In any system governed by law, the dignity of the individual is not a privilege, it is a right. In Kuwait, this right is enshrined in our Constitution, codified in our laws, and rooted in the ethical values of our society. And yet, a troubling practice persists: the premature publication of arrest photos by official authorities. This practice, often presented as routine or procedural, in fact poses a direct threat to constitutional rights, legal due process, and the very philosophy of justice.
The Constitutional Breach
Article 34 of the Kuwaiti Constitution states unequivocally:
“An accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a legal trial with full guarantees for self-defense.”
This is not an aspirational phrase. It is binding law. When the image of a suspect is publicly circulated before trial before any judicial determination of guilt, it imposes a penalty without process. It transforms suspicion into stigma, investigation into indictment, and a photograph into a public verdict.
In effect, the State itself bypasses the judiciary and pronounces guilt in the court of public opinion.
The Legal Foundation: Silence Is Not Secrecy. It Is Safeguard
Kuwaiti criminal procedure law is explicit: investigations are confidential by default. This is not to protect the guilty, but to protect the process ensuring that no external influence, no social uproar, no premature exposure, interferes with the impartial assessment of evidence.
One cannot disclose confidential information from ongoing investigations. It is the law’s way of saying: truth must be uncovered in court, not unrolled in press conferences.
When an image is released, what follows is not transparency it is trial by narrative, often framed by incomplete facts and assumptions. And once made public, it cannot be undone.
A Deeper Question: Who Owns Our Faces?
The image of a person is not just data, it is identity. To publish someone’s photo while they are still legally innocent is to say: this person belongs to the State, not to themselves. Their story is hijacked. Their defense is drowned in headlines.
This practice becomes especially troubling when applied to vulnerable individuals, those suffering from addiction, trauma, or mental illness. In such cases, exposure is not deterrence; it is dehumanization. It is to weaponize shame against the weakest.
A Global Standard Kuwait Should Uphold
Most advanced jurisdictions have moved away from the practice of publishing arrest images. In France, Germany, and several U.S. states, it is now either banned or severely limited precisely because it is recognized as extrajudicial punishment.
Even Interpol, in its public notices, follows strict rules to limit identification. Why? Because premature exposure can endanger trials, violate rights, and inflict disproportionate harm.
Kuwait, a nation governed by law and proud of its constitutional legacy, must not lag behind. We must lead with principle.
Justice Without Dignity Is Not Justice
The role of the State is not to satisfy public curiosity. Nor is it to punish through humiliation. It is to ensure that every person no matter how grave the accusation is treated with fairness, dignity, and restraint.
Questions to think about:
What If It Were You? What if you were falsely accused? What if your image was displayed, your name maligned, your silence mistaken for guilt? Would a later acquittal truly restore what had been stripped away?
Publishing arrest photos before a verdict is not a form of public service. It is a form of institutional overreach. It violates the presumption of innocence, undermines the integrity of investigations, and inflicts disproportionate and enduring harm on individuals who may ultimately be found innocent.
We do not need public spectacle. We need procedural integrity. We need a legal culture that understands that human dignity is not conditional on innocence, it is inherent.
All state bodies must urgently revisit this practice not as a political concession, but as a legal necessity. Kuwait’s commitment to justice is measured not by how loudly it condemns, but by how carefully it protects.
Because in law, as in life, the true test of a society is not how it treats the guilty, but how it treats the presumed innocent.
Dr. Fawaz Alkhateeb is a legal scholar, columnist, and managing partner at Taher Group Law Firm.
By Dr. Fawaz Alkhateeb
