By Ulf Laessing
KUWAIT (Reuters) - Kuwaitis voted in a parliamentaryelection on Saturday that they hoped would bring in fresh facesable to revive economic reforms to wean the country off itsdependence on oil.
Some 275 candidates are running for the 50-seat NationalAssembly, among them 27 women hoping for their first successafter failing to win a single seat in 2006.
Women won the right to vote and stand for office in 2005.
Some 361,685 Kuwaitis, over half of them women, areeligible to vote. Members of the security forces are notallowed to vote.
The Gulf Arab state's ruler, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmadal-Sabah, dissolved parliament in March to end a standoff withthe cabinet that had delayed economic reforms aimed atpreparing Kuwait for the era when its vast oil reserves runout.
"Oh voter - which Kuwait do you want?" said the dailyal-Rai in an editorial, urging voters to support candidatesputting national interest first and seeking to work with thegovernment to approve reforms aimed at enlivening the country'seconomy.
Kuwait's stock market, the second-largest in the Arabworld, initially rose on hopes the new chamber would be morebusiness-friendly, but has shed some gains recently.
"Investors now want to see some action," said MustafaBehbehani, a director at Gulf Consulting Co in Kuwait.
The two-month campaign has been marred by protests, arrestsand confusion after a new law redrew electoral districts toensure a more balanced representation in a parliament that hastended to be dominated by Islamist blocs and tribal alliances.
Candidates have also been detained on vote-buyingallegations and, under the new rules that have cut the numberof constituencies from 25 to five, no one can predict who willwin.
The last assembly focused on questioning ministers overtheir conduct, forcing several to resign. The major OPECproducer has yet to appoint an oil minister since Badral-Humaidhi resigned in November.
Kuwait, which sits on 10 percent of the world's oil, wantsto wean its economy off energy exports and emulate the successof neighbours like Dubai and Bahrain which have transformedthemselves into financial centres and tourist destinations.
But Kuwait's political standoff means even a long-awaitedbill aimed at attracting foreign investment has yet to pass.
Oil makes up over 90 percent of Kuwaiti government revenuesand 55 percent of the gross domestic product in 2006, accordingto official data. That compares to 3 percent of GDP in Dubai.
Part of the problem is that ordinary Kuwaitis opposereforms that would cut their benefits. They pay no taxes andare content with state jobs and handouts and free health andschools.
Many Kuwaitis are also fed up with a state which, despiteits oil wealth, allows roads, hospitals and schools to crumble.
Reforms will be even harder to push through with globalfood prices rising and inflation at a record 9.5 percent inJanuary.
"They don't treat you, they torture you," said a woman,describing dental treatment at a flagship state hospital.
(Editing by Lin Noueihed and Myra MacDonald)
