Education
Born in 1966, Al-Ameeri studied sharia law at Kuwait University and worked as a lawyer before being elected to the National Assembly in 2008.
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Abdul Latif Al-Ameeri
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Career
Al-Ameeri opposes forgiving Iraq's debt. The debt, estimated at $16 billion, represents loans Kuwait made to Baghdad in the Saddam Hussein era, mostly during the 1980-1988 Iraq-Iran war. Al-Ameeri argues that, "The debt owed by Iraq to Kuwait is the right of the Kuwaiti people and no one has the right to negotiate over them." Al-Ameeri believes that the Kuwaiti voices calling to forgive the debt and compensation "should not be heeded and they do not represent the Kuwaiti people." He further opposes the debt forgiveness because Iraq has considerable oil wealth and because the, "Kuwaiti people shed their blood" during the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.
"The issue is a red line for Kuwait and no Kuwaiti will ever concede these loans," Al-Ameeri has been quoted as saying. On August 23, 2008, Al-Ameeri told Al-Wasat, "There are some incompetent ministers in the Cabinet who are neither contributing to the development of the country nor to the government. These ministers are not fulfilling their duties towards the country." Speaking to Al-Wasat daily, the lawmaker called for amending second article of the Constitution, saying "this article is preventing the country's growth in all sectors." He added that change will come to the country if HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah's vision to transform Kuwait into commercial and financial hub in the region is implemented.
The lawmaker is working on a draft bill that calls for restricting appointments at the top level. "The country suffers when everybody appoints his relatives in the most sensitive posts," he noted. Accusing the government of failing to arrest the spiraling prices of commodities in the local market, Al-Ameeri said traders are tarnishing the image of the country by playing with prices.
The lawmaker denies that extremist ideology is included in school syllabus and warned public from entering debates on such topics "because the education sector has no clear strategy."
Al-Ameeri also finds the establishment of an Islamist bloc 'unnecessary' now "as it lost power in the last Parliament."
Al-Ameeri criticized this move, arguing that MPs should not start questioning the Prime Minister so soon after getting elected. Al-Ameeri further argued that, “The government should be given enough time to execute its agenda and plans...The relations between executive and legislative authorities should not deteriorate due to the personal agenda of one or two MPs.”.
Politics
While political parties are technically illegal in Kuwait, Al-Ameeri affiliates with the Islamist Hadas party.
