WE, in Kuwait, have transformed from a State of constitution and freedoms which are stipulated in clear and unambiguous articles in the Constitution, such as Article 30 which states: “Personal freedom is guaranteed.” Article 36 which stipulates: “Freedom of opinion and scientific research is guaranteed, and every person has the right to express his opinion and publish it in speech, writing or otherwise in accordance with the terms and conditions specified by law.”
This is in addition to Article 39 which says: “The freedom of postal, telegraphic and telephone correspondence is safeguarded, and its confidentiality is guaranteed, and messages may not be monitored or disclosed except in cases indicated in the law and with the procedures stipulated therein.”
Then, the national assemblies came to us to issue laws that contain articles which trample on the above mentioned articles of the Constitution, such as National Unity Protection Law No. 19 of 2012 and Law No. 63 of 2015 in the matter of combating information technology crimes.
These laws resulted in the issuance of selective rulings – for which Allah has sent down no authority and whose period exceeded 800 years – in absentia or in the presence of the accused.
It is unprecedented in a world that enjoys and suffers at the same time from modern means of communication. We and the whole world are plagued with modern means of communication, as well as what is happening in our society in terms of exposure to the religious beliefs of others and the hectic activities that young people do through social media for which Allah has sent down no authority.
Kuwait is almost the only country which imprisoned young people just because of a mistake – ‘slip of a finger’ – on social media, or displaced tens of young people outside their country; far from their families, relatives and friends because of sayings or words attributed to them in the damned modern communication devices.
Therefore, we believe that those who are exerting tremendous efforts to push for the return of fugitives among our veteran politicians in Turkey should include those who were wrongly convicted because of some unfair laws which may have been passed or worked hard for by the group consisting of those who fled from the implementation of the ruling of condemnation by storming the National Assembly building and uttering words against some of the country’s leaders in an unprecedented way in our country where we were born, raised and grown up.
Before, we did not experience reckless behavior as it happened at Erada Square. Analysts say that one of the fundamentalist political forces was ordered to transfer the so-called Arab Spring to the Gulf, starting in Kuwait. They wanted it but most of the people under its leadership refused; otherwise, we would now be like Tunisia, Libya, Syria and other countries that this bloody spring reaped!
We also call on the honorable people of the Dec 5, 2020 Assembly to work hard to get rid of the effects of these unfair laws on the most important articles of the Constitution, to erase the doings of those who came from the womb of the Constitution by trampling on its most important articles.
By Ali Ahmed Al-Baghli
Former Minister of Oil
