A/HRC/26/35/Add.1 49. The National Development Strategy aims to reduce the heavy dependence on domestic workers in Qatar. The target is to reduce by half the average number of domestic helpers per household. The Strategy states that “The Government will devise a set of regulations, including standards and conditions, to better manage the recruitment and employment of domestic helpers. This way forward will be supported by new legislation covering the legal rights of domestic workers.” The Special Rapporteur was pleased to hear that the Government has worked on a draft law for domestic workers and hopes for the speedy finalization and adoption of this law, in order to better safeguard the rights of domestic workers, whose abuse is rarely visible. This law should include provisions on, inter alia, wages, working hours, working conditions, payment for overtime, annual leave and effective remedies, as set out in ILO Convention No. 189 concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers. 50. While welcoming the blacklisting by the Government of companies that abuse migrant workers, the Special Rapporteur insists that this should also apply to domestic workers. Persons who abuse domestic workers should not be able to hire more domestic workers in the future. Similarly, labour inspections should be undertaken also in private homes, in order to inspect working conditions and combat the too-frequent abuse of domestic workers. VII. Access to remedy for human rights violations 51. There are different complaint mechanisms available for migrants, which can be accessed through the Ministry of Labour, the Ministry of Interior, the National Human Rights Committee, or directly at the labour court. However, migrants have difficulty accessing these mechanisms, partly because of lack of information, legal aid and interpreters and partly because they fear losing their job and subsequently being detained and deported, or they fear their sponsor’s reactions. Often when a migrant reports abuse by their sponsor, the sponsor retaliates by filing criminal charges against him or her. Some migrants detained in the deportation centre reported not even being released from the deportation centre to attend their own court case filed against their employer. More efforts are needed to provide effective access to justice for migrants. Sponsorship should always be transferred at the request of the worker, at least temporarily, when a migrant files a complaint against their employer. Additionally, migrants who file a complaint against their employer often need help, including interpretation and legal aid, but often also a place to stay and food, while they wait for a decision in their case. 52. The complaint mechanisms are not very effective. Despite its good will and awareness of the issues, the National Human Rights Committee has limited means and cannot take any decisions, only transfer the complaint to the relevant ministry. The Ministry of Labour can only mediate and if the employer does not agree, the worker has to file a case with the court. Migrants find the division of competencies between the Committee and the Ministries of Labour and Interior confusing. 53. The Special Rapporteur notes the need for more effective sanctions against employers. He regrets the lack of effective investigation and prosecution measures for offences under the Labour Law and the small number of court cases against abusive employers, a situation which may be connected to the numerous non-Qatari judges without tenure. Access to the labour court is difficult: migrants have to pay a fee to file a case and getting a decision takes several months. The Labour Law provides that lawsuits filed by workers shall be exempted from judicial fees; however most migrants still have to pay 600 riyals to file a case. Reportedly this covers the cost of an expert opinion. This is money migrants often do not have – in fact many of the complaints by migrants relate to nonpayment of their salaries for up to several months. 12