A friend who was almost killed in Kuwait last night asked me to publish this
TRIBAL UNACCOUNTABILITY AND MASSIVE UNTOUCHABILITY IN KUWAIT MUST END—STARTING WITH HOW PARENTS and TRIBES FAIL TO RAISE THEIR CHILDREN TO RESPECT and TREAT OTHERS WITH EQUAL DIGNITY TO THEIR OWN
Dear Emir of Kuwait and the People of Kuwait (both citizens and non-citizens),
Last night at around 10:45 pm Kuwait time, a large piece of cement came flying into the 999 Bus I was riding in as we passed in front of the Kuwait Magic Park and Shopping Centre in Mangaf town. Glass shattered everywhere and showered onto me and on dozens of other passengers of Asian, African and European descent.
Had the rock hit me in the head, I would have been dead!
Amazingly no one was hurt.
However, most of us were shaking.
That particular rock had entered the bus about 6 ½ feet from my head at fairly high speed.
By all those present on the bus, it was immediately assumed that the cement stone had been thrown by Kuwaiti youth—sometimes known as tribals, Bedouin or “Bedun” by the many non-Kuwaiti residents who have to daily use the cities’ buses.
Such dangerous attacks on foreign born passengers (and buses or cars) is a weekly affair in this part of Kuwait—where image and honor of tribe reign over safety for foreigners.
Meanwhile, the 999 bus continued on its route as if nothing had happened.
Why didn’t the bus driver stop? Why didn’t the driver call the police to file the appropriate criminal complaint?
Such thoughts raced through my head as I approached the driver. Naturally, I knew the answer already: “What would the Kuwaiti police do? The police would just shake their heads and mutter, ‘ONLY Kid’s! ….What can you do?’”
The three bus companies who run the routes from Kuwait city along the Gulf Roads and down the Fahaheel Expressway each day have been victims of such assaults dozens of times each year for several years.
These companies don’t bother any longer calling the police any more. The repair cost for the windows and for the broken glass will be picked up by the users of the bus—not the tribal areas or disreputable children’s familie where the bus passes through.
In short, it is fair game still in 2008 for Kuwaiti youth gangs--from whatever tribal or urban group--to attack passengers and buses in Kuwait.
The government doesn’t do much and the Kuwaiti tribes don’t see it as a matter of honor or dishonor to have their children fail to treat others properly and with respect—this specifically is shown in their mistreatment of the vast number of foreign workers in Kuwait.
CALLING THE POLICE
Despite this particular belief by this 999 bus driver that it was a waste of time for him or the bus company to file a report with the Kuwaiti police, I dialed the emergency number for police assistance to file a complaint. I recalled, “I could have been killed by that miscreant.”
The police on the phone refused to send anyone to the bus—i.e. still en route to Fahaheel City—nor did the dispatcher agree to send police investigators to the Kuwait Magic area, i.e. where the rock throwing has been occurred most often recently in the area.
I was told by the dispatcher simply to go to the Mangaf Police Station and file a report.
I also explained that I couldn’t come there since I was on a moving bus. (However, I explained, if the police would go to Kuwait Magic and investigate; that bus with the broken side window would pass by there on its return route to Kuwait City in a half hour or less.)
Besides, I recalled, “I didn’t know where the Mangaf Police Station was—and my car is in the repair shop. Hence, I was riding on a bus. In neighborhoods I didn’t know well.
I also explained that the newspapers in Kuwait have been loaded with stories of how dangerous this particular route gets at night for buses and how the police need to patrol the streets in these areas where the rocks come flying.
TRIBES AND TRIBALISM IN KUWAIT
It may not be too far-fetched to say that part of the reason that police in Kuwait are so reticent, inefficient and ineffective in dealing with crimes against foreigners (and the property of bus companies) has to do with the fact that many tribes have members of the family on the police force.
In a way, tribalism in Kuwait is reflective of a mafia-godfather family in terms of definitions of honor, duty, and respect for law and people outside of one’s clan.
