Human rights in Kuwait#Citizenship revocation

Kuwait is a party to several international human rights treaties, including{{cite web |url=http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/research/ratification-kuwait.html |title=Ratification of International Human Rights Treaties - Kuwait |publisher=University of Minnesota Human Rights Library |access-date=25 June 2012}}

• International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
• Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery
• Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others
• United Nations Convention Against Torture
• Convention on the Rights of the Child
• Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour
• Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour
• Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention
• Abolition of Forced Labour Convention
• Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention
• Convention against Discrimination in Education

Citizenship revocation is a contentious human rights issue in Kuwait. According to Carnegie Endowment, Kuwait has weaponized citizenship revocation as a tool for political control.{{cite web|url=https://carnegieendowment.org/posts/2023/07/turning-points-the-junior-fellows-compendium?lang=en#chapter4|title=Kuwait’s Stateless Stalemate: How the Weaponization of Citizenship Transformed State and Society|author=Mohammad Al-Mailam|work=Carnegie Endowment|date=July 2023}} The government has the authority to revoke Kuwaiti citizenship without a criminal conviction and Kuwait's courts are not allowed to handle appeals.{{cite web|url=https://impactpolicies.org/news/391/kuwaiti-citizenship-and-punitive-recovation|title=Kuwaiti Citizenship and Punitive Revocation|work=ImpACT International for Human Rights Policies|date=April 2024}} The lack of judicial oversight means that citizenship revocation occurs without a court ruling.

Since March 2024, Kuwait has been revoking the citizenship of many citizens (by decree).{{Cite web |date=2024-09-17 |title=الكويت: لماذا سحبت الجنسية من مئات المواطنين؟ - يستحق الانتباه - Arabic |url=https://www.bbc.com/arabic/podcasts/p0h6d6nm/p0jr3gvj |access-date=2024-11-21 |website=BBC News عربي |language=ar}} In early December 2024, the Emir issued a decree to revoke the Kuwaiti citizenship of several high-profile individuals: singer Nawal Al-Kuwaitia, social media influencer Noha Nabil, and actor Dawood Hussein including his children who were automatically granted Kuwaiti citizenship through paternal affiliation.{{Cite web |date=2024-12-01 |title=سحب الجنسية: داوود حسين ونوال الكويتية "بدون جنسية" بعد القرار الجديد في الكويت |url=https://www.bbc.com/arabic/articles/cdr0ljx4zvko |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=BBC News عربي |language=ar}}{{Cite web |date=2024-11-30 |title=الكويت.. سحب الجنسية من داود حسين ونوال الكويتية |url=https://arabic.cnn.com/entertainment/article/2024/12/01/kuwait-citizenship-dawood-hussein-nawal-al-kuwaitiya |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=CNN Arabic |language=ar}}{{Cite web |date=2024-11-30 |title=الكويت تقر سحب الجنسية من الفنان داود حسين والمطربة نوال الكويتية |url=https://www.alarabiya.net/arab-and-world/gulf/2024/11/30/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%83%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%AA-%D8%AA%D9%82%D8%B1-%D8%B3%D8%AD%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%81%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%88%D8%AF-%D8%AD%D8%B3%D9%8A%D9%86-%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B7%D8%B1%D8%A8%D8%A9-%D9%86%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%83%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%AA%D9%8A%D8%A9- |access-date=2024-12-01 |website=العربية |language=ar}}

By March 2025, Kuwait had revoked the citizenship of 42,000 people in just six months.{{cite web|url=https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20250315-an-authoritarian-shift-in-kuwait-stripps-42-000-citizens-of-their-nationality|title='Stateless overnight': Authoritarian crackdown strips 42,000 Kuwaitis of nationality|work=France24|date=March 2025}}{{cite web|url=https://www.ft.com/content/03f51141-ddde-439e-ba57-e82f5ffb2696|title=The Gulf state purging tens of thousands of its citizens|work=Financial Times|date=March 2025}}{{cite web|url=https://gulfnews.com/world/gulf/kuwait/more-than-42000-lose-kuwaiti-citizenship-in-six-months-1.500062316|title=More than 42,000 lose Kuwaiti citizenship in six months|work=Gulf News|date=March 2025}}

The lack of transparency and recourse in the citizenship revocation policy is a violation of international law.{{cite web|url=https://www.adhrb.org/2024/07/kuwaits-unlawful-citizenship-revocations-a-tool-of-repression-leading-to-statelessness/|title=Kuwait’s Unlawful Citizenship Revocations: a Tool of Repression Leading to Statelessness|work=Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)|date=July 2024}} The majority of revoked citizenships were legally granted to the wives of Kuwaiti men under Article 8 of the nationality law. Their citizenships are being retroactively revoked after Article 8 was recently repealed by decree, violating international law which prohibits the retroactive application of nationality law. Many individuals with revoked citizenship are taken to the "Central Agency for Illegal Residents," which handles stateless individuals in Kuwait,{{Cite web |title=«الداخلية»: إلغاء جميع طلبات الحصول على الجنسية لحملة «إحصاء 65» |trans-title="Interior": Cancellation of all citizenship applications for "Census 65" holders |url=https://www.alraimedia.com/article/1702535/%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AA/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%84-%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%B6-%D8%A3%D8%AD%D9%83%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%B1%D9%8A-%D8%A8%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%88%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%8A%D9%87%D8%AF%D9%81-%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B2-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%87%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B7%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%88%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B8%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%85-%D9%84%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%84%D8%A9 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240927190134/https://www.alraimedia.com/article/1702535/%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AA/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%84-%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%B6-%D8%A3%D8%AD%D9%83%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%B1%D9%8A-%D8%A8%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%88%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%8A%D9%87%D8%AF%D9%81-%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B2-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%87%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B7%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%88%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B8%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%85-%D9%84%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%84%D8%A9 |archive-date=2024-09-27}} further deepening the country's stateless population.

