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The results of the legislative elections in Kuwait brought big surprises, as the percentage change in the composition of the National Assembly reached 62 percent.
And the Kuwait News Agency published the names of the winning candidates for the five electoral districts, and their total number is 50 deputies.
Only 19 MPs from the previous parliamentary session, led by the former speaker of parliament, MP Marzouq Al-Ghanem, were successful.
On the other hand, representative Safaa Al-Hashem was unable to keep her seat on the new council.
With the loss of Hashem, women will be absent from parliament for the first time since the 2009 elections.
Men dominate the council
The election results disappointed the hopes and aspirations of some Kuwaiti activists, who described the absence of women in the new parliamentary scene as a “setback”.
Kuwaiti commentators attributed the failure of women to win a parliamentary seat for several reasons.
Some have linked it to the prevailing ideology in society, which “still tends to favor men in political work over women.”
While some attribute the decrease in the presence of women in parliament to “the restrictions of the one-vote system that limits the options of citizens, they tend to vote for the son of the clan or family,” according to their interpretation.
However, other commentators believe that the future of women’s political and social participation depends on the woman herself.
Activists believe that the “low performance and mediocre presence of some former parliamentarians and their closeness to the government’s guidance” were sufficient reasons for the decline in opportunities for women’s representation.
One of them commented: “Unfortunately, women have not demonstrated their presence in parliament. The correct choice must be based on the candidate’s ability and knowledge of the concerns and history of the people in serving their community, regardless of the tribal and gender affiliations. ”
While another tweet wrote: “A parliament without women, with a higher percentage of women voting than men, is evidence of the lack of conviction of women in the role of women.”
Commentator Helan said that “democracy has produced a reality that must be respected,” adding that “the failure of any woman does not insult the integrity of democracy and does not deny Kuwaitis respect for women.” .
Great interest in losing Al-Hashem
Interest in the results was not limited to Kuwaitis, but broadened to include commentators from other Arab countries, especially Egypt.
The Egyptians highlighted a portion of their comments to talk about the loss of Safaa Al-Hashem, whose name is the country’s social media sites.
Al-Hashem, who was affiliated with the liberal trend, was known for her strong criticism of her country’s policy towards immigrants. He has often demanded “to stop the recruitment of Egyptians, especially in professions such as teaching, on the pretext that they benefit from the country’s assets more than its people.”
This may explain the interest of the Egyptians in losing it or not.
In the first comment after losing the elections, Safaa Al-Hashem expressed his pride in what he presented during the last term.
Safaa’s critics expressed their joy at this result and saw it as proof of the Kuwaiti people’s rejection of “the slogans of hatred and harassment repeated by the parliamentarian”, as they put it.
As for Safaa Al-Hashem’s supporters, they consider her an example of a successful Arab warrior and a female voice in front of the male community, as they describe.
Al-Hashem was elected for the first time in 2012, in a Council session that was canceled by decision of the Constitutional Court, but the deputy repeated the attempt to win the Council the following year.
She was also re-elected in 2016, to be the only woman among men in that cycle.
Despite the intensification of the activities of women’s groups, the representation of women in Parliament has declined in recent years.
From 4 women in the 2009 Majlis, the number dropped to 3 in 2012, then two women MPs in 2013 and then one in 2016, as the last elections saw male control over the Council.
‘An indication of the voters’ anger’
The results showed the absence of known names who remained on the council for several consecutive sessions. What is surprising about these elections is the emergence of a new generation of young people, according to local media.
Analysts say the big change in the composition of the National Assembly gives an indication of voters’ anger at the performance of the representatives of the previous assembly and their desire to change conditions and fight corruption.
In this context, Jamal Raja Al-Enezi commented: “The message from the voters is clear and clear with the change and their dissatisfaction with the lean years of councils of 2016 and earlier. Will the government read this message carefully?”
According to the announced results, the Islamic Constitutional Movement (Hadas), the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, was able to win 3 parliamentary seats, while the Salafist Islamic Gathering failed to be represented in the National Assembly for the second time in a row.
The Shiite representation remained the same despite the change of faces.
Observers believe that the new results ‘Suggest that the next parliament will have strong opposition to the government. ‘ .
According to Agence France-Presse and Reuters, the Kuwaiti opposition strengthened its position by winning 24 MPs affiliated with it.
Kuwait was the first Arab Gulf state to adopt a parliamentary system in 1962. It gave women the right to vote and stand in the 2005 elections.
Kuwait enjoys an active political life and its parliament, whose members are elected for a four-year term, has extensive legislative powers. Any deputy can question the prime minister or any minister.
