KUWAIT CITY, Jan 25: Harsh measures should be taken against the parliamentarians as they have violated rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution, Kuwait Human Rights Society (KHRS) Chairman Ali Al-Baghli said in a seminar organized by Kuwait Teachers Society (KTS) Monday under the slogan “Human Rights and Freedoms in the State of Kuwait.” Accusing the parliamentarians of jeopardizing freedom, Al-Baghli opined the legislators have been passing laws that have prompted international organizations to hurl accusations at Kuwait. He cited as a case in point the Citizenship Law, warning against calls to grant citizenship to non-Muslims as it contravenes Article 35 of the Constitution. He added the Personal Status Law does not grant equal rights to men and women.

Al-Baghli asserted the parliamentarians also issued laws on higher education, segregation, monitoring and controlling books, imposed penalties against cross-dressing, amended the Criminal Law, formed the Negative Phenomenon Committee, and attempted to require women to wear ‘hijab’ (veil) while voting or running for election. He lamented the MPs also passed the new private sector labor law, which discriminates against women in terms of the work hours, and put pressure on the government to amend the Press and Publications Laws. He also accused the MPs of trying to draw a red line on topics about MPs and ministers. “What is then the meaning of our freedom of expression if our discussions are limited to cooking and magic?” he asked rhetorically.