106
13. Kuwait GENERAL, POLITICAL AND LEGAL OVERVIEW With an elected parliament, Kuwait enjoys a level of democracy almost completely absent in other Gulf States. However, in practice, authoritarianism and repression are still the rule, rather than the exception. Although Kuwait is committed to diffusing any form of popular opposition by providing generously to its small population from oil revenues, it has still witnessed widespread political protests critical of the ruling family. The Government have initiated a violent crackdown on voices of dissent, which sees many activists, journalists and intellectuals arrested and jailed for extended periods of time. Recurring political disputes between the Government and Parliament paralysed political institutions and suspended the drafting of new laws following a decision by the Constitutional Court to void the February 2012 elections and reinstate the previous parliament, originally elected in 2009. The Court also approved controversial amendments to the Elections Law, which reduced the number of candidates each Kuwaiti can vote for from four to one, which prompted many in the opposition
to boycott the 2012 elections and embark on widespread street protests. July 2013 elections ushered in a new parliament of 50 members, two of whom were women. Kuwait continues to exclude thousands of stateless people, known as Bedoons, from full citizenship, despite their longstanding roots in Kuwaiti territory. There are at least 105,702 Bedoon people in Kuwait. The Government continues to violently disperse Bedoon protests while promising to grant them social benefits, including government-issued documentation and free education and health care. In 2014, the Government invoked a law criminalising all insults to the Emir in an attempt to crackdown on freedom of expression and curb the Bedoon protests. Many Bedoon activists were arrested in 2014.
HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS The right to freedom, fair trial and treatment •
Torture and arbitrary arrests
In 2014, the Government resorted to the use of excessive force in their attempts to crackdown on antigovernment protests by Bedoon and other Kuwaiti activists. On 19th February, Bedoon activist, Abdullah Attallah, was arrested one day after marking the third anniversary of Bedoon protests. The expression
107 ‘Bedoon’ refers to individuals living in Kuwait who don’t carry the nationality of any country. They are either stateless or the citizens of another state, but conceal all their identification papers. The Government often refers to the Bedoon as “illegal residents”. Attallah had delivered a speech in which he described the current and former interior ministers as “criminals” and held the Emir responsible for the suffering endured by the Bedoon. Attallah was brought before the Public Prosecutor, who ordered he be held on charges of insulting the Emir, illegal assembly and destroying a police car. He was subsequently taken to the Central Prison in the capital before being released on a 500-dinar bail on 15th June114. He was arrested again on 7th July following a raid by 20 police officers on his home without a search warrant. Attallah was questioned by police and charged with illegal assembly and failure to comply with police orders to disperse. Many cases of torture were also reported to have occurred inside Kuwaiti detention centres in 2014. According to Amnesty International: “Another Bedoon activist, Abdulhakim al-Fadhli, was summoned to the police station in Taima on 20th February and told that he would face charges including ‘calling for protests’. He and his brother, Abdulnasser al-Fadhli, were arrested on 24th February and taken to 114 http://www.amnesty.or.jp/en/get-involved/ua/ ua/2014ua047.html
the State Security department after a car chase in which their car was rammed. They appeared before the Public Prosecution on 3rd March, their detention was extended for 10 days pending investigation and they were moved to the Central Prison. They are both facing charges of damaging police patrol cars and assaulting security officers, while Abdulhakim al-Fadhli is also accused of ‘inciting rebellion’ and his brother of ‘harbouring a fugitive’. Abdulhakim alFadhli said that during the four hours after his arrest he was beaten and threatened with rape.”115 Abdulhakim al-Fadhli was arrested again on 7th July at a checkpoint in front of the Central Prison in Kuwait City as he was monitoring protests calling for the release of Musallam al-Barrak, who had been arrested on 2nd July on the charge of “insulting the judiciary”. On learning who he was, a high-ranking officer insulted, beat and arrested him. Abdulhakim al-Fadhli was left with a perforated left eardrum and a wound to his right earlobe. On 8th July, the Public Prosecution ordered him, in the presence of his lawyer, to be detained for 10 days pending investigation and charged him with “insulting a security force officer”. His case was referred to a Misdemeanours Court. On 13th July, Abdulhakim al-Fadhli filed a complaint against the officer who assaulted him, but to no avail. 115 https://www.amnesty.se/engagera-dig/agera/ aktuella-blixtaktioner/ua-4714-kuwait-sevenstateless-men-arrested-ill-treated/
108
Social and economic rights •
Citizenship revocation
A total of 33 people have lost their citizenship during 2014, of which three are thought to be as a result of political activism.116 Cases include the following: 1. On August 14th 2014, the authorities announced a group of citizenship revocations under Article 13. Those stripped of their nationality included Nabil al-Awadi, a conservative cleric widely known for his television talk shows. Under the law, seven of his family members subsequently lost their citizenship. According to an official cabinet document, he was stripped of his citizenship based on undermining both the country’s social or economic system and the country’s higher interest or foreign security.117 2. On 29th September, a group of 18 revocations was announced. The authorities claimed such revocations were based on a cabinet decision, including one that appeared politically motivated. The revocations included Saad al-Ajmi, the spokesman for Musalam al-Barrak, a leading opposition politician. Al-Barrak was convicted of insulting the Emir in 2012118 and was arrested in June for ‘insulting the judiciary’, which drew thousands to the streets until he was released 116 http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/10/19/kuwaitgovernment-critics-stripped-citizenship 117 Ibid 118 http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/01/26/kuwaitjail-exile-insulting-emir
