All urged to finalize Bedoun issue

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Sides look forward to Amiri directive

KUWAIT CITY, July 28: Defending the efforts and achievements of Central System for Remedying the Status of Illegal Residents (CSRSIR) Director Saleh Al-Fadala; MP Ahmed Al-Fadel called on every concerned authority, political power and civil society to end one of the biggest and deep-rooted issues in the history of the country. He asserted that everyone knows the Bedoun issue has been studied, reviewed and evaluated meticulously by the CSRSIR under the leadership of Al-Fadala. Despite all the heavy criticism and false accusations thrown his way, Al-Fadala persevered and put the welfare of the nation above everything. He prioritized the national identity and supported his positions with evidence and detailed documentation; thereby, earning praise from everyone who considers the identity of the country a red line, the lawmaker added.

Benefit
Al-Fadel believes the issue has been infiltrated by ill-intentioned figures who seek to benefit from it while bleeding the country’s resources at the expense of security, justice and freedom. He pointed out that the language of these manipulated demands has changed over the years and has become more violent.

They have almost full control over social media networks which complicate matters as they have the upper hand with public influence, creating a sensitive area that foreign bodies could use to pressure Kuwait under the banner of human rights, he added. Interfering figures have complicated matters severely such that deserving Bedouns are now lost between a larger group of undeserving individuals, the lawmaker lamented. Concerned individuals and civil associations are looking forward to the governmental solution that Parliament Speaker Marzouq Al- Ghanim announced recently in accordance with an Amiri directive.

Meanwhile, sources said there has been a decrease in the number of Bedouns – 83,000 compared to 220,000 before the Iraqi invasion. Sources dislosed the number of Bedoun children born to Kuwaiti mothers reached 12,000 in addition to 3,000 grandchildren.

The number of Bedoun women married to Kuwaitis totaled 3,000 so those within the priority bracket now stands at 18,000 out of 83,000 Bedouns registered at CSRSIR. Furthermore, only 35,000 Bedouns out of those registered at CSRSIR are part of the 1965 Census and they have the right to apply for citizenship but it does not mean automatic naturalization as they have to meet other conditions. A large percentage of these 35,000 persons also fall under the priority category as they are children and grandchildren of Kuwaiti women married to non-Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaiti women married to Kuwaitis.

Experts highlighted the three stages that the Bedoun issue has gone through; starting with the period of easement from 1959 to 1984, followed by the period of indifference from 1985 to 1990 when controversial events occurred and still being debated up to this day, but paved way for the most recent stage which is described as the ‘humanitarian dialogues’ stage.

By Ahmed Al-Naqeeb Arab Times Staff

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