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Kuwait Grants Women Right To Vote.

Last week, the rights of Kuwaiti women were dealt a significant blow when the all-male parliament stalled a vote to allow women to vote and run for office in that country's upcoming elections.

Now, however, Kuwaiti women's suffrage is a reality, after the parliament voted 35-23 in favor of the extension of rights.

This move was likely to happen sometime before 2007, and because it did not happen last week, women will not be able to vote in this year's election. Now, only one country in the region continues to deny women such basic political rights (via Captain's Quarters):

Women can now vote in all Middle Eastern nations where elections are held except Saudi Arabia. The Persian Gulf nations of Bahrain, Qatar and Oman all have held their first elections in recent years and have allowed women to cast ballots.

Kuwait's Islamists were none too happy about the move:

Nonetheless, this is great news for the future of Kuwaiti democracy, as well as the march of freedom around the world. Last week, it was one step forward, two steps backward. Today, Kuwait has made up that lost ground and then some, but it still has much to go in its transition to full and fair democracy.

Posted by Will Franklin · 16 May 2005 11:41 PM

Comments

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at May 17, 2005 06:18 AM