LONDON — The Middle Eastern Gulf state of Qatar is planning to use specially developed robots instead of young boys as jockeys in camel racing, in response to international criticism of the use of child jockeys, according to a Qatar News Agency report.

The robot, developed by an un-named Swiss company has been tested successfully, the report said. Sheikh Abdullah bin Saud al-Thani, the chairman of the committee in charge of the robot project, was quoted saying this could lead to a factory for robot production being built in the region.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Saud al-Thani said the use of robots would be a civilized response to United Nation's and child agencies' criticism which saw camel racing as an exploitation of children. He said that Qatar was determined to save camel racing, which is popular among Bedouin Arabs.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Saud al-Thani said the United Nations had threatened to impose sanctions which could bring camel racing to an end.

According to a Reuters report rights groups say several thousand boys, some as young as four, work as camel jockeys, many after being abducted or sold by their families mainly from the Indian subcontinent. The human rights groups say the boys are kept in prison-like conditions and underfed to keep them light so the camels run faster.

The United Arab Emirates has also said it would use robot jockeys for racing when they become available and has passed a law banning the use of jockey's aged less than 16 years and weighing less than 45 kilograms according to the Qatar News Agency. "With the introduction of this law and the production of the first generation of robot jockeys in August this year [2005], the UAE will have adhered to the international regulations governing camel racing while at the same time preserving the traditional character of came races as a popular local heritage," the report quoted Sheikh Sultan as saying.