KUWAIT: The government Public Authority for Youth and Sports (PAYS) yesterday agreed to launch an investigation into the participation of a Kuwaiti football women team in an external tournament after concerted calls by Islamist MPs.
The announcement was made by hardline Salafi MP Mohammad Hayef, head of the National Assembly panel for fighting immoral practices, following a meeting between the panel and officials from the sports body.

Last week, the committee held a similar meeting with Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Mohammad Al-Afasi who said that certain regulations on women sports will be introduced without explaining their nature.

Islamist MPs are pushing to introduce stringent regulations on women sports that stipulate certain conditions, including women must wear an Islamic dress and women sports activities must be held behind closed doors and away from men spectators.

Hayef also said the sports authority promised the committee that the participation of the women football team will not be allowed in the future.
Also yesterday, the Fatwa Department at the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs issued a fatwa or a religious edict stating that women can fully practice sports appropriate to their nature provided that this should happen behind closed doors and that they receive training at the hands of women.

On Wednesday, a number of women activists said at a public rally that that aim of Islamist MPs is to completely ban Kuwaiti women from practicing or playing any sport under social and Islamic pretexts.

During the week, Hayef has been launching a campaign against women. He submitted a proposal calling to ban the travel of women without a male companion. He also called on the government to force women to wear the hijab (headscarf) although the Constitutional Court last year ruled that wearing the hijab is not mandatory for women taking part in politics.

In another development, the health and labor committee in the National Assembly issued a two-month ultimatum for the Ministry of Health to issue birth certificates to new-born bedoon babies.

Head of the committee, MP Rola Dashti said the committee warned that if the government does not start issuing the certificates, it will amend a law that controls issuance of birth certificates.

The government is not issuing the certificates because bedoons, or stateless persons, have no nationality and under the current law birth certificates are issued to people whose parents have known nationalities.

The national women soccer team participated in the recent Asia championship in the UAE capital. The Kuwaiti women squad lost 0-17 to the Palestinian team in the match that took place last month.

The 3rd West Asian Women Soccer Tournament marks the first time that the Kuwaiti women’s team has featured in a tournament. The team’s other opponents in Group B were UAE, with the top two teams from each group moving on to the second round.

Source: http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=NzY4OTIzMDM5