For this reason only a week ago in Salmiya City, one tribe attacked the authority’s at a Criminal Investigation unit who had just arrested some of their tribe’s family members for blatantly breaking national laws on electioneering.
Several officials and tribesmen on both sides ended up in hospitals.
In short, many tribesmen in Kuwait feel they are above the law, and these tribesmen feel they are supposed to protect the so-called tribal honor by never even arresting tribesmen—let alone taking them on to court to have a trial by judge
These sort of physical attacks have nothing to do with religion--as many tribesmen are not particularly strongly religious. This version of tribalism is simply part of system of protecting and assisting blood brothers.
At last Tuesday night’s lecture at the AWARE CENTER in Kuwait, Dr. Mohammed Haddad, a famed anthropologist and Professor at Kuwait University provided and an example as to how Kuwaiti tribalism functions, i.e. to the detriment of most everyone—i.e. except to members of the tribe in question.
Dr. Haddad explained, “Once I observed a man from Tribe A entering a large office. That man didn’t desire to wait in line and simply came to the center of the room and loudly shouted, ‘Who here is from Tribe A?’”
“One employee raised his hand.”
“The man from Tribe A simply walked over and gave the employee his form and this employee was thus obligated to not only fill out the form for the fellow tribesmen—but he’d have to make sure that the whole application was completed in the fellow tribesmen’s favor. Otherwise this employee of Tribe A would find that his honor before his tribe would be in doubt.”
NO WONDER
No wonder so many people who claim Kuwaiti nationality are now growing up oblivious to the needs and feelings of all others outside their tribes—i.e. a condition that threatens Kuwait as a nation state!
With such shallow definitions of honor, no tribal child who attacks a non-Kuwaiti would ever imagine being jailed as an adult for doing so!
It is high time the government of Kuwait either (1) ends tribalism by expanding the number of non-Arab citizens—or (2) demands an end to tribes permanently in government—by banning tribes altogether as illegal parties, i.e. depriving them of impunity before police and their representation in the national pie.
In the meantime, Kuwait, please, hire thousands of foreigners to serve in the police force here to protect the 2-million-plus non-Kuwaitis who would like to feel safe traveling to and from work each day or night.
Signed,
A Friend of Kuwait—who could have died last night
Dear Emir of Kuwait and the People of Kuwait (both citizens and non-citizens),
Last night at around 10:45 pm Kuwait time, a large piece of cement came flying into the 999 Bus I was riding in as we passed in front of the Kuwait Magic Park and Shopping Centre in Mangaf town. Glass shattered everywhere and showered onto me and on dozens of other passengers of Asian, African and European descent.
Had the rock hit me in the head, I would have been dead!
Amazingly no one was hurt.
However, most of us were shaking.
That particular rock had entered the bus about 6 ½ feet from my head at fairly high speed.
By all those present on the bus, it was immediately assumed that the cement stone had been thrown by Kuwaiti youth—sometimes known as tribals, Bedouin or “Bedun” by the many non-Kuwaiti residents who have to daily use the cities’ buses.
Such dangerous attacks on foreign born passengers (and buses or cars) is a weekly affair in this part of Kuwait—where image and honor of tribe reign over safety for foreigners.
Meanwhile, the 999 bus continued on its route as if nothing had happened.
Why didn’t the bus driver stop? Why didn’t the driver call the police to file the appropriate criminal complaint?
Such thoughts raced through my head as I approached the driver. Naturally, I knew the answer already: “What would the Kuwaiti police do? The police would just shake their heads and mutter, ‘ONLY Kid’s! ….What can you do?’”
The three bus companies who run the routes from Kuwait city along the Gulf Roads and down the Fahaheel Expressway each day have been victims of such assaults dozens of times each year for several years.
These companies don’t bother any longer calling the police any more. The repair cost for the windows and for the broken glass will be picked up by the users of the bus—not the tribal areas or disreputable children’s familie where the bus passes through.
In short, it is fair game still in 2008 for Kuwaiti youth gangs--from whatever tribal or urban group--to attack passengers and buses in Kuwait.
