Kuwait shifts weekend despite Islamist opposition

September 2nd, 2007 Noor

The Gulf state of Kuwait on Saturday began the implementation of a Friday-Saturday weekend instead of Thursday-Friday despite objections from Islamist MPs.

The move, decided on by the oil-rich emirate’s cabinet in May, has angered several Islamist lawmakers who denounced it as “unIslamic” and complained it was done just to please the Western world.

Parliament, where Islamists hold 22 of the 64 seats, had issued a recommendation in June calling on the government to delay the weekend switch.

With this move, Kuwait follows the example of Gulf partners the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar which all made the same move last year in a measure designed to bring them closer to the working week in the West.

Only oil powerhouse Saudi Arabia and Oman still apply the Thursday-Friday Muslim weekend in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council.

The private sector in Kuwait is not bound to follow the government, but banks and most companies in the oil business already follow a Friday-Saturday weekend to be more in line with international markets.

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