"ملف ١/٧ I المرسوم الملكي البريطاني للكويت (السلطة القضائية على الأجانب)" [ظ‎‎٧‎٥] (٣٩٤/١٥٠)

MC683FD
Enclo. II of Sw. No. (7).— Letter from Major J. C. More, D.S.O., Political
Agent, Kuwait, to the Scretary to H. E. the High Commissioner for
’Iraq, Baghdad, No. 206-C., dated the 4th December 1921.
I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your memorandum iSo. 18279-
7-37, datedthe 17th October 1921, relative to the proposed Kuwait Order-m-Council.
2. I have assumed that in broad terms it is intended to adhere to the draft-
Order-in-Council forwarded under cover of the Acting Civil Commissioner s me
morandum No. 38114, dated the 22nd December 1919 (see Enclo. of Pro. No. 22
in G. B., Octr. 1922, Nos. 22-38), in which a “foreigner” is defined as “ any person
not a British or Kuwait subject, and a “ Kuwait subject,” as “ a subject of the
Shaikh of Kuwait, or the subject, resident at Kuwait, of any other non-Christian
power not represented by a Consul at Kuwait.”
3. According to these definitions the only foreigners at present resident in
Kuw'ait whom I am able to trace are :—
Americans G. —These are all members of the American Mission and the
number is not likely to be increased. The only American visitors
are missionaries who occasionally come ashore for a few hours when
passing through, and, at rare intervals an American steamer which
calls at the port.
Portuguese subjects 4. —Two Goanese families, both in the regular service
of British subjects. No Portuguese subjects, except Goanese, visit
Kuwait, and they, only for service with British subjects or Ameri
cans.
French subjects. —The only French subject whom I have been able to trace
is an Algerian mendicant. There may, however, be a few others of
whom I am unaware, as natives of French Somaliland occasionally
find their way to Kuwait as members of the crews of sailing vessels.
Italian subjects.—-There are none resident at present, but sailors from Eritrea
occasionally visit Kuwait.
Spanish subjects. —I have never heard of any visiting Kuwait but an occa
sional pilgrim or mendicant from Spanish Morroco may possibly do
so.
4. I have sounded the Shaikh of Kuwait and am satisfied that he would raise
no objection to His Majesty’s Government exercising jurisdiction over the above
classes, in addition, of course, to British subjects, and also to Kuwait subjects
registered as being in the permanent service of British subjects.
5. Unless strong pressure were brought to bear upon him, he would not agree
to British jurisdiction being exercised over the subjects of non-Christian Powers,
with the exception of Japanese and Chinese. No subjects of either power are
resident in Kuwait, but steamers of both countries do visit the territorial waters
at rare intervals.
6. Of the subjects of non-Christian powers resident in Kuwait who are not
actual subjects of the Shaikh of Kuwait the two most numerous classes are the
Persians and the Najdis. I estimate that there are at present about 10,000 persons
of Persian origin in Kuwait town ; many of these, however, have been settled
here for two or three generations and have presumably lost their Persian nationali
ty. As there is no form of registration it is impossible to say how many actual
Persian subjects there are ; the number is probably over 6,000, though I doubt
if 5,000 could, or would take the trouble to, prove their nationality if the question
were raised. In addition to the Persians permanently and temporarily settled in
Kuwait, a considerable number of Persian sailing boats visit the port annually.
It is still harder to estimate the number of Najd subjects, as the great majority
of the inhabitants of Kuwait are of Najd origin, case of Bedouin accompanying
caravans. The same applies in a lesser degree to the subjects of Bahrain and
the other Arab principalities of the Persian Gulf. There are no Hijaz subjects
actually settled in Kuwait, but an average of perhaps thirty pass through annually,
largely mendicants en route for ’Iraq. There are at present twelve Turkish subjects •
in the town. •