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American teacher stuck in Kuwait

A reader sent me the following email:

Dear Mark,
I am personally aware of a very sad story about an American teacher in Kuwait. The teacher, Katherine Phillips, is an Al-Bayan Bilingual School Middle School Deputy Principal. She is the victim of an influential parent who has effectively detained her in Kuwait. Her only crime was to suspend the influential parent’s son for fighting! This is a normal procedure but the parent threatened her and is carrying out his threat. Her full story can be found in International Schools Review site.

She is crying for help. It would be great if you mentioned it.

Regards,
bu ziyad

You can read her story by clicking [Here]

194 replies on “American teacher stuck in Kuwait”

we heard one side of the story. there could be alot of issues involved. if there is a case,and a trial, then maybe, and i say maybe, she is to stay until court decides.obviously, the parent turned to law to resolve this problem, and i dont think there is danger on her life as she claims.

Who he hell does this Marzouq guy think he is. Not even the ruling family do things like this. He should be taught a lesson. I’m glad she’s contacted Senators. This doesn’t do any good for our human rights image. Already were on the toplist of human right abuses. what a joke. Thank you Mr Marzouq for your silly revenge that may scar Kuwait’s image abroad.
Thank you. What an imbecile. What an embarassment to the Emir (Marzouq claimed that he was close friend with), his name being dragged into this shambles.

and by the way… that person doesn’t really need to say he knows who that lady mentioned. Because they are powerful enough without anyone.

If you know Kuwait… you should know that it is the other way around.
But anyways, almarzoog own third of kuwait. so good luck for that lady.

Ask yourself why Khorafi is the puppy of the ruling fam? It’s all political… Scratch my back, and i’ll scrath yours, kind of thing. Now his family worth billions. Don’t be so naive.
P.s Marzouq said he is emirs friend.. there you go , haha.

Ass-iz,
Marzouq doesnit even make it in the top few hundred of Forbes rich list, which, by the way lists alghanim (both of them), Khorafi,and others, so this “third” that you are claiming is a figment of your imagination.

umm… i think you just proved me right. if the ruling family was the absolute power, why would they need khrafi or anyone else? anyways, lets stop talking about this. no need for more banning or deportation =p
back to the teacher… i’m not saying whats happening is not bad, but what is going on is totally by the law. you have no idea how many kuwaitis are in the US jails right now simply because they didn’t know the laws of the US. same thing goes here. she did something the man thought is not okay, he sued. and thats why she is not allowed to travel. IF the embassy left the banning, then that means the embassy is interfering with our local laws. if the minister signed the ban lifting, that means the minister is not being fair and is treating that woman in a special way only cuz she’s american.
i doubt any man would get that mad and go that far for no reason. she probably pushed his button. and its funny how she’s hinting of what he might do to her “this summer”. i think he already did to her what he wanted to do… which is make her life hell.

faswa78@hotmail…
if you have a problem with how the laws are here in kuwait, then why don’t u just leave?
its the same all over the world by the way. if you get sued, a ban is placed against you so you can’t leave the country.

“Alot are pretty powerful in kuwait, mostly due to their affiliations to ruling family.”

actually no.
they are powerful because they most likely own the building that you live in. and the mall that you spend ur afternoons in. and the hotels that you party at.
and if you search for few minutes… i’m sure the company that you work in is probably owned by them too.
its not because of “the ruling family”. trust me the last thing the ruling family wants is to get their hands dirty over SILLY things like that.

I can’t believe what the father is doing. He is setting the worst example for his son. I mean, the boy was in a fight, and now heis probably thinking that he can get into any fight, and his father will “destroy” whatever teacher that may interfere!

Did she break a law? which one? total rubbish.
By the way, affraid of getting deported by whom? by mr. marzooq? dont think so. maybe the other ones. lol
However, no one said anything about Absolute power, its a balance of many parts, but no one is more powerful than the ruling family. It would be futile to even argue that.

Flippa X, yeah… and the next thing is his son getting in a fight and stabbing another kid.
and of course, his son will get away with it.

“Did she break a law? which one?”

Thats up to the ta7qeeq and court to decide. not me or you. besides… she already stated that detention is not allowed by the ministry of education. its been like that forever. she made it sound like its a new thing in her letter.

I think ur right [email protected], the teacher has been in my school for 6 years and she has responded to such a fight just like any other. She would refer to the handbook, and file a suspension to the boys involved in the fight. The problem is, she filed suspension on the wrong kid. It’s not wrong by her, but unfortunatley for her, the boy was mr. marzouq’s son.

ta7qeeq doesnt decide, its only the court.
But if you arrest someone, or dont allow them to travel, then there must be an a law that she must have aleggedly broken.
ANywayzz. it was aparently a law about not being allowed to illegally detain some one against their will or something… but hang on.. isnt this a school…isnt there something called DETENTION for bad pupils that fight or dont do homework or whatever. Even i’ve been detained for detention in school.
For god’s sake, if anyones the puportrator, its goota be Mr.marzooq

i had a bad experieance with ABS school , and i can tell you thoes american teachers deserve more, dont fuck with our children :p

“P.s. owning a mall doesn’t make you powerful than the RULING family. Does it?”

You’re just making a noise. you’re not trying to understand or reach anything.

So whatever 🙂

I on the other hand do think she’s in danger. If the guy can stop her from leaving the country imagine what other harm he might be capable of. The possibilities are just infinite.

kuwait is a contry of law , and i know this guy personally , he took it to the court and everything went fine, what iam saying try to hear both sides of the story before jumping to conclution of wasta and sopranos shit,even a member of the royal family is in jail for drug traficing, there are rules and if you dont respect them get the fudge out of kuwait

ohh iam an innocent american teacher, i cant do wrong against that big “tajir” i swear if any kuwaiti or an arab even did the same in america he will be sued لمن القراقر

That’s absurd. She should contact one of dem der parliament members, preferably a loud one. We’ll get an Istijwab on pay-per-view and she’ll be out of here in no time.

I hate those “influential” egomaniacs. “I’ll destroy you”? Pfffft…you’re just dust temporarily walking on dust, and you’ll be checking your “influence” at the grave when your time is up.

“Verily, WE have made all that is on the earth an ornament for it, that WE may try them as to which of them is the best in conduct. And WE shall destroy all that is thereon and make it a barren soil.” (Qur’an 18:7-8)

Wii… “whatever” ? Thought so!

You wanna se how powerfull the ruling family is? Imagine the same man..SH talal, that you are so proud that is in kuwaiti jail (allowed by amir to teach him lesson) doing this in the US.. what would happen?? Check the link and find out…
https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE0DD103AF936A15752C1A967958260&n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fSubjects%2fS%2fSentences%20%28Criminal%29
Yet he hardly did any time. He came back to kuwait to continue his illegal activities. lol.. should i go on??

Now thats power, in someone elses country, breaking law, then scott free!! Not picking on a bloody teacher.
Shouldnt SH.talal be in jail in the US still where he was sentenced for life imprisonment in 1991?
I wonder what would happen if that was Marzooq.. no doubt, he would still be there in jail.
🙂

Thanks Mono, I was waiting for the Quran quote. 🙂 took your time this time. lol

Honestly people, cant we all just get along!! 🙂
Cant everyone respect the others rights, no matter of race, religion, or citizenship??!?!!
Havent we learnt our lesson from whats happening on our borders (iraq).

sorry guys but i think americans have more wasta in kuwait then the rulling family thats the truth. if it was true the us embassy will have her out of kuwait in a blink

can you tell me if this story is any of the English papers [Arab Times/Kuwait Times] as i cannot find it online

Well, i think were still waiting for them to “blink”. The embassy already said that there was nothing that they could do. The US usually has a Tip_Toe foreign policy with friendly states , especially when highly dependant on their oil.

Rathen than jumping to conclusion , I would rather listen to the other side of the story.

We only read what the teacher written, but we’ve not heard from Al-Marzouq.

She might not find it fair, but if he sued and she’s in Kuwait, she can’t travel … common sense.. If it was in in the US, it will be intresting how they would react if it was done by any of us??

If she’s telling the truth, she should not worry about anything, but all that media mess, is hust telling me that she wants to fled asap. Besides that’s her story , maybe the Al-Marzouq’s son told his father another version of the story …

Let’s wait and see rather than spreading hatered just because of 1 letter with no proof.

