COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION CONSIDERS REPORT OF KUWAIT
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination today considered the combined fifteenth to twentieth periodic reports of Kuwait on how that country is implementing the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Introducing the report, Sadiq Marafi, Charge d'Afffaires to the Permanent Mission of Kuwait to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said there were many national mechanisms for safeguarding human rights in Kuwait and action was being taken to finalize a law for a national institute for human rights based on the Paris Principles. Unlawful residence was one of the greatest obstacles facing Kuwait, as it had over 100,000 illegal residents. Following Kuwait's Universal Periodic Review, a central body was created to address the needs of unlawful residents including to provide free medical care and education. Foreign workers had the right to transfer their work permit to another sponsor after three years. The Nationality Law had been amended to give nationality to children of nationalized persons who had obtained their majority and to the children of Kuwaiti women who were married to a foreigner, divorced or whose husband was in prison. Laws provided for the protection of domestic workers and shelters were created to house workers in dispute with their employers. Kuwait's respect for human rights went beyond its national borders, as seen by its financial assistance to the United Nations High Commissioner's Office for Refugees; the annual contribution was increased from USD $200,000 to USD $1 million.
During the discussion, Experts asked about the Government's strategic plan for resolving the high number of illegal residents, the minimum wage and conditions for migrant and domestic workers which accounted for three quarters of the population, reforms to the Kafala or child sponsorship system and the application of Islamic Law and the Islamic charitable tax payments, zakat, to foreigners. The Committee discussed the need to incorporate Article 4 of the Convention into domestic law, the role of civil society organizations, progress on the advancement of women in Kuwaiti society especially in the political process and the application of the death penalty.
In concluding remarks, Sadiq Marafi said he was grateful for the fruitful outcome of today's session and noted that it was only through direct dialogue that mutual understanding could be achieved. The delegation renewed the determination of the Government to exert all possible efforts to combat racial discrimination and that as Kuwaiti society was steadily progressing additional achievements would be made in protecting and promoting human rights
The delegation of Kuwait consisted of representatives of the Permanent Mission of Kuwait to the United Nations Office at Geneva, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, the Central Bureau for Illegal Residents, the Ministry of Education, the Committee on Women's Affairs, and the Ministry of Health.
The next public meeting of the Committee will be at 10 a.m. on Monday 20 February, when it will hold an informal meeting with non-governmental organizations from Vietnam and Canada.
Report
The combined fifteenth to twentieth periodic reports of Kuwait can be read here: (CERD/C/KWT/15-20).
Presentation of the Report
SADIQ MARAFI, Head of the Delegation and Charge d'Affaires of the Permanent Mission of Kuwait to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said human rights were an important pillar in the Kuwaiti constitution. Article 29 stipulated that all people were equal before the law without distinction to race, origin, language or religion. There were many national mechanisms for safeguarding human rights in Kuwait: the Ministry of Interior's Committee on Human Rights, the Committee for the Affairs of Women, the Higher Committee for Children and Family, the High Commission for Human Rights, the Office for Unlawful Residence, the Division of Domestic Labour of the Ministry of Interior; and the Government was currently working with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to draft a law for a national institute for human rights.
Laws applying to both the civil service and private sector encouraged equal wages for men and women. Both nationals and non-nationals were free to join unions; 63 trade unions and 42 employer unions existed in the country. Foreign workers had the right to transfer their work permit to another sponsor after three years. Health services were offered to all nationals free of charge and to non-nationals with a nominal charge across six public hospitals and 92 public health care centres. The private sector complimented that network. In 2011-2012, six per cent of the State budget was allocated to the health sector. The right to education was given paramount importance by confirming the right to equality and non-discrimination in the provision of educational services. Primary education was compulsory and free without distinction of sex.
Unlawful residence was one of the greatest obstacles facing Kuwait. The Nationality Law had been amended to give nationality to children of nationalized persons who had obtained their majority and to the children of Kuwaiti women who were married to a foreigner, divorced or whose husband was in prison. Over 105,000 individuals were registered in the civil register and 93,000 had been registered by the central committee as unlawful residents. Following Kuwait's Universal Periodic Review, a central body was created to address the needs of unlawful residents, such as free medical care, free education and issuance of birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates and driver's licenses. Laws provided protection for domestic workers and shelters had been built to house workers in dispute with their employers. Staff working in Government departments had been trained in the protection of human rights and on prevention of human trafficking. In 1996 Kuwait signed a cooperation agreement with the United Nations High Commissioner's Office for Refugees to open a bureau in Kuwait. Kuwait's respect for human rights went beyond its national borders, as seen by its financial assistance to the United Nations High Commissioner's Office for Refugees; the annual contribution was increased from USD $200,000 to USD $1 million.
