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| 10 April 2005 | Sunday | 30 Safar 1426 |
Crisis within Kuwait’s ruling family causes impasse
“It is no secret to anyone that the problem is within the (ruling) family, and consequently within the cabinet. Parliament is the third place ... with regard to the crisis,” liberal daily Al-Qabas said in a front-page editorial.
“As long as the family crisis is unresolved, the problems of the government and parliament will remain outstanding,” the paper said.
The oil-rich emirate, the first Gulf state to adopt parliamentary democracy in 1962, is plunged into the most serious political crisis since 1999 when parliament was dissolved and fresh elections were called.
Leading member of the ruling family Sheikh Salem al-Ali al-Sabah acknowledged in November that “differences and disputes” existed within the ruling establishment and made a public appeal for unity.
Sheikh Salem, who ranks fourth in the family hierarchy and heads the national guard, also called on members of the family to close ranks, saying they were “no longer under its single roof”.
“I want relations and contacts among members of this family to continue, especially after the health condition of ‘our political leadership,’” he said, in reference to the ailing emir, Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah, and the crown prince, Sheikh Saad al-Abdullah al-Sabah.
In September, Sheikh Salem also spoke of “key decisions” to be made by the family to “herald a new era” in the emirate.
At the time, diplomats said Kuwait was preparing to name the country’s prime minister, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, as the new crown prince.
The changes were expected to be announced at a meeting of the ruling dynasty that was scheduled for late September, but diplomatic sources said the meeting and the changes were postponed due to a “lack of consensus” in the family.
The 76-year-old emir, who has been at the helm for 28 years, suffered a minor brain haemorrhage in 2001. Although he has since carried out most of his official duties, he has delegated most outdoor functions to Sheikh Sabah.
Sheikh Saad, who is now seldom seen in public, underwent colon surgery in 1997 and has since been undergoing treatment.
The Al-Sabah family has been running Kuwait’s affairs since the Gulf state came into existence some 250 years ago, and Kuwaitis have seldom questioned their rule.
The latest political tensions were triggered by the resignation of Health Minister Mohammad al-Jarallah on Monday after a tough grilling in parliament followed by a motion for a no-confidence vote signed by 10 lawmakers.
Jarallah was the third minister to quit the cabinet of Sheikh Sabah, the emir’s half-brother, who runs the day-to-day affairs of the emirate, after finance minister Mahmud al-Nuri and information minister Mohammad Abolhassan.
Jarallah’s grilling forced Sheikh Sabah to issue a stern warning to parliament on Wednesday, prompting speculation that the house’s dissolution was imminent.
Parliament Speaker Jassem al-Khorafi also warned in a statement late Friday that those “who are playing with fire” that they will “harm Kuwait’s interests and stability”.
The Islamic Ummah Party meanwhile said the only way out of the current crisis was through allowing the people to “choose a parliamentary popular cabinet,” and by approving “pluralism and peaceful rotation of power”.
The Islamic Constitutional Movement, or Muslim Brotherhood, criticized the government for failing to fight corruption or achieve promised political and economic reforms.—AFP
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