Kuwait: Mandatory drug test for citizens, expats proposed

Cairo: A Kuwaiti lawmaker has tabled a proposal that citizens and expatriates undergo mandatory drug tests, citing an increase in drug-related cases in the country.

MP Muhaned Al Sayer said that the drug test must be conducted for Kuwaitis when they apply for marriage or employment, while migrants take the test when they apply for residency permit renewal.

Foreigners make up nearly 3.4 million of Kuwait’s total population of 4.8 million.

Backing up his proposal, the legislator said that the number of drug cases in the country has exceeded 17,000 in the past 10 years.

“This number cannot be curbed without concerted efforts. The drug test amounts to a pre-emptive war against this affliction to limit its spread,” he was quoted by Al Rai newspaper as saying.

Last week, a medical official disclosed that 327 people have died due to drug and alcohol addiction in Kuwait over the past five years.

The rifest types of drugs in the country are hashish, methamphetamine, locally known as shabu, and marijuana, said Dr Ahmed Al Shati, the head of the Medical Al Sabah Zone.

He attributed drug-taking to weak religious faith, a passion for imitation, family breakdown, bad friends and misuse of technology.

About 9,787 drug-related cases have been registered in Kuwait in the past five years, including drug-taking, trafficking and smuggling, he added.