I really feel sorry for her, it’s bad enough working away from her family and friend but the thought of her being stuck here during the summer not knowing her fate. Our prayers for her and hope she gets out of here safely.

sfsa78, I hope you DON’T know that Aziz is another name for allah aka god. The guy you called Ass-iz is actually called abdul aziz (slave of god). Also, what’s up with dissing alkhorafi family? First of all there are more of us than you think, the people you talked about and called “puppies” are the inheritants of Mohamed Abdulmohsen Alkhorafi which are less than 5% of us. Yes, Jassem has been behind Al Sabah family but that is no way how they becane rich. Check out forbes, Mohammed Abdulmohsen Alkhorafi made his money from Americana food co. and Alkhorafi contracting long before Jassem was even known. I’m not directly related to them nor am I defending them but what you’re saying isn’t 100% true.
I understand that this is a blog and you get all kinds of opinions but l suggest you become less offensive and use fact when making points.
Oh and about that guy that got life for drug smuggling, he was sent free? Really? I thought he was sentenced to be hung until death!

Anyway, shit happens. But in this case, This shouldn’t have gotten personal and I hope Kathrine makes it out of Kuwait asap and if your reading this Kathrine: There’s nothing to worry about, banning you from getting out of here is the worse he can do and I guarantee you that nothing will get “physical or nothing”. You will be OK, just hold on and try to make most of your stay here. I understand that all your friends are leaving for summer but hey, now you have a lot of fans and supporters thanks to people like Mark, Bu Ziyad and other bloggers. Wishing you all the best and I hope this doesn’t make you hate Kuwait, there is still some good left in us.

I don’t think the Al-Marzouq family are getting into all of this due to a school fight. I believe there is something missing in the letter that leads to the true nature of the court case (which automatically restricts travel).

1. If the US-Embassy is not interfering .. then there is definitely another issue involved. The US-Embassy would not ignore a citizen purely due to wasta.

2. If Mr. Marzouq is as hellbent on keeping her quiet and in Kuwait as the article states .. then the articles wouldn’t have appeared in newspapers.

I am not defending the Teacher or Mr.Marzouq .. just give both sides the benefit of the doubt.

I sympathize with the teacher 100%… just because you are rich and powerful doesn’t mean you should treat everyone like shit. Get the fuck over it, your kid is brat.

Get a hobby and let the teacher go home.

how can u justify detaining a principal for suspending a student? did she threaten him?beat him up?shes a prinipal..hes not the first or last student to be suspended..

and wats up with the need for people in this country to “prove” their power? get over it already

I am personally involved in this story and I know the details since the start in in March of 2006.

To make a long story short, three kids got into a fight and school policy has been enforced on them which is “In School Suspension”.

The school policy is approved by the M.o.Education, and the parents of all BBS students have signed on it.

The parents of the other two kids were appreciative of the corrective measures the school took to discipline thier kids but Mr. al Marzooq couldnt accept the punishment.

A complaint was filed in the police station against the Ms. Katherine, the police ivestigators came to inspect the room that the suspension took place in and found that it’s a corridor between the secertary’s office and Ms.Katherine’s office and dropped the case.

The whole issue surfaced again early June, with an order to detain ms. kathrine. How ? why ? and what exactly triggered the detainment order, it is still unknown, but what is known is that it’s pure vengenace and getting back at a person who was simply enforcing school policy.

The threats are all TRUE, he stated that he will not feel satisfied until she spends a day in jail or gets deported.

This is simply a case of personal vengeance, and pure excersize of power.

To give an example of the craziness, he dragged his 11 year old son to the police station to testify against Ms. Katherine !!!

I love how almost everyone here has taken one side of the story as fact without knowing all of the details. People please look deeper into this situation before casting your judgment. If in fact this Marzouq character is filing suit against the teacher would it not make sense for her not to be able to leave? I’m not saying what is happening here is right, but I’m not saying its wrong either. I won’t know if its right or wrong until I’ve heard both sides of the story. Oh and this whole issue of her fearing for her safety. Give me a fucking break. Its nothing more than a cheap tactic to garner sympathy from all those readers who are just eating this up.

There is something missing here !

I mean Americans rights in kuwait are WAY MORE POWERFULL than kuwities rights ! and kuwait has the best Law in the middle east ! so lets stop crying on the motional letter! ,and wait for the FULL story

BuBBa, being called ass-iz is better than slave.
2nd, if you read my link , Talal was sentenced in the US in 1991, life imprisonment in the United States. he went scott free.. why, oh why do i have to keep repeating myself, only when he was repeatedly warned here in kuwait to stop, thats when the amir sent him to prison(not the first alsabah to be sent for same reason). To think that they would carry out death sentence on him would be very naive of you. 3rd, it’s common knowledge about the Khorafi family. It would be expected that someone like you to differ. (by the way, i never cussed the khorafi, im explaining wha everybody knows and thinks in kuwait)

I don’t want to take sides on this one but I just want to make some points:

1. The US Embassy helped her out a few months ago when she was jailed. Why are they not helping her out now?? The US Embassy definitely can make some noise about this.

2. Why are both parties refusing to state what the “non-proper” conditions of the room was?

3. If Marzouq did have a problem with his son being suspended, why didn’t he take it up with the school and not just the VP?

I sense we don’t have the full story here.

What is being done to this teacher is CHEAP to say the least.
SHAME on you mr.marzooq.
I suggest she should counter sue him, for distress, and whats happening to her is the real form of detaining. wow, not being let to go home to family. What happend to innocent until proven guilty??

The case stinks of a corruption in the system, the interior minister changed his mind twice..what a joke.

I agree with some of you that some details are missing and we dont have the whole picture. It does seem rather far fetched to go to such an extreme. On the other hand it wouldnt surprise me one bit to know that it all actually did happen. I have heard of worse things happenning here.

Lets say for all practical purposes that it really did happen as we know it. Whats really sad is that if Ms Kathrine did actually do something good, she’s just got screwed over for it. What happens the next time when kids are fighting at school? Do u actually think that Ms Kathrine or any other teacher would want to get involved after seeing the trouble they could get into? Hell no!!

Just think….your kid brother…your sister…anyone of them could be involved in a fight and there wont be anyone willing to stop it because they fear the reprecussions. What if Mr Marzouks son is getting picked on by an elder boy. Im pretty sure he would love to have someone like Ms Kathrine there to help him out. But that aint gonna happen now…is it.

What a fucked world!

sfsa78:

First: Sorry for misunderstanding, I should of have read the whole story. My bad. But recently a guy from the royal family was sentenced to death because of selling drugs. He is in Jail as we speak. But that’s a different story. Our system is corrupt, I can’t agree more but it’s not that bad. There is some good left in us Kuwaitis.

Second: In islam, we are all slaves of god. He is our creator. I don’t know what you beleive in, but you appear to be a real ASS!

Obviously from what I read so far none of the participants really know this specific Al-Marzouq family. What example this parent is setting for his son is not much short of what his father Khalid set for him years ago when he robbed all his other brothers & sisters & his own mother from thier inheretence .He even advertised profanity against them in the papers accusing his own mother & sisters of adultery.So simply Mr.fawaz is not any different from his father khalid Al-Marzouq .they are like bags of coal they rub into you ,,,you get dirty,,,you rub into them,,,you get dirty !! so I hope this teachers situation is resolved fast so she can go home,,,no mater what the other side of the story is ,which I do not believe justifies her agony

listen up ppl, from wat i read i am really sorry for what she wrote in the site however, there is 2 sides of the story and we still dont know wats the other side is. Do i Feel sorry for her? yes i do but thats also a tactic to makes us feel sorry for her and stand by her side. Comon ppl kuwaiti families aint that evil. Open ur eyes there must be more in this situation that her Embassy couldn’t help her. Beleive me there is much more that you and i don’t know about so don’t feel pity for her yet. And may god do wats right in this situation and thanks.

ISR, International School Review, has already placed a travel/work advisory for Kuwait and is suggesting that Americans think twice before coming to Kuwait to work:
In response to the situation in Kuwait involving Katherine Phillips, Middle School Deputy Principal, Al-Bayan School, ISR is posting a travel/work advisory for Kuwait.

