Homeless Kuwaiti Citizen

Here's a different kind of story for everyone. For all of those people who think all Kuwaiti citizens are rich and have an oil well in their backyard should have a different opinion after reading the story below. Not everyone drives a Porsche and carries a Louis Vuitton purse, most struggle to make a car payment or buy things they need for their families.

 

 

Top Left - The son and daughter, bottom left Abu Ghazi’s wife. Reporters talking to Abu Ghazi

Kuwaiti living in Salmiya garden Lankan wife, kids in home country

 

KUWAIT CITY, Dec 29: A 67-year-old Kuwaiti man, nicknamed Abu-Ghazi, is homeless and lives in the open at Al-Khattabi gardens in Salmiya, reports Al-Rai daily.

Abu Ghazi narrated part of his story and sufferings to Al-Rai daily and said he led a good life before the Iraqi invasion when he was trading in vegetables and fruits and had a good house in Rumaithiya.

He married a Sri Lankan woman in 1986 and has a 20-year old daughter named Lulua, and a son named Ghazi who is also 17 years old.

Abu Ghazi said he experienced financial troubles and sold the house to help his wife procure a house in her home country five years ago. He has been living in the garden in the heat of summer and winter cold, stressing his five sisters and four brothers turned their backs on him.

Abu Ghazi said he is suffering from asthma, hypertension, stomachache and fractures in his feet due to traffic accident. He noted a charity organization gives him KD 17 every six months and he lives on donations from people. He also said his son and daughter live with their mother in Sri Lanka. Arab Times Link

As long as no one sees the problems they don't exist but once they are brought into the light everyone scrambles to help out. Where was everyone before when he needed help?

Know your legal rights when working in Kuwait

Recently there has been many people wanting to know their rights when working for an American company sponsored by a Kuwaiti company. Former employees of KBR, ITT, AECOM and L3 who have been let go are filing  class action suits against the Kuwaiti sponsor demanding monies due to them. If you are one of those who want to know their rights please contact Mr. Al-Obaid at kuwaitlegal@yahoo.com he is the representative for a Kuwaiti law firm currently handling the above listed companies. Good Luck!

Kuwaiti Words from 7achy Kuwaiti

 Abu Halifa

Meaning
• Abu Halifa is a residential area within the Al-Ahmadi Governorate, area was named after Helfa plant "Imperata cylindrica" which was commonly found in the area, Heileifa is short for Helfa. Thanks to 7achy Kuwaiti!

Women: When your in the salon and they ask you if you want seshwar?

Seshwar

Meaning:

• Hair dryer.

Origin
• French: sechoir.

Fintas

Meaning:

 
• Fintas area: a residential area within Al-Ahmadi Governorate, the area had a water well where people used to store water in a big wooden tank inorder to move it to the ships.
• Wooden tank to store water.

Fahaheel

Meaning:

 
• Residential area within Al-Ahmadi Governorate, Fahaheel as in plural for Fahal "Palms male plant, where Sheikh Mohammed Al-Salman Al-Sabah brought plalms from Faw farms in Basrah and grow them in Fahaheel.
  n.b: Fahaheel was part of Abu Halifa area.

Meet the Most Spoiled Kids in the World

Only one from the GCC made it to the list....

 Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, Prince of Dubai

The 29-year-old crown prince of Dubai and son of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, leads a charmed life.

For starters, he drives a diamond-studded, mink-finished Mercedes that's worth an estimated $4.8 million and cruises in the world's largest yacht, which has a $300 million price tag.

He also has an affinity for practicing sports and spends his days scuba diving, sky diving, jet skiing, and body boarding.

He also enjoys traveling. When he was in New York in June, the Prince ordered a $1,000 dessert, which was served in a $300 Baccarat goblet complete with edible gold and Tahitian vanilla ice cream. (link)

I really like the royal family of the Emirates but some things like a $1,000 dessert is a little much when there is so much need in the world.

