Kuwait police fire tear gas at protesters
And how do you calm protesters?
Divert them into politics! Any good Occupier knows that!
"A DIVISIVE VOTE IN KUWAIT -- Election officials opened ballot boxes after polls closed in Kuwait on Saturday in a parliamentary election held under new rules. Backers of the ruling establishment voted while a broad opposition alliance boycotted. Authorities have been accused of muzzling free speech and doing little to boost the country's economy (December 2 2012)."
"Kuwait court dissolves Parliament; elections ahead" Associated Press, June 17, 2013
KUWAIT CITY — Kuwait’s constitutional court forced new parliamentary elections Sunday, dissolving the current chamber on the basis of flaws in the election law, the state news agency reported. The decision may set the stage for a new wave of political showdowns.
The ruling follows objections to the voting law in December’s election, which was boycotted by opposition groups and others who said the new rules favored Kuwait’s ruling family and were imposed without public debate.
The official Kuwait News Agency said the court’s decision ‘‘invalidates’’ the 50-member chamber.
Other local media said the decision was over technicalities in the rules, and the court upheld controversial regulations that brought a one-person, one-vote system in place of the former rules that allowed voters to cast ballots for multiple candidates.
The government and other backers of the new system contend that multiple votes opened the way for pressures on voters to favor tribal or political blocs. Islamist groups and other opposition factions say the one-vote system is an attempt by Kuwait’s leaders to weaken antigovernment voices.
Kuwait allows the most political openness among the Persian Gulf’s Arab states, and opposition groups have sharply stepped up pressures on the Western-backed ruling family in recent years.
Iran is the most open, but they are Persian.
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"Kuwaiti woman gets 11 years in prison for tweets" Associated Press, June 11, 2013
KUWAIT CITY — A Kuwaiti woman was sentenced to 11 years in prison Monday after being convicted of insulting the Persian Gulf nation’s ruler in Twitter messages and encouraging his overthrow, government opposition groups said.
The court decision is among the harshest punishments given in the region as authorities increasingly crack down on perceived dissent on social media.
Dozens of people across the Western-backed gulf states have been sentenced to jail time for Twitter and blog posts in the past year.
Opposition groups in Kuwait say Huda al-Ajmi, a 37-year-old teacher, faced three charges that included insulting the emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Sabah, which brought a one-year sentence. Five-year prison terms were given for allegedly calling for coup-style rebellion and violating laws on public discussions.
Prosecutors said she misused her mobile phone as well as her Twitter account. Kuwaiti media also reported the sentencing.
Ajmi can file an appeal. In May, an appellate court overturned a five-year sentence for opposition figure Mussallam al-Barrak who was convicted of undermining the emir.
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I see not much has changed in Kuwait despite being liberated from the evil Saddam over 20 years ago.
