We made a mistake
Iam very interested in comparing Kuwait’s past and present, and here I do not mean pre- and post-oil eras; I am rather talking about the pre- and postIraqi occupation of Kuwait, and because I was too young at that time, I usually get an idea about people’s behavior and relations from the media, which I believe has documented that period well.
The people have also become less friendly to foreigners and the exact turning point between the two eras is the Iraqi invasion.
Reviewing the 20 years before the invasion, I noticed that the majority welcomed foreigners and had more trust in others, though this was slightly disturbed during the Souq Al-Manakh stock exchange crisis, and many people had good intentions. To prove this, let us make an assumption that one of you was member in the information ministry’s monitoring committee and had to pass a TV series showing a mother spying on her married sons’ bedrooms while they were sleeping with their wives using special cameras. Would you ever pass such drama in the present time?! This was the plot of a comedic series titled ‘Khalti Qomashah’, and I believe it would be banned from TV nowadays to avoid any misunderstandings.
Generally speaking, I noticed that many people changed after the liberation and this is also documented by the media that is now showing more crimes, drug abuse and family disputes. The people have also become less friendly to foreigners and the exact turning point between the two eras is the Iraqi invasion.
We are people who were used to peace, and all of a sudden, were taken by surprise when a neighbor and some friends turned up against us. We have experienced displacement abroad and locally witnessed killings and torture. Yet in spite of this tragic shock and the painful impact of the invasion on our souls, the state did not consider rehabilitating people in the post-liberation era and dealt with the incident as a mere painful one that was over, paying no attention to the psychological impact of the experience and how it would reflect on our future behaviors.
This fatal mistake still has its consequences, detected in our behavior and conduct with each other. I am not offering any remedy in this article because I cannot rewind time back. All I am doing is sharing what I believe is the main reason for all our shortcomings nowadays! —Translated by Kuwait Times