Kuwait’s citizenship revocation policy contradicts international treaties such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that "everyone has the right to a nationality" and "no one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality." Human rights organizations have raised concerns over the potential for statelessness, lack of due process in citizenship revocations, and the discriminatory impact on vulnerable groups, including women, elderly people, and children. For example, the citizenship revocation policy impacts many children, further deepening the number of stateless children in the country.

Neveen Ma'arafi ({{Langx|ar|نيفين معرفي|4=Neveen Ma'arafi}}) defended the citizenship revocation policy, claiming that it is being carried out to tackle corruption. Many activists disputed her claims.

{{Main|Bedoon}}

Kuwait has the largest stateless population in the entire region.{{cite news|url=https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/2012/11/28/the-gulf%E2%80%99s-stateless-people-without-rights-decades-after-independence|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150706144113/https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/2012/11/28/the-gulf%E2%80%99s-stateless-people-without-rights-decades-after-independence|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-07-06|title=The Gulf's Stateless People without Rights Decades after Independence|work=Human Rights First|language=en}} Most stateless Bedoon of Kuwait belong to the northern tribes, especially the Al-Muntafiq tribal confederation.{{Cite web|url=https://elaph.com/Web/NewsPapers/2007/4/229670.htm|title=بدون الكويت: كرة ثلج تتدحرج منذ 40 عاماً|work=Elaph|date=2007|language=ar}}{{Cite web|url=http://platformpost.net/article/-27|title=أزمة الهوية الوطنية - د. فايز الفايز|work=Platform Post|author=Fayez Alfayez|date=February 26, 2021|language=ar}}{{Cite web|url=https://assafirarabi.com/ar/3094/2012/09/19/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%86-%D9%81%D9%80%D9%80%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%83%D9%88%D9%8A%D9%80%D9%80%D9%80%D8%AA-%D9%85%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%B7%D9%86%D9%88%D9%86-%D8%A8%D9%84%D8%A7-%D9%87%D9%88%D9%8A/|title=البدون فــي الكويـــت.. مواطنون بلا هوية|work=As-Safir Al-Arabi|author=Eman Shams Aldeen|date=September 19, 2012|language=ar}}{{Cite web|url=https://law.unimelb.edu.au/centres/statelessness/critical-statelessness-studies-blog/critical-sociolinguistic-ethnography-as-a-lens-to-statelessness-a-case-from-the-bidoon-community-in-kuwait|title=Critical sociolinguistic ethnography as a lens to statelessness: a case from the Bidoon community in Kuwait|author=Ahmad Jaber|date=February 2021}}{{Cite thesis|url=https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/IPeoples/EMRIP/Call/KuwaitBedoonCase.pdf|title=Report to the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples - Annual Study. Bedoon Indigenous Rights in the Context of Borders, Migration and Displacement|publisher=OHCHR|page=1–63|year=2019}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/1991/0820/20051.html|title=Stateless Bedoons Are Shut Out of Kuwait|work=The Christian Science Monitor|year=1991}}{{Cite journal|url=http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1947-94172018000200006&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en|title=The Bedoun Archive: A public archive created for the northern tribes Bedouin of Kuwait|author=Susan Kennedy Nour al Deen|journal=Education as Change |year=2018|volume=22 |issue=2 |doi=10.25159/1947-9417/3435 |s2cid=240259439 |doi-access=free }} The linguist Bruce Ingham studied the northern tribes in Kuwait in the mid 20th century.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HZ93Usv6ni4C&pg=PA99|title=Arabic Dialectology: In Honour of Clive Holes on the Occasion of His Sixtieth Birthday|editor=Enam al-Wer, Rudolf Erik de Jong|volume=53|pages=99–100 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9789047425595|year=2009}} A minority of stateless Bedoon in Kuwait belong to the 'Ajam community.{{Cite web|url=https://ajammc.com/2018/03/01/two-deserts-kuwaiti-bidoon/|title=Between Two Deserts: Visual Vignettes from an Iranian-Kuwaiti Bidoon in New Mexico|author=Ajam Media Collective|year=2018}}

Under the terms of Article 4 of the Kuwait Nationality Law, the Bedoon in Kuwait are eligible for Kuwaiti nationality by naturalization.{{Cite book |author=David S. Weissbrodt |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_4somFYg1REC&pg=PA98 |title=The Human Rights of Non-citizens |year=2008 |isbn=9780199547821 |page=98| publisher=Oxford University Press }} In practice, it is widely believed that Sunnis of Persian descent or tribal Saudis can readily achieve Kuwaiti naturalization whilst Bedoon of Iraqi tribal ancestry cannot.{{Cite web|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/03/kuwait-bedoon-naturalization.html|title=Is Kuwait Serious About Bedoon Naturalization?|author=Mona Kareem|year=2013}} As a result, many Bedoon in Kuwait feel pressured to hide their background.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/IPeoples/EMRIP/Call/KuwaitBedoonCase.pdf|title=The National Project to Resolve the Kuwaiti Bedoon Case (Kuwait) End Statelessness Foundation (Australia) - 1 February, 2019 Report to the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples - Annual Study - Bedoon Indigenous Rights in the Context of Borders, Migration and Displacement|page=23}}

From 1965 until 1985, the Bedoon were treated as Kuwaiti citizens and guaranteed citizenship: they had free access to education, health care and all the other privileges of citizenship. The stateless Bedoon constituted 80-90% of the Kuwaiti Army in the 1970s and 1980s until the Gulf War.

