New initiative highlights steps for expats to obtain licenses

KUWAIT CITY, July 9: Department of Public Relations and Security Media in Ministry of Interior has launched a new initiative to clarify the rules for expatriates, and non-Kuwaiti and Bedoun husbands of Kuwaiti women to obtain driving licenses in accordance with the ministerial decision regulating this order issued on November 25, 2014, reports Al-Anba daily.

The department launched such an awareness initiative in order to limit the repeated questions on this matter and avoid responding to them over and over again.

As per ministerial decree No. 5598/2014, non-Kuwaiti applicants can obtain a private or public driving license provided that they have legally stayed in the country for at least two years, obtain a monthly salary not less than KD 600, and have a university degree. Resolution No. 3 specified the categories excluded from some of the conditions based on their social and functional circumstances.

According to the decision, the first category excluded from the conditions of residence, salary, and university certificate covers 13 segments. They are :- non- Kuwaiti women married to Kuwaiti men including widows and divorcees provided they have children, non-Kuwaiti men married to Kuwaiti women and have children, Bedoun residents with valid security cards, students provided they are registered at any of the universities or applied institutions in Kuwait, members of the diplomatic corps, professionals in sports federations, clubs and government sectors, drivers and representatives who hold valid legal driving licenses issued by their countries or any other country, domestic workers who have been working for a period of not less than five consecutive years in a similar capacity provided they change their profession to driver, technicians working in the oil fields, pilots and sea captains and their assistants, washers of the dead, nursing staff, physiotherapists and medical technicians, housewives, as well as sons and spouses of judges, counselors, prosecutors and experts, faculty members of universities and institutions, doctors, pharmacists, and general managers and their assistants.

The decision states that the second category exempted from residency and salary conditions but should be holders of university degrees include judges, prosecutors, consultants and experts, faculty members of universities and applied institutes, journalists and media professionals, doctors and pharmacists, researchers, judiciary men, translators, librarians, teachers, social workers and engineers, trainers working in sports federations and clubs in government agencies.

The last category is excluded from the residency condition but must have monthly salary of not less than KD 600 and should be holders of university degrees. This category includes general managers and assistants, directors, accountants, and finally representatives.

The licenses of drivers and representatives will be cancelled upon the cancellation of their residence permits, or if they change their profession based on which the driving license was issued.

The person will then not be eligible to apply for driving license for at least two years and the new procedures will apply.

KUWAIT CITY, July 8: Around 10.02 am Monday morning Kuwait felt earthquake tremors for few seconds right from Kuwait city to Salmiya area. Many people around Kuwait reported that they felt quake tremors. This was due to earthquake which hit Masjed Soleymān, Khuzestan, Iran area measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale

This was confirmed by KUNA that a slight earthquake was felt on Monday in various parts of the State of Kuwait as a result of a possible seismic activity in the region.

KUWAIT CITY, July 7: The Sentences Enforcement General Department of the Ministry of Justice has streamlined procedural arrests of Kuwaitis particularly in the event of travel ban imposed on them for failing to pay small sums of money, which has been the case over the years and caused embarrassment to many families because at the last minute their travel plans are disrupted, reports Al-Qabas daily.

A knowledgeable source told the daily there is a new trend to turn a blind eye to travel bans and search and arrest warrants requested by companies against Kuwaitis after an extensive study by the department and came to the conclusion that measures taken earlier need not be continued.

The source added the judges deliberated on the issue two weeks ago and concluded that these requests lack reason of the law and does not necessitate prevention of travel just because a citizen owes a company, especially if the sum is small and the Kuwaiti debtor will not intend to abandon his homeland to avoid paying a handful of dinars.

The source added what the judges meant here by ‘small sum’ is debt ranging between KD 100 and 200.

The source added the most important condition is not available in the request as the creditor company does not provide evidence of the Kuwaiti debtor’s failure to pay the debt despite the ability to do so.

The source further added that the travel ban and the search and arrest warrant are an exceptional way and cannot be expanded because they represent restrictions on the freedom of individuals and freedom of movement contrary to the logic of reality which calls for more guarantees of personal freedoms.

Source: Arab Times

KUWAIT CITY, June 15: Kuwait has advanced seven places on the Global Peace Index (GPI) 2019, issued by the Institute of Economics and International Peace, compared to its rank on the index last year, ranking 43rd globally and second Qatar (among the GCC countries) which is ranked 31st in the world, reports Al-Qabas daily.

The Institute is also based on other indicators related to the military situation of each country and access to weapons. Data are measured on the military expenditures of each country as a percentage of gross domestic product, the number of military personnel and the state’s financial contributions to the UN peacekeeping missions.

The world has become calmer this year for the first time in five years, with the average level of calm rising by 0.09 percent, the institute said, pointing out that the increase in calm came as a result of the decline of the intensity of many major conflicts around the world, and number of deaths.

Iceland and New Zealand maintained their lead this year, followed by Portugal (3), Austria (4), Denmark (5), Canada (6), Singapore (7), Slovenia (8), Japan (9) and Czech Republic (10). Afghanistan came at the bottom of the list at 163, preceded by Syria at 162, South Sudan (161), Yemen (160) and Iraq (159).

Source: Arab Times

KUWAIT CITY, June 15: An unidentified Kuwaiti woman has filed a complaint with the police accusing her husband of torturing her, holding her captive inside the sixth floor apartment of a residential building in Khaitan, reports Al-Anba daily.

Many people may have seen the piece of paper and thought it was a joke, but not the Saudi man, who took the issue seriously and informed the Khaitan Police Station. Securitymen from the Khaitan Police Station moved to the location and rescued the woman and took the husband into custody, although he tried to convince the police that his wife was unsound and behaving abnormal. However, medical reports confirmed that she has been subjected to prolonged assault and injuries required treatment for more than 21 days.

Source: Arab Times

KUWAIT CITY, June 13: Personnel from the Criminal Investigations Department have arrested an unidentified Indian for stealing the bank credit card of a Kuwaiti woman and making purchases, reports Al-Rai daily. The arrest came after the woman filed a complaint with the police station in Mubarak Al-Kabir.