Country Foundations

Kuwait

Constitution in force since 1992, 8,197 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
66%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
60%
mean across compared rights
Gap
−5%
delivers less than promised
Executive respects constitution
71%
V-Dem, measured directly

The rights ledger

Each row compares what the constitution declares against what is measured in practice. The two values are always shown together — a gap on its own is easy to misread.

Declared in the constitutionPracticed (measured)Falls short / exceeds
0255075100Right to life — declared 0%, practiced 74%, gap +74%Right to life0%74%+74%Freedom from torture — declared 100%, practiced 48%, gap −52%Freedom from torture100%48%−52%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 75%, practiced 50%, gap −25%Freedom from slavery and forced labour75%50%−25%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 0%, practiced 63%, gap +63%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…0%63%+63%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 33%, practiced 67%, gap +33%Right to a fair and public trial33%67%+33%Presumption of innocence — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Presumption of innocenceno practice measure100%——Right to legal counsel — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to legal counselno practice measure0%——Protection from self-incrimination — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from self-incriminationno practice measure0%——Protection from double jeopardy — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from double jeopardyno practice measure0%——Due process of law — declared 0%, practiced 61%, gap +61%Due process of law0%61%+61%Trial by jury or lay participation — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Trial by jury or lay participationno practice measure0%——Freedom of expression — declared 100%, practiced 58%, gap −42%Freedom of expression100%58%−42%Freedom of the press — declared 100%, practiced 54%, gap −46%Freedom of the press100%54%−46%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 100%, practiced 53%, gap −47%Freedom of thought and conscience100%53%−47%Freedom of religion — declared 100%, practiced 50%, gap −50%Freedom of religion100%50%−50%Separation of religion and state — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure0%——Academic freedom — declared 0%, practiced 50%, gap +50%Academic freedom0%50%+50%Freedom of assembly — declared 100%, practiced 52%, gap −48%Freedom of assembly100%52%−48%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 40%, gap −60%Freedom of association100%40%−60%Right to petition government — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure100%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 50%, practiced 45%, gap −5%Right to form and join trade unions50%45%−5%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 50%, practiced 85%, gap +35%Right to vote and universal suffrage50%85%+35%Right to privacy — declared 0%, practiced 49%, gap +49%Right to privacy0%49%+49%Freedom of movement — declared 100%, practiced 64%, gap −36%Freedom of movement100%64%−36%Right to asylum — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure100%——Right to own property — declared 100%, practiced 69%, gap −31%Right to own property100%69%−31%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 50%, gap −50%Equality before the law100%50%−50%Right to education — declared 100%, practiced 75%, gap −25%Right to education100%75%−25%Right to health care — declared 100%, practiced 82%, gap −18%Right to health care100%82%−18%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 65%, gap +65%Right to shelter or housing0%65%+65%Independent judiciary — declared 100%, practiced 81%, gap −19%Independent judiciary100%81%−19%Right to bear arms — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to bear armsno practice measure0%——decl.prac.gap

· marks a right with no provision in that country’s constitution. Scores run 0–100; practiced values are V-Dem indicators normalized across all country-years.

Promise and practice over time

The declared line steps when the constitution changes. The practiced line moves when behaviour does. The distance between those two moments is the part worth looking at.

Declared (the text)Practiced (measured)The text changed
05010019752000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1962–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Promised, but not delivered

  • Freedom from torture −52%
  • Freedom from slavery and forced labour −25%
  • Freedom of expression −42%
  • Freedom of the press −46%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Right to life +74%
  • Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) +63%
  • Due process of law +61%
  • Academic freedom +50%

Declared internationally

A constitution is only one place a country makes promises. These are the nine core UN human rights treaties.

Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR)ratified 1996
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)ratified 1996
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 1968
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1994
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 1996
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1991
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2013
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)no action
Migrant Workers (ICMW)no action

Compare with

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurma/MyanmarBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusDemocratic Republic of the CongoDenmarkDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGeorgiaGhanaGreeceGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyana

Data generated 2026-08-08.