August 2007 Archives

Saad Al-Barrak, MTC

• The Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry - publicly and privately - have been saying it for years.

• The Parliament has been saying it for years.

• Reformers and Economists (i.e. Jassim Al-Saadoun) have been saying it for years.

• Kuwait companies have been saying it for years.

• Foreign corporations have been saying it for years.

And now a major multinational corporation (MTC) is moving its headquarters out of Kuwait. Here's a refreshingly candid and direct statement by Saad Al-Barrak, Deputy Chairman and Managing Director, MTC:

"The Kuwaiti business environment repels investment and the country's laws are not good for a financial hub,"

Ouch.

Who is next? Agility? Global Investment?

Source: Arabian Business.

Technorati : Kuwait Commerce

"Kuwait has excluded foreign companies, including those from other Gulf countries, from an auction to sell 26% of a mobile phone operator set up by the government, Emirates Today reported, citing Al Seyassah newspaper. The government had previously said it would open the auction to foreign operators and publicly traded Kuwaiti companies that are not in the telecom business. The Cabinet has now decided against allowing foreign firms to compete for the stake".

Link: AMEInfo

The above piece of news doesn't bode well for the general consumer. Basically what it means is this: investors behind MTC and Wataniya and other local entities have been offered a bigger chance of controlling a chunk of the new company, thereby instigating another telephony monopoly in Kuwait.

Wasn't the whole point of establishing a 3rd Mobile company the encouragement of more competition, reduce prices and improve general services to the public, as well as augmenting the value of citizen pension plans (which will supposedly own a piece of the pie)?

If Etisalat, Mobily, BT, Orange, Verizon, any international operator - whoever they may be - cannot invest in the 3rd Mobile company, then rest assured that services, quality, customer support and prices will almost be identical to MTC and Wataniya.

It's business as usual in Kuwait. Don't open up. Don't allow real competition. Limit investors to a particular piece of real estate, company etc, wait a few years and sell it to a foreign or local entity, profiting five-fold or more.

"It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not deserve them"

21st August Update - Bashar Al-Sayegh was released this afternoon by the authorities. An English-language report can be found at Kuwait Times; Arab-language commentary and pictures can be found at Belkuwaiti Alfasih.

Yesterday was an ominous, dark day for Kuwait, its people and its Constitution.

Word has reached citizens that Kuwait State Security police have allegedly detained and assaulted Al Ommah blogger and Aljarida journalist Mr. Bashar Al-Sayegh, continuing to hold him accountable for an anonymous post lambasting HH The Amir (which Al-Sayegh quickly deleted from the Al Ommah domain before his arrest). Additionally, a journalist for Aljarida Newspaper, Mr. Jassim Al-Qamis was additionally arrested, attacked and detained for taking a picture of Al-Sayegh during his arrest at the premises of Aljarida Newspaper (owned by MP Mohamed Al-Saqer).

Writers and Bloggers are responsible for the content of their work. They should not and cannot be held responsible 24/7 for anonymous comments, however inflammatory or distasteful. Nevertheless, the issue is bigger than that, it is an arrest of a Blogger and his continued imprisonment, as well as any physical attacks that may have occurred on the Blogger and on the Al Jarida Journalist, clear violations of their individual and human rights, rights that should be guaranteed and protected by the Constitution.

If the above information is factual then the actions of the State Security individuals were illegal, abhorrent to our principles and a clear violation of the following Kuwait Constitution clauses:

Article 31

No person shall be arrested, detained, searched or compelled to reside in a specified place, nor shall the residence of any person or his liberty to choose his place of residence or his liberty of movement be restricted, except in accordance with the provisions of law.

Article 32

No crime and no penalty may be established except by virtue of law, and no penalty may be imposed except for offences committed after the relevant law has come into force.

Article 34

An accused person is presumed innocent until proved guilty in a legal trial at which the necessary guarantees for the exercise of the right of defence are secured. The infliction of physical or moral injury on an accused person is prohibited.

Article 36

Freedom of opinion and of scientific research shall be guaranteed. Every person shall have the right to express and propagate his opinion verbally, in writing or otherwise, in accordance with the conditions and procedures specified by law.

Article 37

Freedom of the press, printing and publishing shall be guaranteed in accordance with the conditions and manner specified by law.

The Kuwaiti Constitution guarantees our rights. It is the fabric that protects the community and its people, it is the fabric that guarantees basic human rights, individual rights and freedom of the press and it was the document that last year facilitated a peaceful transition of power from one ruler to the next. All of the Constitution must be respected and abided by at all times.

We are not a police state. We are not a violent country. What occurred should have never happened: two young Kuwaitis arrested without a warrant or court order and detained by State Security, with their families unaware of their surroundings, a horrible instance of deja-vu reminiscent of barbaric incidents during the Iraqi invasion, not the way Kuwait should be.

This is not an Islamist issue, this is not a Liberal issue, this is not a pro or anti-government issue. This is an issue that affects our rights as citizens, our identity and dignity and way of life.

We hope Mr. Sayegh returns to his family safe and sound.

Links:

The Kuwait Constitution (English)
Safat Square (Arabic)
Q8SWS (English)
K The Kuwaiti (English)

At 1:46 am local time, an earthquake measuring 4.3 on the Richter Scale struck the Kuwait-Saudi border region (105 kilometers from Kuwait City), according to the U.S. Geological Survey organization.

There are reports of people feeling tremors in and around Kuwait City.

This earthquake is a disturbing omen of things to come, another reason why both Iran and the Gulf Cooperation Council members should back off their plans to pursue "peaceful nuclear activities" (case in point, the Japan earthquake that triggered a radioactive leak at the Kashiwazaki facility last month).

Fiddling with the newly-released Movable Type 4, so you will notice some features are missing (the Blogroll with the Mutual Links, some widgets etc).

Hope to update all features soon.