several days later.119 Al-Ajmi had his citizenship revoked under Article 11 of the Nationality Law, which allows withdrawing citizenship from anyone naturalised by another country. Al-Ajmi told Human Rights Watch (HRW) that although Article 11 was used in his case, he is now stateless because he has not been naturalised elsewhere. He said the authorities had not revoked his four children’s citizenship.120 UN Secretary General noted in a report published in September 2014 that “while International Human Rights Law clearly establishes the obligation of all states to respect the human rights of all individuals without distinction of any kind, states may restrict the enjoyment of some international human rights visà-vis non-citizens, subject to stringent conditions related to the principle of non-discrimination.” He added that, “…the arbitrary deprivation of nationality leads the affected persons to become noncitizens with respect to the state that deprived them of their nationality. Arbitrary deprivation of nationality, therefore, effectively places the affected persons more disadvantaged situation concerning the enjoyment of their human rights because some of these rights may be subjected to lawful limitations that otherwise would not apply but also 119 http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/11/10/kuwaitlift-protest-ban 120 http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/10/19/kuwaitgovernment-critics-stripped-citizenship
109 because these persons are placed in a situation of increased vulnerability to human rights violations.” 121 •
Migrant workers
Migrant workers make up around 2 million of Kuwait’s 2.9 million population, including more than 600,000 domestic workers. In March 2013, the Government announced that it intended to reduce the number of expatriate workers by 100,000 every year for the next 10 years, in order to bring the total down to one million. Kuwait has since adopted a number of mechanisms facilitating quick, nonjudicial deportations in order to reach its goals. For example, in April 2014, Kuwait implemented a policy that allowed for the deportation of migrants who had committed one major traffic violation. By September the same year, according to local human rights organisations, the Ministry of Interior had deported 1,258 expatriates for traffic violations. In addition to this, in August, the Health Ministry announced that it would deport any expatriates with confirmed cases of infectious diseases, though HRW have not documented any such deportations at the time of writing. Such deportations occur without any judicial review. Kuwait has also adopted various 121 http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/ HRCouncil/RegularSession/Session19/AHRC-19-43_en.pdf
indirect methods designed to forcefully encourage migrants to leave. For example, in March 2014, Kuwait passed strict regulations for expatriates applying for a driving license; the driver must be 18 or over, have passed a driving test, be a legal resident in Kuwait for at least two years, have a university degree and earn at least 400 Kuwaiti Dinars (US$1,400) per month. In August 2014, local media reported that authorities also began evicting expatriate tenants from private homes owned by Kuwaiti citizens. According to local NGOs, residential buildings that are rented out to expatriates must be classified as “investment accommodations”.
The right to freedoms of the press and expression •
Expression
Despite Article 36 of the Kuwaiti Constitution guaranteeing freedom of expression, 2013 saw a drastic increase in free speech violations, with authorities intensifying their efforts to crack down on freedom of speech since the June 2012 political crisis. 122 The Government has brought cases against at least 29 people who have publicised their critical views of the Government on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and other social media platforms, and/ or at public protests. 2014 the first time a court issued an order for the 122 http://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/kuwait/ kuwait-06.htm
110 expulsion of a Kuwaiti citizen after he finished serving his prison sentence. This stands as a glaring violation of Kuwait’s commitments under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Arab Charter for Human Rights. The UN Human Rights Committee, which reviews regular progress reports related to the implementation of the ICCPR, stressed that all public figures, without exception, can be criticised and opposed in a manner protected by the law. However, the Kuwaiti Government took advantage of constitutional provisions and restrictive laws related to the Penal Code, press, communication, assembly and national unity to arrest scores of bloggers and Facebook users. Most of these cases have been brought under Article 25 of Kuwait’s Penal Code (1970), which prescribes a sentence of up to five years in prison for anyone who publicly “objects to the rights and authorities of the Emir or faults him”. The Article omits any definition of what may constitute a “fault”. Kuwait’s Constitution describes the Emir as “immune and inviolable”. In order for such cases to meet international standards for permissible restrictions of free speech, the Government needs to demonstrate incitement to violence or similar criminal acts. On 13th December 2014, the draft Electronic Information Law was rejected by the Parliament because it was deemed too restrictive
