Being gay in conservative Kuwait

KUWAIT: Clutching a handbag with one hand and a male friend with the other hand, Bryan, an expatriate of Asian origin was spotted in one of the shops in Avenues buying clothes and some watches along side with (her) boyfriend. Bryan’s attractive sexy cat walk and body movement could budge any man within the neighborhood. With a quasi-bootylicious and curved figure-eight body, Bryan appears to have all it takes to be a woman. But guess what? He is not…

EURO 2012 co-hosts prove doomsayers wrong

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: First Counselor of the Polish Embassy in Kuwait Roman Strzemiecki has described the EURO 2012 Football Championship co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine as a ‘resounding success’. Speaking to the press ahead of the final match in Kiev, Strzemiecki said it was the biggest event of that kind in Eastern Europe since the collapse of the communist system more than 20 years…

Prostitutions, pimps change style amid police crackdown

Underground ‘flesh market’ booming in ‘staid’ Kuwait

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Holding a shopping bag, an umbrella and a mobile phone, Jayanti (who claimed to be from North India) could be mistaken as a working class lady who was just coming out of a shopping mall. But after a chat with a Kuwait Times reporter who posed as an undercover ‘customer’, Jayanti revealed her true…

African envoys highlight cultural and economic potential

Africans celebrate ‘Africa Day’ in style

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Africans, Kuwaitis and expatriates converged at the Regency Hotel on Tuesday to celebrate the Africa Day. It is an annual commemoration of the 1963 founding of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), presently known as the African Union (AU). Its aim is to celebrate African diversity and success and to highlight the cultural and economic…

Spanish giants blank Kuwait 2-0 Real, Ronaldo mesmerize Kuwait By Chidi Emmanuel KUWAIT: Activities in Kuwait were brought to a halt yesterday evening as the Spanish La Liga champions played with the Kuwait national team at the Al-Kuwait Sports Club stadium in Kaifan. The stadium was filled to capacity as Kuwaiti youths, fans and families struggled to catch a glimpse of the Madrid team. The match, which Real won 2-0, started with lots of pomp and peasantries. There were colorful fireworks…

Pension for foreign

workers in Kuwait?

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Before leaving Kuwait finally, Charlie Dag was wondering what life is going to look like in his home country Ivory Coast - having spent most of his youthful and useful years in Kuwait. Without a permanent residence or any pension scheme, the future looked bleak as he navigated through the immigration counters at Kuwait airport on his way back home. “I am glad and sad at the same time. I am happy…

Cousin marriages - Keeping it in the family

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Marriage between cousins is a very old tradition in this part of the world. It has both cultural and religious ties. In some religions, it is acceptable, for example in Islam. But in others it is forbidden, for example among some Hindus, Christian and Sikh religious groups. There are many reasons for cousins to marry. Marrying in a known family so as to adjust easily, keeping the family’s…

Cousin marriages - Keeping it in the family

By Chidi Emmaruel

KUWAIT: Marriage between cousins is a very old tradition in this part of the world. It has both cultural and religious ties. In some religions, it is acceptable, for example in Islam. But in others it is forbidden, for example among some Hindus, Christian and Sikh religious groups. There are many reasons for cousins to marry. Marrying in a known family so as to adjust easily, keeping the family’s…

Feeling thirsty in an ocean full of water

Expatriates lament ugly side of Kuwait

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Oil-rich Kuwait is not an exception to criticisms. Just like other nations in the region, Kuwait has its ugly side. Having been slammed many times by civil society organizations on the issues of human rights, women's rights, democratic rights, religious freedom and bedoons among others, expatriates in Kuwait are voicing their…

Feeling thirsty in an ocean full of water

Expatriates lament

ugly side of Kuwait

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Oil-rich Kuwait is not an exception to criticisms. Just like other nations in the region, Kuwait has its ugly side. Having been slammed many times by civil society organizations on the issues of human rights, women's rights, democratic rights, religious freedom and bedoons among others, expatriates in Kuwait are voicing…

Audi unveils its e-tron quattro,

plans big showroom in Kuwait

By Chidi Emmanuel

INGOLSTADT, Germany: Audi has set the bar high for motorsports as it unveiled its latest prototype e-tron Quattro in Ingolstadt, Germany. The Audi R18 e-tron quattro is the first Audi race car which no longer accelerated exclusively by a combustion engine. With its partially electrified hybrid drive e-tron quattro, the prototype hails a new era in LMP1 sports cars. “The project…

Audi records healthy surplus, launches new products

Audi’s Vorsprung durch Technik

By Chidi Emmanuel

INGOLSTADT, Germany: In the midst of the turbulent global economic woos, 2011 was the most successful year for Audi as it surpasses the 1.3 million mark in the number of new cars delivered to its customers. The auto giant successfully launched 12 exquisite models onto the market ranging from a compact SUV to a full size luxury sedan. Audi sales revenues…

Audi unveils its e-tron quattro,

plans big showroom in Kuwait

By Chidi Emmanuel

INGOLSTADT, Germany: Audi has set the bar high for motorsports as it unveiled its latest prototype e-tron Quattro in Ingolstadt, Germany. The Audi R18 e-tron quattro is the first Audi race car which no longer accelerated exclusively by a combustion engine. With its partially electrified hybrid drive e-tron quattro, the prototype hails a new era in LMP1 sports…

Tragedy averted as Kuwait-bound flight lands in Saudi

Panic, chaos as sandstorm hits Kuwait airport

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Airport came to a standstill for some hours yesterday after the airport’s navigation systems stopped working due the sandstorm that hit Kuwait in early hours. It was a chaotic scene at the airport as passengers scrambled for information about their flights. Some flights were cancelled while many were…

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Kuwait has a population of about 3.5 million people, of which over 2 million are foreigners. This makes Kuwaiti citizens a minority in their home country. Kuwait - just like any other country has its ups and downs. A lot of things have been said about this oil-rich nation but still, many expatriates see Kuwait as a place to be, irrespective of criticisms. Kuwait…

Every cloud has a silver lining

Why we like Kuwait: Expats' views

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: Kuwait has a population of about 3.5 million people, of which over 2 million are foreigners. This makes Kuwaiti citizens a minority in their home country. Kuwait - just like any other country has its ups and downs. A lot of things have been said about this oil-rich nation but still, many expatriates see Kuwait as a place to be,…

Nigerian minister lauds

Kuwait, woos investors

By Chidi Emmanuel

KUWAIT: The Nigerian Minister of Health Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu has lauded the efforts of Kuwait government in health and human development. The minister who was on a three-day visit to Kuwait to attend the 17th joint action forum of the African Program for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC) praised the Kuwait-Nigeria bilateral relations which he said is worthy of emulation. “Kuwait is more African than some African…

Et tu Ameriqi: Used,

dumped and killed

By Chidi Emmanuel

With Libyan strongman, Muammar Gaddafi gone (in the wind), one wonders who is next on the firing line of US and the West. Many people who had worked for or allied themselves with US and the West have ended up being used, dumped, jailed and sometimes killed.

The repentant Gaddafi who renounced his nuclear ambitions, sealed oil deals with the West, received a hero’s welcome in Rome and other Western cities, was…