Questions by Committee
ALEXEI AVTONOMOV, Country Rapporteur for Kuwait, said Kuwait was a relatively small country in terms of surface area, with a population of 3.5 million of which more than one million were citizens, creating an unequal distribution in citizenship. Kuwait was a constitutional monarchy. Women were elected to the parliament but there was information that the parliament had recently been dissolved. The Committee noted the many human rights conventions the country had ratified, demonstrating its commitment to human rights, as well as being signatories to the Arab Charter on Human Rights and the Islamic Declaration on Human Rights. Kuwait ratified the Convention on Elimination of Racial Discrimination in 1968; it entered into force in 1969 without reservations. The Rapporteur asked if Kuwait planned to make an individual declaration under article 14. The Rapporteur noted that some non-governmental organizations had asserted that the Convention was not represented in Kuwaiti law and asked whether the Convention could be applied directly and for examples of the Convention being evoked directly in court. He also asked whether the High Commission for Human Rights was accredited and in accordance with the Paris Principles.
Bedouins, domestic workers and the acquisition of citizenship were important issues for the Committee. In 2000 there were 136,000 Bedouins, but in 2008 there were 92,000. Although some had received Kuwaiti citizenship, the Rapporteur asked what had happened for such a reduction in their numbers. Most Bedouins were long time residents of Kuwait and could fall into three groups based on their legal status: Bedouins who lived in Kuwait before 1920 and had the right to citizenship; Bedouins that came to Kuwait after 1920 and lived legally as nomads; and Bedouins who were unable to regularize their status in 1987 when nomads were formally excluded from the law. The Rapporteur noted that each category required tailored solutions. Bedouins accounted for up to 80 per cent of the army although they had no citizenship; Mr Avtonomov asked how many Bedouins were in the army and police.
The Rapporteur noted that discrimination could be based on nationality and origin and the Committee was concerned about restrictions imposed on those who could not obtain nationality, such as restrictions on their movement and job opportunities. The Committee noted that opportunities were broadening for children of non-Kuwaiti citizenship but there appeared to be a lack of full equalization of rights of citizenship among women and men.
As the Kafala system, or child sponsorship, could significantly curtail the rights of domestic workers, the Rapporteur asked for details on how the system worked. Concerning religious freedom and Islamic Law, what legal system applied to foreigners and non Muslims? Were Islamic charitable tax payments, zakat, imposed on non-citizens such as Bedouins or foreigners?
There were many questions on the need to incorporate Article 4 of the Convention into Kuwaiti domestic law, because hate speech and related infractions could not be prosecuted without a revision of domestic laws. Could the delegation explain when it would amend its domestic legislation to reflect the requirements of Article 4?
Several Experts said there was insufficient data in the report and requested the State party provide a breakdown on the ethnic composition and origin of the population, as unlawful residence was such a critical issue for the country. Had there been legal rulings on the changes made to the criminal code over the last 12 years and had there been any administrative rulings on civil servants? Concerning nationality laws, an Expert recommended that Kuwaiti woman be able to extend her nationality to her husband.
The issue of stateless persons was problematic. Nomads everywhere were discriminated against because they were considered to be rootless and not tied to a single place. Refugees and asylum seekers were also stateless, had limited rights, and no access to employment and health services. One of the most critical issues in the report related to migrant workers, who represented three quarters of the population. Experts asked how the State party dealt with the large influx of domestic and migrant workers.
An Expert commended Kuwait on its successful achievement rate of Millennium Development Goals and strong economic growth. She asked if it would be possible to have an Ombudsman Office to deal with issues of injustice against migrant and domestic workers, and how many complaints had been filed relating to discrimination of women in the country. A key indicator to evaluate the discrimination of migrant workers was the minimum wage in the country and could the delegation provide data on that information? An important development was the shelters for migrant and domestic workers. What was their record in resolving disputes between domestic workers and their employers, and what vision and future strategy was in place for resolving the unequal nationality?
Kuwait still practiced the death penalty and an Expert asked how many individuals had been subject to that penalty and whether there were any plans to revoke it.
