier this month were subjected to invasive vaginal exams has spiralled into a public relations catastrophe for Qatar, a tiny oil-rich state on the Arabian Peninsula and host nation for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.