In 1985 at the height of the Iran–Iraq War, the Bedoon were reclassified as "illegal residents" and denied Kuwaiti citizenship and its accompanying privileges.{{Cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/1991/05/31/world/kuwait-city-journal-the-bedoons-outcasts-in-the-land-they-served.html|title=Kuwait City Journal; The Bedoons: Outcasts in the Land They Served|work=The New York Times|year=1991}} The Iran–Iraq War threatened Kuwait's internal stability and the authorities feared the sectarian background of the stateless Bedoon. The Bedoon issue in Kuwait “overlaps with historic sensitivities about Iraqi influence inside Kuwait”, with many of those denied Kuwaiti nationality being believed to have originated from Iraq.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/1144440/1930_1302700136_kwt37495.pdf|title=Australian Government - Bedoon|page=3}}

In 1985, the then emir, Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, escaped an assassination attempt.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/05/26/world/car-bomber-fails-in-attempt-to-kill-leader-of-kuwait.html|title=CAR BOMBER FAILS IN ATTEMPT TO KILL LEADER OF KUWAIT|work=The New York Times|year=1985}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1985/05/26/kuwaiti-ruler-eludes-attack-by-car-bomber/62972d81-e59e-47eb-9f57-80370819610f/|title=Kuwaiti Ruler Eludes Attack By Car-Bomber|newspaper=The Washington Post|year=1985}} After the assassination attempt, the government changed the Bedoon's status from that of legal residents to illegal residents. By 1986, the Bedoon were fully excluded from the same social and economic rights as Kuwaiti citizens.

Since 1986, the Kuwaiti government has refused to grant any form of documentation to the Bedoon, including birth certificates, death certificates, identity cards, marriage certificates, and driving licences. The Bedoon also face many restrictions in employment, travel and education. They are not permitted to educate their children in state schools and universities.

In 1995, Human Rights Watch reported that there were 300,000 stateless Bedoon, and this number was formally repeated by the British government.{{Cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/1995/Kuwait.htm|title=THE Bedoons of Kuwaiy Citizens without Citizenship|publisher=Human Rights Watch}}{{Cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199495/cmhansrd/1995-10-23/Debate-14.html|title=House of Commons Hansard Debates for 23 Oct 1995 - Parliament Publications|work=House of Commons of the United Kingdom|date=Oct 23, 1995}}

According to several human rights organizations, the State of Kuwait is committing ethnic cleansing and genocide against the stateless Bedoon.{{Cite web|url=https://uprdoc.ohchr.org/uprweb/downloadfile.aspx?filename=7585&file=EnglishTranslation|title=Kuwait's humanitarian disaster Inter-generational erasure, ethnic cleansing and genocide of the Bedoon|publisher=OHCHR|year=2019}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.academia.edu/43213716|title=Kuwait's Laws and Policies of Ethnic Discrimination, Erasure and Genocide Against The Bedoon Minority Submission on 'Human Rights Protections for Minorities Recognised in the UN System'|work=Susan Kennedy Nour al Deen|year=2020}} The Kuwaiti Bedoon crisis resembles the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar. In 1995, it was reported in the British parliament that the Al Sabah ruling family had deported 150,000 stateless Bedoon to refugee camps in the Kuwaiti desert near the Iraqi border with minimal water, insufficient food and no basic shelter, and that they were threatened with death if they returned to their homes in Kuwait City. As a result, many of the stateless Bedoon fled to Iraq, where they remain stateless people even today.{{cite web|title=EASO Country of Origin Information Report Iraq Targeting of Individuals|work=European Asylum Support Office|url=https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Iraq_targeting_of_individuals.pdf|pages=149–150}}{{Cite web|author=Charlie Dunmore and Edith Champagne in Basra, Iraq|date=10 October 2019|title=Citizenship hopes become reality for Iraq's Bidoon minority|url=https://www.unhcr.org/news/stories/2019/10/5d9eda154/citizenship-hopes-become-reality-iraqs-bidoon-minority.html|work=UNCHR}} The Kuwaiti government also stands accused of attempting to falsify their nationalities in official state documents.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/Response%20of%20the%20Kuwaiti%20Government%20to%20HRW_0.pdf|title=Report on the Human Rights Watch Report and Response to its Questions and Inquiries|author=Human Rights Watch, 350 Fifth Avenue 34th Floor, New York|website=Human Rights Watch|language=en}} There have been reports of forced disappearances and mass graves of Bedoon.{{Cite web|url=https://www.un.org/unispal/document/auto-insert-185085/|title=Mideast situation – Middle East Watch Report – Letter from Palestine|year=1991|work=United Nations}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/467fca75227.html|title=Human Rights Watch World Report 1993 - Kuwait|work=Human Rights Watch|year=1993}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/467fca5a23.html|title=Human Rights Watch World Report 1992 - Kuwait|year=1992|work=Human Rights Watch}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/10/14/opinion/l-in-kuwait-no-human-rights-progress-020591.html|title=In Kuwait, No Human-Rights Progress|year=1991|work=The New York Times}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/WR93/Mew-06.htm|title=Human Rights Developments Kuwait|year=1993|work=Human Rights Watch}}

The 1995 Human Rights Watch report stated:

"The totality of the treatment of the Bedoons amounts to a policy of denationalization of native residents, relegating them to an apartheid-like existence in their own country. The Kuwaiti government policy of harassment and intimidation of the Bedoons and of denying them the right to lawful residence, employment, travel and movement, contravene basic principles of human rights. Denial of citizenship to the Bedoons clearly violates international law. Denying Bedoons the right to petition the courts to challenge governmental decisions regarding their claims to citizenship and lawful residence in the country violates the universal right to due process of law and equality before the law."

