KUWAIT CITY, Aug 25: Chairperson of Studying Negative Phenomena Committee at the Parliament MP Mohammad Hayef on Wednesday warned against the rising number of drug dealers, who continue to engage in this trade inside Kuwait’s prison.

Speaking to reporters after the committee meeting, Hayef also revealed there are about 54,000 drug addicts in Kuwait. He said the Amiri Amnesty Program, which was implemented from 2005 to 2009, yielded positive results with a 13 percent passing rate. He pointed out the biggest international drug rehabilitation center did not achieve even half of this rate. He said one of the activities included in the program was the memorization of the Quran. 

Hayef confirmed the panel continued its discussion on drug-related issues Wednesday, during which an official from the Islamic Studies Center highlighted the role of the institution in combating drugs. Officials from the Amiri Amnesty Program also attended the meeting.

The lawmaker pointed out the rising number of drug dealers in Kuwait’s prison is a clear manifestation that there are flaws in the ministry, which seems unable to control drug trafficking and consumption inside the prison cells.

Hayef added the panel will invite representatives from the ministries of Awqaf, Interior, Defense, Justice and Health, as well as the Public Authority for Youth and Sports (PAYS), to tackle the issue in its next meeting.

In another development, Minister of Interior Sheikh Jaber Al-Khaled refuted reports on the alleged entry of an Israeli to Kuwait during his meeting with the Defense and Interior Committee at the Parliament Wednesday.

Sheikh Jaber told the panel there is no truth in news reports published recently on the supposed entry of an Israeli journalist to the country. He clarified the person mentioned in these reports holds an Austrian passport.

On the reported entry of an Israeli in 2005, Sheikh Jaber said an employee committed a mistake at the time as he entered the Israeli code, instead of the actual nationality of the passenger. He stressed the code has been removed from the database, affirming the panel fully understood his explanations on the issue. He went on to say that Kuwait identifies those banned from entering the country through their passport, not their religion.

Asked to comment on speculations that those who hold dual citizenship will be prohibited from running in the elections, Sheikh Jaber asserted, “We have no dual citizenship in Kuwait. We only have the Kuwaiti citizenship.”

On the other hand, MP Dr Faisal Al-Muslim criticized the Ministry of Interior for its inconsistencies in dealing with reports on the alleged entry of an Israeli to Kuwait. “We understand that the ministry has been exerting tremendous efforts to address the issue. However, we want the ministry to stop from issuing contradict statements. The minister should provide us with copies of documents related to the incident in 2005 when an employee reportedly committed a mistake in registering the nationality code of a passenger.

Meanwhile, Committee Rapporteur MP Shuwaib Al-Muwaizri disclosed the panel discussed all issues related to the alleged entry of an Israeli journalist to the country. He confirmed the panel accepted the explanation of Sheikh Jaber on the error committed by the employee assigned in the registration of the nationality of the passenger.

Al-Muwaizri said the panel invited the minister to its next meeting on Tuesday to deliberate on the issue raised by MP Musallam Al-Barrak on the purported release of an inmate serving time for his involvement in a drug-related case.

In the meantime, the Education, Culture and Guidance Committee at the Parliament on Wednesday granted the government’s request to postpone discussions on the proposed establishment of an audio-visual public authority until Oct 13.

Speaking to reporters after the panel meeting, Committee Chairperson Dr Salwa Al-Jassar confirmed the attendance of Minister of Information and Oil Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah. She explained the government accepted, in principle, the proposal of MP Faisal Al-Duwaisan to establish a public authority for the audio-visual sector, but the executive requested more time to study the bill before finalizing its decision.

Al-Jassar disclosed the government also demanded postponement of deliberations on the proposed amendment to the Audio-Visual Law, draft bill on election campaigns, and comments of the editors-in-chief of local newspapers on the proposal to amend the Audio-Visual law because these issues are directly related to the proposed establishment of the authority.

According to the lawmaker, Sheikh Ahmad informed the panel that the government revised the Audio-Visual Law, in accordance with the recommended changes, and it is now with the concerned ministerial committee. She affirmed the panel agreed to finalize discussions on these issues in its meeting on Oct 3.

Al-Jasser added the local newspapers and television channels have also presented their observations on Articles 11-17 of the Audio-Visual Law, in addition to Articles 7-12 and 15-27 of the Publications Law.