US-based firm does not follow Kuwait Labour Law

US-based firm does not follow Kuwait Labour Law:

I’m currently working for a US-based company at Arifjan in Kuwait under the sponsorship of a local firm. The company does not follow Kuwait Labour Law with regards to:
a) Overtime
b) No paid holidays / sick days
c) No indemnity upon separation
Can you give us information on the above, whether we are entitled to all the privileges mentioned.
There was also a certain case in one of Kuwait’s courts in which some Americans had sued a Kuwaiti firm over the same issue. I would like to have the contact details of the lawyer who is representing their case.

Name withheld
Answer: As you are employed by a Kuwaiti company and also working in Kuwait you are entitle to all the benefits mentioned in the Kuwait Labor Law, especially if you have Kuwait residence.
Earlier also, some Americans had sought advice from the Arab Times on the issue and the answer had been the same. Some of them had hired an attorney and their case was taken up by the Court of First Instance earlier this year. The firm will try to get away by saying they are American contractors. But the fact remains they are working in Kuwait with a Kuwaiti partner, so sue the Kuwaiti partner in Kuwait. But the most important fact here will be if those employees in the camp have Kuwait residency. A lot of the employees at the camp don’t have Kuwait residence, so they can have a problem in pursuing their case here in the country but not the ones who are residents of Kuwait.
The contractor can be sued and you should be able to get your rights. In the meantime, we will try to get you the contact details of the lawyer who took up the other case for some Americans.

Geez I wonder which company he works for? It used to be like that a few years ago with ITT, they would only follow Kuwait rules when it benefitted the company but now employees get the Kuwaiti sick hours and the payout when they finish their contract.

Smashburger Grand Opening- Abu Halaifa

Smashburger held a blogger invite only on December 24 for their newest restaurant located in Abu Halaifa next to Ali/Ghalia Towers. It's a cute cozy location and the food was really good! We tried the BBQ bacon burger and buffalo chicken sandwich. The item I loved the most was the sweet potato french fries, amazing! I never had them before and now they are my favorite item and I encourage all restaurants to have them on their menus. We had fried pickles, fried peppers, cheese fries, dips, butterfinger milkshake and a strawberry milkshake all were fantastic.

We met Khaled the franchise owner and Jillian his PR rep who were both great people and very hospitable. We even go a couple orders to go for my kids and boy were they happy when I got home. 

I've been to their location in Mishref, my hubby took me there to try it and I didn't enjoy it. It was very very crowded and a little chaotic. The food was so-so and I didn't think I would visit them again until Jillian sent the invite and I thought I would give it another chance during an event where there wouldn't be so many people. I'm glad I went as the food was way better than Mishref and I had a really good time.

Thanks Jillian for the invite, my mom really likes you! They are now open for business in Abu Halaifa.

"Conditions" for foreign wives of Kuwaitis

Enezi slams ‘conditions’ for citizens’ foreign wives

KUWAIT CITY, Dec 21: A group of MPs have presented several demands related to key issues, reports Al-Kuwaitiya.

MP Dr Abdul Hamed Dashti proposed a committee to investigate violations detected in the Jaber Bridge Project and another parliamentary demand to re-open investigations to Al-Zour power Station Project and all other suspicious tenders, indicating those tenders are suspected to be linked to the crisis provokers battling against the current National Assembly.

Meanwhile, MP Nawaf Al-Fazeh has issued a report related to violations committed by the banks on the loans issue. He stated the common error committed by the banks involve the period of installment.
Also, MP Saad Al-Bous proposed that Civil Service Commission (CSC) must register all the recruitment demands of citizens, without setting conditions such as qualifications or marital status.

Former lawmaker Ahmad Al-Sa’adoun also said the need to appoint an international commissioner to investigate the excesses of the government in the latest rallies, while former MP Khaled Al-Sultan warned of attempts to seize public funds by initiating projects valued at billions.

Meanwhile, MP Askar Al-Enezi has criticized the interior minister for his decision to issue a set of conditions for foreign wives of Kuwaitis before they obtain the Kuwaiti citizenship, reports Al-Seyassah daily quoting reliable sources.

