Lawmakers have taken the cudgel against yet another ‘law and order’ situation in the country — the wearing of pajamas in public.
In this regard, parliamentarian Majed Mousa Al-Mutairi has recently submitted a draft law for safeguarding law and order by proposing to ban wearing pajamas in public or face a fine of between KD 500 to KD 1,000.
[sg_popup id=”20831″ event=”inherit”][/sg_popup]Besides the wearing of pajamas in public, some of the other social behaviors and practices that have irked the lawmaker and caused him to call for a ban are: the use of abusive, vulgar or racist words in public; the wearing of clothes with images, portraits or remarks that are abusive to public order and morals; playing loud music that could disturb the public; the writing or drawing on walls in public places without prior approval of authorities; or the use of children and women in activities that pose a danger to them or scare them. The bill also bans taking pictures of others without their consent in order to make fun of them, besides not respecting queues in public places or for obtaining services.
Al-Mutairi called for his planned bill to be accorded priority and discussed by the concerned committees before being tabled in the upcoming session of Parliament that begins in October. However, the proposed bill cannot be debated in the National Assembly unless the legal and legislative committee says it is in line with the constitution — a difficult proposition given how personal freedom is enshrined in the Kuwaiti constitution.
Nevertheless, Al-Mutairi called for his planned bill to be accorded priority and discussed by the concerned committees before being tabled in the upcoming session of Parliament that begins in October.
Other bans proposed include: spitting in public places, throwing trash or cigarettes from cars and placing advertisement posters on the walls of private homes without seeking prior permission. The bill proposes a fine of between KD 500 and KD 1,000 for any of these violations.
The lawmaker said he submitted the draft law as he was concerned with protecting Kuwaiti values, morals and traditions, and also safeguarding public order, after he noticed that strange behaviors and practices have been on the rise in recent years.
