Ahead of the 60th session of the UN Human Rights Council (Sep/Oct 2025), CIVICUS and SALAM for Democracy and Human Rights (SALAM DHR), together with our partners, submit this joint statement urging Kuwait to uphold civic space, protect human rights defenders, and make good on its commitments under the Universal Periodic Review.
CIVICUS and Salam for Democracy and Human Rights and our partners work to increase civil society’s resilience to attacks by building solidarity and incubating new forms of organisation, including in relation to Kuwait, the Gulf and the entire South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA) region.
CIVICUS and Salam for Democracy and Human Rights condemn the failure by the Government of Kuwait (GoK) during the Fourth Cycle of its UPR, in May 2025, to make good on assertions relating to its commitment to civic space; the freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly and association, and its failure to recognise and protect human rights defenders.
In relation to the promotion and protection of civic space, the conduct of the GoK has been at odds with its 2024-26 membership of the Human Rights Council. With the adoption of the report of the 4th Cycle of Universal Periodic Review of Kuwait, the government must now commit to meaningful reform in line with the principle of indivisibility and interdependence of all human rights in order to make good on assertions made by members of the delegation during the May 2025 review.
In his remarks, Head of Delegation, Nasser Yousef Al-Sumait, Minister of Justice, stated, in relation to the 3rd Cycle, that the GoK fully accepted 230 of the 302 recommendations; partially accepted six and rejected – or ‘noted’ – 12. He emphasised the current GoK campaign on legal reform, stating that the authorities were examining all 983 of Kuwait’s laws, with a view to a projected change of 10% of these.
While law 93 of 2024 on redefining torture, along with Law 16 of 2020 on domestic violence may be welcome, he did not acknowledge measures imposed by the government that have restricted civic space, silenced or chilled expression, association and assembly including the May 2024 suspension of the National Assembly, stringent restrictions on civil society arising from Law 24 of 1962 and subsequent amendments, relating to civic space. It has been used to stifle civic space by requiring registration with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, which has been quick to grant permits to organisations that support or are silent on government policy, but obstinate or rejecting those that seek to enhance the plurality of independent civic voices. In September 2024, a human rights defender publicly expressed his frustration in relation to registering an organisation. The government required a name change but then took over and dissolved the organisation in any case.
Kuwait’s Vision 2035 makes no specific commitment to participation in public life, notably respect towards; the promotion or protection of civil society in Kuwait. The “Vision” declares an “aspiration” to make Kuwait a leader in finance and commerce and to reconstruct the bodies and institutions of the country. It adds that it seeks to preserve Kuwaiti identity, “achieve justice, political participation and freedoms.” But a state that suspended its National Assembly in May 2024 and which has prosecuted parliamentarians and which restricts civic space and freedom of expression, assembly and association acts against the very ideals it sets out. In May 2024, the government tried and sentenced a parliamentary candidate to four years’ imprisonment for his peaceful criticism of the Kuwait government and the ruling family’s involvement in politics.
At the 2025 UPR session, Kuwait presented its position in a manner that obscured the extent to which the government has curtailed the rights enshrined in Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights—a core provision safeguarding civic participation, and one to which Kuwait remains a state party.
The head of the delegation stated that decree law 158 of 2024, on nationality, sought to “better align [law] with the system of civil, economic and social rights” but failed to state that the GoK’s arbitrary and summary stripping of citizenship of over 10 thousand people, mainly women, stripped them of legal identity and rights and made them non-people; it took away their voice; their right to engage in civil society and, in effect, their ability to exercise their rights of expression, assembly and association. The GoK also continues to systematically target members of the stateless Bidun community, and those who advocate for their rights.
Ms. Soulaf Al-Meshal, Director of the Department of Public Relations and Media, The Central System for the Remedy of the Situation of Illegal Residents asserted, contrary to data published by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, that there are no stateless persons in Kuwait, but rather those who entered the country illegally. She failed to explain how thousands of children born in Kuwait over multiple generations “entered illegally” or that the government imprisons those who speak out. In January 2024, a court sentenced a stateless human rights defender to three years’ imprisonment for his peaceful criticism of government policy towards stateless people. In August 2022, he had been prosecuted and convicted for his exercise of the right to peaceful assembly. Our organisations call for the immediate and unconditional release of all human rights defenders.
The Head of Delegation, Nasser Yousef Al-Sumait, Minister of Justice asserted that the preparation of the national report took “a broad and participatory approach” which included civil society. The delegation leader and Mr. Jassim Al-Kandari, Assistant Undersecretary for Social Welfare, Ministry of Social Affairs stated that the “Regulatory framework for civil society organisations was approved to modernise civil society aimed at strengthening partnerships with intl organisations.” We could not find a single, independent civil society voice asked by the GoK to take part. Moreover, on 23 November and 3 December 2024, three organisations, SALAM DHR, Hawiati – the MENA Statelessness Network (HAWIATI) and Rights Realization Centre (RRC) emailed the Kuwait Embassy in London and requested to meet. They followed up by telephone but the government did not reply to a request to meet. On what basis, then, did the Head of Delegation make his assertion? The GoK must avoid making claims that do not correspond to proven facts as it will adversely impact Kuwait’s credibility.
In his closing remarks in May 2025, the Head of the Delegation asserted that the State of Kuwait has a “sincere dedication to dialogue” and “commits to complete transparency and openness to any questions”. CIVICUS, Salam for Democracy and Human Rights and its partners therefore call on the Kuwait delegation and mission to extend an invitation to our organisations, and others, to undertake unfettered research missions to the country, in order to assess claims made by the delegation and for us to work with our Kuwaiti counterparts in order to give life to assertions made in relation to civic space. The government should commit to not taking reprisals against those who peacefully assemble or express their conscientiously held beliefs or who openly defend human rights, in contrast to the cases of those whom the government has arbitrarily imprisoned. The GoK must abide by Article 25 of the ICCPR, including in relation to its National Assembly and other aspects of civic space.
Contact:
- SALAM DHR – Drewery Dyke – +44 7800 989221 – @drewerydyke.bsky.social
- CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation, +41 (0)79 910 3428,
Photo by Ibrahim Al-Essa on Unsplash
