The Kuwaiti parliament narrowly avoids a vote of no-confidence and expected dissolution, but not for long. Sherine Bahaa reports At 11am last Monday, a heated session commenced in Kuwait's outspoken all-male assembly. Liberal members in particular undertook the "grilling" of the deputy premier and state minister for cabinet affairs Mohamed Daifullah Sharar. Such scenes are familiar to the 50 members of Kuwait's parliament which often clashes with the government. The widespread and common occurrence of questioning ministers usually ends with a vote of no- confidence and this in most cases leads to the dissolution of the parliament, the latest of which took place in 1999. This time around, Sharar was blamed for allegedly squandering hundreds of millions of dollars of public funds. In December, the Kuwaiti Parliament ordered the Audit Bureau, the state's accounting watchdog, to investigate the allegations. Monday was the day set to debate the report. "This is a historic opportunity to declare war on corruption... the minister should be held accountable and I advise him to resign, it's time to leave," Islamist MP Walid Tabtabai said. Charges were initially made by liberal MPs who had prompted the investigation last year. As part of the long established distinction within the Kuwaiti parliament there are three main political players in the tiny emirate: tribes, Islamists and liberals. For his part, Sharar had secured the support of the tribes who attributed the drama to his tribal affiliation. Sharar delivered a long statement in his own defence. But the session was inconclusive and no decision was taken leaving the door open for the confrontation between the cabinet and the parliament to instigate a fresh round of questions for the minister who has been openly supported by the government. The Kuwaiti health minister was not as lucky as his counterpart. A few days earlier, Health Minister Mohamed Al-Jarallah had been subjected to a stormy grilling in the assembly, which led 10 MPs to table a no-confidence vote accusing him of squandering public funds and mismanagement. His resignation, accepted by the Kuwaiti ruler Emir Sheikh Jaber Al- Ahmed Al-Sabah on Sunday, was received with sighs of relief from the government. In fact, Jarallah is the third member of the 20-month-old current cabinet effectively forced to quit by MPs. Both Finance Minister Mahmoud Al-Nuri and Information Minister Mohamed Abul-Hassan had similarly resigned. Further resignations are likely to be in the pipeline. Jarallah's grilling forced the Kuwaiti Emir, Sheikh Al-Sabah to issue a stern warning to parliament prompting speculation that the house's dissolution was imminent. With the political impasse getting more intense, high expectations have been pinned on the current government to accelerate slow-paced reforms and deal with chronic problems. With less than two years in office, however, its performance has been perceived as less than satisfactory. "Politics in Kuwait has taken the front seat at the cost of economy. This has delayed a large number of economic reform plans and development," said liberal MP Abdul-Wahab Al-Harun, head of the Financial and Economic Committee. The assembly had been expected to debate and approve several economic bills, including privatisation, taxation and anti-trust law, in addition to key political reform bills. On the top of the list of hot issues are the endeavours of Kuwaiti women to attain their political rights. Since the ratification of Kuwait's democratic constitution in 1962, Kuwaiti women have been denied the right to vote or to stand for election. Now, more than 40 years later, a serious movement has been pushing for women's suffrage. The movement's attempts are openly supported by the Kuwaiti emir who issued a decree calling for the parliament to approve a bill granting women their political rights. But Islamists and tribal MPs have twice aborted the issuing of such a bill. Another session on the subject is soon to be discussed in sub-committees within the parliament to approve the suggested bill. For the law to pass, more than half of the 65 male politicians (50 members of parliament and 15 cabinet members) must vote in its favour. Kuwaiti feminists have been attending debates in the Kuwaiti National Assembly (the parliament) and circulating petitions among the male and female citizens of the country. In a recent petition passed to the Al-Ahram Weekly, Kuwaiti women asked women from other countries to coordinate with them in their battle for equality, reiterating that by eliminating anachronistic and discriminatory practices their country would be able to join the rest of the Arab nations in their fight for democracy and reform. Women in most Gulf countries now enjoy the right to vote.