of freedoms and abusive of the right to express opinions freely. Cases of free speech violation include the following: 1. In November 2013, local police arrested Abdullah Fairouz Abdullah Abd al-Kareem for comments made on Twitter. The court convicted him on the basis of Article 25 of the Penal Code, which sets a prison sentence of up to five years for anyone who publicly “objects to the rights and authorities of the Emir or faults him”, as well as for misusing his mobile phone to disseminate objectionable comments. Al-Kareem is a member of the Kuwait Human Rights Society and has worked to counter human rights violations against the Bedoon people. On 9 January 2014, the Kuwaiti Criminal Court issued a five-year prison sentence with labour, followed by deportation to Al-Kareem. 2. On 21st June 2014, Kuwaiti authorities stripped five government critics of their citizenship after accusing them of carrying out acts aimed at “undermining the country’s security and stability and bringing harm to its institutions”. However, Article 28 of the Constitution prohibits the deportation or forced exile of citizens. The penal code stipulates that noncitizens convicted of serious crimes can be deported after finishing their prison sentence. The five men are Abdullah al-Barghash, a former leader in the opposition bloc in parliament,
111 three of his siblings Sa`d, Nasr and Nura al-Barghash, and Ahmed Jabir alShammari. Al-Shammari told HRW that the Parliamentary decree for revoking the five citizenships was based on the Kuwaiti Law of Nationality 15/1959 and that authorities officially informed him that his citizenship was revoked under Article 13(5). Al-Shammari is the owner of the independent Al-Youm television station and Al-Youm newspaper. At the request of the Information Minister, courts had ordered both media outlets to shut down temporarily three times in May and June 2014 for defying a prosecutor-ordered media blackout about an investigation into an alleged plot by senior officials to overthrow the Government. The provision of the Kuwaiti Law of Nationality 15/1959 violates Article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which stipulates that “no-one shall be arbitrarily deprived of the right to enter his own country”.123 3. On 22nd October, the Criminal Court sentenced 13 Kuwaiti citizens to a two year suspended sentence and ordered they pay a 3000 Kuwaiti Dinar fine for insulting the Emir. The Public Prosecutor had referred five similar cases to the Criminal Court where at least 67 Kuwaiti citizens, including former MPs, journalists and activists, were charged with insulting the Emir. 4. On 22nd October, security forces arrested blogger Ayyad al-Harbi 123 http://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/ pages/ccpr.aspx
and convicted him for insulting the Emir. He was sentenced to two years imprisonment.124 5. On 23rd October, charges against 17 detainees were suspended in a state security case until the constitutionality of Article 34 of Law 31/1970 has been determined. They were arrested for insulting the Emir, assaulting police officers and taking part in an illegal march following a lecture entitled “Stop Messing with the Country”. 6. On 25th December, the Public Prosecutor ordered the arrest of former MP and opposition leader, Mussallam al-Barrak, for allegedly insulting the judiciary during a speech he delivered in June 2014. Mussallam al-Barrak, warned the Emir that he would not be allowed to “take Kuwait into the abyss of autocracy”. Al-Barrak accused senior government officials of corruption. Leaked recordings, allegedly exposing plans for overthrowing the ruling family, backed the accusations. His lawyers criticised the allegations as illegal and unfounded. •
Assembly
Article 44 of the Kuwaiti Constitution stipulates that “Individuals shall have the right of private assembly without permission or prior notification, and the police may not attend such private meetings”.125 However, opposition 124 http://shar.es/1gq5ok [Al-Seyassah: Two year imprisonment for 13, echoing Barraks speech (Arabic Source)] 125 http://www.kuwaitconstitution.org/
112 groups called for a demonstration in July 2014 to express their anger at the repressive measures adopted by the Government.126 The protesters called for the release of all political detainees, acquittal of bogus charges, reform of the Supreme Judicial Council, prosecution of members of security forces involved in the abuse and torture of civilians, trial of corrupt officials, dissolution of the Parliament and the Cabinet and suspension of all repressive laws. According to eyewitnesses and media outlets, there were many human rights abuses during the demonstration, as authorities resorted to excessive force to disperse protesters, especially those who took to the streets to condemn the arrest of Al-Barrak. Security forces used rubber bullets, tear gas and sound bombs against unarmed protesters. They also arrested a number of activists, journalists and human rights workers.
the prosecution, on the basis that the investigators could not identify the perpetrators, later dismissed his case. 127 On 19th October 2014, the Court of Misdemeanours sentenced Jassim, to one-month imprisonment for participating in an illegal assembly. 2. On 24th February 2014, Kuwait’s Security Forces arrested Hussein Jabr, Yusuf Matar, Ahmed Sa’ad and Misha’al Mit’ab, charging them with illegal assembly. 128
Other cases include the following: 1. On 21st April 2013, Suleiman Bin Jassim was released on bail, four days after he was arrested by Kuwaiti police for documenting and monitoring a protest in the al-Andalus area of Kuwait City. Whilst he was monitoring the protest, Jassim was shot with rubber bullets before the police hit him and finally arrested him. The human rights defender filed a complaint against the Special Forces for assaulting him but kuwaitconstitutionenglish.html 126 http://www.cdmkw.com/?p=602 [CDM Kuwait: CDM (civil democratic movement) statement with regards to the Nations Dignity March 8 (Arabic Source)]
127 http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/node/27524 128 http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/04/02/kuwaitno-response-torture-allegation