.Corruption Alleged in Kuwaiti Elections
KUWAIT CITY (AP) - Kuwait's upcoming parliamentary election - the first involving women - has been marred by allegations of vote-buying and corruption, part of an unprecedented burst of political activism that could change this U.S. ally forever.
Reform lawmakers have stormed out of parliament. Young hecklers have waved signs and balloons in protests. Private satellite TV stations have sprouted as campaign tools. And three women have brought the first-ever official complaint that a candidate tried to buy their votes with cash and designer handbags.
The emir, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, expressed his "deep hurt and dismay" over what he called the "low level of dialogue" and the escalation of campaign charges. He also said Saturday that candidates should concentrate on their platforms before Thursday's parliamentary vote.
Without elaborating, Sheik Sabah added that he would not "allow anyone to sabotage" the country's democracy.
"What is happening today is a battle between the Kuwaiti people and the symbols of corruption," former lawmaker Mussallam al-Barrak told one of the privately owned satellite television stations that have sprung up during the campaign.
Any political instability here could have repercussions because Kuwait hosts thousands of U.S. troops who deploy to Iraq and serve as a regional security buffer. U.S. troops drove Iraqi troops from Kuwait during the 1991 Gulf War.
In late May, the emir dissolved parliament and called for an early election because he worried that the "charged" public argument over electoral reform was threatening national unity. The vote originally was scheduled for mid-2007.
Many view the dispute as a common growing pain for a country like Kuwait - small, stable and affluent because of its oil reserves - as it tries to improve on a 44-year-old constitutional monarchy that did not include women until now. They were given those rights last year.
"There is no middle-of-the-road in Kuwait today," Islamist former lawmaker and candidate Walid Tabtabai said. "You are either with the reform camp or the camp of corruptors."
The election is the first for parliament in which women can either vote or be candidates. The campaign was expected to focus on such issues as the longtime demand of fundamentalists to fully implement Islamic law, which is opposed by the country's liberals.
Instead, it has brought conservative Islamists and Westernized liberals together in an alliance against what they call the common foe of corruption.
The debate has focused on alleged vote-buying - a longtime complaint here. The dispute came to a head last month when the government proposed a bill cutting the number of election precincts from the current 25 to 10.
Many reform advocates, including hundreds of young Kuwaitis who held street protests, instead wanted the number cut to five, saying larger precincts would minimize vote-buying and voting for members of the same tribe or religious sect.
Al-Barrak was one of 29 former lawmakers who stormed out of a parliament session after the government proposal. The speaker had to suspend the session after rowdy, pro-reform spectators wielding signs and balloons heckled lawmakers and accused the Cabinet of not being serious about reform.
The emir then disbanded parliament and called for the early election.
Veteran liberal legislator Abdullah al-Naibari accused the Cabinet of meddling in the election to "produce a weak ... parliament that would be a flexible device in the hands of corruptors."
Candidates have linked Cabinet ministers, including members of the ruling family, to mismanagement and corruption.
College students and other young Kuwaitis have organized groups to lobby for electoral reform and fight vote buying, and opposition candidates have urged them to keep up their efforts even after the vote.
One group, called Kuwait5, urged Kuwaitis on its Web site to send text messages to candidates.
Journalist, businesswoman and candidate Aisha al-Rsheid told The Associated Press that the cries against corruption simply were attempts by former lawmakers contesting the vote to "cover their failure in the three (past) years."
"What did they do for Kuwait?" she said.
Meanwhile, an independent group called the Higher Commission for Election Transparency claims it has helped three women make the first-ever official complaint to the government about alleged vote-buying. The women said they were offered money and designer handbags.
"This is a success for women," said Anwar al-Rsheid, the head of the commission, who would not identify the complainants.
The Interior Ministry, which oversees elections, has warned against vote-buying and set up a hot line for callers to report such attempts. It also will use transparent ballot boxes instead of wooden ones.
MyWay
Reform lawmakers have stormed out of parliament. Young hecklers have waved signs and balloons in protests. Private satellite TV stations have sprouted as campaign tools. And three women have brought the first-ever official complaint that a candidate tried to buy their votes with cash and designer handbags.
The emir, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, expressed his "deep hurt and dismay" over what he called the "low level of dialogue" and the escalation of campaign charges. He also said Saturday that candidates should concentrate on their platforms before Thursday's parliamentary vote.
Without elaborating, Sheik Sabah added that he would not "allow anyone to sabotage" the country's democracy.
"What is happening today is a battle between the Kuwaiti people and the symbols of corruption," former lawmaker Mussallam al-Barrak told one of the privately owned satellite television stations that have sprung up during the campaign.
Any political instability here could have repercussions because Kuwait hosts thousands of U.S. troops who deploy to Iraq and serve as a regional security buffer. U.S. troops drove Iraqi troops from Kuwait during the 1991 Gulf War.
In late May, the emir dissolved parliament and called for an early election because he worried that the "charged" public argument over electoral reform was threatening national unity. The vote originally was scheduled for mid-2007.
Many view the dispute as a common growing pain for a country like Kuwait - small, stable and affluent because of its oil reserves - as it tries to improve on a 44-year-old constitutional monarchy that did not include women until now. They were given those rights last year.
"There is no middle-of-the-road in Kuwait today," Islamist former lawmaker and candidate Walid Tabtabai said. "You are either with the reform camp or the camp of corruptors."
The election is the first for parliament in which women can either vote or be candidates. The campaign was expected to focus on such issues as the longtime demand of fundamentalists to fully implement Islamic law, which is opposed by the country's liberals.
Instead, it has brought conservative Islamists and Westernized liberals together in an alliance against what they call the common foe of corruption.
The debate has focused on alleged vote-buying - a longtime complaint here. The dispute came to a head last month when the government proposed a bill cutting the number of election precincts from the current 25 to 10.
Many reform advocates, including hundreds of young Kuwaitis who held street protests, instead wanted the number cut to five, saying larger precincts would minimize vote-buying and voting for members of the same tribe or religious sect.
Al-Barrak was one of 29 former lawmakers who stormed out of a parliament session after the government proposal. The speaker had to suspend the session after rowdy, pro-reform spectators wielding signs and balloons heckled lawmakers and accused the Cabinet of not being serious about reform.
The emir then disbanded parliament and called for the early election.
Veteran liberal legislator Abdullah al-Naibari accused the Cabinet of meddling in the election to "produce a weak ... parliament that would be a flexible device in the hands of corruptors."
Candidates have linked Cabinet ministers, including members of the ruling family, to mismanagement and corruption.
College students and other young Kuwaitis have organized groups to lobby for electoral reform and fight vote buying, and opposition candidates have urged them to keep up their efforts even after the vote.
One group, called Kuwait5, urged Kuwaitis on its Web site to send text messages to candidates.
Journalist, businesswoman and candidate Aisha al-Rsheid told The Associated Press that the cries against corruption simply were attempts by former lawmakers contesting the vote to "cover their failure in the three (past) years."
"What did they do for Kuwait?" she said.
Meanwhile, an independent group called the Higher Commission for Election Transparency claims it has helped three women make the first-ever official complaint to the government about alleged vote-buying. The women said they were offered money and designer handbags.
"This is a success for women," said Anwar al-Rsheid, the head of the commission, who would not identify the complainants.
The Interior Ministry, which oversees elections, has warned against vote-buying and set up a hot line for callers to report such attempts. It also will use transparent ballot boxes instead of wooden ones.
MyWay
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