WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2820/96 by María SORNOSA MARTÍNEZ to the Commission. Elections in Kuwait - denial of women's right to vote
Date: 1996-10-25
Institutions: European Parliament, SORNOSA MARTINEZ
Subjects: GCC countries, Gulf Cooperation Council, Kuwait, democracy, gender equality, international relations, right to stand for election, right to vote, third country, women's rights













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91996E2820

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2820/96 by María SORNOSA MARTÍNEZ to the Commission. Elections in Kuwait - denial of women's right to vote  


Official Journal C 091 , 20/03/1997 P. 0041 





WRITTEN QUESTION E-2820/96 by María Sornosa Martínez (GUE/NGL) to the Commission (25 October 1996)Subject: Elections in Kuwait - denial of women's right to voteOn 9 October 1996, parliamentary elections were held in Kuwait. Women were not allowed to vote or to stand as candidates. Despite the campaign conducted by Kuwaiti feminist organizations with a view to securing an amendment to the electoral law in order to ensure equality between men and women, women were unable to cast their vote.Is the Commission considering any action which may help to lift the ban on political activity imposed on women in countries such as Kuwait?Is the Commission thinking of taking any action to support organizations and associations calling for equality between men and women, particularly in countries where such differences lead to the political, educational and social exclusion of women?Does the Commission believe that a public-awareness campaign to highlight the particular situation of women in countries such as Kuwait would help to improve their living conditions?Answer given by Mr Marin on behalf of the Commission (20 November 1996)The Commission closely follows the human rights record and attaches the utmost importance to the development of democracy and the reinforcement of democratic institutions in all countries.The Commission welcomes the holding of the second legislative elections in Kuwait after the Gulf war which is an important step toward the full democratisation of the country but regrets that only 16% of the Kuwaiti population were able to vote and to be elected. In particular, the Commission is disappointed by the fact that women and naturalised citizens could not vote in the recent elections held on 7 October 1996 which limits the degree of representativeness of the Kuwait parliament. The Commission hopes that all Kuwaiti citizens will be able to vote and to be elected during the next parliamentary elections.The Commission is very active in actions in support of women in third countries. The Commission was a full participant in the fourth world conference on women held in Beijing in September 1995 and is supporting specific programmes and projects in the post Beijing follow-up operations in the West Asia region, including several Arab countries. In addition, in the framework of the Meda-Democracy programme, several actions in favour of the full political participation of women have been initiated in a number of Mediterranean third countries.The Union and the Gulf co-operation council (GCC) have repeatedly reaffirmed their determination to strengthen their relations by reinforcing, inter alia, their political dialogue including questions of human rights and democracy. In this respect, the Commission in its communication on improving relations between the European Union and the GCC countries ((COM(95) 541 final. )), emphasised the importance of political dialogue 'to enable the two sides to discuss questions of human rights and democracy which are important for both at international level and at the level of the relations between the EU and the GCC'.