Thousands of migrant workers have died since Qatar was awarded to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Zohorul’s death in Qatar couldn’t have happened at a worse time. The family was even before his death passing through economic hardship.  They had borrowed money from a local NGO, moneylenders and relatives to send Zohorul to Qatar to work as a cleaner. Rina Akter, elder sister, and Sharmin Akter, younger sister, of Zohorul claimed that their only brother did not have any previous health complications or diseases in Bangladesh.

Two years ago, Bishnu Bahadur Bayalkoti traveled to Qatar to work as a driver. – He died while driving at work, says the widow, Maya Bayalkoti. Four other Nepalese guest workers died in the same car accident. The money he earned meant that the children could study and one daughter was married off. Now the family feels helpless. – He died at work, so I was hopeful that they would support the family of a person who gave his life for the company, but they have not yet paid. We are in shock and mourning. We're poor and I'm illiterate. What should we do? I do not know, says the widow.

Srinivas was a crane operator in Qatar and worked for a local construction company. - I was told that he died due to “natural causes” but I do not believe that. How can a completely healthy man just die on the spot? I think he was killed, says Sriniva's wife Anitha Narukulla. Srinivas was an esteemed worker. In 2019, he received a smartphone from his boss. - My husband told me that several of the colleagues became jealous. They started fighting, Anitha remembers. Two months later, he was dead. When the body came in a package, there was a smaller package next to it. In it lay the phone.

At the end of the workday, he fell down outside the construction site where he worked. And was sent to a local hospital where doctor declared him dead. “I could not believe it at first since he was in good health”, says the widow. Sumi Akter is now worried about school fees and the future life of her children: “Daily life is hard.”

On November 18, 2019, Latha Bollapally received a call from Qatar. Her husband had had a heart attack the night before in his room. Ten days after his death, the body arrived at the village. He worked abroad for 12 years. - He never said anything about his salary or about the working conditions or how he lived. When he died, we received one thousand Indian rupees as compensation, says Brother Rajesh. The family knows very little about his life in Qatar. - He lived alone, cooked all his food by himself and when some relatives wanted to make contact with him, he distanced himself from them.

When Jagan Gurung's son Anish Gurung turned 18 he went abroad. – I told him to get married and build a life here at home, but he refused, says father Jagan Gurung. The family paid a recruiter and he started as a construction worker in Qatar. – He was sitting in the front seat next to the driver when they collided. The father says that it feels as if the son will call him on the mobile phone at any time and that he therefore keeps it charged and within reach. – I'm just waiting for him to call and say… Aama, Babaa. Although he died on the way to the workplace, the company has not paid any compensation yet.