He said if such a decision is issued many couples will face problems and their families will be affected. It will also lead to economic and social instability.

He mentioned he will put this issue on the list of his priorities for discussion with the National Assembly’s Interior and the Defense Committees so that a specific mechanism can be chalked out to solve the matter.

He said if foreign wives of Kuwaitis are granted the citizenship it will reduce the burden on many Kuwaitis particularly since most of them are citizens of other GCC states or bedoun.
Moreover, he said the decision will not affect the social fabric and expressed hope a quick solution will be found to the problem because “the delay in solving the problem will not serve the interests of either party.”

Set of conditions? Really?

Attackers hack man to death at Avenues

Attackers hack man to death at Avenues – Dentist murdered over petty dispute, killer arrested | Kuwait Times:

 KUWAIT: A young doctor was hacked to death with a cleaver by four men at the Avenues mall late on Friday, allegedly over a parking dispute. The victim, 26-year-old Jaber Samir, a Lebanese dentist at Jabriya clinic whose mother is Kuwaiti, died a few hours later at a hospital. The suspected killer, a 22-year-old non-Kuwaiti, was arrested yesterday, but his three accomplices are still at large, according to Col Adel Al-Hashash, PR Director at the Ministry of Interior. Hashash said that after initial interrogations, the suspect said he and the victim had a dispute over a parking spot which angered him. The suspect then purchased the murder weapon from the mall, followed the victim and stabbed him to death.

Warning: (link) contains graphic images. Arab Times (link)
May he rest in Peace........

I've seen aggressive people who will fight for a parking space but this is ridiculous. The other day my friend and I accidentally took the parking spot in front of Hardee's in Abu Halaifa, we didn't know the guy was waiting as he had no signal or anything. He reversed his SUV and parked it behind her car blocking it and went into the coffee shop with his gf. We called the police and I was taking pictures of his car and plate number as he and his gf popped their heads out of the coffee shop. It was no big deal so we went to Hardee's to eat and they came into the restaurant heading toward Baskin Robbin's just to make their presence known. I hit record on my phone as I felt there was going to be an altercation because people these days just want to fight.

They finished and got back into their SUV and sat there for 10 minutes and then left. I don't think all of that was necessary considering his SUV was parked right in front of the restaurant but I guess he wanted to make a point. What has happened to Kuwait?

Note to Santa from a Muslim 4th Grader

So Sweet!

Arabian Business Rich List 2012

Do you want to know who made it this year? It seems KSA has taken many top spots for 2012. (link)

Asian maid arrested for stealing food

Asian maid arrested for stealing food:

KUWAIT CITY, Dec 15: Asian housemaid was arrested recently in Qurain for stealing food from her sponsor’s house and giving it to her friend who is living under harsh conditions.

Reportedly, a Kuwaiti woman lodged a complaint at the police station in Qurain against her housemaid, accusing her of stealing food and kitchen utensils from her house.

Securitymen arrested her and during interrogations, she revealed that she stole the food to give to one of her female friends who is extremely poor and deprived of good living conditions.

She was referred to the concerned authorities for necessary legal action against her.

That's pathetic and her "sponsor" should be ashamed.

New Speed Cameras

Watch out guys now they are about to launch the smart cameras!

KUWAIT: The newly installed speed cameras will be operational soon. Currently the newly-installed speed-sensor cameras on the First Ring Road are operational, said Colonel Adel Al-Hashash, Director of PR and Media at the Ministry of Interior, who added that all the new cameras across Kuwait will be operational as soon as all the cameras are installed. “Currently, the only camera with a capability to measure point-to-point speed is the one on the First Ring Road. It was the first to be installed as a test case to study its efficiency,” he told the Kuwait Times yesterday.

The Ministry of Interior earlier announced that the new smart cameras will check the practice adopted by speeding drivers who had learnt how to fool the cameras by decreasing their speed when passing in front of the camera and then accelerating again. Since most drivers knew in advance the location of the cameras, these had lost all purpose.