An Expert said that information had come to light that all school books which taught about the Holocaust had been banned in the schools and educational system, and asked the delegation to confirm whether that was the case. What activities had been undertaken in the State party related to the Year of People of African Descent?
How active were civil society organizations, Experts asked, and had any been involved in drafting the report? Another Expert asked the delegation if there was any intention to increase the minimum age for child jockeys to eighteen.
Response from the Delegation
The Head of Delegation said that the delegation itself was composed of men and women, multiple religious beliefs, ethnic backgrounds and special needs. In the Kuwaiti legal order the Conventions ratified by the State of Kuwait were an integral part of national legislation and all State institutions and individuals were obliged to comply with them. Article 29 of the Kuwaiti Constitution stated that all individuals should be equal without regard to race or sex or ethnic origin. Various Ministries had developed plans to entrench the idea of citizen rights in order to promote tolerance among individuals of different nationalities.
As for amendments to the criminal code, a number of laws prohibited any publication or material that violated the privacy of individuals or incited hatred. Other laws had been enacted concerning audio and visual materials that could incite hatred with penalties from USD $10,000 to $30,000. There had been 709 cases of incitement to hatred in 2010; 500 went to court and the others were dismissed.
In 1978 an Administrative Court was established in Kuwait with a purpose to eliminate racial discrimination in the work place. The court ruled that there could be no administrative distinctions between the privileges enjoyed between domestic and foreign civil servants, for example teachers in universities enjoyed the same housing benefits whatever their nationality. Many decisions taken by the Administrative Court had upheld the rights of women civil servants who had suffered gender discrimination, and had allocated them financial compensation.
Concerning questions related to Article 4 of the Convention, a national law related to individual and institutional acts, and concerned clubs and public interest associations. That law forbade associations from inciting hatred or fomenting tribal hatred and fanaticism, and allowed the Government to prosecute anybody who violated it.
The Head of the Delegation said the delegation had taken note of the Committee's remarks on the drafting of the report and would ensure that future reports would be in accordance with the guidelines. The report was submitted to several non-governmental organizations including the Kuwaiti Lawyers Association, the Human Rights Association and the Kuwaiti Association for Fundamental Principles of Human Rights. The Government had taken significant strides towards the creation of a national human rights institute and was keen to ensure that it would be independent and in accordance with the Paris Principles.
Concerning capital punishment; 36 death penalty sentences had been issued since 2007. The 36 who had received the death penalty consisted of five women and 31 men. The women had all been convicted of murder and included a Kuwaiti, Ethiopian, Philippine and a Sri Lankan; the men were Kuwaiti (including a member of the royal family), Pakistani, Iranian, Egyptian, Indian and an Iraqi. To date none of those individuals had had their sentence carried out. Capital punishment was not rendered by the court unless the crime included premeditation and ambush. Every suspect was given full legal safeguards to have a fair trial as specified in Article 1 of the Constitution.
Kuwait ratified the Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its two optional protocols, the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children and the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air; which were promulgated in Kuwait in 2006. The crime of trafficking in persons had become an integral part of the national penal code. There were severe penalties for the bringing in or taking out of human beings into or out of the country for slavery. Although there was no trafficking of slaves in Kuwait, there was exploitation of workers for economic gain which the Government was working hard to address through a requirement to obtain a license before engaging an employee. Health insurance was provided to foreigners for a nominal fee and was a mandatory requirement of obtaining a residence permit. It was possible for all workers, including domestic workers, to request redress from the Courts if their rights were violated.
The issue of illegal residents was of prime concern to Kuwait and was not applicable to the Bedouin but rather to foreigners from neighbouring countries. Bedouin nomads who had lived in Kuwait prior to the creation of the State had been integrated into a single urban region. The delegation stressed that the Bedouin tribes formed the majority of the population. Kuwait had developed as a prosperous country and citizenship entailed several privileges including free education, free medical services, interest-free housing loans, social security benefits, no taxes, a monthly stipend of USD $200 on birth, financial grants at marriage, and a guaranteed job. Many individuals hid their original nationality on arrival in Kuwait in order to claim Kuwaiti citizenship; the delegation stressed that the term stateless could not apply to such persons. Kuwait had not joined the Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons and the delegation stressed that the Middle East had experienced a series of major wars over the past 30 decades so the Government of Kuwait could not underestimate the security concerns of the country when it chose how to bestow nationality. There had been a sharp increase in illegal residents during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, over 200,000 but those numbers had been reduced. There were 105,00 illegal residents in the country, 64 per cent of those individuals could be identified by country of origin with Iraq accounting for 63 per cent, Saudi Arabia 24 per cent and Syria and Iran seven per cent each.
