Milan (AsiaNews) – The Gulf war triggered by the US and Israeli attack on Iran in late February has sparked a spiral of violence that has affected the monarchies and emirates of the region to varying degrees, from Saudi Arabia to Bahrain and Oman.
However, in economic and social terms, Kuwait appears to have faced the greatest challenges; in response, it has amended – and tightened – a whole series of domestic regulations, including those relating to citizenship.
This has had significant consequences for the most vulnerable sections of the population, such as migrant workers, new citizens and those with dual nationality, who have been directly affected by Amiri Decree-Law No. 79/2026 amending the Nationality Act.
In particular, the second part substantially alters Article 7, stipulating that those who “have acquired Kuwaiti nationality through naturalisation shall not have the right to vote, stand for election or be appointed to parliamentary bodies”. In short, this amounts to a death knell for active participation in the life of the country.
In force from 1 September, the decree – approved on 23 August by the Emir, Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, and re-announced by the official news agency Kuna – strips naturalised citizens of their right to vote.
This marks a further crackdown on society, coming just two years after the dissolution of Parliament and the launch of a widespread campaign to revoke citizenship from certain groups – particularly women – who had benefited from it to consolidate their position in the country.
Until now, they were able to vote 30 years after obtaining citizenship, but were not permitted to stand for election. These measures appear designed to restrict full membership of the nation solely to those with blood ties to Kuwait, reshaping the identity of an oil-rich country that is, like – and perhaps more than – others in the region, marked by Iranian reprisals. A nation of nearly five million inhabitants – only a third of whom are Kuwaitis – which the new decree substantially alters, starting with its electorate, as analysts and experts assert.
The Emir’s crackdown
In May last year, the 85-year-old emir had already imposed restrictions on residency, launching a sort of ‘purge’ that led to the revocation of citizenship for over 37,000 migrants. Women who had acquired citizenship through marriage were particularly affected, but the measure did not spare even ordinary workers, businesspeople and celebrities – including actors and singers – who had obtained it on merit.
The aim of the new policy imposed by the government and its leader, who came to power in December 2023, is to eliminate ‘impurities’ and restore the nation to its ‘original people’. In the meantime, he has dissolved Parliament and suspended parts of the Constitution, as part of what he has termed a ‘national purge’, which has drawn criticism from activists and human rights groups.
The emirate is governed by a constitutional monarchy, with a parliamentary system that is also the oldest in the Gulf. The first Parliament was elected in 1963, two years after independence from the United Kingdom on 19 June 1961, and enjoyed extensive powers, including the ability to pass and veto laws, question ministers and table motions of no confidence against senior officials.
The Majlis al-Umma consists of 50 members, elected every four years; it can also remove the Prime Minister or other ministers, and confirm the appointment of the Crown Prince and the Emir, whose throne is hereditary.
However, when the new government was formed in 2024, the Emir himself had ‘frozen’ certain powers of the assembly and parts of the Constitution.
Kuwait has a population of just over 4.8 million, of whom 1.53 million are citizens and around 3.29 million are migrant workers. Official figures indicate that at least 26,000 women have lost their citizenship under the new policy, particularly those who had obtained it through marriage to local men.
Under the new provisions, all citizenship granted to foreign spouses since 1987 has been revoked, leaving thousands of people at risk of becoming stateless and in a legal limbo. The measure has indiscriminately affected both ordinary immigrants and public figures, such as the famous pop singer Nawal El Kuwaitia and the actor Dawood Hussein, demonstrating that the reform also affects national icons.
National identity
According to the Ministry of the Interior, 38,505 people obtained citizenship between 1993 and 2020. The measure also targets those with dual nationality – which is prohibited under Kuwaiti law – and those suspected of having used fraudulent documentation to obtain the document.
Analysts and experts argue that this strategy signals a more exclusionary definition of national identity under the new leadership; this could deepen social divisions and damage Kuwait’s reputation as a relatively open Gulf state. At present, a climate of uncertainty persists, with the coming months expected to reveal the direction of travel regarding human rights and inclusivity.
The prevailing view amongst scholars is that the leadership intends to reduce the population to create a smaller and more manageable electorate.
Kuwait is already home to the ‘bidounes’ (‘without’ in Arabic), a community of stateless people estimated at 100,000, comprising those who did not obtain citizenship at the end of the British protectorate in 1961 and their descendants.
Under the previous rules, naturalised citizens were allowed to vote once they had held citizenship for 30 years, although they remained barred from standing for election or holding government posts. The new decree completely removes the right to vote, effectively stripping naturalised citizens of the last political right they retained.
The ban on voting is the latest step in a campaign of mass ‘de-naturalisation’ that Kuwait launched in 2024, affecting tens of thousands of people as part of a wider plan.
Rights and freedoms (religious)
Analysts and scholars emphasise that the new citizenship reform policy appears to be designed to restrict Kuwaiti nationality to blood ties, thereby reshaping its foundation. This change aims to forge a new ‘identity’, whilst simultaneously reducing the electorate following years of political deadlock between Parliament and the government, which has given rise to numerous institutional crises that have paralysed the country.
Although the Assembly enjoys legislative powers that are unusual for the region, it has not been without recurring tensions between elected members and the ruling family, which have repeatedly led to the dissolution of Parliament over the decades.
Finally, the crackdown on civil rights has in recent years also affected religious freedom, complicating the practice of worship for those – including Christians – who do not profess Islam. This has been confirmed by influential ecclesiastical figures in the region, who, referring to Kuwait, speak of a Church in “distress”, despite an open “dialogue” with the authorities regarding the “forthcoming laws on non-Muslim worship”.
As regards the Catholic community specifically, there is no single Church, but rather a variety of communities with distinct needs across each of the four parishes that comprise it: the Co-Cathedral of the Holy Family in Kuwait City, long the seat of the vicariate; the parish church of Our Lady of Arabia in Ahmadi, now a minor basilica; the parish of St Teresa in Salmiya; the parish of St Daniel Comboni in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh, better known as Abbasiya.
The first two are places of worship recognised by the government; the third carries out its services regularly despite having no external signage; and the fourth, in fact, is more reminiscent of underground communities.
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