Lessons from Iraqi invasion

I was in Iraq as a POW during the last state of liberating Kuwait by the allied forces after invading it by the Iraqi forces on the Aug 2, 1990.
The experience there was totally inhuman, against the Geneva Convention and totally not expected from a close Muslim & Arab neighbour.
After the Iraqis felt the eminent air and land strikes, they started to arrest Kuwaiti civilians from streets and homes, to keep them in hand when exchanging for their Iraqi POWs.
As Kuwait is approaching the 20th anniversary of the invasion, I find it essential to go through some of the lessons of that experience and to talk about the needed measures for our coming future:
1) We need to protect the rule of Law, Freedoms and equality for all the people on this soil.
2) Kuwait as a small country between three giant neighbours, we need strong long term ties with the strategic friends and allies to protect our security and existence.
3) Fortunately, we do have strong and growing budget we need to invest more in education, as it is the long term investment for the coming future generations of this country.
4) It is important to keep strong business relations with the east and the west, to maintain steady cooperation with the world, which truly helped in our difficult days.
5) As Iraq is reaching stability slowly and hopefully surly, we will need to benefit from the bright side of our neighbourhood and try to build bridges between us, even if in new free trade zones in the south of Iraq and the north of Kuwait.
6) The Gulf Cooperation Council must be utilized for a better regional economy, given the regional economical growth and financial stability for all the GCC members.
7) Kuwait as a financial centre will require comprehensive legislative and administrative steps to make real changes in the doing business environment of Kuwait and be able to compete on the regional and the global levels...

Labeed.abdal@gmail.com
http://www.labeedabdal.blogspot.com/

http://www.arabtimesonline.com/NewsDetails/tabid/96/smid/414/ArticleID/157506/reftab/73/t/Lessons-from-Iraqi-invasion/Default.aspx
By: Labeed Abdal - Attorney at Law

Traffic cameras in Kuwait

Installing cameras in the streets were meant to be a way to minimize accidents and save lives.Yet, one can clearly see that, it became an indirect way to impose taxes, when the cameras are installed in the streets without proper indications such as camera signs, the differences between streets, its speed, its users and the recent developments in the car industry.Moreover, sometimes these cameras have become a reason for the increase in accidents rates instead of decreasing it, because of the sudden effects of the flashes that make the drivers panic and induce them to apply strong breaks so as to avoid traffic fine and causes more crashes for the vehicles following them.In the existing Traffic Law of Kuwait, cameras were not mentioned clearly and the M.O.I. is imposing fines on the drivers depending on mere ministerial decrees, which should be swiftly amended as per the constitutional provisions of Kuwait which requires applying fines by the relevant traffic laws, which should have been released by the parliament to authorize the levying of fines.For sure it is a must, we all need to prevent car wars in the streets because of any reckless speed driving and negligent or deliberate crossing of red traffic lights and for that we need to have solid legal grounds to collect fines. Also we need to assure that for some streets a little bit higher speeds should be allowed, as the new generation cars are not like those 30 years ago, given the new models of cars with hybrid engines that give high speed from 0-100 MPH in seconds, with little consumption of fuel and less pollution.Adding enough traffic signs, using electronic alerts and enough distance between the locations of the cameras to give the drivers sufficient time to reduce speed, will make it more meaningful to actually have safer streets with less threats to the innocent people.Light and shadeWe need quick measures and media campaigns in all languages from the Ministry of Interior — The Public Authority for Traffic Affairs to deploy vigilant police officers at the zebra crossings on the important places and busy junctions in Kuwait, so as to assure the absolute protection of the pedestrians and save lives.The effective measures and campaigns which were done before, regarding the use of seat belts while driving on the streets, through the media were successful and we want that to happen again...

Labeed.abdal@gmail.com
http://www.labeedabdal.blogspot..com
By: Labeed Abdal - Attorney at Law

http://www.arabtimesonline.com/NewsDetails/tabid/96/smid/414/ArticleID/157187/reftab/96/t/Traffic-cameras-in-Kuwait/Default.aspx

The sorry state of education

There is a kind of sorry state in the education system in Kuwait, as there are the public schools and the private schools, which are getting into unresolved difficulties and big challenges in different ways, while we are not a country of dearth of resources.In the public schools main challenge is to have good educators who are committed to their normal obligation of moulding and building the young generation in their educational career with providing quality information and skills.In the private schools, you will find good and committed teachers, who crossed oceans and came to Kuwait and get confronted with the private schools administrations, whom some times prefer the parents and in some cases their spoiled children than the needed respect for the teaches and their respective disciplinary role in the class.The education system in Kuwait went through long history and started from the mid of 20th century by Al Katatib system. Which are Quranic schools taught reading, writing and some maths by individual teachers and started to become formal education by the government by taking control of education in 1939.With respect to the old and long history, it presently requires more control from the Ministry of Education to supervise the operation of public and private schools and maintain a better grip on the educational system, to reach more modern goals away from the mentioned difficulties and concerns with more justice and fairness for all parties of the educational process.Email: Labeed.abdal@gmail.com

Blog: www.labeedabdal.blogspot.com
By: Labeed Abdal - Attorney at Law

http://www.arabtimesonline.com/Default.aspx?TabId=96&smid=414&ArticleID=156927&reftab=73&t=The-sorry-state-of-education

Fostering charity culture in Kuwait

Need to make easier means to facilitate, up donations

Charity has been part of the Kuwaiti culture since the early beginning of this society more than 300 years ago.Historically merchants supported the society by building schools, paying for teachers, promoting sports clubs and newspapers and magazines.Whereas in the existing times, charity became more religiously centered and generally known to be away from the civil society activities in some cases and its willingness to contribute for those who are in need, no matter their religion, origin, sex or background.We need to make easier means to facilitate and increase donation to people in need, such as the patients with serious illnesses like heart problems or cancer, the elderly people with lack of means for protection, sick, deserted children, people with disability and low paid workers, etc.Philanthropic undertakings should include nationals, foreigners and expatriates in need and foreign organizations should be allowed to contribute if they are willing to participate in, as the expatriate community still are integral part of the society and they share its highs and lows.There should be sufficient legal guarantee and strong institutional support to increase donations from the non-profit organizations and with no terrorism background or fear.However, impose strict measures in the collection, such as stipulation to payments only through K-net and a close watch on the utilization of the funds, by the concerned authorities to prevent doubtful situation of charity, as we need by all means to increase the responsible charity education and the culture of sharing.The charity concerns everybody and not only the rich or the government. Somebody thinking the charity should be only within the country and someone thinking it is not good for the business. In reality we need to uphold the charity as a social responsibility of the companies and the society’s core values, where it should be part of the public awareness of the need of living together in peace and prosperity.

Labeed.abdal@gmail.com

www.labeedabdal.blogspot.com

http://www.arabtimesonline.com/RSS/tabid/69/smid/414/ArticleID/156571/t/Fostering-charity-culture-in-Kuwait/Default.aspx