Kuwait government's stance on sports suspension issue final -- Minister Sheikh Salman

KUWAIT, Jan 9 (KUNA) -- Minister of Information and State Minister for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah on Monday announced that the Kuwaiti Government has met all requirements for lifting the international ban on the national sports "and this is its final stance" in this respect.
Minister Sheikh Salman, emerging from a meeting of the parliamentary youth and sports committee, expressed hope that every-one cooperate for sake of resolving this problem and focus, instead, on overhauling the Kuwaiti sports sector.
The minister indicated that he listened to views of the commission members and presented them with the letter that had been addressed by Public Authority for Sport to the International Olympic Committee, in response to a message from the latter on December 31st.
Sheikh Salman Al-Humoud affirmed that all relevant authorities have been cooperating according to the laws and the constitution and are seeking to lift the ban on the Kuwaiti sports, adding that the members expressed understanding of the issue.
Elaborating, he said the international committee, after receiving the Kuwaiti response, should respect desire of the State of Kuwait, the government and the people to enforce a temporary lift of the suspension, pending a settlement to the legislations' issues and reaching an agreement on a new law compatible with the Olympic charter and relevant international regulations.
Kuwait's Public Authority for Sport (PAS) has recently addressed Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee, alluding to a meeting, held on January 3rd (2017) between the Kuwaiti government and the parliamentary Youth and Sports Committee tasked with tackling the suspension issue. "Your referred letter has been studied through this meeting," the PAS letter to Bach said.
In reply, the PAS message explained to Bach that a new and developed draft law has been completed concerning sports that copes with the developments endured by the international sports rules and the Olympic Charter. It has already been referred to the venerable National Assembly, and the Government of the State of Kuwait is fully prepared to cooperate with the parliament in this regard.
The PAS letter indicated that temporary committees could take over tasks of the dissolved bodies and expressed readiness to settle the issue and said in part, "we are confident of what we have offered to achieve great cooperation with you to stop the suspension by your side (temporarily) prior to January 11th (2017) so that the Kuwaiti football team can participate in the draw of the 2019 Asian Cup competition." It also renewed the invitation to Bach to visit Kuwaiti and examine the issue closely with the relevant national authorities. (end) rk