British MP George Galloway stated:

"Of all the human rights atrocities committed by the ruling family in Kuwait, the worst and the greatest is that against the people known as the Bedoons. There are more than 300,000 Bedoons—one third of Kuwait's native population. Half of them—150,000—have been driven into refugee camps in the desert across the Iraqi border by the regime and left there to bake and to rot. The other 150,000 are treated not as second-class or even fifth-class citizens, but not as any sort of citizen. They are bereft of all rights. It is a scandal that almost no one in the world cares a thing about the plight of 300,000 people, 150,000 of them cast out of the land in which they have lived [when] many have lived in the Kuwaiti area for many centuries."

By 2004, the Bedoon accounted for only 40% of the Kuwaiti Army, a major reduction from their presence in the 1970s and 1980s.{{Cite web|url=https://www.dcaf.ch/content/download/33690/522597/version/1/file/ev_geneva_04071113_Alnajjar.pdf|title=Challenges of Security Sector Governance in Kuwait|pages=5–6|author=Ghanim Al-Najjar|year=2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140417031049/https://www.dcaf.ch/content/download/33690/522597/version/1/file/ev_geneva_04071113_Alnajjar.pdf|archive-date=2014-04-17}} In 2013, the UK government estimated that there were 110,729 "documented" Bedoon in Kuwait, without giving a total estimate, but noting that all stateless individuals in Kuwait remain at risk of persecution and human rights breaches.{{cite web|title=United Kingdom Government - Bedoon|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/51f7b27b4.pdf|pages=2}} The Bedoon are generally categorized into three groups: stateless tribespeople, stateless police/military and the stateless children of Kuwaiti women who married Bedoon men.{{cite web|title=United Kingdom Government - Bedoon|url=http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/51f7b27b4.pdf}} According to the Kuwaiti government, there are only 93,000 "documented" Bedoon in Kuwait. In 2018, the Kuwaiti government claimed that it would naturalize up to 4,000 stateless Bedoon per year but this is considered unlikely.{{cite web|url=http://www.arabtimesonline.com/news/assembly-oks-bill-on-number-of-people-to-be-granted-kuwaiti-citizenship-in-18/|title=Assembly OKs bill on number of people to be granted Kuwaiti citizenship in '18|date=2018-03-21|website=ARAB TIMES - KUWAIT NEWS|language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-17}} In 2019, the Iranian embassy in Kuwait announced that it offers Iranian citizenship to stateless Bedoon of Iranian ancestry.{{cite web|url=https://english.alarabiya.net/News/gulf/2019/09/09/Iran-offers-citizenship-to-stateless-people-with-Iranian-roots-in-Kuwait|title=Iran offers citizenship to stateless people with 'Iranian roots' in Kuwait|date=September 9, 2019|work=Al Arabiya}}{{cite web|url=https://www.alraimedia.com/article/861319/%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AA/%D8%B7%D9%87%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%85%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%B9%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%86-%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AC%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A5%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A%D9%8A%D9%86|title=طهران: مُستعدّون لتجنيس "البدون" الإيرانيين|date=September 8, 2019|work=Al Rai|language=ar}}

In recent years, the rate of suicide among Bedoon has risen sharply.{{Cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/39817003|title=Kuwait Bedoon - Special Rapporteurs, United Nations, Requesting Investigation of Kuwait's Treatment of the Bedoon|journal=Un Special Procedures Request|date=January 2019 }}

