By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: The Woman's Cultural and Social Society held a symposium on woman's rights, focusing on different aspects including political rights, women's empowerment, freedoms and others.

Former minister Masouma Al-Mubarak said everyone rejects laws that restrict freedoms. "We reject any compromise on political and other women's rights. This attack on women's rights is not sudden or limited to joining the army or wearing the hijab; it has been continuing since many years. Women were deprived of their political rights from 1963 till 2005 without any logical or legal reason. Also, segregation in education was imposed after many years of mixed education and caused problems at the university," she pointed out.

Women started fighting for their rights in 1971. "The women's movement was most active in the 1980s till 2005, when Kuwaiti women gained their political rights. We held hundreds of lectures and wrote hundreds of articles demanding our political rights. Now the turn is of young generations to demand women's rights on social media. We need to modify the civil service law to allow women to occupy at least 30 percent of key positions," added Masouma.

Faria Al-Saqqaf, Chairperson of LOYAC Volunteer Center, noted that the issue of personal freedoms is not a local one anymore. "Two days back, a gathering was held at Irada Square to demand giving Indian women the right to wear the hijab. This signifies that we live in a small world, and what happens here may become an international issue. Even removing an animal from its ecological place is considered an infringement," she stated.

Regarding sports and other activities, Saqqaf believes practicing any of these hobbies comes under personal freedom. "Nobody can stop any person from practicing any kind of art. The general culture of our society does not respect arts. People need to practice arts and music, especially during the pandemic. Sending forces to a musical concert, which happened last weekend, is nonsense. Our youth are disappointed and many of them are considering leaving the country, which is the result of depriving their freedoms," stressed Saqqaf.

Women's sports

Fatma Hayat, member of the board of Kuwait Football Federation, said women's sports have been absent for over 40 years, although they were very active in the 1970s. "Fortunately during the last few years, women's sports have developed. This happened after women reached decision-making positions with the support of honest men who believe in women's equality. In the past, GCC championships were separate for each gender, but soon we will see for the first time a Gulf sports league that includes both genders," she explained.

"Practicing sports is the right of everyone without discrimination. We should have a clear plan for developing sports, and not wait for a problem to happen and then go to protest at Irada Square. Kuwaiti sportswomen had great achievements in the recent Olympics and the entire community was supporting women swimmers. The same applies to other sports," Hayat added.

Lawyer Ghanima Al-Kandari said freedoms in Kuwait are equated to darkness. "They think women will commit sins in the dark. They see that the more freedoms a woman has, the greater her chance to sin. Women don't need the guardianship of anyone. Women have always been discriminated against and oppressed under the excuse of protecting them. This is in conflict with article 29 of the constitution that sets out gender equity in all fields," she said.