Granting citizenship "matter of state sovereignty" -- Kuwait

GENEVA, Oct 21 (KUNA) -- Granting the Kuwaiti citizenship is a matter of state sovereignty falling under article 15 of 1959 of the citizenship law, said a Kuwaiti official during a UN report deliberation here on Friday.
Head of the adjustment department of the central apparatus for addressing the status of stateless individuals, Mohammad Al-Wuhaib, noted during the deliberation over the Kuwaiti UN report on civil and political rights, that there was no intention to adjust laws in regards of granting citizenship, stressing that the stateless (bedoun) current status enabled the apparatus to address problems pertaining to these individuals.
Al-Wuhaib said that Kuwait took several important steps to better the status of stateless individuals, issuing several documents that would facilitate their lives. However, he indicated that some refused to receive such documents due to objections concerning the status of citizenship in these papers which in turn make the issue purely their own concern not the government's.
The cabinet's resolution 409 of 2011 had approved several procedures to facilitate the living conditions of stateless individuals, said the official, adding that around 11,000 birth certificates were issued from April to October of 2011, adding that around 520 death and 1,244 marriage certificates were also issued since the new law was approved.
Prior to the resolution, said Al-Wuhaib, the health affairs concerning stateless people were handled by the charitable fund for healthcare, noting, since 2009 around 39,000 stateless individuals received health treatment which cost around KD 1.17 million.
Such care was also extended to the educational hemisphere, affirmed the official who pointed out that a charitable fund was erected to handle the costs with around 12,000 students benefited from the service which cost around KD six million annually. He affirmed that higher education was also provided to stateless individuals with around 156 individuals being enrolled in Kuwait University in 2011/12.
On the career level, Al-Wuhaib revealed that the right for a job in the public and private sectors through papers submissions to the Civil Services Commission (CSC) was restricted previously for citizens who have to wait for a period of 1-2 years before requirement. But now the government was looking into measures to allow stateless people to submit paper to the CSC.
The Kuwaiti official also said that stateless individuals with disabilities had also received privileges in accordance with article eight of 2010 laws concerning such persons.
Stateless people also were allowed to benefit from the rations card with around 10,494 benefactors as of April 2011, costing over KD nine million.
He noted that stateless people also had a share in housing and social insurance services for those working in the military.
Al-Wuhaib also stated that the government had imposed legal residents laws on stateless individuals who decided to adjust their citizenship statues without resulting in legal questing.
The Kuwaiti government had made some major leaps in dealing with the situation, said Al-Wuhaib, pointing out the cabinet's had issued laws in 2010 to better the situation for this part of society. (end) ta.gta KUNA 211350 Oct 11NNNN