Kathryn Fletcher says United and City fans should pull together in protest against the sportswashing of human rights abuses in the UAE and Qatar

Your article (Manchester United Q&A: could Qatari investors realistically buy the club?, 8 February) addresses questions surrounding the possible takeover of Manchester United by Qatar. It focuses on the Uefa ownership rules as a potential stumbling block, but ignores human rights (the very issue featured in the photo accompanying the article, which shows a supporter holding up a sign saying “No to Qatar – Human Rights Matter”). As a season ticket holder who is an active member of Amnesty International, I am more concerned about my club being used to further sportswash human rights abuses. These are now well known following the World Cup exposure.

I call on concerned Manchester United fans to join the Manchester Amnesty group to campaign against this takeover. We would also love to hear from Manchester City fans unhappy about the appalling human rights abuses in the United Arab Emirates. To those who love football but hate the murky side: let’s come together. A city united!
Kathryn Fletcher
Manchester

This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.