In Article No. (206) of the Kuwaiti Penal Code, the sale and importation of intoxicants are prohibited, with an exception made for embassies.

The questioner : Shaykh, in Article of the Kuwaiti Penal Code, the circulation of intoxicants, their sale, and their consumption are prohibited, with an exception made for the diplomatic embassies located in...

The Shaykh : I think the reasoning needs clarification; that is, do you want to say: the embassies of disbelievers?

The questioner : There are no disbeliever embassies or Muslim embassies...

The Shaykh : This is contrary to what we heard!

The questioner : I am telling you now the reality of what has happened.

The Shaykh: All right.

The questioner : So, embassies were exempted without distinguishing between Muslim, disbeliever, polytheist, or others.

The Shaykh : No, I did not intend for them to be included; it could be that their embassy is a Muslim embassy.

The questioner : A Saudi embassy.

The Shaykh : Saudi, for example, or Tunisian, and so on.

The questioner : No, there are none.

The Shaykh : Are we within the scope of the text?

The questioner : We are within the scope of the text.

The Shaykh: All right.

The questioner : So these embassies have naturally exploited the matter in a bad way. First... they import through some Kuwaiti companies for Kuwaiti individuals... and then they give a type of gift to the Muslims among them, citizens and... others... so there is also room for sale and purchase. Therefore, we submitted a bill to the Council... to amend this article and abolish the exception.

The Shaykh : For what?

The questioner : To keep the text general and abolish this exception. There is no exception there, but the truth is we encountered some statements that disbelievers, or Christians, or Jews have the right to use intoxicants even in the lands of Muslims, and consequently they can be imported; so we need a ruling on this matter?

Another questioner: Peace be upon you.

The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.

The questioner : Because, if Allah wills, tomorrow... it will go to the Council.

The Shaykh : There is no doubt that... this or the decision is not Islamic. As long as it allowed embassies without restricting them to the embassies of disbelievers, this explicitly means that the law allowed Muslim embassies to drink intoxicants and to buy them as well, and to bring them into Kuwait.

Another questioner: Peace be upon you.

The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
This is a clear violation that contradicts the intent of what Muslim groups submit as a proposal to the state to obligate the prohibition of what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden, namely intoxicants. Not only drinking, but also selling and buying, and the like of what helps them to drink this evil. So the decision is not Islamic in its origin. If it must be amended, it should be restricted to allowing the embassies of disbeliever states, and it should be conditioned that first, they do not oblige any of the Muslims or Muslim companies in the state to import those intoxicants for them. This is first. Second: that they do not announce their drinking in front of Muslims in their communities, and that they do not appear in the streets drunk or half-drunk, but rather they consume their intoxicants in the privacy of their homes and residences. If they adhere to these conditions, we hold them to their pledge and allow them to bring in with their furniture, belongings, food, and drink what they need of their intoxicants. As for obliging, even secretly, some individuals or companies to import intoxicants, this is prohibited first, and it is conditioned that if they breach this condition, they are prevented from bringing in intoxicants, even as they say, via the diplomatic bag. It is absolutely not permissible; this is what can be said regarding this question.

The questioner : Okay, Shaykh, they... in their parties and occasions that they are holding, they... serve intoxicants openly; despite the fact that there are Muslims as well as non-Muslims, and there is also gifting and selling happening, and bribery through the prohibited intoxicants in...

The Shaykh : All of this would be a reason to revoke their license.

The questioner : In the context of blocking the means to harm, we submitted this bill.

