STAFF REPORT
Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in Kuwait, Ambassador of Senegal, Abdelahed Mbaki has 40 years of diplomatic experience, 33 years of them in Kuwait as ambassador of his country here, and has for the last 23 years been dean of the diplomatic corps. He was one of the last ambassadors to leave Kuwait during the invasion period in 1990, and the first to return after liberation in March 1991 when the oil-well fires were still burning.
Ambassador Mbaki was able to form friendships between different segments of people and residents in Kuwait, and he has many wonderful memories of his time in Kuwait. He was not only a good friend and colleague of the heads of diplomatic missions, but also extended these relations to all journalists, supporting them in their work.
The Times Kuwait met with the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps prior to his departure from the country, following the end of his tenure in Kuwait and his decision to retire from diplomatic work.
He began by thanking us for giving him the opportunity to speak to the Kuwaiti people and the ruling family on the occasion of the end of his duties as Senegalese ambassador to Kuwait, which began in 1988. “Before arriving here I was an advisor at the Senegalese embassy in Jeddah and then the general consul in Jeddah, before moving to Riyadh to open my country’s embassy there. In 1988, the Senegalese President Abdou Diouf appointed me as the Ambassador of the Republic of Senegal to Kuwait.
“My first meeting with a Kuwaiti official was with the late Amir H H Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad, who was Minister of Foreign Affairs at the time. I presented to His Highness a copy of the credentials, and then I had the honor to meet His Highness the late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad to present my credentials as the ambassador of my country to Kuwait. I was a referred ambassador to Bahrain and Jordan and then to Lebanon and South Yemen before the union as a non-resident ambassador.”
Speaking about his long tenure as Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in Kuwait, the ambassador said, “I took over the deanship of the diplomatic corps 23 years ago, and this task in Kuwait was not difficult. I worked with the best ambassadors and developed friendship, fellowship and cooperation with them. At first, the number of embassies in Kuwait was about 60, but when H H Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammed took over as prime minister, many embassies were opened until their number almost doubled.
This made the mission of deanship much greater, as I used to meet with ambassadors once or twice a week during all national occasions for each country, or in Kuwaiti public and private occasions. But I never felt tired with the mission of the Deanship because I received cooperation from all colleagues and from all officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the past three decades. In my personal opinion, diplomatic work in Kuwait is better than in many countries because it is easy to communicate with all officials.”
Recollecting on his experience following the invasion and subsequent liberation of the country in 1991, the dean narrated: “I was one of the last ambassadors to leave Kuwait, as I left it on 24 October, 1990. On the day of my departure, we were only about six ambassadors in Kuwait, including the British, American, Egyptian, Omani and French. As for the rest of the ambassadors, they left before the deadline set by Iraq for all ambassadors to leave before 14 August.
The ambassador to the Iraqi embassy after the occupation asked everyone to leave before this date, and whoever stays after this date will not have immunity. I spoke to the Senegalese president at the time and he told me to stay in Kuwait as long as possible, and on 22 October a delegation from our embassy in Baghdad came to me and asked me to leave. After the Iraqi authorities’ decision to deport the diplomats, President Diouf asked us to evacuate all the Senegalese community from Kuwait, so we addressed our embassy in Baghdad and they sent us money, so we rented buses to transport our community and some members of the neighboring countries’ communities.
“I returned to Kuwait, as I remember, between March 10-12, 1991. Four days after the liberation of Kuwait, there was a meeting of the Senegalese cabinet, and the first decree issued by President Abdou Diouf was the return of the ambassador to Kuwait, so I left two days later for Paris and from there to Riyadh and stayed in Riyadh for two days until a plane to Kuwait was available.
That period was very difficult as black smoke covered the skies of Kuwait due to the oil well fires, and the landing of the plane was very difficult and dangerous at the same time, but we landed safely and the leader of the Senegalese forces participating in the liberation of Kuwait, numbering 500 commandos, accompanied me. Some of them were to protect the embassy, but I stayed at the hotel for a month and a half until we readied the embassy, which had been looted.
“When His Highness the late Amir Sheikh Jaber returned to Kuwait, I was in Kuwait, and fortunately, I was the first ambassador to receive His Highness in the Diwan of Al-Babtain. He remembered the visit of President Abdo Diouf to His Highness in Taif during the invasion period, and His Highness received me in the presence of the late Minister of Education Anwar Al-Nouri, and His Highness said on that day that Senegalese companies should participate in the reconstruction of Kuwait, with the result that a Senegalese company built 12 schools in the Jahra area. His Highness also ordered to bring technicians from Senegal to work in Kuwait. At that time, about 250 Senegalese technicians attended to work in the General Fire Department and stayed in Kuwait for about four years and then returned to Senegal.”
On his view about the development of Kuwait from the period after the liberation, Ambassador Mbaki remarked, “The invasion caused a lot of destruction in buildings, facilities and lives of people. Following liberation, Kuwait and its leadership restored Kuwait to what it was before the invasion, but it was no easy task as the country faced many challenges, including the drop in oil prices and the problems that occurred in its neighboring countries, such as the war in Iraq and after that from what was called the Arab Spring.
Overcoming all these challenges successfully was due to the country’s balanced and wise policies. His Highness the late Amir Sheikh Sabah played a major role in settling disputes and facilitating tasks in many countries. Kuwait hosted many international conferences, which culminated in the UN honoring His Highness as a leader of humanitarian work.
The ambassador grew emotional when describing his relations with Kuwait and its people. “ I do not think that there are words to describe my relations with all of the sons of this good land. I have known elders who considered me their son and younger citizens who considered me as a brother. I have always received love and respect from everyone here, including from residents in this country.
On his relations with the media, the ambassador stated: “I had a strong relationship with all media in Kuwait and its representatives, and it is still very strong. I never differentiated between newspapers; everyone is my friend, even the photographers. Here I must refer to my friend, who I consider the dean of photojournalists in Kuwait, Amo Amin, who was with me during this long period of my work in Kuwait and did not miss any occasion I attended.”
Speaking on his retirement plans, the dean said, “After 40 years of diplomatic work, it is time to rest. It is true that my family has always been with me, but I want to discover the world. I have not traveled on any special vacation during the past forty years except to Senegal, Kuwait and the countries I was referred to as ambassador.
However, I will miss everything in this wonderful country, its offices, its social events, its farms, its chalets, its democratic atmosphere, its unique people above all, and the Kuwaiti newspapers, which we consider as diplomats, are the best way to obtain confirmed and correct information, in addition to all kinds of Kuwaiti food and sweets.
Revealing who the next dean of diplomatic corps would be, Ambassador Mbaki said: “He was supposed to be the Ambassador of Botswana, but he to is leaving in a week, and after him the Ambassador of Djibouti, but he is also traveling, so the deanship will go to the Ambassador of Tajikistan, Dr. Zbidullah Zabidov, according to seniority, and then the Palestinian Ambassador, Rami Tahboub.
Also, my replacement at our embassy will be my colleague and incumbent Ambassador of Senegal to Morocco, Ibrahim Khalil El-Sik. He was previously the Deputy Secretary-General and Minister of Foreign Affairs, and he is the best representative of my country in Kuwait.
In his parting words to Kuwait, Ambassador Mbaki said: “My message to the Kuwaiti people is that Kuwait will always be in my heart, and I wish Kuwait, its people and residents security, stability and prosperity, and I wish them all to put Kuwait and its interest in mind, for it is what will remain even after all of us leave. I also hope to return to Kuwait soon, visiting my friends when this pandemic is over.”