US embassy cable - 05KUWAIT1517

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 001517 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/ARPI, G/TIP AND DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/13/2015 
TAGS: PHUM, PREL, PGOV, PTER, ELAB, KU 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR ENCOURAGES GOK TO ENFORCE UNDERAGE 
CAMEL JOCKEY BAN, PROTECT MAIDS; ISLAMIC CHARITY DONATION 
BOXES REMOVED 
 
REF: KUWAIT 806 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1. (C) Summary: The Ambassador urged the Minister of Social 
Affairs and Labor Faisal Hajji Boukhadour to enforce a ban on 
the employment of underage camel jockeys and extend labor law 
coverage to domestic help. The Minister explained that the 
GOK was taking steps to ameliorate these problems but agreed 
to "find a better solution." He also explained that the 
Kuwaitization process, replacing foreign workers with 
Kuwaitis in the private sector, is not reaching the 
Ministry's targets. As for the removal of Islamic charity 
donation boxes, the Minister reported that 87 kiosks have 
been taken off Kuwait's streets. End summary. 
 
Combating Underage Camel Jockeys 
-------------------------------- 
 
2. (C) During an April 13 call on Minister of Social Affairs 
and Labor Faisal Hajji Boukhadour, the Ambassador, in a 
discussion on labor issues, encouraged the GOK to enforce a 
ban on underage camel jockeys and extend labor law coverage 
to domestic help. Also in attendance were Adnan A. E. 
Al-Omar, Assistant Undersecretary for Social Development in 
the Ministry, Naser Ahmed Naser Al-Ammar, Director of the 
Department of Charity Societies and Philanthropic 
Organizations in the Ministry and poloff. The Ambassador told 
the Minister that a poloff attended a camel race in February 
and witnessed young children atop the animals as they 
galloped around the track, proof that the ban is being 
ignored. (Note: The Ministry sponsored a March 2004 law 
requiring jockeys to be at least 18 years of age and more 
than 45 kilograms in weight. With parental consent, however, 
these minimums can be waived.) Should the GOK not address 
underage jockeys, the Ambassador cautioned, the issue could 
cause bilateral problems, undesired by both sides. 
 
3. (C) The Minister answered that "we are putting all our 
efforts to control" the problem. He added that the Public 
Authority for Youth and Sports is also helping to reduce the 
number of underage jockeys and claimed that the situation is 
"much better than before but not at the level we want." 
Al-Omar said that opponents of age controls argue that using 
young jockeys is a matter of heritage and culture. According 
to the Minister, some of the children are the camel owners' 
sons. The Minister acknowledged that both Qatar and the UAE 
have agreed to start using robots in place of children later 
this year. He concluded by saying, "I promise to look into 
this to find a better solution." 
 
Protections for Domestic Maids 
------------------------------ 
 
4. (C) The Ambassador also inquired about plans to improve 
protections for domestic help, who come primarily from East 
and South Asia to work as maids, cooks, drivers or 
groundskeepers. He said that the U.S. does not detect enough 
progress on this issue over the past year. (Note: Under 
Kuwaiti labor law, domestic help are not afforded the same 
protections as unskilled foreign laborers working outside of 
the home.) The Minister acknowledged that "we do need a law" 
for maids. He added that most employers have good relations 
with their maids, but some, the "few and rare," do not. The 
Minister lamented that the maid issue appears in the Human 
Rights Report, which "makes Kuwait look bad." 
 
Kuwaitization 
------------- 
 
5. (C) According to the Minister, Kuwaitization, the process 
of employing Kuwaitis in positions currently held by 
expatriate workers in an attempt to reduce dependency on 
foreign labor, is not progressing to the Ministry's liking. 
The Ministry would like to increase the number of Kuwaitis in 
the private sector, but salaries for low- to mid-level 
positions lag behind those for the public sector. Even with a 
change to the labor law, requiring the GOK to pay private 
sector Kuwaiti employees a supplement of 120-200KD ($415-692) 
per month, the number of Kuwaitis transitioning from the 
public sector is below target. The Minister reported that in 
the banking sector, for example, half of the employees are 
Kuwaiti citizens as compared to 39% two years ago. Meanwhile, 
the Minister added, MPs want to increase public sector wages, 
which would undermine further the Ministry's goals. 
 
Removal of Islamic Charity Kiosks 
--------------------------------- 
 
6. (C) Eighty-seven Islamic charity kiosks, placed on Kuwaiti 
streets to collect donations from passers-by, have been 
removed by the GOK, according to the Minister who labeled 
this revenue generation method a "place of leakage" in terms 
of accountability and tracking. Initially, he said, the 
Ministry faced resistance from some MPs and the Ministry of 
Information. Once the Council of Ministers lent its support 
to the kiosk removal campaign, however, opposition subsided 
and the program began in earnest. The Minister provided the 
Ambassador with a working paper from the February 
"International Conference for Fighting Terrorism" in Riyadh, 
which he claimed would answer any questions the U.S. may have 
regarding Kuwait's charity box removal. A visiting team from 
the Treasury Department is scheduled to meet with Al-Omar in 
the coming days. 
 
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LEBARON