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Kuwaiti cabinet approves bill to grant women right to vote
Kuwait City, Oct 12: The Kuwaiti cabinet today approved a bill calling for granting the emirate`s disenfranchised women the right to vote and to run in Municipal Council elections, a senior minister said.
Kuwait City, Oct 12: The Kuwaiti cabinet today approved a bill calling for granting the emirate's disenfranchised women the right to vote and to run in Municipal Council elections, a senior minister said.
The proposal came in a new municipality draft law stipulating that women would have the right to vote and contest elections and be appointed in the municipal council, said the State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Mohammad Sharar.
The bill must be approved by Kuwait's elected Parliament and endorsed by Emir Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah to become law. The 50-member Parliament, dominated by Islamist and tribal MPs, has in the past rejected government-sponsored draft laws to grant Kuwaiti women the right to vote and to run for public office.
The Municipal Council, which does not have legislative powers, consists of 16 members, six of them appointed by the government. Municipal elections for the remaining 10 seats are held every four years, but, like in parliamentary polls, only men are allowed to vote and run for office in the conservative emirate.
The oil-rich Gulf state's Constitution guarantees equality of the sexes, but the electoral law grants political rights only to men.
The government has vowed to table an amendment to the law when Parliament reconvenes on October 20 following summer recess. Municipal elections for the remaining 10 seats are held every four years, but, like in parliamentary polls, only men are allowed to vote and run for office in the conservative emirate.
The oil-rich Gulf state's Constitution guarantees equality of the sexes, but the electoral law grants political rights only to men.
The government has vowed to table an amendment to the law when Parliament reconvenes on October 20 following summer recess. Bureau Report
The bill must be approved by Kuwait's elected Parliament and endorsed by Emir Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah to become law. The 50-member Parliament, dominated by Islamist and tribal MPs, has in the past rejected government-sponsored draft laws to grant Kuwaiti women the right to vote and to run for public office.
The Municipal Council, which does not have legislative powers, consists of 16 members, six of them appointed by the government. Municipal elections for the remaining 10 seats are held every four years, but, like in parliamentary polls, only men are allowed to vote and run for office in the conservative emirate.
The oil-rich Gulf state's Constitution guarantees equality of the sexes, but the electoral law grants political rights only to men.
The government has vowed to table an amendment to the law when Parliament reconvenes on October 20 following summer recess. Municipal elections for the remaining 10 seats are held every four years, but, like in parliamentary polls, only men are allowed to vote and run for office in the conservative emirate.
The oil-rich Gulf state's Constitution guarantees equality of the sexes, but the electoral law grants political rights only to men.
The government has vowed to table an amendment to the law when Parliament reconvenes on October 20 following summer recess. Bureau Report