Archive: jordan

6th April 2011
By: Brian Whitaker
Reporters in Jordan have been receiving phone calls and emails threatening physical harm unless they stop covering the reform movement in the kingdom, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.  "The situation is no longer about censorship or repressive legislation – the danger has become… Read more
22nd January 2011
By: Brian Whitaker
The "Tunisia effect" continues. Several thousand protesters took to the streets of Jordan yesterday, for the second Friday in succession. More than 5,000 marched in the centre of Amman, with smaller demonstrations in several other cities, according toagency reports. The protesters are said to have… Read more
28th October 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
Ahead of next month's elections in Jordan, five people have been charged with vote-buying, the Jordan Times reports. Under the electoral law, they could face seven years in jail. The 2007 elections were marred by complaints of irregularities and this is the first time the Jordanian authorities have… Read more
21st August 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
With the Jordanian parliament dissolved since last November, the cabinet is continuing to issue "provisional" laws – a practice that is allowed by Article 94 of the constitution so long as the laws relate to "necessary measures which admit of no delay". One of these – though it is difficult to… Read more
26th July 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
A woman clad in hijab and lettuce leaves was arrested by Jordanian police and detained for three hours yesterday, for holding an unauthorised demonstration. The lone protester, Amina Tariq, carried a placard saying "Let vegetarianism grow on you". Vegetarianism is an unfamiliar concept in most Arab… Read more
11th July 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
A 28-year-old woman was stabbed to death in a suburb of Amman yesterday – the eighth reported "honour" killing in Jordan so far this year. She is said to have been stabbed 16 times and her four brothers are being questioned by police, according to the Jordan Times. The paper quotes a source as… Read more
7th July 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
Four men were convicted yesterday in a multi-million-dollar bribery case involving expansion plans for Jordan's only oil refinery. Those convicted are: Adel Qudah, a former finance minister and former chairman of the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company (JPRC) Ahmad Rifai… Read more
22nd April 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
Education specialists in Jordan "have become increasingly outspoken" about continuing problems with school textbooks, according to The National.  In 2003, recognising that the existing curriculum was inadequate for the needs of a modern society, Jordan launched an initiative "to strengthen and… Read more
14th March 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
Four high-ranking Jordanians are imprisoned and awaiting trail in what looks like becoming the kingdom’s biggest-ever corruption case. Bribes of JD12 million ($17 million) are alleged to be involved, in connection with expansion plans for Jordan's only oil refinery. Those arrested are:  Read more
17th February 2010
By: Brian Whitaker
I didn't spot this when it happened last month, but it has important implications for freedom of expression. The Jordanian Court of Cassation ruled that websites can be classified as "publications" and are therefore subject to penalties under the kingdom's Press and Publications Law for anything… Read more