ABSTRACT
The turmoil of the multi-million Dinar scandal in autumn 2011, involving deposits into the banks of 15 members of the Kuwaiti Parliament, led to the Amiri Decree Law No. 24 of 2012, ‘Setting Up the Public Authority to Combat Corruption and the Pertinent Provisions for Financial Disclosure.’ Four years later, the cabinet issued a new Law No. 2 of 2016, ‘Regarding the Establishment of Kuwaiti Anti-Corruption Authority (NAZHA),’ after the previous 2012 law was deemed unconstitutional. The multi-million scandal never went to trial, and the money suspected to be illicitly taken was not recovered after the public prosecutor ordered the case to be shelved. Further, the new laws did not apply retroactively. However, under pressure from the international community, Kuwait implemented a new category of criminal conduct – namely, ‘illicit enrichment.’ This chapter analyses the limitations of the criminal law in Kuwait, as well as other responses, to alleged corruption. The analysis includes an examination of the UN Convention against Corruption and its reflection in Kuwait’s legislative developments.