We encourage all teachers/administrators to contact their Kuwaiti Schools, calling for an immediate resolution of Katherine Phillips’ situation, one that will lift her travel ban and allow her to return home to her family.

We further encourage all teachers/administrators in Kuwaiti Schools to consider not returning to Kuwait or honoring their contracts in Kuwait until this situation has been resolved.

My sympathies to Ms. Kathrine, and I wish that her problem will be solved soon.

Yet there are some missing information, like on what bases is the accusement filed ? Mr. Marzouq can’t file an accusement at the police station just because his son was in detention, there should be another reason to file it, either if it was true or false the court will decide.

sfsa78 “What happend to innocent until proven guilty??”, well this is why she is held here, she can’t leave untill she is proven innocent, what if she leaves and proven to be guilty ? there should be some sort of punishment then, and she won’t be arround for it.

I’m not taking any side, and I do support the idea that power is misused in here by many many many people, ans I do beleive that corruption takes place in a large scale in Kuwait, and many are above the law, many do know that this exists and kid themselves by saying that it doesn’t exists in any form and fight fiercely to prove that none of this ever happens in Kuwait.

If Mr. Marzouq is upset by the ditention his son got for getting into a fight, then why did he wen’t after Ms. Kathrine only and not the whole school ? in which he could’ve by using his power shake the whole system rather than going after only one teacher.

I’m not stating that Ms. Kathrine is guilty in any way, but I’d like to see the other side of the story before judging, and once again Ms. Kathrine has my sympathy ans I wish her the best of luck.

Short of undertaking criminal activity, no one has the right to detain or limit the freedoms of a human activity for any reason, this is a matter that should be handled within the school, or at the highest level via the ministry of education, its stupid and redicioulus to take it to the polcie unless the teacher struck the kid and caused injury, or maybe insulted him badly, religious slurs etc…. other than that taking it to this level is backward retarded …….

I do agree with RO, what happens next will “teacher” or school management for that matter just sit back and watch children go at it each other…literally… b’cause they school authorities are going to think twice.. it doesn’t matter which nationality they are – Teachers everywhere in Kuwait are going to think twice. This is going to be interesting !!!!

Some of you are going into personal attacks. Any more of those will be deleted.

No one has heard the other side of the story yet but many of you have already made up your minds that what she is saying is all true.

Maybe she hit the kid, maybe she abused him in some way, we don’t know. I don’t think a suspension would make the father blow up like that, maybe an expulsion but not an in school suspension? There must be more to the story which she didn’t mention. Keep in mind she is trying to get support and sympathy from people so she isn’t going to say she did something wrong.

u know whats the irony of this…. everybody is talking about the guy from the marzouq family ..oh what he did is wrong .. oh how could he !! bla bla bla .. and as some of u said, its all over the english newspapers. but that bring the question, all of this attention is just becaause she’s american. if she was asian or even from another arab nationalty will it even be discussed .. isnt their movies are enough !! .. americans feels like they are the only humans in the world! .. they have feelings and shit. thousands are dying in different part of the word while we are talking about this american women .. how could they !! no haram .. many of you are talking about how bad is wasta .. but u never asked ur self that they actually planted the idea that their ppl are more imprtant than everybody in the world .. its working!! .. im sick of it .. they kill many ppl in the world but nobody says anything .. but if some american break a leg its all over the news ..
peace

Mark, i really dont care what she has to say… i sympathize with her slightly, bes detest mr marzouq for the following reasons… “im friends with the emir”… oo b3dain, whats your point… anyone can know the emir does that make u any better? i know mariah carey, am i special?

second thing, is the idea of unprofessionalism, and immaturity. This is stuff that is very evident, and i am commenting in not a personal attack sort of way. but a grow the hell up sort of way.

and the other idiot that wrote to ISR saying that this is the way kuwait treated us after all the military we provided… Heres an idea u stupid idiot, read the history… during the war (and before the war) america asked to place a base in kuwait, and kuwait denied… WE never wanted their help, and if u were to look at the footage, you will see george bush saying that it is upon their own descion they will protect kuwait. Something that costs us billions upon billions and billions of dinars every year.

dj fader, i do sympathize with the lady, but personally i dono the story. for all i know, maybe mr almarzouq is not involed. However dont bring this down to nationality, dont be that shallow… in the us, the two drunk kuwaiti girls that killed a american, was allowed to leave without serving a proper sentence. wise up

Someone Call CNN, they will love it. Imagine Kuwait being on the front of the World News for more human rights issues.

Love it….

sorry, i just have to add this in, first of all
****REMOVED BY ADMIN. NO PERSONAL ATTACKS****

bubba, stop stating incorrect facts, aziz is not the name of god. nor is it the name of the slave of god. AL-AZIZ is the name of god, as per one of the 99. And ABDULAZIZ is the slave of god. Get your facts str8

Adam, if it wasn’t for the Americans – we would be under occupation of Iraq – irrespective of how many billions we have to pay per year. Who do you think would have driven them out? The Hot Summer?

****REMOVED BY ADMIN. NO FUCKING PERSONAL ATTACKS!****

What? Other nationalities have feelings and emotions, not just Americans? I call shennanigans! Why, what next? Saying that womens have feelings and emotions, just like men?!?

INSANITY!

toni, wake up… you cant say what didnt happen…

im talking facts, ur talking ‘what-if’s’
why dont u do a little more research before you talk, you make a point and then defend it by trying the what-if attack…

yea what if saudi came to the rescue, what if saddam had a change of heart, what if uk came to the rescue, be logical not stupid.

mark, i feel its only fair to say that i feel aziz is siding with one end, because of neglection of some sort.. not personally an attack on my behalf towards him, more of plz dont kiss ass sort of comment

The other side needs to be known before any judgements can be made. I have personally seen examples of American/British/Western arrogance that would flip any Kuwaiti/Arab.

Honestly, I tried looking for signs of this being a hoax, cuz so many times, it is. I didn’t find any.

If you hear the story from Mr. al Marzouq, then you can all judge. but so far, you guys didnt.I suggest that all that are interested in this issue, should appear in court and sit and listen to what the real story is.It would be an intersting exercise. if anyone can get the court date, i will be the first to go. why dont all those human right activists who write, just go, and stand next to the person who is really in danger. it might be the kid. just imagine the trouma the poor child is going through now.he must be under alot of pressure.

“yea what if saudi came to the rescue, what if saddam had a change of heart, what if uk came to the rescue, be logical not stupid.”

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL…..

Let me catch my breath……..

LOLOLOLOLOLOL…..*vomits with laughter*

ooh i feel sad for her, but this is not something new in Kuwait, i can give you worst true stories and innocent people are crying for help!! but what is the use of revealing the truth?? neither i can help or you or shall i say no body!

sfsa78 :”being called ass-iz is better than slave” .. What the hell is wrong with you? “Dont you people respect races, citizenships, blah blah blah..” So why the fuck don’t u respect our names and religion? Do you have a problem with our names? or what the hell is wrong with u .. huh you sick fuck? u r talking about respect and all of this sh!t.. but u dont respect others.. “what a joke” “rubbish” “naive”.. faswa.. just chill.. if u dont want to agree with others .. just dont.. u dont need to be a smart-ass..and write down ur own opinions in a respectful manner.. this is a blog.. and people can write whatever the hell they want right? But their is some ethics and manners even in blogs.. so please dont just pollute the blog with ur disrespectful comments.. 🙂 and ass is better than a slave.. you got a brain made out of some ignorant sh!t..
PS: im writing in this langauge to show u how disrespectful Aziz and Bubba can be.. but these guys have some ethics and values.. and u dont 🙂 so a last msg to u faswa.. fuck yourself:)

I was reading all of the 96 or so comments and wondering: what If the teatcher was Egyptian or Indian or .. whatever third country nationality? would we care much about the story? ..I bet not, most likely we would never hear of it ..

The big shock is that the American Embassy isn’t doing a damn thing about it. It doesn’t surprise me that much, because it’s not like she’s being detained or beaten by the Kuwaiti authorities. Everything that’s happening is under Kuwaiti law, so there’s really nothing the US Embassy can do. There was an email from the Embassy that went out to all US citizens a few months ago saying, “If you’re arrested, we can’t get you out of jail, we can just make recommendations of what lawyer to get” or something to that effect.

