20/12/2020
20/12/2020
SIX decades have passed since the Constitution and state of institutions came into being but can we say that we have a real democracy? Or is it just a decoration that conceals the ugliness of chanting a slogan of this kind behind it?
There is no doubt that an observer of what happened in the recent times raises this question amidst fear that the bullying and riots that accompanied the parliamentary elections and everything that came after that will turn into a hidden type of militia action. I do not think anyone conceals the dire consequences of this slide and violation of the constitution, the law, and the internal regulations of the parliament by a group. Where might matters reach if they continue in this way?
Are the big headlines presented by an assembly of lawmakers really the popular demands of Kuwaitis and a priority? Can the deals that were sealed at night develop the country? Does the opposition seek to achieve the national interest, or are they the two sides of the same corruption coin?
In real democracies, a dispute among MPs cannot take the direction of hostility and maliciousness, but rather serves as a catalyst for cooperation in order to find a common formula that serves the interest of the country. There the MPs and ministers view their work as a responsible national service, and so they neither place their interests above the interests of the people nor do they classify themselves as pure and pious advisors and reformers. They instead seek to fulfill the people’s demands unfortunately this did not happen here. Instead, the title of the book indicates a completely different content.
Distinguished lawmakers, what Kuwaitis are seeking is neither a blanket amnesty nor reviews for seeking more freedom of opinion by amending the cybercrimes law, while you yourselves are practicing vicious violence and repression, which does not indicate progress at all.
Gentlemen, the demands of Kuwaitis begin with dealing with the many problems caused by those who preceded you. Some of you were involved in that crime when the Muslim Brotherhood, the Islamic movements and sectarian groups singled out the National Assembly... they approved laws that made Kuwait a copy of the Taliban “Tora Bora”.
Today, at a time when the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is rising up against the bad legacy left behind by the Muslim Brotherhood through its laws and regulations and when the matter of administration has settled for them, Kuwait choses to become an expulsion of every beautiful and joyful gesture. Kuwaitis flee to neighboring countries and the rest of the world to be happy, fearing the backward social pressure forces that want to isolate them in the cocoon of their dark thoughts.
Gentlemen, the demands of the people include housing plans that will end the suffering of thousands of families who wait for 14-20 years to obtain housing, while spending huge sums on rents. They are not urgently seeking an amnesty law for a group that escaped from implementing enforceable rulings, because it sought chaos, or was part of a terrorist cell. The judiciary was merciful to them to the greatest extent in the rulings that were delivered against its members. If they were in another country that is ten times more democratic than Kuwait, the provisions for life would have been lighter.
Look at Morocco, Oman, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and how they have dealt with the housing issue. They have modern plans from which the state bears nothing but the benefits, and have settled the matter forever. On the other hand, we hear nothing but sweet words and statements that depict our infrastructure as one of the finest services in the world, but potholes fill the roads, the ponds of water in them are almost like lakes, and garbage fills the streets, as if we are another Lebanon.
We are singing of Kuwaitization of jobs, but we all know that Kuwaitization is a fancy image that conceals behind it the suffering of the real workers who are not citizens. You announced Kuwaitization in various ministries but what has changed? Nothing... Expatriates working in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are considered as an added value, and facilities are granted to them. On the other hand, Kuwait racially expels them, and increases its economic crisis.
O MPs, the demands of Kuwaitis are to redress the loan-defaulters, solve their crisis, and end the suffering of 80,000 families whose heads are forbidden to travel because of a simple debt, or are put in prison for a dud cheque while in other countries, such cheques are treated as a bond, and does not turn into a felony for which the person who issues them is imprisoned. Even in Islam, the one who exceeds his money bears the responsibility for that, not the one who has fallen into the trap of temptation.
The solution to this crisis is very simple. The state must bear the interests of these loans and reschedule them for 10, 20 or even 30 years. Even the bankruptcy law, which when implemented can protect some people from prosecutions, will expose a large proportion of defaulters who are waiting for its implementation.
What the people want is a clear and firm decision for laying out plans to diversify the sources of income, something that has been talked about for six decades but is still ink on paper. Rather, the major scandal is that the Minister of Finance in the previous government announced the inability to pay salaries of employees, as if the state had gone bankrupt.
The Bedoun issue is also an urgent popular demand, and it must be resolved so that it does not remain a slander attached to the forehead of Kuwait and a source of distortion of its reputation in international reports. Likewise, a Kuwaiti woman married to a foreigner has the right to pass her nationality to her children, just as is the case in most of the countries that respect human rights.
Dear competitors for positions and personal interests through vote-buying here and there, the demands of Kuwaitis are a state of law, not wasta (use of influence). The individuals here want to enjoy the protection of the law, and not be blown away by the whims and desires of those who seek to achieve their goals even if by violence and bullying, as if they were a political militia or mafia led by some opportunists.
By Ahmed Al-Jarallah
Editor-in-Chief, the Arab Times