Al-Mutairi Againist the Buddhists

Unsurprisingly, Kuwaiti MP Muhammad Hayef al-Mutairi doesn't think Buddhists should have religious freedom in Kuwait:

"MP Mohammed Hayef Al-Mutairi has warned of serious consequences if the government allows the Buddhists to celebrate their festival at the Al-Qadsiya Sports Club premises.

"He stressed allowing such events to take place in Kuwait amounts to support wrong faiths and deeds and behaviors which are contrary to Islam - the faith of the Kuwaiti society.

"It can be recalled that, recently Al-Hayef had vowed to hold the concerned minister responsible if American University of Kuwait (AUK) went ahead and held a get together involving students of both sexes.

"In response to the warning the Minister of Education and Higher Education Minister Nayef Al-Hajraf responded and ordered the cancellation of the function."

I suspect the "festival" in question in Vesak, the Buddha's birthday, which falls about now. The Buddhists among Kuwait's guest workers have been able to celebrate it in the past, and I don't see where al-Mutairi has gotten his way.