Shnainu.. woooo, temper, temper.. take a chill pill.
nickolas..dickless….. aziz .. ass-iz.. whats the big fucking deal you mr big fat drama queen.
If you have a problem with what people write.. dont read.. internet is not governed by people like you.. thank god.
So, if you have an issue.. here’s a tissue. 🙁

I know that we haven’t heard the other side of the story but honestly i have to say that I believe what the lady is saying. For a start, why would she make this up? What does she have to gain? She is obviously detained in Kuwait and cannot leave and I’m sure she wouldn’t do that for fun!
Think about how many times we read in the newspapers about parents going to government schools and beating up the teacher and principals because they have disciplined their kids…. Also I think that if she had done something more serious as some people are suggesting then he would not have waited all this time and would do much more than imposing a travel ban! If she had so much as laid a finger on his kid he would have had her imprisoned I’m sure!
As for the American Embassy not helping her out they are quite right when they say they cannot interfere with the country’s laws and certainly don’t have the authority to lift a travel ban!

Ok…now this is funny…how many expats have been treated this way in Kuwait? Atleast thousands if not more?
But here, we are all getting excited by this one story just coz she’s an American? What if she was a Bangladeshi or and Egyptian? I’m sure this post would not have more than 3 comments and all of them would be mocking his/her country of residence or saying ‘ if you can’t stand the heat..stay out of the kitchen’. This is Kuwait!

Everyday expats are mistreated here by Kuwaiti…women are harassed on the roads…men are humiliated at their work place.. How many expats have been banned just coz they wanted to move to another employee? How many maids have died coz of rapes and daily humiliations? How many expats are jailed and tortured just coz they didn’t carry their civil ID when they to the next door baqala to buy milk?

The list can go on forever…we all know that a Kuwaiti with wasta can do anything but make a dead man alive…so there…I’m sorry, i feel for her..but, this is Kuwait 🙂

You have no rights here if you’re a non-Kuwaiti. Thank God she’s an American, therefore all this ruckus and crying foul…I’m just thinking about those hundreds of Asian workers who are suffering in jail as we speak.

Don’t forget that Mr.Marzooq should be arrested for wasting police time as well. Teacher arrested for suspending student.. what a joke.. by anybody’s standards.. even by our kuwaiti standards it’s embarassing.

i have to agree with “sleepingowl” .. This is kuwait … But there is still a good side. Kuwaiti’s Working hard in Business. Newly Educated young kuwaiti children, working hard to bring themselves up.

Im an Expat, but i still see hope in the new and younger generation of Kuwaitis

I am sorry to hear all this happening in Kuwait. There are plenty of incidents happening around here. So I say it is very regular thing nothing new. Situations which are even worse have happened and happening! What I would like to say is why do schools have suspension and if they have such a thing why is it for or what would that benefit out? Think about the good side and the bad side of it. If there was in disciplinary action taken against one of the student then there might be a cause for it. This happens else where around the globe. From such a silly thing which had been dragged to the public image of the country I feel so ashamed. No country can have a better image from the political level unless each individual, each family, society corrects themselves. If Kuwait has to be on its own stand it needs to have better future by cultivating brighter generation for tomorrow and that can only be done by good education and discipline. There are many things money can not by one big factor is respect and to get respect one has to earn it. Accept your right or wrong try to lead a righteous life. I know nothing can be changed overnight but if each one of us starts thinking about it. IT CAN!

Commenting Rules: Any comments that are personal attacks towards other users will be deleted. You are also not allowed to post with the name Mark or Nat since that might cause confusion. Finally, no advertising is allowed, you can’t advertise your products or websites here unless its beneficial to the topic thats being discussed.

Really?

Let’s make one thing clear. Back in school if one student did sth wrong we all got punished too. What’s new? We couldn’t do much about it back then. But never did our teachers use any form of violence against us mostly shouting at the top of their lungs, sometimes telling us to shut up, calling us liars, though that was about it as I remember.

Anyways, I would love to see the other side of the story and all I can say is that this teacher is making “a mountain out of molehill.” Just because she’s American doesn’t mean she can flout the law. She needs to wait for the court date like any other person would have done. If she was in danger she would be better of contacting the police to have some security guards stand next to her home or at least hire someone to protect her than asking help from the media. If this guy really wanted to do anything to her he would’ve done so a long long time ago …

parls you are absolutely right, the Americans still think they have some kind of special treatment here , I heard a story a while ago about a Kuwaiti girl who was killed after a traffic accident by an American women, and the lady who caused the accident left the country and the parents of the girl still running around in the courts trying to get who killed their daughter and escaped, no need for a bodyguard or anything to protect this teacher because as we know Kuwait is always a safe place

Aziz,

What law exactly? And if it was of such concern to him, why did he wait 15 months to act on it? Dress it up in whatever language you like, this is nothing other than petty, vituperative revenge.

The legal angle really interests me though. Please explain it in detail to me? I have worked in a really good school out here for sometime now and we operate a similar system. Most parents, Kuwaiti and expat alike, accept it. They accept that when their children do wrong, they are rightly and appropriately punished for it. A few whinge and threaten Ministry action but rarely do they carry it out.

Recently, one influential and respected Kuwaiti parent actually praised the school for taking action that would teach his son to respect the rights of others, to realise that he has to take responsibility for his own actions.

Finally, your attempt to parallel the detaining of a teacher who did her job with Kuwaitis who are detained in the US is laughable at best. At least in the US, laws are realtively transparent and just and are not corrupted by the perverse workings of ‘wasta’, an outdated and corrupt practice that is the shame of your nation.

Thankfully, mine is not a lonely voice. One only has to read the voices of sense in many of the local papers to realise that, gradually, Kuwait is waking up to this.

The story seems a bit vague and one sided. However, I do beleive that all the events too place, but it is impossible to point fingers to one person. I think it is a result of a chain of events triggered by Mr. Marzoug’s filing of a complaint and a corrupt malfunctioning legal and adminstrative environment that led to this situation. I seriously don’t think her life is in danger. No one is pulling any strings here. Many people fall victims to malfunctioning adminstrative agencies. The same thing happens in her country to foreigners entering the country, is it any specific persons fault?

I think there is more to this story then what Ms. Kathleen has to say, its kinda of weird for mr.marzooq to do all this for his 11 yr old sons sake, > Either they challenged him in some way or spoke to him in away thats not approving,
Cuz never in my school years, and ive been in all private schools in kuwait, has any parent done that.
I for one was slapped by an american teacher when i was in 10 grade, and i didnt do anything to deserve that, NOTHING was done to the teacher from the school..so daddy had to go himself and get even..and she deserved it so bad..and started talking about how spoiled we are here and how we have everything and all..which is fucking bullshit…iits like go say that to paris hilton and nichole richhie and all the spoiled OC brats in the US.

Kuwait really needs to exaime it social systems. It speaks volumes of backwardness of a society when a person (nationality irrelevent)can easily manipulate the law to exact revenge. Everyone know that this can be done fairly easily in Kuwait.

Additionally, the American Embassy is worthless! They are more interested in kissing ass than helping it’s citizens. Sadly, the standard treatment at every American embassy or consulate I’ve visited (more than 10)is that of annoyance that I would dare show up and request a service.
The work culture that has been institutionalized is one of apathy and disdain from employees to citizens and one of rampant careerism by diplomats. The’d all much rather have a happy hour than actually reprenet the American people.

Adam,

You are very ignorant. For a Kuwaiti to say what you have said about the Americans that participated in the liberation of your country is absurd. You claim “We” never wanted their help”. It is true taht certain members of the royal family were against American help in the early days of the invasion. They actually thought other Arabs would help. Cough cough. But, without a doubt Kuwait officially asked for help! That’s a fact. According to you, I suppose Baba Jaber in DC with Bush never happened, nor the so called “babies thrown out of the hospital” story Oh hurry and help please Uncle Sam speech before congress, it never happened either.

And then to advise others to read about it is comical. What trash version of revisionist history have you reading. Shame! Put up your sources to rad about or shut up.