With the new system, one camera will scan the passing cars at a certain point while another installed some distance away will scan the traffic once again. Since a car following a speed limit must take a minimum time to cover the distance, any vehicle caught outside this time zone would obviously be considered guilty of having crossed the speed limit at some point over the stretch, and will be liable for penal action. A number of new speed-sensing cameras have come up along various roads and highways to help check over-speeding, but unlike the earlier cameras that measured speed at one given point, the new gizmos are equipped to calculate the average speed of the vehicle between two given points. Since cameras are placed quite close to each other, the vehicle’s speed between the two points can be measured. (link)

I really hate when you slow down for a camera and some clown is so close to your bumper you can feel the heat from his engine!

Meaning of "Arifjan" in Kuwaiti dialect

I always wondered where they got the name Camp Arifjan and thanks to 7achy Kuwaiti  website I found out what "Arifjan" means.

Meaning

• Arifjan is a desert area within Al-Ahmadi Governorate, Arifjan is short form of Arfaj where area was named after Arfaj plant "Rhanterium Epapposum" which was commonly found in the area.

I think 7achy Kuwaiti website is great for preserving the old Kuwaiti words and I will be visiting it more often!

Children of GCC students left behind finally coming into the Light

When love goes wrong: Saudi children left behind in the U.S. - Your Middle East:

 A boy in a shemagh and agaal – a traditional dress in the Arabian Peninsula – smiling into the camera lens. The nice picture belies the true meaning of this US based blog called Saudi Children Left Behind, which tries to reunite the abandoned offspring of Saudi men by American women.

“We tried everything before I decided to create Saudi Children Left Behind; some of us tried to get a resolution between our ex's families and us but they just ignored us, or gave us false promises,” said the founder Jenniffer Crystal.

She had a very personal reason for launching the site, which is specifically for anyone who has had a child by a Saudi visiting student, or is a child thereof.

“Saudi Children Left behind was created over a year ago by myself, during a difficult time in my life. I have a child with a Saudi man who was on a student visa,” she said. “In the small town I live in there were several other women in the same situation I was in and I wondered if the problem was so large where I lived, maybe there were more women out there who I could benefit from having a site like this.”

Indeed, Saudi Arabia is not a country that is easy to deal with in terms of seeking alimony or support for unwed, foreign mothers of Saudi fathered children.

She was also interviewed by Al Jazeera and some Saudi newspapers. (Saudi Gazette Article), (Facebook)
There has also been an announcement by the Saudi embassy in the U.S. stating all Saudi students there must take a DNA test if accused of fathering a child in order to keep their scholarships. Sounds good but will they really do that or just run back to KSA?

There are also two new websites still in their infancy:
Qatari children left behind
Kuwaiti children left behind
Saudi children left behind

The women are not doing this so they can "marry" the father of their children as parents of these students think. Obviously they already found out what losers they are, they just want rights for their children and to try and stop this by bringing awareness. If a man does not want children then he should protect himself!

Every GCC country should follow in the footsteps of the UAE. This country is actually taking the first steps in identifying the children left behind and granting them citizenship. I love the rulers of UAE! (post link)

Holiday Bazaar Pictures

There was a huge turn out this year at the bazaar held at the Salwa Al-Sabah hall. There were so many stalls with amazing items for sale. I was taking pictures of the items when some crazy American guy came up to me asking me why I took his picture, I told him I wasn't taking pictures of him but of the items people were selling I also asked him if he was want by CID or something by the way he was acting he kept talking crap as he walked away. I still wonder if he was guilty of something.

 

To top it off I almost ran into my hubby's ex-wife and daughters as well. If you missed it this year make sure you plan to visit next year, it's a lot of fun.

Movenpick Christmas Program

Tomorrow Movenpick Hotel located in the Free Zone will hold their annual Christmas program which includes a Christmas market, children's games, face painting and the lighting of their outdoor Christmas tree.

My blog won an Award- Sweeet!