The High Council for Planning, established five years ago, was responsible for forging a strategy to address the situation of illegal residents in a defined timeline. All those who were illegal residents would have their status settled and the right to obtain citizenship if the right conditions were met. The delegation explained that illegal residents were given eleven privileges to ensure that they received a basic human standard of life which consisted of free health care, free education, issuance of birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates, traffic services, disabled treatment, procurations, the right to work, and ration cards.
The laws in Kuwait were positive. Islamic Sharia Law applied to the personal status laws of individuals belonging to the Malic school of Sunni Islam. Individuals of other religious beliefs such as Shia Muslims and non-Muslims could attend special courts to resolve personal disputes.
The concept of migrant workers was not relevant to Kuwait because foreign workers in the country were temporary contract workers who returned to their country of origin after a specified time. The Labour Law of 2010 was drafted in consultation with the International Labour Organization and provided the following protections for workers: the criminal prohibition of the importation of workers without a license; a prohibition against a reduction in wages; a requirement that workers be paid a minimum wage; and an inspection unit to investigate work places.
The minimum wage was reviewed once every five years to incorporate inflation and other economic factors. Currently a net wage of USD $200 applied primarily to domestic workers, with additional benefits to cover food, housing and transport costs. The domestic shelters for workers had provided medical and health care services for workers in a dispute with their employers. In 2010 there were 136 cases of disputes and in 2011 there were 607 cases.
A delegate confirmed that the use of children as camel or horse jockeys was prohibited in 2005 by the Ministry of Social Affairs; the child jockeys were replaced by robots.
The Kafala system of child sponsorship had no presence in Kuwaiti legislation. However, a 2009 law permitted the transfer of an employer's license if the worker had been employed already for three years and negative conditions applied to the employment. Article 9 established a public organ to oversee the affairs of workers to review private sector employment practices.
The illiteracy rate in Kuwait was two per cent. There were a wide variety of school systems in the country so all children from a variety of cultures could receive education in their native language. Kuwait had adopted plans for the promotion of human rights including the Arab Plan for Human Rights Education and the Islamic Charter for Human Rights, initiatives which had been generalized across State institutions with training for civil servants. Civic education was provided for young people to impart the values of tolerance and respect for others.
Women in Kuwait represented 47 per cent of the labour force and occupied the second place in the Middle East and the Arab World in terms of bridging the gap in gender issues. Women had the same legal rights and obligations before the law as men. In 2009, four women were elected to Parliament and held positions on the Supreme Court and across various ministries. A law enforced equal pay and equal work. Women were given certain privileges under the social security system, including early retirement if their husband was disabled, and priorities were given to disabled women. Kuwaiti women could take cases to the courts and in 2008 a ruling of the Supreme Court annulled an article requiring a husband's permission for Kuwaiti women to obtain a passport.
Zakat, or Islamic tax obliged each Muslim to pay 2.5 per cent of their income to charitable organizations. Kuwait was proud of its contribution of USD $12 million to support charitable organizations.
The National Assembly was dissolved in 2011 in accordance with the rules of the Constitution; but elections were held on 2 February 2012 and the new Assembly held its first session two days ago.
Questions from Experts
ALEXEI AVTONOMOV, Country Rapporteur for Kuwait, asked about the trend since 2009 of women being elected as deputies to parliament and asked for more information on female participation in the political sphere. As there was no official Arab version of the Convention, could the delegation specify if an Arabic translation of the Convention was available in Kuwait, as that would facilitate its application. He also asked about any specific references of invoking the Convention in the country.
The Committee had been told that domestic workers received a lower minimum wage of USD $139, could the delegation please clarify?
There was concern about evictions of foreigners without appeal and the Rapporteur stressed that it was important that individuals had a minimum right to appear before a court to state their case. The Rapporteur noted the considerable progress made in the Kafala system of child sponsorship which permitted workers to transfer their employment contracts after a specified period of time.
Concerning the rights allocated to illegal workers, the Rapporteur noted that many of those services, such as the issuance of birth certificates, were basic rights and should not be considered privileges. Had the State party made any agreements with other States to facilitate the transfer of workers and to ensure that rights of foreign workers were upheld? There was concern about the status of Kuwaiti women who would be considered illegal if their husband was not Kuwaiti.
