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Jordan: 6000 Protests in Amman for Reforms and Against Neo Liberalism

Some 6,000 Jordanians have taken to the streets of Amman, in the biggest pro-democracy rally in eight weeks of protest. Fearing a repeat of last Friday’s violent clashes, more than 3,000 police were deployed in the city centre for this week’s day of anger. Inspired by Tunisia and Egypt, demonstrators want greater political say and economic change at home.

Some are also voicing support for their Libyan brethren.

Waving Jordanian flags the people marched, and members of the country’s largest political opposition group, the Islamic Action Front, joined them.One protester, Amer Warat, said he was calling for lower prices, new elections and changes to the constitution which give King Abdullah absolute power.

“The authorities of the king have changed a lot, 180 degrees, so we have come peacefully to just ask for the changes. We want our rights. That’s all,” he says.

Mr Warat – who once worked in executive sales and is now unemployed – says he has been unable to find a job for the past two years. His wife, who works as a mid-wife, must now support his family of four, he says. People are feeling the pinch – from rising global food prices and 12% unemployment. For Mr Warat and the other protesters, reforms promised by Jordan’s newly-appointed government earlier this month are not coming fast enough.

Eight people were injured Friday in the Jordanian capital of Amma

n, after loyalists of the regime attacked hundreds of young demonstrators who demanded political reforms in the kingdom. This incident is the first of its kind since the start of the current protests in Jordan. In recent weeks, there have been protests but without violence. There were conflicting reports about the nature of the clashes. It was said that Jordanian security forces separated between the two sides, and after the march ended, there was is no need for arrests.

After Friday prayers scores participated in the march, organized by the leftist opposition while others participated in a rally to support the government near the Husseini Mosque in the center of the Jordanian capital, Amman. The clash between the two sides caused casualties. The opposition said “thugs” tried to prevent the march, and there was a clash with sticks and stones, without the intervention of the security forces. According to eyewitnesses, “about one hundred thugs attacked the demonstration, which included about 400 people from the pro-reform movement. The protesters carried banners saying “bread and freedom, social justice,” “We want an elected government,” “People want to stop corruption”, and “Hunger is a red line.”

The demonstrations, inspired by the unrest in the region and joined Friday by thousands across Jordan, reflect growing discontent stoked by the most serious domestic economic crisis in years and accusations of rampant government corruption.

Abdullah’s response so far has been “just a public relations campaign that doesn’t solve the crisis,” Bani Irsheid said in an interview. “The regime wants a solution without paying the price, and it is offering cosmetic changes. We told them that what was acceptable yesterday is not acceptable today, and what could resolve the problem today may not be a solution tomorrow. Delaying and hesitation will only complicate matters.”

For now, the lightning rods for criticism are the prime minister and members of his cabinet, whom opposition critics say personally profited from the sale of state companies as part of the king’s policy of privatization and free-market reforms to attract foreign capital.

“It’s a club of businessmen serving their financial interests,” said Nahedh Hattar, a veteran opposition activist. “The king is a member of the club.”

Critics such as Hattar say the king’s policies, and accompanying corruption, have only widened the gap between rich and poor and exacerbated Jordan’s economic ills, which include a rising national debt and high levels of unemployment and poverty.

Ali Habashnah, one of the retired generals advocating reforms, said that public resentment has spread to rural areas dominated by Bedouin tribes that have been the traditional backbone of the monarchy and its security forces. It was the first time, he said, that members of that segment of Jordanian society had joined with other groups in demands for change.
Solidarity protests

Jordan’s anti-riot police dispersed, using force, thousands of university students who gathered at the main gate of the University of Jordan, Amman, Sunday, in response to a call for a rally against the Israeli massacres in Palestine. The protesters came from other educational institutions in the kingdom to show solidarity with the Palestinians, with a plan to march to the Israeli embassy in the Rabia suburb in Amman, according to a statement by the organizers.

The activity, which was organized by the Islamist-dominated Preparatory Committee for Students Union, is banned after the government announced Friday it “would deal with firmness with people who defy the orders of the security authorities,’ and go out in rallies or demonstrations. Hundreds of policemen attacked the gathering with batons after they blocked off all roads leading to the university.

Several protesters, including primary school students, were arrested before order was regained.

Hundreds of demonstrations have been staged in Jordan in angry protests against Israel, with calls for expelling the Jewish state’s ambassador to Amman, and abolishing the Jordanian- Israeli peace treaty. The bloodiest clashes between demonstrators and the security forces are still underway in the Baqaa refugee camp to the north of Amman the third day in a row. 18-year-old Osama Abdul Karim was shot dead during Baqaa clashes, with fingers of accusation pointed at the police, who claim the shooting happened due to “personal settlement of dispute.”

The Baqaa camp is still under siege by the police, whose way into the camp is blocked by thousands of protesters.

By Rukhsana Manzoor

 

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