Kuwait Law: Just 10 days for traveling on a forged passport?

I have no idea who the “fashionista” is, actually while we are at it, I have no idea what a fashionista is. But, I was inspired by Mark’s post and a few of the comments to write about this.

Hang on, just 10 days for traveling on a forged passport? Am I missing something here?

Yeah you’re missing quite a bit, you’re missing the legal system!! Let’s get a few things straight:

– She didn’t forge a passport she used another persons passport, forging a passport is her printing or changing a name on a passport

– 10 days is not her sentence. She is being held for 10 days “detained” and at this stage, it’s likely there is a investigation by the public prosecution. In other words she is just being held so they can investigate.

The next step would be for the prosecution to start at court where a judge will look into the facts presented by the public prosecutor. We don’t have a jury system in Kuwait, instead we have a “public prosecutor”. If you have been in a car accident in Kuwait, and you were taken to the nearest police station for an investigation, remember the guy you had to talk to (and I am going to stereotype)? The guy sitting inside an office, with the real nice dishdasha, stale cigarettes, Arabic coffee and an attitude, yep it is that guy. So in conclusion, those accused of crimes are usually held for an investigation and then taken to court until they are proven guilty.

As for the reader that commented:

Another Kuwaiti who thinks they are above the rules for the rest of us. problem is, Kuwait itself teaches that lesson

I will have to openly disagree with you… Take a stroll down the court rooms and see how many Kuwaitis are being prosecuted. The law is there, the foundations of the law in Kuwait are there, we have a competent and fair judicial system, a democratic parliament and our systems are better than anywhere else in the Middle East!

What went wrong? I know there’s a lot of idiots in Kuwait that think they are above the law, but trust me and I say this from experience, they aren’t just Kuwaitis, they come from all walks of life (except Israel) and the authorities are doing all they can to prevent this. But what really went wrong? I will tell you. What went wrong is that we allow people to say comments such as “Kuwait teaches you not to follow the law” when it doesn’t! Don’t believe everything you read in the media. If anything I should be saying that, I receive 20-30 emails a day from readers about legal issues. But I don’t say that! Cause I believe in the system. I just believe that we need to change our attitudes. Change the way we perceive things and we shouldn’t allow people to say such comments.

P.S. She’s looking at a fine or/and up to 7 years jail, as mentioned in the Kuwait Penal Law!

Feel free to email me on [email protected] with any legal questions. I do not have the capacity to answer everyone for free (but I try), and I am happy to announce that I am currently working with a great team and therefore we are able to reply back to all emails with a reasonable time frame.

Post by Fajer Ahmed – Legal Counsel
The legal opinions expressed in this post are those of the author Fajer. Opinions expressed by Mark or any other writer on mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com are those of the individual’s and in no way reflect Fajer’s opinion.