World Cup Opens with a Bang

Culture shock; Qataris cast eyes Soldiers flee as Expats recount on foreigners in militants march first impression7 modesty10 push towards15 Baghdad Max 42º Min 28º FREE www.kuwaittimes.net NO: 16195- Friday, June 13, 2014 World Cup opens with a bang SEE PAGE 47 Local FRIDAY, JUNE 13, 2014 High rents, low paycheck: Expats Scribbler’s Notebook in Kuwait feel inflation’s heat Hallmarks of Landlords taking tenants for a ride? Kuwait’s middle class By Sahar Moussa to pay the increased amount. But after that I gave up because I was told that if I don’t like it, I can leave. I know my rights ising rents in Kuwait rival the weather as the hottest top- and the law states that they can’t raise the rent if I have a five- ic of debate in Kuwait this summer. Landlords often year contract. But I also know that the landlord’s brother is a By Jamie Etheridge Rignore the five-year rule and raise rents against the law. judge and to be honest, that scared me. So I pay what they Many tenants are ignorant or unsure of what to do but a grow- want because I don’t want any headaches or problems,” she ing number of both local and expat renters in Kuwait are not continued. ready to give up without a fight. While Rima chose not to stand for her rights, Toni decided “I have been living in the building for four years now; I used to dispute the rental increase. He along with several others [email protected] to pay KD 220 plus KD 10 to the haris. Recently, the haris told from his building refused to pay the increased amount. “I me that the landlord wants to increase the rent by KD 45. I decided with other tenants to stand up against him, and when refused and sent a message through him to the landlord that I he knew that the majority disagreed and it was a lost cause, he ccording to a recently published report, there are know my rights very well - assuming the landlord knew what I withdrew his demand and we won,” said Toni, with triumph approximately 99,000 millionaires in Kuwait and meant exactly,” said Toni, a Lebanese expat. evident in his voice. Aanother 990 who are worth more than $100 mil- Kuwait’s rental law stipulates that the owner of an apart- Rising rents is not the only thing that expats suffer in lion. The report suggested that Kuwait ranks fifth globally ment cannot increase the rent within five years of a rental con- Kuwait. The increasing cost of living has affected nearly every in the number of millionaires per capita. tract. After five years, the landlord can increase the rent only aspect of life including food, housing, clothing and other serv- Kuwait may be a country of millionaires (and billion- after he gives a one-month notice period stating he will ices. Meanwhile concomitant rises in salaries are rare. Although aires) but it is also a country with a growing middle class. increase the rent. Kuwait is the world’s seventh-largest oil exporter, it is also In fact, most of the remaining 1.1 million Kuwaitis who fall known for fighting record inflation as housing and food costs into the non-millionaire category could be classified as No English version of contract soar. middle class. Some landlords prepare a one-year contract to get around Though less visible then the Bentley-driving, trendset- the law to ensure they have the power to renew it and increase Just not worth it ting millionaire, the middle class Kuwaiti has become a the rent legally. But still some landlords and companies disre- “I want to leave Kuwait because we can’t live like this any- force for change both economically and socially. Nor is it gard the law and try to take the tenant for a ride. more; everything is so expensive. I feel that the government only Kuwaitis who are changing the society. The number Unfortunately, they get lucky sometimes, especially since most wants to kick us out of the country. They should stop insulting of expats who rank as middle class may be less than the expats are foreigners and aren’t fluent in Arabic. More often us. We can’t afford to pay for anything anymore with our mod- total number of low wage workers or domestic staff but than not, there is no English version of the contract, so foreign- est salaries that doesn’t match our basic needs. Today they are these middle class expats nonetheless represent a finan- ers fall victim to their ploy and don’t have the courage to fight increasing rents and food and tomorrow will be the petrol, cially influential and socially significant minority. They for their rights. then what?” asked Rima with vain. may not get involved in the country’s politics, but they do “I have been staying in the same apartment for over nine As for Toni, he said he is celebrating his victory for now, but rent, shop, drive and send their kids to school here and so years now. I used to pay KD 180 plus KD 5 to the haris. Since he will move when his five-year contract ends because he feels what they spend their time and money on impacts then, the landlord has been increasing my rent every year by that paying KD 256 for a small one-bedroom, one-bathroom Kuwait’s economy in myriad ways both big and small. KD 5 until it reached KD 240,” said Rima, another Lebanese flat is just not worth it. “I wish there was a law that categorized But understanding the ‘middle class’ is not always expat. and valued apartments for what they’re exactly worth and not what the landlord wants. Rents are very high these days. We easy. Different cultures and different countries - even dif- Standing up for their rights wish that our employers take this into consideration and give ferent groups within the same country - define the idea of “At first I used to fight, make a big deal out of it and refuse us a pay rise so that we can afford a decent life,” he said. ‘middle class’ differently. Across most measures, however, being middle class typically means a few basic things: most important is financial security or at least the ability Photo of the day of a family to pay all its expenses each month without stress and to have enough disposable income left over to 1. Save for children’s college; 2. Afford annual vacations; 3. Own a home (though the mortgage may not be paid off); 4. Have a secure or white collar job; 5. Have health insur- ance and 6. Be able to afford some sort of retirement investment. I would add for Kuwait the following: 7. Eat out in restaurants at least a few times a week; 8. Going shopping in one of Kuwait’s malls at least once a week; 9. Own a car (preferably an SUV) and 10. Pay for your children’s tuition at a local private school. A growing middle class can bring many benefits to Kuwait. While mega projects are stalled and multinational corporations leery of investing have slowed the economy at the macro level, at the micro level small and medium enterprises are picking up. The combined shocks of the 2008-2009 financial crisis and the economic stagnation and political turmoil has fueled a mini revolution in entrepreneurship in Kuwait. Both locals and expats urgently feel the need to ‘fend for themselves’ to start their own enterprises rather than rely solely on government jobs or working for large corporations. The recent trend of expos, pop up, farmers and foodie markets are just one sign of the middle class find- ing ways to create wealth for itself. The middle class provides a nation’s human capital. In Kuwait this was for sometime concentrated in the hands of foreigners but that situation is now changing. One of the long term ambitions of the government’s ‘Kuwaitization’ program is to reduce the reliance on foreigners and put more Kuwaitis to work in the private sector. So far this program has made limited progress - foreigners still account for more than 90 percent of all private sector employees. But it doesn’t take into account the locals who work for the government and then also run their own small busi- KUWAIT: The roads in Kuwait are pictured during a dust storm in this file photo. Director of Meteorology nesses. This segment may still be a small part of the over- Department Mohammad Karam said the country is affected by North-Westerly winds that are moderate to fast dur- all economy but the entrepreneurial tradition is strong in ing the weekend. Karam said that today’s weather will be hot with a maximum temperature around 42 degree Kuwait and as the middle class grows, this trend will likely Celsius. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat continue to grow as well. Local FRIDAY, JUNE 13, 2014 KUWAIT: Students from American School of Kuwait are seen celebrating their graduation day by tossing their caps in the air. Many schools in Kuwait celebrat- ed their graduation ceremony this month. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat Local Spotlight Deportation of expatriates By Muna Al-Fuzai [email protected] eportation of expats from Kuwait These are scary numbers! Dwill always be an issue of concern. I know the MoI is doing its job arresting No expat wants to find himself in these people because they violated the such a condition.

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