A group of women from Australia are suing authorities and the national airline in Qatar over being subjected to strip-search and invasive gynaecological examinations at Doha airport. The lawyer for the group of Australian women revealed on Monday, November 15.
The incident in question is from October 2020. Women travelling on several different flights of Qatar Airways were subjected to the search after the Doha airport officials found an abandoned baby in one of the bathrooms. These women included 13 Australians.
The incident was followed by backlash from across the globe as many raised concerns around the treatment of women by Qatar authorities. It is punishable offence in the country to have sexual relations or childbirth outside of wedlock.
The country’s prime minister had issued an apology after global outrage and the country had taken action against one Doha airport official who got a suspended jail sentence. However, the group of women have stated that their demands for damages are “being ignored” by the authorities.
The group is seeking compensation, accusing the Qatari government, the civil aviation authority and Qatar Airways of assault, battery, trespass and false imprisonment.
One of the women affected by the ordeal shared her story with Australian media outlets. Describing the event as the “scariest moment” of her life, she said, “[The nurse] said ‘I need you to lay down on the bed’ … and she grabbed my pants and my underwear and she stripped them. And for a second I just think my head was about to explode. It’s a humiliation and the abuse of power, the breach of my human rights. No one is allowed to touch me. No one is allowed to strip me naked without my consent.”
She was transiting the Doha Airport on her way back to Australia with her five-month-old baby.
As per Sydney-based lawyer Damian Sturzaker, who is representing seven of the women, they seek not just a formal apology and compensation but also guarantee of protection for passengers transiting through the Doha airport in the future. A leading news agency quoted the lawyer, “The group of women have suffered enormous distress on the evening concerned, now just over a year ago, and they continue to suffer distress and ill effects and trauma as a result of what occurred.”
The lawsuit would be filed in the next few weeks in Australia, he added.
