Domestic violence is a very emotional and difficult topic to address. However, if you are a victim of domestic violence it is essential to know what your options are, both legally and practically, in Kuwait. These are not as extensive as they would be in the United States, but that does not mean that victims of domestic violence are entirely without redress. Below is information about domestic abuse gathered from meetings with police, lawyers, judges of Family Court, and American women living in Kuwait. We hope you find it useful.
Spousal Abuse
In Kuwaiti culture, problems of spousal abuse are often dealt with within the family, which is the core institution of the society. Kuwaiti families often consider it an embarrassment if they cannot successfully address such problems without outside involvement. These attitudes are reflected in Kuwaiti law, which considers an assault against another person to be a misdemeanor, rather than a felony, unless a weapon was used. Cultural factors may place pressure on the abused spouse not to seek legal protection or even medical treatment. However, if you are the victim of spousal abuse and wish to be protected, you must file a complaint with the police and any injury, of course, should receive prompt medical attention.
Documentation of the abuse is critical when filing a complaint with the police. Hospitals and clinics can provide a report documenting injuries sustained and treatment received that can be submitted with your complaint. English-speaking medical personnel are generally available in all medical facilities. However, many police officers do not speak English. If at all possible, when filing the complaint bring with you a friend or family member who speaks fluent Arabic. In response to a complaint, the police typically will ask the abusive spouse to report to the police station to discuss the complaint and sign a statement of intended future good conduct.
Be aware that Kuwait does not have any type of shelter or home for victims of spousal or other domestic abuse; abused spouses are expected to return home based upon the abusive spouse’s pledge of future good conduct or make private arrangements for shelter with family or friends if they are not comfortable returning home.
Documentation of abuse, preferably via a complaint made to the police, is critical if the abused spouse intends to seek divorce.
Resources for Victims of Abuse
The Americans Overseas Domestic Violence Center is a group based in the United States that works with abused American women and children in foreign countries. They can provide online and over the phone crisis counseling for those in need. Please click here for more information.
The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence website provides a wealth of information on resources and information for those who have been a victim of domestic violence. Please click here for more information.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline website provides additional resources and information. This group operates a hotline with advocates for victims and anyone calling on their behalf to provide crisis intervention, safety planning, information and referrals to agencies in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Assistance is available in English and Spanish with access to more than 170 languages through interpreter services. Please click here for more information.
Kuwait Times | Lisa Conrad | Photo: Yasser al-Zayyat/Agence France-Presse
One in three women in Kuwait is a domestic violence victim
Domestic violence in the Middle East, including Kuwait, is a relatively unexamined topic. With a severe lack of information, prosecutions or victims coming forward, it's difficult to identify the extent of its prevalence and why it takes place.
According to Dr Moez Doraid, the Officer-in-Charge of the UN Women's Division of Management and Administration, "The Arab region has the lowest number of countries with laws against domestic violence, sexual harassment and marital rape.
The continuation of such violence is defended by cultural generalizations, Dr Doraid adds, with many officials insisting,"That problem doesn't exist here because our culture and family traditions ensure that women are protected.
The remedy for such generalizations is not difficult, however, he continues: "Conducting a scientific, objective survey and independent survey, by the state or by a civil society organization would dispel any inaccurate generalizations.
The issue of the available data or lack thereof on domestic violence was covered in the recently released Human Rights Watch 2010 country summary on Kuwait:
Perpetrators are rarely arrested
"There exists no data on the prevalence of violence against women in Kuwait," it stated, continuing, "Victims are often reluctant to file complaints with the police because redress for domestic abuse through the criminal justice system remains elusive. Perpetrators are rarely arrested even when women file complaints with the police that are regularly supported by medico-legal evidence.
Whilst no solid data is available, the Ministry of Justice revealed back in January this year that over one-third of Kuwaiti women suffer domestic abuse.
The information was collected from couples who had attended counseling. This data only represents those who have tried to improve their marriages, however, whether domestic violence was involved or not. This means that the sections of society which remain totally silent on the subject aren't represented, so the number of women suffering in silence can't even be approximated.
Hush-hush
One Kuwaiti woman, Sara, offered her perspective on why domestic violence is kept quiet:
"For a lot of women here, marriage is everything. It's such an exciting thing that so many women yearn for; it's a fairytale they crave ,but the unlucky few end up in nightmares. If you reach for a solution like trying to prosecute or leave [your husband], you sacrifice that image of the perfect daughter and wife, which many aren't willing to do. Reputation means a lot - too much.
Fahad, who is also Kuwaiti, added: "What women can do in that situation exactly, I don't know. It's hard, and if her family aren't supporting her in prosecuting her husband, she really will have nowhere to go." If a domestic abuse victim does decide to go to the police, a lengthy procedure will await her as she tries to prove her allegations.
On the law covering this issue in Kuwait, the US State Department states: "A woman may petition for divorce based on injury from abuse, but the law does not provide a clear legal standard as to what constitutes injury. In addition, a woman must provide at least two male witnesses (or a male witness and two female witnesses) to attest to the injury suffered."
No shelters or hotlines
As Fahad commented, finding somewhere to go without family support can be extremely difficult, as, according to the US State Department, there are no government-sanctioned shelters in Kuwait for victims of domestic violence or hotlines to provide advice.
The issue of domestic violence is not one specific to Kuwait or even the Middle East as a whole as its prevalence, unfortunately, spans the globe. "From our experience and expertise over decades, the problem of domestic violence exists in every society in every country from Sweden to the Maldives to India to Africa to Brazil, you name it, it's everywhere. It's one of the most prevalent, silent, forms of violence which often goes without punishment," says Doraid.
UNIFEM reports that, globally, up to six out of every ten women experience physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime.
Dearth of enforcement
However, enforcing laws against violence against women will take time, says Doraid: "In many Arab countries, we are not at the stage of enforcement yet, because in many there are no laws regarding these issues yet.
Building the capacity of state institutions and other institutions to secure the application of the law, enforcement, and protection against corruption, interference and intervention in judicial and legal processes is needed.
Corruption
Corruption is a central factor preventing successful prosecution, as watchdog organization Freedom House reported the practice of abusive husbands offering bribes to police to drop the case.
Furthermore, the US Department of State notes that Kuwaiti law "does not specifically prohibit domestic violence, although victims may file a complaint with police and the abusers can be charged with assault. Arrests and prosecution for domestic abuse are uncommon due to a strong cultural and social bias in favor of seeking to resolve such issues within the family.
Among the most advanced regional nations in protecting against violence towards women are Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan and Morocco while sexual harassment in the workplace is outlawed in Algeria, Iraq, Morocco and Tunisia, says Dr Doraid.
Culture doesn't have to be something working against protecting women's rights, however, but can in fact be used to defend them.
Culture doesn't have to be something working against protecting women's rights, however, but can in fact be used to defend them.
Dr Doraid explained: "It's key to underscore in the Kuwaiti context that legislation securing the protection of women's rights and moving towards equality is grounded in Islamic jurisprudence and tradition.
We see opportunities for complementary relationship between Sharia and Islam with the emerging universal human rights and value systems. It is in the roots and foundation of these values. There is a variety of interpretations of these fundamental points, and there is every opportunity for progressive interpretation.
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