‘Divisions over nationality bill’
‘Cultural diversity promotes harmony’
“THE Legislative and Legal Affairs Committee of the National Assembly has taken the initiative to submit the nationality bill to the National Assembly to correct the gross legal mistake that was committed by the National Assembly of 1981 when members then had voted in favor of a draft law to grant the Kuwaiti nationality to Muslims only and exclude the followers of other religions and dogmas on our planet from the process of nationalization,” columnist Suad Fahd AlMoajel wrote for Al-Qabas daily. “I say, following the attempts to revise this notorious law, many conflicting opinions have surfaced. In this context, the Al-Qabas daily last week published two conflicting opinions which actually reflected the sentiments of the Kuwaitis.
“The first was published by our colleague Ahmad Al-Sarraf who sees that the law in question which lasted for 37 years is shameful, while the second opinion by Mubarak Al-Duwailah (former MP) questioned in his article the identity of the non-Muslims who may deserve the Kuwaiti nationality today.
“He expressed fears that the adjustment of the law in question will be followed by the naturalization of Buddhists and Hindus who shall eventually call for building temples for them and hinted this shall help create a mix of cultures and dogmas among the Kuwaitis.
“However, with due respect to the viewpoint of my brother Al-Duwailah, I differ with him over his fear of the danger of the culture and mixed dogmas, because the State of Kuwait is basically distinguished with communal variety and this can be mostly attributed to its geographical location and because this country in the past constituted a passage for trade convoys for all types of people of different thoughts both from the Far East and the Middle East.
“In other words, the State of Kuwait constituted a mixture of the Far East thought, the Persian and the Country of Two Rivers (Iraq). This mixture reacted and met with the immigrants who came to Kuwait from north – from Najd and Yemen.
“However this intellectual and social mosaic actually accelerated the political and intellectual development of the State of Kuwait and as such it never constituted a danger for the country. I would like hereby to point out that the danger doesn’t rest in the diversity, rather it rests in the absence of the culture of this diversity, given the fact the law that prevents the non-Muslims from holding the Kuwaiti nationality is a clear cut example of the absence of this ripe culture.
“In this context, I will cite an example that was narrated by earlier generations which actually reflects the spirit of peaceful coexistence, the story which was narrated by one lady who was receiving medical treatment at the then American Missionary Hospital in Kuwait at the beginning of the past century. This lady says the picture of Jesus (PBUH) or that of the Lady Mariam (Peace Be Upon Her) were hung above our beds in the hospital.
“Not just that, the then nursing team used to tell us every evening to close our eyes because Jesus (PBUH) would pass to inspect our rooms and pray to Almighty God to cure us. However, she added everyone used to abide by this order and close our eyes every evening.
“Meanwhile, we say a lot of stories were narrated in this connection, but we have never heard that the above, constituted a danger against the Kuwaiti culture or identity.
“As a matter of fact, the cultural diversity represents a question which is no less than the natural biological diversity in terms of its importance. In this context, we would like to point out that the first condition that might be required to achieve cultural diversity is by fighting the Ex-Communication Ideology which entered the Abdullah Al-Salem Hall on Dec 22, 1982 and gave us the undermined law in question.”
“The G20, can be deemed as a universal commercial group that groups in its membership the global commercial, economic and industrial magnates, the forum that was founded in 1999 due to the financial crises in the 1990s,” columnist Mishref Eqab wrote for Al-Shahed daily.
“The Group of Twenty consists of industrial and economic states whose aim is to solve some basic problems lashing the global economy. In this context, we say the G20 represents two thirds of the international trading and the world population. This organization represents more than 90 percent of the global crude output.
“The Group’s members actually held their first meeting on Nov 15, 2008. This meeting was attended by presidents and prime ministers of the member states, and not by ministers of finance only.
“The G20 comprised the following states, Argentina, Australia, China, France, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, South Africa, Russia, The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Turkey, South Korea, Canada, Indonesia, the Untied States of America and Italy with the participation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank (WB) and the European Union (EU).
“Meanwhile, we say the G20, was established on the sidelines of G8 summit to boost the international financial stability in addition to the creation of the necessary dialogue opportunities among the industrialist countries and the new industrialists, particularly since we know that the commercial disputes which currently prevail in Europe and the UK exit from the European Union in addition to the conflicts between the United States and China which raise fears of a blanket commercial war that shall negatively affect the global trade and economy.”
“Who is George H.W. Bush? He was the former US president who’s mainly recognized in the country for his role in liberating Kuwait, and most importantly for declaring this country free,” Hassan Al-Haddad
Al-Shimmari wrote for Al-Anba daily. “Also, he can be described as the hero of Kuwait’s liberation as he announced from the first day of the Iraqi invasion that ‘this crime will not continue and the criminal Saddam Hussein will come out of Kuwait against his will, and if he insists that his soldiers will remain there, we will force him out’. Right from the first day, Bush Sr was clear that he would fulfill his promise when he met with the former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher and announced together that an international military alliance would be formed to remove Iraqi forces from Kuwait to prove that the international community does not accept the law of the jungle.
