By Ali Ahmad al-Baghli
This commentary was published in Arab Times (Kuwait) on 16/12/2010
For the past 10 years, democracy in Kuwait has not produced any fruitful dividends because of the practices of Members of Parliament. Apart from obstructing national development, these practices have also harmed our Gulf neighbors. Once our neighbors found a perfect political model in Kuwait which they aspired to emulate, but that picture has long vanished because of the foul plays acted out by the ‘aggressors’ inside the National Assembly.
Our lawmakers never stop causing crises. We go to bed with one crisis on our minds but wake up with a different type of conflict. This day the word joy is very scarce among citizens. The recent victory in the Gulf Cup competition should have had people basking in euphoria, but the seminar which was held at the Diwaniya of Ahmed Al-Saadoun negated all jubilation.
One activist, Muhammad Al-Juwaihal, almost got murdered. This was followed by disobeying an Amiri decree by people who gathered outside the Diwaniya of MP Jamaan Al-Harbash which ended in a face-off with security forces and subsequent defamation of the nation on the enemy satellite station.
Our lawmakers never stop causing crises. We go to bed with one crisis on our minds but wake up with a different type of conflict. This day the word joy is very scarce among citizens. The recent victory in the Gulf Cup competition should have had people basking in euphoria, but the seminar which was held at the Diwaniya of Ahmed Al-Saadoun negated all jubilation.
One activist, Muhammad Al-Juwaihal, almost got murdered. This was followed by disobeying an Amiri decree by people who gathered outside the Diwaniya of MP Jamaan Al-Harbash which ended in a face-off with security forces and subsequent defamation of the nation on the enemy satellite station.
In order not to be accused of disgracing the Kuwaiti democracy because of the actions of a few, and not to indulge in random talk, here are some of the statements attributed to a Saudi comrade Salman Al-Dousari. I picked these from the opinion page of the London and Saudi-based Middle East Newspaper on Dec 13, 2010 with the article under the headline ‘The case of Kuwaiti democracy’. He wrote, ‘How unjustly you have been treated, oh democracy ... so many tragedies have happened in your name... how easy it is to whip you with a tormenting lash and prefabricated excuses... or even without excuses at all!
This is the democracy in Kuwait which is sliding from under our feet. It is close to half a century for the lifespan of the Kuwaiti Constitution which was once unrivalled in the Arab world. This same constitutional life is now scattered in all directions with the masses losing a great deal in the process. However, the greatest loser - undoubtedly — is democracy itself with all its components and details viewed with hatred and mere mention of it is now detested by the citizens of the Gulf region. If the losses of the Kuwaiti people from their democracy do not need additional elaboration, surely the popularity of reforms on the streets of the Gulf states has waned considerably and reached a dangerous level in recent years.
The people of this region consider talking about it as mere babble, and the cane of democracy in Kuwait is cruelly lashing at all Gulf nations! From Kuwait to the outskirts of Oman and from Jeddah on the Red Sea to the Qatari capital, Doha, Abu-Dhabi and Dubai, all tremble with the mere mention of democracy. What is happening in Kuwait, or precisely the practices of the National Assembly, has turned simple discussions on political reforms into a type of unending confrontation leading to a ‘dead end’. We dedicate this article to the pioneers and people who are experts at complicating issues in our Parliament — without naming anyone — because they and their supporters know the empty noises they create to hail and justify the actions of those lawmakers.
The crimes committed by these people have surpassed Kuwait. They have stolen the dreams of the citizens and the aspirations of our brothers in the Gulf in terms of a constitutional democratic system of government. Our lawmakers did not stop at slaughtering our democracy. Even when blood was dripping from their hands day and night they murdered the hopes of our brothers in the neighboring Gulf states.
This is the democracy in Kuwait which is sliding from under our feet. It is close to half a century for the lifespan of the Kuwaiti Constitution which was once unrivalled in the Arab world. This same constitutional life is now scattered in all directions with the masses losing a great deal in the process. However, the greatest loser - undoubtedly — is democracy itself with all its components and details viewed with hatred and mere mention of it is now detested by the citizens of the Gulf region. If the losses of the Kuwaiti people from their democracy do not need additional elaboration, surely the popularity of reforms on the streets of the Gulf states has waned considerably and reached a dangerous level in recent years.
The people of this region consider talking about it as mere babble, and the cane of democracy in Kuwait is cruelly lashing at all Gulf nations! From Kuwait to the outskirts of Oman and from Jeddah on the Red Sea to the Qatari capital, Doha, Abu-Dhabi and Dubai, all tremble with the mere mention of democracy. What is happening in Kuwait, or precisely the practices of the National Assembly, has turned simple discussions on political reforms into a type of unending confrontation leading to a ‘dead end’. We dedicate this article to the pioneers and people who are experts at complicating issues in our Parliament — without naming anyone — because they and their supporters know the empty noises they create to hail and justify the actions of those lawmakers.
The crimes committed by these people have surpassed Kuwait. They have stolen the dreams of the citizens and the aspirations of our brothers in the Gulf in terms of a constitutional democratic system of government. Our lawmakers did not stop at slaughtering our democracy. Even when blood was dripping from their hands day and night they murdered the hopes of our brothers in the neighboring Gulf states.
No comments:
Post a Comment