By the way, since your claiming “we”, where were you during the war? I personally think you were still sucking your mothers tit at the time. Either that or you ran away, and have a damaged pysche as a result. Either way, your deluded. How soon we forget.

By the way, I was here during the war, and met numerous Kuwaitis in Saudi and Kuwait that asked not only asked for for help they were very thankful to receive US soldiers. The one thing that struck me about all of them at the time was graciousness. To bad the same can’t be said about you.

Very well said Winston!

It seems that some people are just not getting it!
Pearls, in all her apparent ‘wisdom’ states:
Just because she’s American doesn’t mean she can flout the law. She needs to wait for the court date like any other person would have done.

What on earth is she talking about? She has obviously had a travel ban slapped on her for revenge for disciplining his kid. He did it because he has the power to, that’s clear to everyone, but to say that she should wait for the court case like everyone else is pure stupidity!! Would you do that Pearls if you were wrongly accused? Sit and wait for the court date or would you try and raise people’s awareness to the injustice you believe you are experiencing?
I really feel that there is no compassion with some people but if it was their own situation they would feel so different.
I really hope that Pearls experiences the same thing out of kuwait and then maybe she’ll understand

Adam’s comment:

Heres an idea u stupid idiot, read the history… during the war (and before the war) america asked to place a base in kuwait, and kuwait denied… WE never wanted their help, and if u were to look at the footage, you will see george bush saying that it is upon their own descion they will protect kuwait. Something that costs us billions upon billions and billions of dinars every year.

This is an incredible piece of revisonism.

1.Margaret Thatcher was THE reason for Kuwait’s liberation. She goaded a reluctant Bush Snr. into taking action.
2. If you hadn’t accepted that help, you would be an Iraqi province now, Saddam would still be a West-sponsored state terrorist and, ironically, there would probably be more stability in the region because there would be a natural, local check on Iran.
3. That said, I am glad you were liberated, glad that the people of Kuwait were given their freedom and glad that Saddam has gone. Sometimes, the right thing is not the most politically expedient thing.
4. I am not one of those who spends his life wishing that Kuwait was a little more grateful fo that help, just one of those who wishes that it would sort itself out.

While I am not sure whether to believe the story or not, I have no problem believing it CAN be true.
I mean, is anyone really surprised that some Kuwaiti might take it upon himself to “prove” how powerful he/she is?
It happens everyday. the only reason it became an issue is that it happened to an American lady.

TO HELL WITH THE AMERICANS.. Lest we not forget that they have been planning to invade and control our oil fields since the Nixon era… check this out:..”The United States might consider it could not tolerate a situation in which the US and its allies were at the mercy of a small group of unreasonable countries. We believe the American preference would be for a rapid operation conducted by themselves to seize oilfields … The force required for the initial operation would be of the order of two brigades, one for Saudi operation, one for Kuwait and possibly a third for Abu Dhabi.

https://politics.guardian.co.uk/politicspast/story/0,9061,1114530,00.html

LONDON, Dec. 31 — The United States gave serious consideration to sending airborne troops to seize oil fields in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Abu Dhabi during the 1973 Arab oil embargo, according to a top-secret British intelligence memorandum released Wednesday night.

The document, titled “Middle East — Possible Use of Force by the United States,” says that if there were deteriorating conditions such as a breakdown of the cease-fire between Arab and Israeli forces following the October 1973 Middle East war or an intensification of the embargo, “we believe the American preference would be for a rapid operation conducted by themselves” to seize the oil fields.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A46321-2003Dec31&notFound=true

Infact the only reason why they didnt do it was because the British refused to go along with it.

loved reading all the conspiracy theories, dont know what the big deal is. Happens in kuwait all the time. If worst comes to worst, she might get deported.

————————————-
“Alot are pretty powerful in kuwait, mostly due to their affiliations to ruling family.”

“actually no.
they are powerful because they most likely own the building that you live in. and the mall that you spend ur afternoons in. and the hotels that you party at.
and if you search for few minutes… i’m sure the company that you work in is probably owned by them too.
its not because of “the ruling family”. trust me the last thing the ruling family wants is to get their hands dirty over SILLY things like that.”
———————————————
Actually, Sheikh Hamed Sabah Al-Ahmed owns most of the malls and businesses in Kuwait. He also owns the company “Fanadeg Al-Kuwait”. So he pretty much owns all of the hotels tha”t “you party at.
————————————————-
“sorry guys but i think americans have more wasta in kuwait then the rulling family thats the truth”
————————————————-
Uh.. Keep telling yourself that.
————————————————-
“First of all there are more of us than you think, the people you talked about and called “puppies” are the inheritants of Mohamed Abdulmohsen Alkhorafi which are less than 5% of us. Yes, Jassem has been behind Al Sabah family but that is no way how they becane rich. Check out forbes, Mohammed Abdulmohsen Alkhorafi made his money from Americana food co. and Alkhorafi contracting long before Jassem was even known. I’m not directly related to them nor am I defending them but what you’re saying isn’t 100% true.”
————————————————-
Mohammed Abdulmohsen AL-Kharafi was the best friend of Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem and Sheikh Sabah Al-Salem, and he pretty much made their money through them. He made his money first by his developing corporation, Kharafi National, as they built the entire Seif Palace. The Emir only gave him the 100 million kd contract because he was a close friend. The 100 million kd made billions. That still doesn’t make the Kharafi’s powerful as they just lost a case for not to buy or sell stocks in the Kuwait Stock Exchange for 6 years. This could of made them lose $12 billion in revenues. Who lifted the ban from the courts yesterday? It was His Highness the Emir. So there you go!
————————————————
“Oh and about that guy that got life for drug smuggling, he was sent free? Really? I thought he was sentenced to be hung until death!”
————————————————-
He is in the mental hospital… Go figure! He will never be HUNG! The guy has mental problems, so that is why His Highness punished him. Why would the emir kill his nephew?
————————————————

I don’t buy a thing this teacher is saying. The travel ban was made by the Ministry of Interior and not Mr. Al-Marzouq. Anyone who has a lawsuit/case agaist them has “Man3 Safer”, which basically means she is forbidden to travel. That is why the embassy couldn’t do anything. She thinks that because she is American, she should get better treatment, but this woman is in major trouble, and no father would sue someone because of an in-school suspension.

On a more measured note:

Are you seriously telling me that a ‘friend of the Emir’ could not get a Ministry official to do that for him? Words like smell wake coffee, up and spring to mind.

Taking a step back, why would a teacher in that position of responsibility open herself in this way unless she was telling the truth? If she isn’t, why hasn’t the Ministry issued some sort of statement defending its actions? If she is exaggerating or lying, then surely they would have rebutted her claims by now.

Although I agree that Kuwaiti kids can be a bit too bratty and hard to handle, but I don’t think that Ms. Katherine is telling the entire story. The fact that she says Mr. Fawaz picked on her rather than the school or the principle because she’s ” a single American lady” makes me think she’s a bit delusional and dramatic. There are MANY single American women. I’m sure the kids are being taught by some other single, American teacher, how come she was attacked!? The fact that the school and the principle weren’t “attacked” even though they were the ones with the higher authority and should therefore be liable is making me question her story.

There are MANY kids who have been suspended and a lot of their parents weren’t happy, but none of them has done anything even close to what happened in the school’s almost 30 year history perhaps even in other schools. Why now, why her!? Some middle school VICE principle!? Doesn’t all add up to me

And I seriously believe that Mr. Al-Marzouq could prove his “power” in a lot of other places rather than “destroying” some middle school principle.

Although I don’t know Ms. Katherine, but I knew some of BBS’s older principles. I must admit I remember one of them being very prejudice against a few boys (it’s always the boys she punish) – actually it was always the same boys she picked on. True sometimes they deserved a few detentions, but I remember clearly that she kept on punishing them even on the smallest things. I also remember their outraged parents. I honestly believed she was not fit to be a principle. She made sure those boys went through hell, suspended one or two, and made another few transfer to other schools, and trust me, 3ala ashya ma tiswa this degree on punishment.

That makes me wonder whether Ms. Katherine is the same. The fact that the embassy can’t help is questionable as well! I doubt the US emabssy would just keep their hands out of something like this – a human rights violation (if her story stands correct) while the US attacks us on human rights violations. Why wouldn’t they try their best to help her if all she did was her duty? Madree, the whole story is missing something – something big Ms. Katherine left out.

