| Islamic charities in Kuwait have been ordered to shut down hundreds of charity collection boxes in a bid to better control fund-raising, a minister said in remarks published yesterday. "The decision to remove (legal) charity boxes is irreversible. ... It was taken by the Cabinet which wants to remove anything that may affect charity work," Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Faisal Al-Hajji said. The five authorized Islamic charities and their 124 branches in Kuwait have hundreds of boxes placed all over the emirate, some of which are unlicensed. Hajji said an earlier government decision to remove unlicensed boxes had been successfully implemented and charities had been given a grace period to remove officially-sanctioned boxes that ended yesterday. "Charity boxes are not a civilized means (to raise funds). It may even give an impression contrary to the noble goals of the charities," the minister said in comments carried by local newspapers. |