The government doesn’t do much and the Kuwaiti tribes don’t see it as a matter of honor or dishonor to have their children fail to treat others properly and with respect—this specifically is shown in their mistreatment of the vast number of foreign workers in Kuwait.
CALLING THE POLICE
Despite this particular belief by this 999 bus driver that it was a waste of time for him or the bus company to file a report with the Kuwaiti police, I dialed the emergency number for police assistance to file a complaint. I recalled, “I could have been killed by that miscreant.”
The police on the phone refused to send anyone to the bus—i.e. still en route to Fahaheel City—nor did the dispatcher agree to send police investigators to the Kuwait Magic area, i.e. where the rock throwing has been occurred most often recently in the area.
I was told by the dispatcher simply to go to the Mangaf Police Station and file a report.
I also explained that I couldn’t come there since I was on a moving bus. (However, I explained, if the police would go to Kuwait Magic and investigate; that bus with the broken side window would pass by there on its return route to Kuwait City in a half hour or less.)
Besides, I recalled, “I didn’t know where the Mangaf Police Station was—and my car is in the repair shop. Hence, I was riding on a bus. In neighborhoods I didn’t know well.
I also explained that the newspapers in Kuwait have been loaded with stories of how dangerous this particular route gets at night for buses and how the police need to patrol the streets in these areas where the rocks come flying.
TRIBES AND TRIBALISM IN KUWAIT
It may not be too far-fetched to say that part of the reason that police in Kuwait are so reticent, inefficient and ineffective in dealing with crimes against foreigners (and the property of bus companies) has to do with the fact that many tribes have members of the family on the police force.
In a way, tribalism in Kuwait is reflective of a mafia-godfather family in terms of definitions of honor, duty, and respect for law and people outside of one’s clan.
For this reason only a week ago in Salmiya City, one tribe attacked the authority’s at a Criminal Investigation unit who had just arrested some of their tribe’s family members for blatantly breaking national laws on electioneering.
Several officials and tribesmen on both sides ended up in hospitals.
In short, many tribesmen in Kuwait feel they are above the law, and these tribesmen feel they are supposed to protect the so-called tribal honor by never even arresting tribesmen—let alone taking them on to court to have a trial by judge
These sort of physical attacks have nothing to do with religion--as many tribesmen are not particularly strongly religious. This version of tribalism is simply part of system of protecting and assisting blood brothers.
At last Tuesday night’s lecture at the AWARE CENTER in Kuwait, Dr. Mohammed Haddad, a famed anthropologist and Professor at Kuwait University provided and an example as to how Kuwaiti tribalism functions, i.e. to the detriment of most everyone—i.e. except to members of the tribe in question.
Dr. Haddad explained, “Once I observed a man from Tribe A entering a large office. That man didn’t desire to wait in line and simply came to the center of the room and loudly shouted, ‘Who here is from Tribe A?’”
“One employee raised his hand.”
“The man from Tribe A simply walked over and gave the employee his form and this employee was thus obligated to not only fill out the form for the fellow tribesmen—but he’d have to make sure that the whole application was completed in the fellow tribesmen’s favor. Otherwise this employee of Tribe A would find that his honor before his tribe would be in doubt.”
NO WONDER
No wonder so many people who claim Kuwaiti nationality are now growing up oblivious to the needs and feelings of all others outside their tribes—i.e. a condition that threatens Kuwait as a nation state!
With such shallow definitions of honor, no tribal child who attacks a non-Kuwaiti would ever imagine being jailed as an adult for doing so!
It is high time the government of Kuwait either (1) ends tribalism by expanding the number of non-Arab citizens—or (2) demands an end to tribes permanently in government—by banning tribes altogether as illegal parties, i.e. depriving them of impunity before police and their representation in the national pie.
In the meantime, Kuwait, please, hire thousands of foreigners to serve in the police force here to protect the 2-million-plus non-Kuwaitis who would like to feel safe traveling to and from work each day or night.
Signed,
A Friend of Kuwait—who could have died last night
posted by Kevin Anthony Stoda at 12:28 AM
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