I just checked. Mr. Fawaz isn’t even that old. He is in his late 30’s or early 40’s. His father is a very rich man, Khaled Al-Marzouk who owns Souk Al Salmiya. Although he exagerated that he’s friends with His Highness the Emir, his father is a good friends with all of Sheikh Ahmed’s sons. Anyway, anyone who is rich in Kuwait and comes from a good family in Kuwait is “friends” with HRH the Emir.

@ don, I’m sure with a little effort we can 🙂 have we broken any records yet ? wasnt there a post about the shark of kuwait that had about 100+ comments ?

Winston

They are all apparently too frightened to be seen criticizing this guy. Have you noticed that not one of them actually admits that this could be happening when we read all the time about parents with kids in government schools actually physically harming the teacher that hasn’t given their child the correct grade or whatever. This guy has a bit more education than that and has far more power as is evident in all the people who have commented in his favor.

I really think we are flogging a dead horse here, these people will never admit the truth – cowardice has got the better of them.

Hessa:

We are not criticizing Al-Marzouk because we have only heard one side of the story .. There hasn’t been anything proven to be viewed as the truth. For all you know, this could have been an online hoax.

Still no one answers the 15 month gap question. That smacks of vindictiveness.

As for those of you looking to hit 200 posts. Get a life!

We are not answering the 15 month gap question because we don’t why its there to begin with. It could be anything, and this is legality of it catching up.

I was almost arrested in Michigan for a three year old speeding ticket (which was paid).

She is being held on man3 sifar, which is actually quite common (the same penalty for an unpaid telephone bill).

If she was inhumanely jailed and being harassed, I would understand the public outcry, otherwise its a somewhat petty case without all the facts.

K The Kuwaiti:

Online hoax?

You forget that our country is small and like most of us know of Mr Al Marzouq you have to remember that Bayan is a well known school and word gets around fast. I heard about this issue a while back from people that know her personally.
So as for your online hoax erm I don’t think so…. Were the two female Kuwaiti drunks in the US an online hoax too….?

I don’t know how people already made up their minds on thise issue..

We never even heard the other side, and already some people have decided that Al- Marzouq is the evil one here.

Obviously she’s in trouble and shes going to play the innocent, “single” individual in Kuwait, who has done nothing wrong yet she is fearing for her life!!

Watever…

She’s in a baaad situation, but the law shouldnt bend for her, she has a lawsuit againist her and thats they she can’t leave the country…nothing wrong about that, even a Kuwaiti who has a lawsuit againist him would be treated the same way. Shes just making a huge scene to get out of the country asap.

So, stop falling for these slizzy tricks…dont make up you mind and say all these false facts about people when you don’t even know who they are!

Wait til you hear the other side and then talk…she musta done something to get that herself that deep in the shithole. There are hundreds of other teachers, how come shes the only one how managed to get in this much trouble…makes me wonder what she REALLY did…she musta pulled out the “I’m an American” card on the wrong person.

Peace Out.

Bottom line! A grown-ass man did this! what a joke! kids in his son’s grade have more class than that! shame on him..for adding another disgusting story to Kuwaits history. Bravo!!!

OK… I’ve read the story, and I can tell that she seems right.
I cant believe how bad WASTA can be. I’ve never thought they can something like that to An American citizen. Maybe Egyptian Syrian or Indian but American I unbelievable.
Anyway, I know how effective and powerful the people of Kuwait and Kuwaiti media, specially bloggers, so I think all media and bloggers should somehow group together to support her.
We can make a campaign and Support Band or something like that.

I remember the newspapers saying that about 1/3 of the Kuwaitis had a travel ban against them for financial cases – are they all stuck in Kuwait for the summer, or did they get some kind of pass?

I think that’s part of the issue – the teachers go home for the summers. Every day she must remain here is a day of her vacation that she misses in her homeland – I imagine that is part of what makes her so emotional.

Does anyone know any FACTS about the original incident that would support Mr. Marzouk’s actions?

Somebody please ask Mr. Fawaz Marzouq or his attorney to come online and start posting in 248am. This has become a courtlike and we are the Grand Jury. A verdict will be handed over soon.

I think there is more to the story. First of all, I don’t know this Mr. Marzouq, but he is certainly not the Emir. Maybe he is very powerful in Kuwait, but not that powerful enough to scare the US embassy from interfering IF they believe that one of their citizens is being treated unfairly.

My best wishes to this teacher. Usually, in other countries, they make your life miserable by banning you from entering their countries, but in Kuwait they make you living hell by forcing you to stay here 🙂 The irony doesn’t escape me.

HOWEVER, I’m reluctant to judge anyone before I hear the other side of the story. I can feel her pain, being a single woman alone in a country like Kuwait where the law enforcement is vague, at best, and women are not exactly the equal of men in this country. HOWEVER, to make official complaint that she is in danger without any proof does make her sound irrational.

The best bet is to raise the awareness of her fellows back home, get international media attention and get herself the best lawyer in Kuwait if she can afford it and hope for fair trial. Regardless what really happened, she has a case against her. If she is the wronged party, she should do her best to prove it. Crying foul without any evidence is not the way to go.

On another point, why the hell did the ministry ban school detention? Mr. Marzouq or not, that’s really ridiculous. I detest anyone who put little brats on such high pedestals. Kids can be out of control, it’s a given. However, they are not supposed to run wild just because they are these cute little things. I was a kid too, and my dad whipped out his belt whenever I did something outrageously naughty. Did I hate him for that? Hell naw, I respect and admire my dad. When he regarded me mature enough to understand rules and stopped using physical punishment, just one glare is enough to put me in place.

Can we say the same thing about kids nowadays? Here in Kuwait, kids are jumping up and down in a car speeding at 120 km/h. They disrupt your peace at public places, even *gasp* harrass women on the street. There was an accident a couple of months ago, involving a 12-year old kid. He drove illegally and killed an old man. That’s what happen if kids think they can do whatever they want and their powerful parents will bail them out.

Katherine what have you done that the US embssy did not jump for the rescue !!!

The TRUE FULL story plz.

It is THE front page story of The Arab Times today. Substantial amounts of each letter have been printed.

Surely, those who have been named and linked in this case cannot be happy.

Bud: Due to a lot of Americans being general shitbags, the Embassy has officially stated (that there isn’t a damn thing they’ll do if you get arrested, other than recommend a lawyer.

If I was only to count the number of suspensions students recieved back in my school; students coming from “powerful and rich” families. No one ever objected to a deserved suspension let alone went after a teacher for the reasons she is stating. There is obviously another side to the story, wait for it to appear before making up your mind.

Teachers know the rules- no exclusions from class. She should have known the rules. I find it hard to believe that her only crime however was this-did she verbally insult the boy and / or hit him ? has anyone actually seen the case file ?

I don’t know the details anonymous but perhaps she suspended the children in a room unsupervised and that is not permitted under MOE guidelines and has not been for some time. We all have suspensions and detentions in our schools, but with a teacher supervising it is ok.

Micheal, your right about a lot of Americans being general shitbags. However, that doesn’t excuse the embassy from performing what it is mandated by US law to do, irregardless of whether or not the US citizen is a shitbag. Shitbags pay taxes too. If the citizen broke the law then they should go to jail, period. But that doesn’t excuse those wankers in Surra from doing what they are paid to do. If I had my way I’d march the lot of them out to the flagpole and fire their asses. The day to day operation of that embassy is a damn disgrace and a farce. People there are more worried about pouring Mr. Al-Marzouq a beer than in doing their job. And what happens in Baghdad is a national disgrace! Don’t even get me started on that!

Kuwaiti embassies jump to help it citizens, even its 3gads when they run into trouble. I’ve read and heard of countless cases of this. This is one area in which the US should take a lesson from Kuwait.

Hey, didnt know there was a law against suspending kids at school. Pretty kool, would have been useful to know back then.

Jaz- sorry you can be suspended…but it is illegal fr you to be suspended from class and left unsupervised in a separate rom all day to do work.!

