ONE STEP FORWARD... TWO STEPS BACK
by Ali Ahmed Al-Baghli
Arab Times, Kuwait
June 9, 2005

By Ali Al-Baghli
Former Minister of Oil

I was not happy with the attack launched by the fundamentalists on MP Dr Awwad Barad for his vote in support of the Women's Political Rights Law despite the fact this MP has been voicing opinions which made no one happy. For example he has been fighting the government's attempts to implement reforms and development programmes. I was unhappy with the MP because I was sure he would try to regain the support of his fundamentalist base using other issues and I have not been disappointed. In fact I didn't have to wait long for this to happen because Dr Barad made some sadist and racist remarks during the recent discussion on the financial account statement of the Public Authority for Social Security.

While all other MPs praised the administration of PASS for its wonderful work, Dr Awwad Barad sang a different tune and came out with an opinion which was against the stand of his own party in the Parliament. Maybe Dr Barad thought he had stumbled on a jackpot which would help him win back his place in the hearts of his party men. What the MP found was an investment made by PASS in Wafrah New York Company which had bought shares in other companies in which some Jews had invested. I find this impossible to believe because there is absolutely no way Dr Barad could have read the list of shareholders of these companies. Even assuming he was able to lay his hands on a copy of such a list, he could not have known the religion of the shareholders because this is next to impossible.

Barad's comments on this issue are Fascist and racist, and very close to the ideology of the Nazi Party. We don't recall any incident which happened during the initial days of Islam which urged Muslims not to deal with Jews. Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) dealt with the Jews and even now thousands of Palestinians are working in Israeli companies and on lands. These Palestinians suffered a lot when Israelis prevented them from working in Israeli companies. Most of the labourers who are working on a fence being constructed by Israel to prevent Palestinians from entering it are Palestinians. Israel is buying the cement, the most important material required for the construction of this fence, from one of the senior Palestinian politicians. In view of these facts I think MP Dr Awwad Barad has earned a bad name for Kuwait, its people and the government. I think he has done this to escape from his responsibility for voting in support of granting full political rights to women.

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