The Rapporteur stressed that the status of illegal residents required resolution and was one of the most serious problems facing the State party. The problem was especially pertinent for individuals who had no other country to go to claim citizenship. What was the situation of the nomadic groups or Bedouin now living in those urban centres and were those individuals even aware of the need for citizenship documents? Could the delegation again address the issue of whether or not there was restriction on the teaching of Holocaust studies in the national curriculum in Kuwait?
Response by the Delegation
The Head of the Delegation said that the minimum wage was indeed over USD $200 and that children always had the right to adopt their father's nationality, which should avoid any problem of children belonging to a stateless category. The delegation stressed that there was a serious problem with illegal residents who would not accept Kuwaiti documentation that had validated their country of origin, because their intention was always to obtain Kuwaiti citizenship. The citizenship law stipulated that children of Kuwaiti mothers could be given nationality; recently 106 children of Kuwaiti mothers were awarded nationality and the husband of Kuwaiti women who applied for nationality would receive priority in his application.
Awarding nationality was a sovereign act and the Government had to follow the rules and regulations and only allocate citizenship to those who fulfilled the conditions. Palestinians who had fulfilled the terms and conditions were awarded Kuwaiti citizenship. Security restrictions still applied to those individuals who had assisted the Iraqi invasion forces by giving information on the whereabouts of Kuwaiti citizens and those individuals were, for security reasons, denied Kuwaiti nationality. Among the 105,000 people identified as illegal residents there were 38,000 people for whom the Government could not identity their place of origin but the Government was developing a comprehensive strategy to resolve their situation. Each of those individuals carried an identity card of a special colour, outlining the privileges they were entitled to in education and health care services. The Court of Appeal had a specific judge to review the cases of foreigners who were expelled.
The delegation noted that the 60 per cent of voters in the recent elections were women, and some women candidates had succeeded in gaining a position in Parliament. That was a beginning for the struggle of women for their political rights.
Questions by Experts
Experts noted that of the illegal residents in Kuwait, referred to as Bedoons and were a distinct group from the Bedouin nomads. Most were Iraqis and there was a need for greater detail on when those so called 'Bedoons' had come to Kuwait before or after the Iraqi invasion, as that information would have a bearing on the outcome of the resolution of their cases. The Committee urged the delegation to move beyond the crisis and the difficult situation caused by the Iraqi invasion in order to resolve the illegal status of many of those individuals.
The delegation had applied a narrow definition to migrant workers although it had adopted good practices toward those workers such as basic human rights in systems of education, health care and other services which should be made more widely known for other countries. However, an Expert urged the Government to expand the definition of migrant workers.
Response by the Delegation
Most Iraqis in Kuwait who fell into the category of illegal residents had not been placed in the group of displaced persons or refugees as a result of the war with Iraq. Among the illegal residents, Bedouins were not a part of that group as most of the illegal residents in Kuwait originated form neighbouring countries.
The relative population growth in Kuwait was 6.9 per cent in the period under review, with 3.3 per cent among Kuwaiti nationals and 6.6 per cent among foreigners. The higher overall population rate among foreigners placed a greater burden on the provision of services in the country.
The delegation said there were no implicit written or oral instructions that would prohibit or forbid the mentioning of any subject in the national curriculum. Furthermore Kuwait was not sheltered from current events due to the communications revolution and the internet age; everyone in Kuwait was aware of major historical incidents such as the Holocaust.
Concluding Remarks
ALEXEI AVTONOMOV, Country Rapporteur for Kuwait, said he was very satisfied with the open dialogue and appreciated the efforts of the delegation to address all the issues in the report and noted many of the positive steps taken within the country. A number of areas of progress had occurred by the State party especially related to establishment of a new human rights institution.
SADIQ MARAFI, Head of the Delegation and Charge d'Affaires of the Permanent Mission of Kuwait to the United Nations Office at Geneva said he was grateful for the fruitful outcome of today's session and noted that it was only through direct dialogue that mutual understanding could be achieved. The delegation renewed the determination of the Government to exert all possible efforts to combat racial discrimination and that as Kuwaiti society was steadily progressing additional achievements would be made in the area of protecting and promoting human rights.
For use of the information media; not an official record
CERD12/006E