Kuwait opposition urges vote boycott on eve of election

Opposition supporters and political activists will march in Kuwait on Friday to urge a voter boycott, one day ahead of a parliamentary election that looks unlikely to ease tensions in the U.S. ally and oil producer.
   
Campaigners and opposition politicians, who have already said they will not stand, called the rally to protest against a change in voting rules which they argue would skew the poll in favor of pro-government candidates.
   
The Gulf Arab state has held four parliamentary elections since 2006, after a series of assemblies collapsed due to a power struggle between elected lawmakers and a government that is appointed by a prime minister chosen by the emir.
   
Ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah used emergency powers in October to cut the number of votes per citizen to one from four, saying the change would fix a flawed system and preserve security and stability.
   
In the past, candidates called on supporters to cast additional ballots for their allies. Supporters of that system say such informal affiliations are crucial in a country where political parties are banned.
   
"I am conscious that there are those who have called for a boycott of the election," Information Minister Sheikh Mohammad al-Mubarak al-Sabah said late on Thursday, state news agency KUNA reported.
   
"I find this of great regret and I hope to the bottom of my heart that the 400,000-plus Kuwaitis who have the ability to cast their vote for their preferred candidate will exercise their democratic right to do so."
   
The opposition, a disparate collection of moderate Islamists, Salafis and populist politicians whose bloc won a majority in the last election in February, dominated parliament until it was dissolved after a June court ruling.
   
Protesters say they seek reform, not revolution in the mould of the Arab Spring revolts which toppled several leaders in the region last year.
   
The opposition has won the backing of youth groups who have already helped organize protests against the voting rule change. Previous demonstrations have drawn tens of thousands.


REUTERS