The Shaykh : No, but we, especially in the first step in the way of implementing the Islamic ruling and enforcing it, do not go to extremes by forbidding other religions what is permissible for them. It is not part of Islam to forbid them eating pork, which is forbidden for us by the explicit text of the Noble Qur'an. But they buy pork, slaughter it, and eat it, but within their circle, in their homes, in their private establishments. We do not want to go to extremes in one leap; because the truth is that the wisdom in the matter is what the wise poet indicated:
"If you cannot do something, leave it *** And pass on to what you can do."
I think that if you ask the state to prohibit intoxicants absolutely, even for the disbeliever diplomats, your request will not be granted; therefore, we pass over this, because this passing over is not contrary to the Shari'ah, but it is the Shari'ah itself. And we suffice by saying that you drink intoxicants and import intoxicants by the ways you import any need you have, but you do not exceed that to other people, even as a gift.
As for the thing you mentioned that they serve intoxicants in their parties and there are Muslims present; the reality is that this is also another religious violation. The Messenger (peace be upon him) said: ; meaning we will be refuted by these disbelievers when we say to them: you are displaying it in your parties and there are Muslims present. They will say... Islam says such and such. This is if they are of course aware of what we have, and there may be of course some Orientalists who know the details of the rulings of the Shari'ah with us; therefore, we do not open a path for them to attack and have the right on their side. We block the path before them, and we say: this is for you in your religion, but in our religion and among our Muslims, this is forbidden, so it is not permissible for you to exceed those limits. I see that this is first more in accordance with the Shari'ah, and then closer to achieving this proposal.

The questioner : No, it is closer to achieving... As for what you do not favor, the government will object by citing diplomatic customs and what is it called? The Geneva Convention, that they do not distinguish between diplomats, between the Muslim and the non-Muslim, and that in many Muslim ambassadors' countries, intoxicants are permissible, so it is impossible for the government to come and distinguish between an embassy and an embassy; whether disbeliever or Muslim.

The Shaykh : How...?

The questioner : It does not distinguish between them.

The Shaykh : No, please.

The questioner: We ... .

The Shaykh : You say: do not distinguish; meaning you do not want to distinguish?

The questioner : Yes, you do not want to distinguish.

The Shaykh : But it is impossible to distinguish; how is it impossible? If this is impossible, it is even more impossible to ask them to prohibit the importation of intoxicants absolutely; do they not also object by citing Geneva or the Geneva resolutions?!

The questioner : It is now, excuse me Shaykh, it is now still objecting by this thing. We have a difference between the proposal that we propose to the government, which may be accepted or may not be accepted.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : And the bill submitted. We are submitting a bill, and this is stipulated in the Council... binding on the government; it is executed.

The Shaykh : The issue, may Allah reward you, is understood, but you say that there is a Geneva Conference they object to.
Yes?

The questioner : The Geneva Convention.

The Shaykh : The Geneva Convention. They object by the convention that the state is not prepared to break this convention. In what are they not prepared? In distinguishing between a Muslim ambassador and a disbeliever ambassador. They are prepared for the disbeliever as well not to be allowed to drink intoxicants; which is easier?

The questioner : No... in the Islamic states, the embassies of the Islamic states... they will object to the state, they will object to Kuwait, how did you prohibit us and allowed... from an Islamic perspective... in our countries this thing is allowed. There are two ways, Shaykh, the way of importation as we explained, and the way of the diplomatic bags. We did not address the diplomatic bags; because the embassies... may bring with them through their diplomatic bags what they need of intoxicants. We addressed the issue of importation and the issue of allowing them openly.

The Shaykh : Importation is absolutely prohibited, my brother. The issue was not here. Importation, we said, is on the condition that they do not oblige a Muslim company to import intoxicants for them. So importation is definitely prohibited; meaning the proposal must be so, there is no disagreement. But does the proposal include preventing the disbeliever diplomats from drinking intoxicants in their embassies or not?

The questioner : ... Brother Khalid has an addition to the clarification.

The Shaykh: Go ahead.

The questioner : Shaykh, the concept of importation is not that the condition is that the company imports it, or that Muslims import it; the concept of importation here is ... that it is imported, but the Kuwaiti customs allow it to enter Kuwait.

The Shaykh : It is known ... .

The questioner : So the intent of the concept of importation is to allow it to enter Kuwait via ... This is one point. Second, it is possible to distinguish between a Muslim embassy and a disbeliever's embassy by the text of the law; and therefore ... the government, and thus arguing that the lack of reciprocity is possible ... !

The Shaykh : So we proceed according to the Shari'ah. Importation, and your specification of importation, is a formal issue; because if the importation is by any route, it must pass through customs, and customs will allow the dhimmi (a non-Muslim under Muslim protection) to import what? Intoxicants. And originally, you all know that in Islam there is no such thing as customs; so naturally, if a Christian enters from one town to another carrying intoxicants, Islam does not concern itself with it at all, just as if a foreign woman entered ... .