The State of Kuwait formally has an official Nationality Law that grants non-nationals a legal pathway to obtaining citizenship.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/kuwait/kuwait-04.htm|title=IV. DISCRIMINATION BASED ON ORIGIN AND STATUS: THE BIDUN|work=Human Rights Watch|year=2000}} However, as access to citizenship in Kuwait is autocratically controlled by the Al Sabah ruling family it is not subject to any external regulatory supervision. The implementation of the Nationality Law is arbitrary and lacks transparency. The lack of transparency prevents non-nationals from receiving a fair opportunity to obtain citizenship.{{Cite web|work=United Nations|url=https://undocs.org/pdf?symbol=en/A/HRC/46/NGO/33|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210804164852/https://undocs.org/pdf?symbol=en/A/HRC/46/NGO/33|url-status=dead|archive-date=2021-08-04|title=Human Rights Council, Forty-sixth session, 22 February–19 March 2021, Agenda item 3, Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development. Written statement* submitted by International Council. Supporting Fair Trial and Human Rights, a nongovernmental organization in special consultative status. The Secretary-General has received the following written statement which is circulated in accordance with Economic and Social Council resolution 1996/31.|date=17 February 2021|page=2}} Consequently, the Al Sabah ruling family have been able to manipulate naturalization for politically motivated reasons.{{Cite book |author=Michael Herb|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=laODBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT59|title=The Wages of Oil: Parliaments and Economic Development in Kuwait and the UAE|date = 18 December 2014| publisher=Cornell University Press |isbn = 9780801454684|quote=How then do we explain the naturalizations that have occurred in the Gulf states in the past, such as the granting of citizenship to thousands of bedu (bedouin) by Kuwait in the 1960s and 1970s? Typically these naturalizations were imposed by the ruling families and were designed to alter the demographic makeup of the citizen society in a way that made the power of the ruling families more secure}}{{Cite web|author=Justin Gengler|work=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace|url=https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2016/08/the-political-economy-of-sectarianism-in-the-gulf?lang=en|title=The Political Economy of Sectarianism in the Gulf|date=August 29, 2016}} In the three decades after independence in 1961, the Al Sabah ruling family naturalized hundreds of thousands of foreign Bedouin immigrants predominantly from Saudi Arabia.{{Cite book |author=Rivka Azoulay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gurvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA21|title=Kuwait and Al-Sabah: Tribal Politics and Power in an Oil State|page=21|year=2020| publisher=Bloomsbury |isbn = 9781838605063}}{{Cite book |author=Rivka Azoulay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gurvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA100|title=Kuwait and Al-Sabah: Tribal Politics and Power in an Oil State|pages=100–110|year=2020| publisher=Bloomsbury |isbn = 9781838605063|quote=Political naturalizations of tribesmen}}{{Cite web|author=Gwenn Okruhlik|work=Foreign Policy|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2012/02/08/the-identity-politics-of-kuwaits-election/|title=The identity politics of Kuwait's election|date=February 8, 2012}}{{Cite web|author=Claire Beaugrand|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/46519156.pdf|title=Statelessness and Transnationalism in Northern Arabia: Biduns and State Building in Kuwait, 1959-2009|page=137|quote=Extra-Legal Naturalisations and Population Statistics}}{{Cite book |editor=Frederic Wehrey|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g5NODwAAQBAJ&pg=PA186|title=Beyond Sunni and Shia: The Roots of Sectarianism in a Changing Middle East|date = February 2018|page=186| publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn = 9780190911195|quote=To counter the strong influence of Arab nationalism in the decades after independence in 1961, Kuwait naturalized more than 200,000 Bedouin tribesmen to serve as a reliable pro-government bloc in parliament.}} By 1980, as many as 200,000 immigrants were naturalized in Kuwait. Throughout the 1980s, the Al Sabah's politically motivated naturalization policy continued. The naturalizations were not regulated nor sanctioned by Kuwaiti law. The exact number of naturalizations is unknown but it is estimated that up to 400,000 immigrants were unlawfully naturalized in Kuwait.{{Cite web|url=https://alshahedkw.com/182290|title=اتقوا الله وجنِّسوا الكويتيين البدون|work=Al-Shahed Newspaper|author=Sheikh Sabah Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah|date=February 10, 2018|language=ar}} The foreign Bedouin immigrants were mainly naturalized to alter the demographic makeup of the citizen population in a way that made the power of the Al Sabah ruling family more secure. As a result of the politically motivated naturalizations, the number of naturalized citizens exceeds the number of Bedoon in Kuwait. The Al Sabah ruling family actively encouraged foreign Bedouin immigrants to migrate to Kuwait. The Al Sabah ruling family favored naturalizing Bedouin immigrants because they were considered loyal to the ruling family, unlike the politically active Palestinian, Lebanese, and Syrian expats in Kuwait.{{Cite web|author=Andrzej Kapiszewski|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/214930677.pdf|title=Non-indigenous citizens and "stateless" residents in the Gulf monarchies. The Kuwaiti bidun.|page=70|year=2005}} The naturalized citizens were predominantly Sunni Saudi immigrants from southern tribes. Accordingly, none of the stateless Bedoon in Kuwait belong to the Ajman tribe.

The Kuwaiti judicial system's lack of authority to rule on citizenship further complicates the Bedoon crisis, leaving Bedoon no access to the judiciary to present evidence and plead their case for citizenship. Although non-nationals constitute 70% of Kuwait's total population the Al Sabah ruling family persistently denies citizenship to most non-nationals, including those who fully satisfy the requirements for naturalization as stipulated in the state's official Nationality Law. There is no official national census disclosing sectarian affiliation in Kuwait. However, it is estimated that 60-80% of Kuwait's Bedoon are Shia Muslims{{Cite web|url=https://tribunalsdecisions.service.gov.uk/utiac/38287|title=Government of United Kingdom|quote=“The Kuwaiti Bedoon`s continued exclusion from nationality can only be understood in the light of the power struggle in a system which was largely based on sectarianism and tribalism within newly emerging emirates striving to assert their legitimacy and authority. The majority of the Bedoon are in fact an extended branch of tribes across the borders between Iraq, Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia and are largely of the Muslim Shi'ite faith”.}}{{Cite web|url=http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12612890/index.pdf|title=State formation of Kuwait|page=83}}{{Cite web|url=https://hydra.hull.ac.uk/assets/hull:16877a/content|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126175520/https://hydra.hull.ac.uk/assets/hull:16877a/content|url-status=dead|archive-date=2022-11-26|title=Exploring the perceptions of informed individuals about the education provisions of Bidoun in Kuwait|page=13}}{{Cite web |url=https://www.israelhayom.co.il/interactive/amp/article/834567|title=כוויית: עושר רב לצד מתחים אתניים ודיכוי|work=Israel Hayom|language=he}} and, as a result, it is widely believed that the Bedoon issue in Kuwait is sectarian in nature.{{Cite web|url=https://www.matthewteller.com/2013/01/14/stateless-in-kuwait/|title=Stateless in Kuwait|date=14 January 2013|quote=The Sunni ruling elite discriminate against the bidoon, many of whom are Shia.}}{{Cite web|url=http://platformpost.net/article/-16|title=خمسة أسباب لاستمرار قضية البدون - جابر الشريفي|work=Platform Post|author=Jaber Al-Sharefee|date=January 26, 2021|language=ar}} The Kuwaiti authorities permit the forgery of hundreds of thousands of politically motivated naturalizations whilst simultaneously denying citizenship to the Bedoon. The politically motivated naturalizations were noted by the United Nations, political activists, scholars, researchers and even members of the Al Sabah family.{{cite thesis|url=http://scholarworks.gsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1040&context=history_theses |title=The Shia Migration from Southwestern Iran to Kuwait: Push-Pull Factors during the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries |publisher=Georgia State University |year=2010|author=Mohammad E. Alhabib |page=46}} It is widely considered a form of deliberate demographic engineering. It has been likened to Bahrain's politically motivated naturalization policy.{{cite web|url=https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/28458/Questioning-Sectarianism-in-Bahrain-and-Beyond-An-Interview-with-Justin-Gengler|title=Questioning Sectarianism in Bahrain and Beyond: An Interview with Justin Gengler|publisher=Jadaliyya|date=April 17, 2013 |author=John Warner}} Within the GCC countries, politically-motivated naturalization policies are referred to as "political naturalization" (التجنيس السياسي).

