Kuwait

An election in Kuwait

Kuwait holds a parliamentary election. Is democracy slowly spreading in the Gulf?

WHAT does a parliamentary election in Kuwait, on Saturday May 17th, suggest about the progress of democracy in the region as a whole? Kuwait is certainly one of the more democratic corners of the Gulf, with a freer press and more elections than most. For this round of voting the number of constituencies has been reduced from 25 to five, in an effort to discourage vote-buying. And Kuwait manages to introduce elements of a modern system—these are only the second elections in which women have been able both to stand for office and to vote—while preserving older forms of public expression of opinion: an effort by the cabinet to restrict diwaniyas, traditional public meetings, was rebuffed by popular demonstrations.

It is still far from a democratic free-for-all. The country remains dominated by the head of state, Sheikh Sabah al-Sabah, and his ruling family; its democratic representatives enjoy limited power and their institutions still look pretty feeble. The new parliament chosen on Saturday will be as a result of the third election in just five years. The previous parliament was dissolved after the entire cabinet, which is appointed by the emir, resigned in protest over the lack of co-operation from parliamentarians.

But the parliamentarians have had power enough, according to the cabinet, to do the country harm. Critics say that MPs have prevented much-needed economic reform, while focusing, instead, on local issues or the promotion of Islamist policies. And as they have fiddled, for example in failing to pass a long-awaited bill designed to attract foreign investment, neighbours have moved ahead. Dubai, Qatar and Bahrain are developing more diverse economies, by establishing themselves as centres for finance and tourism, whereas Kuwait does little more than rely on pumping oil.

Whether responsibility for Kuwait’s failure to diversify can mostly be laid at the door of the parliamentarians is doubtful. But others in the region could be forgiven for wondering whether democracy brings any general benefits. Elections in Iraq, or in Lebanon, have done little to suggest that voting helps to sort out the dreadful messes in those countries. In the Gulf those who are experimenting with democracy are mostly doing so only with baby steps: Qatar introduced its first written constitution in 2005 which provided for some democratic reforms; Saudi Arabia has announced that women will be able to vote and stand in the municipal elections next year.

Even if further democratic reform in the region is likely, few expect to see rapid change. High oil prices—the cost of a barrel has passed $127 on May 16th, another new record—are providing governments with the means to buy off critics, for example with hefty welfare handouts. Perhaps it is because Bahrain is likely to be one of the first in the region to run out of oil that it is also one of the most forward in carrying out political and economic reforms. Bahrain has held open elections in which women can take part; as in Kuwait, Bahrain has a (partially-elected) parliament with limited powers. In recent months it has also seen several riots and protests over wages and high prices. If such pressures increase, in Bahrain, Kuwait or elsewhere, the demand for more democratic changes may rise, too.