By William – United Kingdom:
Human rights in Kuwait continue to remain questionable, to say the least.
The Freedom House “Freedom in the World” 2018 score for Kuwait was assessed at 36 out of 100 and highlights how Kuwait remains restricted in terms of basic human rights. [1]
It’s been over fifty years since the people of the Emirate marched for democracy and human rights and yet the country finds itself in this predicament. Also, for a country with a recent fresh memory of an illegal occupation and loss of freedom, albeit temporarily, you would think Kuwait would now know better. Seemingly not.
In the last decade, there has been the steady erosion of any number of basic human rights and civil liberties in Kuwait. The electoral system, while democratic in name, remains flawed as the Emir and his inner circle heavily influence policy formulation at the expense of the National Assembly.
The Bidoon, of which there are over a hundred thousand, or around ten percent of Kuwait’s population, remain effectively stateless and therefore bereft of humans rights. The British pulled out of Kuwait in 1961, essentially creating the Bidoon demographic and yet, by 2019, modern-day Kuwait has done virtually nothing to alleviate this problem. Why does this remain the case?
Well over sixty percent of the population of Kuwait consists of migrant-workers. While they contribute significantly to the economy of Kuwait, they receive little by way of return in terms of human rights protections.
While corruption remains a virtual Kuwaiti government pastime, criticism of the regime can be a complicated and even hazardous occupation at the best of times. A fully functioning free media is a wistful wish in today’s Kuwait and the authorities are quick to clamp down on negative coverage of the country or what they see as criticism. What a stark contrast to the Kuwait of the 60s and 70s – when the press there was once seen to be one of the freest in the world. [2]
The start of a new year always brings a wave of new resolutions. It would be good for Kuwait to resolve to improve its human rights in 2019 too. Let us see.
The Freedom House “Freedom in the World” 2018 score for Kuwait was assessed at 36 out of 100 and highlights how Kuwait remains restricted in terms of basic human rights. [1]
It’s been over fifty years since the people of the Emirate marched for democracy and human rights and yet the country finds itself in this predicament. Also, for a country with a recent fresh memory of an illegal occupation and loss of freedom, albeit temporarily, you would think Kuwait would now know better. Seemingly not.
In the last decade, there has been the steady erosion of any number of basic human rights and civil liberties in Kuwait. The electoral system, while democratic in name, remains flawed as the Emir and his inner circle heavily influence policy formulation at the expense of the National Assembly.
The Bidoon, of which there are over a hundred thousand, or around ten percent of Kuwait’s population, remain effectively stateless and therefore bereft of humans rights. The British pulled out of Kuwait in 1961, essentially creating the Bidoon demographic and yet, by 2019, modern-day Kuwait has done virtually nothing to alleviate this problem. Why does this remain the case?
Well over sixty percent of the population of Kuwait consists of migrant-workers. While they contribute significantly to the economy of Kuwait, they receive little by way of return in terms of human rights protections.
While corruption remains a virtual Kuwaiti government pastime, criticism of the regime can be a complicated and even hazardous occupation at the best of times. A fully functioning free media is a wistful wish in today’s Kuwait and the authorities are quick to clamp down on negative coverage of the country or what they see as criticism. What a stark contrast to the Kuwait of the 60s and 70s – when the press there was once seen to be one of the freest in the world. [2]
The start of a new year always brings a wave of new resolutions. It would be good for Kuwait to resolve to improve its human rights in 2019 too. Let us see.
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