{{See also|English Channel migrant crossings (2018–present)}}

A large number of stateless Bedoon from Kuwait regularly immigrate to Europe as asylum seekers. The United Kingdom is the most popular destination for Bedoom asylum seekers. According to the Home Office, Kuwait is the eighth largest source of asylum seekers crossing the English Channel on small boats.{{cite web|url=https://www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Channel-crossings-and-asylum-outcomes-November-2021.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211117112516/https://www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Channel-crossings-and-asylum-outcomes-November-2021.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=2021-11-17|title=An analysis of Channel crossings & asylum outcomes November 2021|date=November 2021|work=Refugee Council|pages=3–4}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/nov/17/most-people-who-risk-channel-boat-crossings-are-refugees-report|title=Most people who risk Channel boat crossings are refugees – report|date=November 2021|work=The Guardian}}{{cite web|url=https://www.ein.org.uk/news/refugee-council-majority-asylum-seekers-crossing-channel-are-likely-be-recognised-being|title=Refugee Council: Majority of asylum seekers crossing the Channel are likely to be recognised as being in genuine need of protection|date=November 2021|work=Refugee Council}}

In recent years, several Shia Muslims have reported cases of torture, forced disappearance, unfair trial, arbitrary detention, extrajudicial punishment, and other human rights abuses. The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims and United Nations criticized the Kuwaiti authorities' treatment of the so-called "Abdali Cell".{{cite web|url=https://irct.org/media-and-resources/latest-news/article/679|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308203406/https://irct.org/media-and-resources/latest-news/article/679|url-status=dead|archive-date=2021-03-08|title=IFEG expert issues criticism of national investigation in the Al-Abdali Cell case|publisher=International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims}}{{cite web|url=https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Detention/Opinions/Session88/A_HRC_WGAD_2020_54_Advance_Edited_Version.pdf|title=Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinions adopted by the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention at its eighty-eighth session, 24–28 August 2020 Opinion No. 54/2020 concerning Zuhair Abdulhadi Haj al-Mahmeed (Kuwait)*|publisher=OHCHR}}{{cite web|url=https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CAT/Shared%20Documents/KWT/INT_CAT_CSS_KWT_24498_E.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211222082042/https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CAT/Shared%20Documents/KWT/INT_CAT_CSS_KWT_24498_E.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=2021-12-22|title= KUWAIT SUBMISSION TO THE UN COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE 59TH SESSION, 7 NOVEMBER-7 DECEMBER 2016|publisher=OHCHR}}{{cite web|url=https://menarights.org/en/caseprofile/zuhair-al-mahmeed-sentenced-15-years-prison-kuwait-following-unfair-trial-part-abdali|title=Zuhair Al Mahmeed sentenced to 15 years in prison in Kuwait following an unfair trial|date=15 August 2015 |publisher=MENA Rights}} In November 2021, Kuwait arbitrarily detained eight elderly Shia Muslim men without any charges.{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/12/kuwait-release-arbitrarily-detained-individuals/|title=Kuwait: Authorities must release arbitrarily detained individuals|date=14 December 2021 |publisher=Amnesty International}}{{cite web|url=https://hlhr.org/arbitrary-detentions-interrogation-of-detainees-must-stop-in-kuwait/|title=Arbitrary detentions, interrogation of detainees must stop in Kuwait|date=15 December 2021 |publisher=Human Lives Human Rights}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gc4hr.org/news/view/2881|title=Kuwait: Chairman and members of charitable committee arbitrarily arrested and imprisoned without charge|publisher=Gulf Centre for Human Rights}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gc4hr.org/news/view/2895|title=Kuwait: State Security Bureau and Central Prison administration commit massive human rights violations|publisher=Gulf Centre for Human Rights}}

