KUWAIT: The court of appeal yesterday annulled a previous verdict acquitting a 55-year-old female Kuwaiti doctor from charges of torturing her housemaid, and sentenced her to four years in prison with labor. The doctor had been accused of torturing the maid, causing her permanent disability as the maid lost vision in her left eye. The doctor had also detained the maid for four years, preventing her from leaving her house in Adan and tortured her on a daily basis. Checking the doctor's record, she was found accused of similar charges in 2007 when the maid she had at that time managed to escape her house and reported the matter to authorities.

NGOs law

The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor's (MSAL) Assistant Undersecretary For Legal Affairs Dr Zaki Al-Selaimi stressed that a proposed bill to organize nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and which has been discussed recently in local media was still under study for amendments, adding that the ministry was still preparing an integrated project including all NGOs, charities and voluntary work societies. Selaimi added that the bill would go through proper constitutional channels (the legislative power) before it becomes an applicable law. He added that the details of the bill recently published in some newspapers had been reviewed by all NGOs and some activists and that the ministry had taken their remarks into consideration. Selaimi slammed criticizing the new law in terms of NGOs' membership although that particular article was present in the law that had been in effect for decades. "NGO members include working people, Kuwaitis over 21 who are entitled to attend the general assembly and run for board elections, and nominal ones - non-Kuwaitis who are only entitled to NGO services and have no right to attend general assembly meetings," he explained.

By Meshaal Al-Enezi