Just to set the record straight….This child received in-school suspension last year and at that time it was not illegal. Also, the room is supervised by Katherine or one of the secretaries. Teachers are also constantly in and out of this room. Katherine did nothing wrong…she was only following school policy. I have had the pleasure to work with her for the past 3 years and have found her to be an excellent administrator. She is fair, honest and cares deeply about the students and their welfare.

If that is truly the way it is icook then the father has no case. Still waiting for more details to appear.

i know this teacher.. she has a strong personality and she’s pretty harsh.. she PROBABLY told the parent something to piss him off.. im not saying that what the parent did was right.. but he wouldnt have sued her if she had not said anything to get on his nerves.. i personally KNOW that if someone “threatens” her.. she will not simply stay quiet.. she WILL talk back.. she only stated what the parent said in the phone call but she did not state what she had said.. she’s not telling the whole story.. again im not implying that the fathers action was correct.. its still wrong

Lesson learned: if you want to slap a kuwaiti kid for being a pain in the a*s, do it at the end of your contract, with the car engine running outside, while you’re on your way to the airport.

I’m the US ambassador and I’d just like to say, ‘Happy-hour’ is from 4pm to 7pm every Wednesday.
God bless America.

Thank you for posting the plight of this educator on your site. As a teacher and middle level administrator in a Kuwaiti private biliingual school, the majority of my interactions with Kuwaiti students and parents have been extremely positive. I have learned from the warm attitudes of people throughout the Muslim world (Kuwaitis, Palestinians,Lebanese, Turks, Bahrainis, Jordanians, Egyptians, Moroccans, Omanis, Emiratees, etc.) that people on this side of the world (Arabia/N. Africa/Turkey) can much more easily separate a person from the country/government/culture into which that human was born, whereas many of my fellow Americans (mainly those who have not ever ventured abroad) still sadly think that almost all Muslims are terrorists.

Some people have white hearts, some people have dark hearts; some people are well educated and open minded, while other are subject to jumping to irrational conclusions. There are good and bad people in every country, every family, every community… Let this issue not be about nationality or religion or family names, but about facts and justice. The Kuwait Ministry of Education investigated this incident and did not find Katherine Phillips at fault. The fathers of two other boys involved in the fighting incident who were also suspended did not pursue measures against Ms. Phillips.

In my opinion, this incident is highly unusual and irrational and could happen in virtually ANY country in the world. I believe Ms. Phillips inadvertently offended Mr. Marzooq and this is why he chose to target her and not the school. I believe he had his right to an investigation when the Ministry of Education did it’s duty. I suppose he has the right to appeal, but I have a difficult time understanding how one day of an in-school suspension where a lunch was provided and the students were supervised and educated throughout the school day could harm a student to the extent it requires this extent of an investigation…But then again, I might be guilty of a very ethnocentric point of view, as in school suspensions are quite the norm in US schools at in the US.

So then I wonder from a Kuwaiti viewpoint, would a shouting at or beating from the father been more appropriate or more effective? How do Kuwaiti parents discipline their children? DO Kuwaiti parents discipline their children???????!!! Would a Palestinian or Egyptian or Kuwaiti or Lebanese or Australian or French teacher be undergoing the same detention and imminent legal proceedings?

All questions aside, I support Ms. Phillips and the many other dedicated expatriate teachers from abroad and from the Arabian region who are sincerely dedicated to the mission of educating Kuwaiti youth. And I thank the majority of Kuwaiti students and parents who have been a delight to work with and learn from. My thoughts and prayers are with Katherine and her family back home.

I see a lot of people saying that this woman must have done something negative to the kid in order to make Mr. Marzouq angry enough to keep her here. This is not true. Some people just simply have a mean streak in them and feel that if you have lowered the self esteem of their family members they are obligated to make you feel the same.

I’m not saying that this is true of all cases, but it could just be that Mr. Marzouq is a vindictive asshole. On the other hand, he could be a concerned parent whose son was unfairly mistreated, but to go to such lengths… It just seems too much, all things considered. I mean take for instance our parents. If we’re treated unfairly, they would take it up with the school, not blow it out of the water in this fashion.

I think the teacher is also exaggerating thinking that her life is in danger. What’s he going to do? Hire a band of ninjas to take her out while she’s at the Sultan Center shopping for broccoli? Come on. While he can make administrative life a pain in the ass for her, he wouldn’t be helping his case by harrassing her.

I read this story a bit back… I personally think it’s much further exaggerated than the truth be… there many subtler, smoother ways to handle a situation like this…

anyhow, everyone’s empathy here is touching… it really is… 🙂

Hi there,
I know Kay personally and it is sad that Al Bayan has slid to such a low. The Admin team are weak and like the families in Kuwait will not challenge the family that is doing this because of reprisals (not physical but others that would make life difficult).
I wish the American government would pressure other Western governments to do the same to Mr. Marzouk, put a travel ban on him from entering the US/Canada/Europe until this case is expedited. I’m certain this case would be resolved quickly once he realized he too is stuck in the sandbox known as Kuwait.

An important point that everyone is missing here is the fact that the person that is being ‘tried’ for this is this Katherine teacher. Based on what she’s saying, she followed school procedure. This Marzouk person should hold the school accountable not the teacher.

‘Katherine Phillips, the American teacher who had been banned from leaving the country after disciplining a Kuwaiti student and subsequently landing in a court case, has left Kuwait, according to information sent to the Arab Times Monday evening by an official of the International Schools Review (ISR). “I have received an e-mail from Katherine Phillips to say that she and her parents are out of the GCC,” said Barbara Spilchuk, who is the Online Teacher Advisor with ISR, in an e-mail to the Arab Times late Monday evening.’

My Dear Katherine sorry for your devasting plight but sorry to say you are *fu*ed..
I am an english teacher living in kuwait for over a year and i know full well about the corruption and wasta influence. It’s unfortunate though that you have no protection being single and without wasta influence of your own. Before i began teaching i was briefed by my husband ( an orthopedic surgeon here in kuwait)as to how these kuwaiti people are and how to handle them and for that reason i kept my nose clean and took things in stride. You have to keep in mind that these people are ignorant to our ways of the world, they are mental lack common sense and humanity ..and should be treated as such it’s the only way you can keep your sanity when you were raised with morals and values that you try to impliment but cannot.
This man who has caused you such despair did so knowingly and without loosing any sleep simply because he had the power to do so.. no doubt in my mind that you followed standard procedure and did your job . I know myself after teaching in two schools already that the kuwaitie chldren here have absolutely no discipline or structure in fact they are nothing short of uncivilized animals who can get away with anything .Don’t even try to put them in thier place or you will surely loose. What do you expect these children to be like when the parents hand over their kids to house maids to raise and they spend most of their lives runing wild because the parents are too damn lazy to do it themselves. These kuwaities can be bad bad bad and they are proud by their oil and money..which the prince of kuwait generously gives them just for being kuwaitie..They don’t work ,they don’t need to they walk around i thier white and black dress lazy as a cut buck expecting the foreigner to bend at thier knees ,most are uneducated and are jealous of us foriegners. …what else can you expect from a people whose ancestors rode camels and slept in the desert. ..now that they have money they buy brand new modern vechiles and ride them into the dirt just like they did the camels with no regard for money .Most don’t even possess a liscense for what ever thats worth as thier are no rules on the raod in kuwait. Ahh i could go on all day guess i’m more or less venting and thinking better you than me katherine but i truely am sorry for your troubles and if i were you i would post your story in an uncensored newspaper where you have a chance of the right person seeing it and may be able to help you. Exhaust every measure you can even if it means kissing ass ..if not there is a chnace you could be stuck here in kuwait forever..it’s just like that once they put a ban on you ther eis no way out….Pray honey..

big hugs

Christina [email protected]

God is good and the man responsible for hurting you will indeed get his “just Deserts”as he will rot in Hell …….

So much for the poor teacher trying to get everyones support to escape the Demon Kuwait…….Only a few days ago, there were urgent appeals to get her out of Kuwait because supposedly her physical safety was in danger. ISR was asking school personnel to resign their own positions, knowing full well that it might be hard for them to get new positions at this late date. This forum, and others, was full of diatribes against Kuwait and Kuwaitis.

And today, Ms. Phillips is complaining again, but this time because she can’t come back! And ISR, instead of asking why she made a fool of them, is asking people again to resign their jobs, so that she can go back to hers!..