“To confirm this goal, Defense Secretary Richard Cheney, Secretary of State James Baker, and Chief of Staff Gen Colin Powell were sent directly to Saudi Arabia to present a plan to send US and international troops to protect Saudi Arabia and liberate Kuwait. He then worked with full diplomatic success on the mobilization of the United Nations member states for the liberation of Kuwait. He was also able to unify the international positions toward the removal of Iraq by peace or war. This is a great position, because those countries have different interests such that some of them have direct interests with Iraq, which they did not want to lose. Yet, Bush succeeded in ensuring agreement of all countries of the world, including the Soviet Union, France, China and Britain – the vetowielding countries of the Security Council – to unite positions to liberate Kuwait.
“As Bush’s toughness and historic role in liberating Kuwait increases, American people were not prepared to fight a war, especially as the Vietnam War dominated the American mentality. This prompted a large segment of Americans in the Democratic Party to request that Bush should impose economic sanctions against Iraq a minimum of two years since they believed that this method would have forced Saddam to surrender and withdraw. But Bush refused and insisted on war, declaring the invasion is a crime and Saddam would not be rewarded by not removing him by force.
“Kuwait, which was liberated by the grace of Allah first and then by the efforts of President Bush with his brothers and friends on 26 February 1991, will never forget this great leader on the day he delivered the victory speech in the US Congress and said with pride to Kuwait’s former Ambassador Sheikh Saud Al-Sabah, ‘Kuwait is now free’. That day, everybody in attendance was clapping in a scene that had an impact on the hearts of all Kuwaitis. Therefore, Bush will remain in our minds and our hearts, even if he has left the world.”
“Perhaps, rumors spread on social communication media platforms without any oversight at all but needs effective controls and regulations due to the seditious impact. This matter necessitates immediate enactment of laws prepared after thorough deliberation based on reality,” columnist Abdul-Rahman Al-Awwad wrote for Al-Sabah daily.
“I believe all media outlets need to be more active than before in explaining and debunking issues raised on social media platforms. This should be done by researching, perusing and verifying such issues, and then collection of reports to fight rumors.
“Just recently, HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak affirmed the need for media outlets to adhere to the principle of responsible press freedom in presenting and publishing issues which concern the country and its people, and to combat rumors and skewed thoughts aimed at instigating chaos and destabilizing the society.
“By that, HH the Prime Minister made the press an active partner in raising awareness, promoting thoughts and culture, fighting extremism, and encouraging the public to contribute to comprehensive development efforts. Therefore, it is imperative for all media outlets, amid the rapid changes witnessed in the world of digital technology, to stand as a fortified wall in the face of rumors which spread on social media and to effective play their role in presenting facts.”
“In the wake of the recent change in international and regional events, Kuwait has been facing several challenges – although many options are available to help her surmount those challenges to be able to join the train of civilization while preserving its identity and history,” columnist Dr Munawer Bayan Al-Rajehi wrote for Al-Anba daily.
“The first challenge is the recent change in regional situation, which exposed the fragile nature of politics in the Middle East and other Arab countries, as seen in the repeated shakes that resulted in the falling of regimes and serious damages, while other regimes are under the threat of collapse.
“The weakness in politics could be attributed to failure of the countries to institute proficient leaders who can continue the cause and correct mistakes. Some systems of governance resemble that of the Hydra Monster in Greek Mythology that had many heads and arms and whenever one of them is cut, a new one appears. This could be the reason for political weakness.
“The second challenge is the spread of administrative corruption eating deep into the very fabric of Kuwaiti society. Despite the institution of relevant laws, corruption keeps gaining root in different official authorities. Therefore, teamwork is essential if we are to succeed in the war against corruption, which is as dangerous to Kuwait as terrorism.”
“The newspapers occasionally publish news about the arrest and deportation of beggars after they may have been prosecuted,” Zayed Al-Zaid wrote for AlNahar daily. “We do not deplore the State’s duties in policing and maintaining security, but we have the right to ask why so many cleaners take to begging in the streets and roads. We believe the reason for begging is low salaries given to the workers in question, which are not compatible with the level of effort they put forth, and insufficient in carrying out their obligations inside Kuwait. Out of the same the same amount, the cleaning workers are expected to fulfill their obligations to family members in their countries of origin.
“Moreover, some large cleaning companies that receive millions of government contracts each year exploit the poor workers and delay their salaries for months. Every avid reader of Kuwaiti newspapers will realize that news about cleaning workers protesting in one of the ministries due to failure in receiving late salaries from some cleaning companies has become so natural that the companies embarrass Kuwait’s humanitarian record in international forums.
“In spite of attempts by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor to establish a minimum wage on companies and to mount pressure on them to provide suitable conditions for their workers, some companies are manipulating workers and handing over certain salaries within the ceiling of the minimum wage and then deducting the rest through employees of the same nationality. In my view, addressing these circumstances is what can eliminate the phenomenon of cleaning workers begging in streets, but to continue to deport them without holding the real culprits accountable for their actions is like postponing the evil day.”
— Compiled by Zaki Taleb