ABSTRACT
Kuwaitis faced political and social difficulties in the 1940s, which witnessed the fall of the democratic Majlis al-Umah al-Tashre i (the National Legislative Council) in 1938. The council issued the first constitution of the country containing advanced articles, in comparison with the Constitution of 1962, which was passed by al-Majlis al-Tasisi (the Constituent Council). The National Legislative Council experiment ended following the conflict between its supporters belonging to al-Kutlah al-Wataniya (the National Bloc) in alliance with Kutlat al-Shabab al-Watani (the National Youth Bloc), and the Kuwaiti regime.1 This confrontation affected Kuwaiti society and was immediately followed by the outbreak of the Second World War. In addition, it was affected by the large amount of time Kuwaitis had to spend on their daily lives, as a result of the difficulty of obtaining material supplies.2 It was natural in such circumstances that talking about political issues was ignored and the concentration of power was in the hands of the ruler. This situation lasted until the death of Sheikh Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah (1921-50), the ruler of Kuwait, and the recognition of his cousin Sheikh Abdullah al-Salem alSabah as the new ruler (1950-65). It is known that Sheikh Abdullah al-Salem al-Sabah was one of the supporters of the National Legislative Council of 1938 – as he took the presidency of this Council – and that he was known for his liberal policy. In light of this political climate established by Sheikh Abdullah al-Salem al-Sabah, Kuwait witnessed during his reign democratic breakthroughs, which led to the emergence of clubs, cultural ties and political trends represented by various political groups and movements in the eastern Arab region of the world. Thus, political parties began their underground activities in Kuwait.3