I had the urge to respond to this article when it started. Many tried to question to be fair that we’re still in the dark about the real story,and
haven’t heard the other party (Kuwaiti)yet.

“sorry to say you are *fu*ed” “ “You have to keep in mind that these people are ignorant to our ways of the world, they are mental lack common sense and humanity”

“the kuwaitie chldren here have absolutely no discipline or structure in fact they are nothing short of uncivilized animals who can get away with anything”
Shame on you and your wordings.

Yes the Kuwaitis are arrogant and they don’t have such fairness and many things, but I have seen another side of them too because I knew how to respect my self and keep my arrogance and dignity too. I haven’t seen any differences when it comes to live in the richest places in America, Europe or Arabic countries. Rich people all behave the same mostly. Their money speaks before their ethics NOT to mention the late story of Paris Hilton. So, in general No difference of rudeness of any nationality with their wealth. I hardly found a western person coming to the Gulf area for the passion of the profession. Tax free salary, roundtrip tickets, furnished housing. What about the below the standard teaching by saying these children are dumb or slow learner, and fooling the parents by tutoring their children (5-15 KD an hour) to make another undercover salary to avoid taxes. By the way, getting free dinner or gifts. Let us not forget that. Christina, about time to re-think about the truth!

I’m not going to be attacking you as much ASKING you. Are you really qualified English teacher? IF, yes. I feel so bad for the school who is hiring you. May be you are getting that job through wastah too, because of your husband position! ! !? Good English teacher won’t write that many mistakes and bad wording. Stupid mistakes such as: their, children, their, and more of your wordings lack the ethics of teaching). I‘m not majored in English but teaching and administration was my job in Kuwait. Don’t try to defend your self to my answer. What compelled me to answer your response because of my Arabic heritage and years of work in Kuwait. You need to unlock your horizon to learn about the world. You said in your notes:

“It’s unfortunate though that you have no protection being single”.

I lived 16 years in Kuwait as single and not a person tried to attack me or intimidate me,,, in fact I used to be amazed being nice and witty and never dated a Kuwaiti, all of the sudden a western teacher in less than a month dressed with gold gifts? ? Beside, I took some western teachers to the police station to apologize for revoking the law by drinking or driving violations to be removed, because some used to come with fake driver license because their own original was revoked from their own county. I only blame the Kuwaiti government that they don’t run background check before hiring them to teach their children. I witnessed also some who worked as spies for another country and carry 2 passports. I’m trying my best not to turn this issue into politic. BUT, If you are British or American, then look into your own leaders whom chosen by the people with their arrogance and the Yale graduate who can’t put two sentences together.

So, wake up and stop being ignorant because one American teacher got banned for some reason we are still don’t know. For me reading that she was in Kuwait for 6 years, it gives me the doubts if she has been a mistress to some and there is a child and the father wants the custody? I have the right to assume all stories till we hear the truth which I don’t care for it, I have seen enough from the western thinking that they are above every one. I’m defending the truth here and as proud Arab national looking into our history that contributed to all fields of education.

“what else can you expect from a people whose ancestors rode camels and slept in the desert”

What you expect of United States of many people on drugs, molesters, abuser, foster homes, lack of education, go to colleges and don’t know how to read, adding to the FDA, FCC, Corrupt of the senators or house of the representative of lies and sexual affairs…etc. Please stop insulting a tiny nation and see who is the jealous one ? Be smart and study the first transportation of mankind.

“These kuwaities can be bad bad bad”

What are you doing in Kuwait if they are that bad. Your husband can find very good job in his profession or may be he can’t as doctors have to pay a lot of insurance to practice in US today.

I wish I can write my stories of the ignorance of the American. I wish also for the Kuwaiti to wake up and stop treating westernized people with high respect for their greediness.
Very soon and eventually Ms. Philips will write a book and sell her story as every one else.

“God is good and the man responsible for hurting you will indeed get his “just Deserts”as he will rot in Hell …….”

Are you acting on behalf of God too? Good teachers have passion to forgive NOT curse. Let GOD be the judge. You are a disappointment to the field.

An English-speaking teacher criticizing Kuwait (or, more appropriately, nonsensically bashing in this case- Jim/Christina) is expected to use proper, coherent English.

I’m a BBS student, that teacher was not very friendly, I think she had it comming sooner or later. Some Americans assume that because they’ve been teaching in Kuwait for a number or years, they’re better/more powerful than everyone else. Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutley.

By the way, if any physics tutors happen to be reading this, I need one.. urgently.

It is better having Western educated Kuwaitis or Arab American teachers to teach in Kuwait as they can generally be expected to have a better handle on disciplining truant local kids than say, some white expat teacher from the American Mid-west.
Further make no mistake, Kuwait isn’t exactly the most favoured destination for overseas contract teachers from the West. In no particular order – Oman, Bahrain, Dubai / Abu Dhabi always have been,

It is a sad story to hear BUT, what if a kuwaiti teacher in the US held a child in school with out telling his or her parents what would the police say, she did not listen to the parent, so as if she was in the STATES she must be held responsible. becouse if a kuwaiti commit anything in the US he or she will not be treated diff. so why should an American be treated diff. DO YOU GET WHAT I’M SAYING.

What ever happened to Katherine Phillips? The teacher stuck in Kuwait. I would like to know when you left there. I would like to share a story with you.

Thanks, Deak.

I’m an attorney in the US, and I can tell you that there is no restriction on travel due to a civil lawsuit. You can someone for a billion trillion dollars, but you can’t go to the US Government and demand that they hold the person’s passport. The only time the court can put a travel restriction on someone is when the person is charged with criminal offense. Even if you are charged with a criminal offense though, typically it has to be something serious like a felony before the court would confiscate your passport.

MY SON IS ALSO STUCK THERE THEY GAVE HIM 15 YRS I NEED HELP IF ANYONE KNOWS ANYTHING THAT CAN HELP ME GET HIM OUT PLEASE LET ME KNOW

This is a real shame. I know this man he was my boss and everyday we and my colleague always felt afraid every time he was around in the office because he really is a monster.

Actually when we saw this thread while working with him he was asking all of us to find who is behind this blog so we can take down this negative news against him.

I was a student at that school until a year before Katherine‘s case (I still refer to her as Ms. Katherine in my head, ha). I know this happened over a decade ago, but something about that time still seems so eerie to me. I was quite the troublemaker in junior high and ended up multiple times in Katherine‘s office for that dreadful detention/suspension. She was hard as a rock all right. Harsh demeanor (being suspended felt like prison sentencing), easily agitated from snarky commentary, and can be awfully loud and yelly when pushed to the limit. To be fair I wasn‘t being very helpful in my situation either so I don‘t want to overlook some of the nicer parts of my middle school VP. I hated that school, not academically, but its environment. Parents pay large figures to get their kids top notch education in that shithole, I mean middle school and high school combined would total around 100 k (in bucks). In turn you get the sadistic, obnoxious, painfully spoiled “children of the future”. I don’t blame her for losing her cool once too often, in my case I was just talking back to teachers too much and not really instigating fights or anything like that. It’s sad to see how her attitude possibly lead to that clusterf—k of a situation. Towards the end of my stint at that school (I was eventually transferred aka expelled for being a nuisance), I recall seeing a slightly more sympathetic side of her. In hindsight I think she was genuinely keen on providing pupils the direction they needed if it only wasn’t for the ass backward f—ktwit kids from rich a—hole parents of BBS.

I wonder what she’s doing now. Me being told “go to Ms. Katherine’s office” used to send shivers down my spine, but I guess she got that feeling back a year after. Karma? Lol

Still undeserved and definitely shady. All that fuss for an in school suspension? I had an out of school suspension once thanks to her and all my dad did was confiscate my computer.

Basically, screw BBS, and screw Kuwait. We all learn from our mistakes, just not your regular Kuwaiti kid.

Ps: I got insider stuff when it comes to private education in Kuwait. Any questions and I’ll be glad to answer.

Hello AKay. I just read your recent comments regarding an inside track into the Kuwaiti private school system. I am a recent arrival to the country and finding it hard to get proper feedback on the school quality and options available. Would be happy to talk to you anytime so let me know.

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