No liberty for liberal society!!?
Other Voices
IN December 2017, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor officially recognized the formation of Kuwait Liberal Society (KLS). Since its recognition up to this day, the society has been the active flame for achieving the objective for which it was established — to enhance liberties in this country.
Liberties in this country have been deteriorating, even the liberties which prevailed for decades. No one can deny this, except the ungrateful.
Those who fiercely opposed liberties have been and continue to represent people in the authority and fundamental faction forces — Brotherhood and Salafists.
These forces conform only to their convictions. They regard the beliefs of others as against their convictions. This is what such factions are fighting against, together with those under their umbrella because they live in the 21st century with the mentality of centuries ago — the Dark Ages.
Although they use all materials that the 21st century brought about, they continue to stand as a barricade in front of the intellectual advancement of a civilization which has gone through years, decades and centuries to reach its current position.
Elements which uphold the eccentric intellectual reality fought against this liberal entity. They wage war against anyone who calls for more liberty.
They fight with all their determination and strength, and unfortunately, with the hand-in-hand help of the executive and legislative authorities.
Back to Kuwait Liberal Society which has fallen into the swamp of those opposing its ideology and directions, they did not spare any effort in adversity and fighting against it. They blocked its path by targeting its members with scores of complaints and lawsuits, using the infamous new Kuwaiti cyber crime law through which many of our youths have been incarcerated.
This infamous law continues to be a sword in the hands of enemies of ideas and liberty against anyone who has the audacity to utter any word which contradicts
the beliefs of anti-freedom factions.
It is unfortunate that these factions are supported by the government which exerts more effort than its ability to implement the cyber crime law even if suspicions continue to surround the law as reflected in many acquittal rulings issued under this law.
I wish this authority, represented by the Interior Ministry, exerts the same effort in enforcing other laws like the traffic, corruption and public fund looting laws; considering a number of articles in these laws have been neglected.
What really astonished us is this liberty society did not only prick the fundamentalist factions. Unfortunately, it also pricked the forces affiliated to liberal directions.
This is due to the fact that this society was active in the aspect of enhancing liberties in previous months, which are noticeable even to majority of the factions affiliated to liberals that maintained horrifying and unjustified silence for some time.
The adversity put before the liberal society culminated when one of the new parliamentarians hurled an unjustified threat to grill the minister of social affairs if she does not take official measures which will lead to the dissolution of this society.
This is because a member of the society ‘tweeted’ words which were deemed offensive, resulting in a lawsuit filed against him as per the cyber crime law.
Although the ruling is yet to be issued, if it happens, I mean dissolution through a ministerial order; it will be a dark precedent in the right of Kuwait, as a liberal society, which has not completed six months since its inception, will be dissolved without legal pretext.
May the selective interpellation MP realize that if we treat every non-government organization, starting with the multimillion fundamentalist societies, with the same system, which is to demand official measures to be taken on a society due to a mistake committed by one of its members, there would not be any such society left in the country.
If only that MP included every society that has one member who erred, we would have supported him even if it is against the principle stipulated in the Holy Quran: “... and no one shall bear the burden of another ...”
All that we are trying to demonstrate here is the abhorred organized targeting of this pioneering society by all its enemies who aim to bury the liberties represented by this liberal society.
It seems these enemies are sending a spiteful message: “No liberty for the liberal society.”