Kuwait panel endorses proposal to police malls

Cairo: A Kuwaiti parliamentary committee has endorsed a proposal to set up police stations in shopping centres to bolster security and curb potential violence, a Kuwaiti newspaper has said.

The proposal was approved by majority of the assembly’s Interior and Defence Committee giving full powers for police manning the envisaged facilities to arrest offenders, Al Qabas added.

The parliamentary motion proposes establishing police stations in shopping centres, markets and remote areas, and installing more surveillance cameras there.

Opponents to the proposal at the panel believe that there is no need to introduce police into shopping centres and private security companies are doing the job.

Proponents, however, argue that the proposal was put forward due to a recent rise in violence cases involving youth in commercial complexes and coastal parks.

In recent months, Kuwait, a country of around 4.6 million people, has seen a series of incidents of violence, some of which culminated in murders.