Manama: Kuwaiti policewomen have been asked to comply with the police grooming standards to avoid disciplinary action that includes sacking from the force.
In a decision issued by Sulaiman Al Fahad, the interior ministry undersecretary, the servicewomen were told that they had to respect military rules and standards related to grooming and general appearance.
Women have to comply with the cosmetics policy that bans colouring or dying hair in an extravagant manner. They must have keep fingernails clean and neatly trimmed and avoid wearing colourful nails in a shameful way. They must also avoid applying make-up in an exaggerated fashion.
Other reasons for disciplinary action include not abiding by the military uniform standards and appearances, the decision said.
“It has been noted in recent times that some members of the Force are not complying with decisions and circulars issued regarding the general appearance and discipline of the military,” the undersecretary said in his decision, quoted by local daily Al Rai on Thursday.
All officers are required to coordinate with the servicewomen to ensure they are complying with the standards, he said.
Any violation of the standards would mean the strict application of the rules and regulations that include, in case of repeated offences, dismissal from the force, the decision said.
The undersecretary last month asked policemen to abide by the grooming policies, including hair gel, haircuts and beards.
“We have noted that the police forces have not been complying with the rules and regulations,” Al Fahad said in the decision.
“There are attitudes that do not fit the status of the police, such as long hair, the use of hair gel, the lack of regular shaving of the facial hair, and allowing beards to grow with the expressed approval of superiors and without respecting the length specified by the rules,” he said.
Grooming compliance failures also included below standard cleanliness of the uniform and altering the uniform in an unacceptable way, he said,
“All assistant undersecretaries, general directors and their assistants are requested to inform the public forces that they should comply with the grooming policies and devote greater attention and more time to their appearance and to the uniform,” the undersecretary said.
Website users welcomed the decision, saying that it would help reinforce the status of the police force in the country.
Armies and police forces throughout the world do not have a common policy towards facial hair. While some countries allow its men in uniform to grow beards, others do not allow facial hair while other states permit them, but to a specific length.