{{Main|Expatriates in Kuwait}}

Human rights organizations frequently criticize Kuwait for the human rights abuses toward foreign nationals. Foreign nationals account for 70% of Kuwait's total population. The kafala system leaves foreign nationals prone to exploitation. Administrative deportation is very common in Kuwait for minor offenses, including minor traffic violations. Kuwait is one of the world's worst offenders in human trafficking. Hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals are subjected to numerous human rights abuses including inhumane conditions of involuntary servitude by employers in Kuwait. They are subjected to physical and sexual abuse, non-payment of wages, poor work conditions, threats, confinement to the home, and withholding of passports to restrict their freedom of movement.{{cite web |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2007 |title=Trafficking in Persons Report 2007 |year=2007 |publisher=U.S. Department of State |access-date=25 June 2012}}{{cite web |url=http://survey07.ituc-csi.org/getcountry.php?IDCountry=KWT&IDLang=EN |title=2007: Annual Survey of violations of trade union rights |year=2007 |publisher=International Trade Union Confederation |access-date=25 June 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318015657/http://survey07.ituc-csi.org/getcountry.php?IDCountry=KWT&IDLang=EN |archive-date=18 March 2012 }}

Repeated abusers include M A Al-Kharafi & Sons and its subsidiary Kharafi National that have been cited by human rights organizations and the United States Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices for Kuwait.{{Cite web|title=Kuwait|url=https://www.state.gov/reports/20←18-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/kuwait/|access-date=2020-10-20|website=United States Department of State|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|title=Kuwait: Construction workers at Kharafi National stranded without pay or valid visas - Business & Human Rights Resource Centre|url=https://www.business-humanrights.org/|access-date=2020-10-20|website=www.business-humanrights.org|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Despite ongoing contracts, many Kharafi employees work without pay {{!}} Migrant-Rights.org|url=https://www.migrant-rights.org/2018/01/despite-ongoing-contracts-many-kharafi-employees-work-without-pay|access-date=2020-10-20|website=www.migrant-rights.org|date=24 January 2018 |language=en}} Many human rights organizations have accused Kuwait of apartheid policies toward foreign nationals. Kuwait is considered one of the most xenophobic countries in the world.

{{See also|2018 Kuwait–Philippines diplomatic crisis}}

In 2018, there was a diplomatic crisis between Kuwait and the Philippines due to the mistreatment of Filipino workers in Kuwait. There are roughly 241,000 Filipinos in Kuwait. Most are migrant workers,[http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view_article.php?article_id=68858 Kuwait grants amnesty to illegal aliens] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120209230026/http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view_article.php?article_id=68858 |date=2012-02-09 }} and approximately 60% of Filipinos in Kuwait are employed as domestic workers. In July 2018, Kuwaiti fashionista Sondos Alqattan released a controversial video criticising domestic workers from the Philippines. Many of her clients were quick to denounce her.{{Cite web|agency=Reuters |date=2018-07-25|title=Beauty brands cut ties with Kuwaiti blogger over domestic worker comments|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jul/25/sondos-alqattan-kuwaiti-blogger-instagram-makeup-beauty|access-date=2021-12-17|website=the Guardian|language=en}}

In 2020, there was a diplomatic crisis between Kuwait and Egypt due to the mistreatment of Egyptian workers in Kuwait.{{Cite web|title=Egyptian government fires official who insulted Kuwait to avoid diplomatic crisis|url=https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2020/11/egypt-kuwait-assaults-criticism-dismissal-action.html|website=Al-Monitor|date=5 November 2020}} In November 2021, Egyptian foreign worker Samih Maurice Bowles filed official complaints against Kuwait in front of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment for torture, forced disappearance, arbitrary detention, and other human rights abuses.{{Cite web|title=Communication on the Arbitrary Detention endured by Samih Bowles in Koweit|url=https://uploads.strikinglycdn.com/files/749b892e-dd66-406b-a717-c4fa7bd26e5d/112021%20Communication%20to%20the%20WGAD.pdf?id=3719211|date=November 2022}}

{{Main|Gulf War}}

In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait; the Iraqi military forces committed many human rights violations against Kuwaiti citizens, stateless people, and foreign nationals in Kuwait. Some were taken back to Iraq and released later.{{Cite magazine|last=Kelly|first=Michael|date=1991-03-24|title=The Rape and Rescue of Kuwaiti City|magazine=The New Republic|url=https://newrepublic.com/article/76724/rape-rescue-kuwait-iraq-saddam-hussein|access-date=2020-11-30|issn=0028-6583}}

{{Main|Women in Kuwait}}

Human rights organizations persistently criticize the unequal status of women in Kuwait. The United Nations Working Group warned against the persistent barriers, both in law and in practice, on the path of women's quest for full equality.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=21040&LangID=E|title=OHCHR {{!}} Kuwait: Tackling persistent barriers for women to sustain progress|website=www.ohchr.org|access-date=2019-06-19}} UN human rights experts Alda Facio and Kamala Chandrakirana said despite significant achievements, "discrimination against women persists in law and in practice, particularly in the context of the family and nationality laws, based on the presumption of women's dependence on men, which is contrary to the principle of equality." Muslim women in Kuwait are discriminated against under the family law. Children born to a Kuwaiti mother and non-Kuwaiti father do not get Kuwaiti citizenship, unless a decree is passed by the Minister of Interior.{{Cite book|title = Human rights watch|date = 10 March 2014|location = Kuwait City|pages = 2}}

