Commentary
The countries in the region are managing the fallout from Iranian strikes in a paradoxical way.
Angie Omar
{
"authors": [],
"type": "pressRelease",
"centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
"centers": [
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
],
"collections": [],
"englishNewsletterAll": "menaTransitions",
"nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
"primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"programAffiliation": "MEP",
"programs": [
"Middle East"
],
"projects": [],
"regions": [
"Kuwait"
],
"topics": [
"Political Reform",
"Democracy"
]
}
REQUIRED IMAGE
Press Release
Electoral and constitutional reforms needed to resolve Kuwait’s political paralysis
Kuwait must enact further electoral and constitutional reform to break the country’s political paralysis. Continued gridlock could lead the emir to override the constitution and dissolve the parliament, dealing a major setback to democracy in Kuwait and the region.
Published on Jul 2, 2009
WASHINGTON, June 25—Kuwait must enact further electoral and constitutional reform to break the country’s longstanding political paralysis. Continued gridlock could lead the emir to override the constitution and dissolve the parliament, dealing a major setback to democracy in Kuwait and the region, concludes a new commentary by Nathan J. Brown.
The contentious stalemate between Kuwait’s ruling family and parliament has called into question the sustainability of its democracy. There is a growing sense that an unconstitutional dissolution of parliament is imminent—the emir has moved beyond subtle hints to direct warnings.
Key Conclusions:
- Kuwait’s political system gives every small group not only a voice but a veto and thus is easily paralyzed.
- The 2006 electoral reform measure failed to diminish vote buying and tribal voting. The electoral system must encourage the formation of political blocs, rather than single-issue voting.
- Amending the constitution to treat cabinet ministers as a cohesive unit—subject to a vote of confidence from the parliament—would force them to coordinate policy rather than focus on individual issues.
- The political crisis in Kuwait provides an opportunity for the United States to begin rebuilding its discredited commitment to democracy in the region. The United States should encourage real reform through “polite discouragement” of an unconstitutional dissolution of the parliament.
Brown concludes:
“In earlier decades, Kuwait served as a positive model for some Gulf states. Kuwait no longer seems like such a positive model—in fact, the political stalemate in the country now serves as a negative model. A revival of Kuwaiti democracy will not lead to a ‘Gulf spring’ much less an Arab one. But it will prevent elections and parliaments from becoming symbols of stagnation and paralysis.”
###
NOTES
- Nathan J. Brown is director of the Institute for Middle East Studies at George Washington University, a nonresident senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment, and a distinguished scholar and author of four well-received books on Arab politics.
- The Carnegie Middle East Program combines in-depth local knowledge with incisive comparative analysis to examine economic, socio-political, and strategic interests in the Arab world to provide analysis and recommendations in both English and Arabic that are deeply informed by knowledge and views from the region.
- The Carnegie Middle East Center based in Beirut, Lebanon, aims to better inform the process of political change in the Middle East.
- Carnegie's Arab Reform Bulletin offers a monthly analysis of political and economic developments in Arab countries.
- Press Contact: Jessica Jennings, 202/939-2265, jjennings@ceip.org
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Shockwaves Across the Gulf
- When Do Mass Protests Topple Autocrats?Commentary
The recent record of citizen uprisings in autocracies spells caution for the hope that a new wave of Iranian protests may break the regime’s hold on power.
Thomas Carothers, McKenzie Carrier
- The EU Needs a Third Way in IranCommentary
European reactions to the war in Iran have lost sight of wider political dynamics. The EU must position itself for the next phase of the crisis without giving up on its principles.
Richard Youngs
- The Architecture of Digital RepressionArticle
Internet service providers can facilitate internet access but also draconian control.
Irene Poetranto
- Iran Is Pushing Its Neighbors Toward the United StatesCommentary
Tehran’s attacks are reshaping the security situation in the Middle East—and forcing the region’s clock to tick backward once again.
Amr Hamzawy