Thanks to everyone who takes the time to read my thoughts, especially those with positive comments that's what keeps me going.

Update: Most of the time I don't mind others copying my links to their blogs. I'm not one to write my name on  pics that I personally take before I post them. I would hope I would get recognition when someone uses my postings, but when I personally cut and fix something such as the award above and someone else uses it  on their blog I would appreciate some recognition instead of just right clicking/saving it to their blog. No hard feelings, just common courtesy in the world of blogging.

Update 2: I thought I said no hard feelings but after seeing the roller paint job over my blog name I guess someone took it to heart....Meow. It really wasn't a big deal just give me recognition as I would. Geez! At least the paint color was may fav shade of blue! Can't we all just get along?

Police can't keep up

This story appeared in Kuwait Times. It shows us that the police are good at riding around giving out tickets but when it comes to physically chasing a fugitive they can't keep up even when the fugitive just got hit by a car and was bleeding.

 Fugitive disappears

 A pedestrian who was hit by a car and knocked down with a head injury regained consciousness and fled from the scene while still bleeding all over after he noticed the police officers on the spot. The accident happened late Saturday night. Paramedics and police rushed to a street in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh where the accident was reported. The 30- year-old Indian man was knocked down but regained consciousness soon after the medics arrived. As soon as he saw police officers, he ran away while bleeding heavily from the head wound and managed to disappear. However, though the police failed to catch up with him, the man left his ID papers behind. Police later found that he was wanted for felony charges. Now, a search is on for him. Meanwhile, police apprehended the Arab driver who had hit him for legal procedures.

Now we know anyone can probably outrun the po-pos in Kuwait.

No work permits, transfers from Dec 15

FYI people!!!! Get ready for the annual ministry shutdown.

No work permits, transfers from Dec 15 – Al-Kanderi:

Annual inventory being planned

KUWAIT CITY, Dec 8: Undersecretary of Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor Mohammed Al-Kanderi has said the ministry from Dec 15 will stop the issuance of work permits and transfers or receiving of applications from the government projects and sectors which are excluded from the deferment of transactions to pave the way for the annual inventory in all labor sectors, reports Al-Jarida daily. This normally, every year, affects all the private sector.

The daily quoting a reliable source added that activities in the labor sector will resume at the beginning of the New Year, as per Article 11 of Law 6/2010 that stipulates the ministry is allowed to suspend the issuance of work permits for more than two weeks for regulatory reasons.

Meanwhile, the labor departments will continue to receive first time work permit applications and renew residencies and cancel travel applications, the source added.

He assured the ministry will try to reduce the period of suspension to one week to avoid the interruption of work.

Extremely Scary Corpse Elevator Prank in Brazil

Muscle and Classic Car Show

Sounds like fun!

Winter Warmth Bags

Last week Operation Hope volunteers assembled 250 winter warmth bags that were distributed last weekend to cleaners. The bags include thermal underwear, gloves, socks and a hat. We are also taking gently used jackets for men that will also go to the less fortunate. Today our volunteers are assembling 500 winter warmth bags. Thanks volunteers!

 

As you can see from the picture above even the smallest children like to help out!

Holiday Bazaar this Friday

Operation Hope Holiday Bazaar Pics

Operation Hope Holiday Bazaar 2012 had an amazing turn out. The weather was perfect and we received generous amounts of donations all going toward our winter warmth campaign which means there will be a lot of less fortunate people receiving some warmth this year. Santa was on hand giving out hugs and cookies to the children and adults alike. Hot chocolate and several dessert tables to choose goodies from as well. Esther's Attic was open for donations as well. Thank you to everyone who attended, OH appreciates your time.

The colorful quilt pictured above is our annual "Mother's Day" quilt which will be raffled on Mother's Day. Tickets are 1 KD and if you missed us on Saturday you can find us at the Holiday Bazaar this Friday at Salwa Al-Sabah Hall in Salmiya. See you there!

A special Thank You to Ekbel Behbehani for making a generous donation! Mashkoora!