Kuwait's position in international rankings has varied over the years. In 2014, Kuwait was ranked 113 of 142 globally in the Global Gender Gap Report,{{cite web|url=http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticlePrintPage.aspx?id=2405039&language=en|title=Kuwait highest in closing gender gap: WEF|access-date=15 June 2016}}{{cite web|url=http://widgets.weforum.org/gender-gap-report-2014/#mena|title=The Global Gender Gap Index 2014 – World Economic Forum|publisher=World Economic Forum|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414040242/http://widgets.weforum.org/gender-gap-report-2014/#mena|archive-date=14 April 2017}} the country improved its ranking due to significant increases in the overall income indicator. In 2015, Kuwait was ranked 117 of 145 globally in the Global Gender Index.{{cite web|url=http://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2015/the-global-gender-gap-index-results-in-2015/|title=Global Gender Gap Index Results in 2015|publisher=World Economic Forum|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160605193255/http://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2015/the-global-gender-gap-index-results-in-2015/|archive-date=5 June 2016}} In 2020, Kuwait was ranked 122 of 153 globally in the Global Gender Gap Report. Regarding the GGGR subindex, Kuwait ranked 142 of 152 on political empowerment 143 of 153 on health and survival, 120 of 153 on economic opportunity, and 57 of 153 on educational attainment.{{Cite web|date=15 January 2020|title=World Economic Forum – Global Gender Gap Report 2020|url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2020.pdf|access-date=13 December 2020|website=World Economic Forum}} In 2021, Kuwait was ranked 143 of 156 globally in the Global Gender Gap Report.{{Cite web |title=Global Gender Gap Report 2021 |url=https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GGGR_2021.pdf |access-date=2022-03-23 |website=World Economic Forum}} Regarding the GGGR subindex, Kuwait ranked 153 of 156 on political empowerment, 94 of 156 on health and survival, 137 of 156 on economic opportunity, and 59 of 156 on educational attainment. In 2013, 53% of Kuwaiti women participated in the labor force.{{cite web|url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/2013/cr13337.pdf|title=Kuwait: Selected Issues|page=17|quote=Kuwait has higher female labor market participation than other GCC countries; further improvements in labor force participation can support future growth prospects. Kuwait's labor force participation rate for Kuwaiti women (53 percent) is slightly above the world average (51 percent) and much higher than the MENA average (21 percent).}} Kuwaiti women outnumber men in the workforce.{{cite web|url=http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/kuwait/kuwait-leads-gulf-states-in-women-in-workforce-1.1705940|title=Kuwait leads Gulf states in women in workforce|work=Gulf News|date=8 April 2016 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160514103256/http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/kuwait/kuwait-leads-gulf-states-in-women-in-workforce-1.1705940|archive-date=14 May 2016}}

Camel racing is a popular sport in Kuwait. In the past, children employed as jockeys were severely mistreated.{{Cite web|title=Kuwait holds camel race with robot jockeys|url=https://gulfnews.com/world/gulf/kuwait/kuwait-holds-camel-race-with-robot-jockeys-1.304268|access-date=2021-12-17|website=gulfnews.com|date=14 October 2005 |language=en}}

{{main|LGBT rights in Kuwait}}

LGBT people living in Kuwait face discriminatory laws and public attitudes. The penal code contains some general provisions against debauchery and immorality that can be used to punish LGBT people.

• Article 193 of the Penal Code punishes "consensual intercourse between men of full age (from the age of 21)" with a term of imprisonment of up to seven years.{{Cite web|title=STATE-SPONSORED HOMOPHOBIA|url=https://ilga.org/downloads/ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2019.pdf|access-date=2021-06-01}}
• Article 198 prohibits public immorality. In 2008, the law was expanded to also outlaw "imitating the appearance of a member of the opposite sex" with fines and or imprisonment.{{Cite web|url=https://gulfnews.com/world/gulf/kuwait/cross-dressers-heads-shaved-in-kuwait-1.1880480|title=Cross-dressers' heads shaved in Kuwait|website=gulfnews.com|date=17 August 2016 |language=en|access-date=2019-06-26}}

Foreign nationals infected with AIDS/HIV are deported.{{Cite web|date=2018-09-28|title=Kuwait deports 13,000 foreigners in just nine months|url=https://www.internationalinvestment.net/internationalinvestment/news/3503948/kuwait-deports-foreigners-months|access-date=2020-11-14|website=www.internationalinvestment.net|language=en}}

All forms of news and entertainment media are subject to high levels of government censorship.

Content that criticizes the ruling family (especially the Emir) is strictly prohibited.

According to a 2009 report from the Reporters without Borders, Kuwait is engaged in highly pervasive Internet filtering and selective filtering in security areas. The primary target of Internet filtering is pornography. The Kuwait Ministry of Communication regulates ISPs, making them block pornography websites.[http://www.menassat.com/?q=en/media-landscape/state-media-5 "Kuwait: State of the media"], Menassat

Voice over Internet Protocol is legal in Kuwait.

{{cite web

| title = Nokia Networks' Zain Make Kuwait's First High-definition Voice Call in Live LTE Network

| url = https://www.prweb.com/releases/nokia_networks_zain_make_kuwait_s_first_high_definition_voice_call_in_live_lte_network/prweb11976936.htm

| access-date = 2014-07-26

}}

• Politics of Kuwait

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20070202223656/http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/225/ Press in Kuwait] - IFEX
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20070527162118/http://www.q8health.org/ Kuwait Health - Promoting health reform]
• [http://www.iv-university.org/human-rights-court-protects-foreign-workers-in-kuwait/ Human Rights Court Protects Foreign Workers in Kuwait] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200320172616/https://www.iv-university.org/human-rights-court-protects-foreign-workers-in-kuwait/ |date=2020-03-20 }}

{{Kuwait topics}}

{{Asia topic|Human rights in}}

{{Human rights in the Middle East}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Human Rights In Kuwait}}

Kuwait