Gulf | Kuwait
Kuwait Emir dissolves parliament to end crisis
Kuwait's Emir dissolved the parliament last night and ordered fresh elections on June 29 in the face of a standoff between the government and parliament over a poll bill.
- By Jumana Al Tamimi, GCC & Middle East Editor
- Published: 00:00 May 22, 2006
Dubai: Kuwait's Emir dissolved the parliament last night and ordered fresh elections on June 29 in the face of a standoff between the government and parliament over a poll bill.
In a televised speech, Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah said he was forced to act to "preserve the security and stability of Kuwait".
Shaikh Sabah, referring to the serious differences that plagued the parliament during the past week, said the conflicts drove Kuwaitis from their "priorities and practices of some which deviated from the sound parliamentary course."
"The tense atmosphere, from which wisdom and rationality disappears, and doubt and escalation exist, do not allow well-studied practical solutions for an important issue which is one of the key elements of the national action," said Shaikh Sabah in his speech carried by Kuwait News Agency.
Although the parliament dissolution did not come as a surprise to many Kuwaitis, they said the decision was a difficult one.
"It is a difficult decision for the Emir," said Shamlan Al Eisa, Director of the Centre for Strategic and Future Studies at the Kuwait University. "He (the Emir) used to refuse to dissolve the parliament, but apparently he has reached a point where the status-quo cannot continue," he told Gulf News.
Last Monday, 28 MPs walked out of a parliament session to protest at the government's move to abandon an earlier draft bill, which reduced the number of constituencies to 5. Later the government-backed bill, reducing the constituencies to 10, was referred to the constitutional court amid much acrimony.
PM targeted
After Monday's session, 3 MPs, for the first time in Kuwait's history. submitted a petition to question the Prime Minister, Shaikh Nasser Al Sabah.
A session was scheduled today to discuss the election bill, but the increasing tension led to the dissolution of the parliament.
"It is not new for Kuwait to pass through such a democratic situation (parliament dissolution)," said independent Salah Khurshed to Gulf News. "Everybody was expecting it," he added.
The Kuwaiti parliament has been dissolved in 1976, 1986 and 1999.
What's next
-- New elections will be held on June 29
----In the election, women will participate as voters and candidates for the first time in Kuwait's history
----It is not clear whether elections will be held in the existing 25 constituencies, or whether the number of constituencies will be pruned
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