Kuwait City: A Kuwaiti opposition figure said he has been summoned for questioning after allegedly criticising the emir on television, as the state widened a crackdown on dissent.
“I will go to the public prosecution [on Wednesday] for interrogation on the accusation of undermining the status of the emir in a televised interview in August,” former Islamist MP Faisal Al Muslim said on Twitter.
Al Muslim is the sixth former opposition MP to have been summoned for interrogation on accusations of making public remarks critical of Emir Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah.
The prosecution has also extended the detention of a former nationalist MP Mussallam Al Barrak for a day following his arrest on Monday and interrogation until late Tuesday, his lawyers said.
Al Barrak was accused of undermining the emir’s status at a rally on October 15 when he warned against amending the disputed electoral law and also cautioned Kuwait was becoming autocratic.
Last week, the court released three former opposition lawmakers after five days in custody on similar accusations and freed a fourth former MP after a brief interrogation.
More than 100 protesters were hurt at a massive rally on October 21 organised by the opposition to demonstrate against the amendment. The opposition also plans a second protest on November 4.
Meanwhile, candidates began registering on Wednesday for a snap election called for December 1, amid boycott announcements by a majority of political groups.
