Kuwait MP claims receiving death threats over anti-expat push

Cairo: Kuwaiti MP Safaa Al-Hashem, known for her criticism of having a large community of migrant workers in the country, has said she has received several deaths threats from expatriates.

"I have received nine killing threats from a single community via the email," she said without naming that community."This is simply because I am a Kuwaiti parliamentarian demanding modification of the demographic structure and imposing fees on expatriates, " she added, according to Kuwaiti newspaper.

Foreigners account for nearly 3.4 million of Kuwait's 4.8 million population

In recent months, several Kuwaiti public figures have accused expatriates, mainly the unskilled labour, of straining the country’s health facilities and increasing the COVID-19 threat.

Al-Hashem accused government agencies of failing to give Kuwaitis a priority in holding posts in the country in the place of foreigners.

"True, corona is a blessing because it has exposed all this lethargy that I have been talking about and warning of for three years," she said.

There have been increasing calls in Kuwait to redress the demographic imbalance, prompting several government bodies to disclose plans to minimise numbers of their expatriate employees.