by Zach Waksman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

AMMAN, Jordan – In a speech marking his twelfth year as the leader of Jordan, King Abdullah II announced today that he would be making new efforts at reforming the country’s government, which has long been plagued by corruption.  The promise comes on the heels of protests calling for democracy that have been ongoing for the months since last November’s Parliamentary election, which was boycotted by several opposition groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood.

This latest initiative began after Jordan’s National Dialogue Committee released its recommendations for political reform last Saturday.  The Committee, established in March, was asked to reach a consensus on numerous issues on that topic, some of which were raised by Abdullah himself.  Among the recommendations is the establishment of an independent panel of former judges to oversee elections.  The Committee also proposed a law on political parties to make them easier to form by reducing the number of people required to do so from 500 to 250.  Out of those founding members, the draft law would require at least 25 of them to be women.

Senate President Taher Masri, who chaired the 52-member Committee, considered the effort a success.  “Our mission is accomplished and the ball is in the court of the government to continue the reform process and translate the recommendations into action.”

In his address to the nation, Abdullah set out his vision for Jordan as a model constitutional monarchy.  He foresaw a clear separation of powers so that all parts of the government would be accountable to the nation.  “Elaborating on this vision, and on political reforms in particular,” he emphasized, “our guiding principles will emanate from the recommendations produced by consensus of the National Dialogue Committee…that reflect the aspirations of Jordanians…”  A key part of this initiative would be conduction of new elections to replace the current Parliament.

Despite the king’s lofty rhetoric, not all Jordanians are as optimistic about the possibility of success.  According to 28-year-old Ahamad Sami, a fruit salesman, this effort will be no more effective than the one that took place five years ago.  “It’s all lies,” Sami told the New York Times.  “The Parliament will not approve these recommendations, because it’s not in their own personal interest.”

That 2006 initiative, called the National Agenda, went nowhere due to lack of pressure from within the Parliament or from the public.  It was one of many reform efforts that Abdullah has made since taking the throne in 1999.  None of them have truly succeeded.

In the opinion of Marwan Muasher, the former Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan, Abdullah is part of the reason for this failure by not convincing society to follow his lead.  “All efforts to open up the political system have been thwarted by a resilient class of political elites and bureaucrats who feared that such efforts would be move the country away from a decades-old rentier system to a merit based one,” Muasher explained.  And whenever those people opposed Abdullah’s policies, he capitulated to them, thus undermining his own initiatives.

Whether this will happen again is unclear.  Every past effort came up short due to lack of support, but Abdullah is not backing down.  He seems to finally have the support he needs from inside the government.  “We have democrats and we have conservatives and people who believe that proceeding with these changes may undermine the authority of the state,” said Masri.  “Implementation is a process and it will be a tough road ahead.”

For more information, please see:

Petra — King Addresses Nation — 12 June 2011

Washington Post — Jordan’s king bows to popular demands for elected Cabinets, constitutional changes — 12 June 2011

New York Times — Jordan Tries to Remake Its Political Machinery — 8 June 2011

Al Arabiya — Failure of Jordanian reform offers roadmap for Arab leaders — 16 May 2011

by Adom M. Cooper
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

ZINJIBAR, Yemen–Only days after President Ali Abdullah Saleh left his country after being injured in an attack on his compound, opposition forces in Yemen have ramped up their offensive in an effort to see real change happen. High government officials in Yemen routinely blame the violence on al-Qaeda operatives on such attacks. President Saleh is currently in Saudia Arabia, recovering from burns over 40% of his body and a collapsed lung, according to a U.S. government official briefed on the situation.

In the major city of Zinjibar, reports have surfaced that both government troops and opposition fighters lost their lives during overnight clashes. The government’s troops moved into the city in an attempt to recover control of it, as major sections of the city have been held by opposition gunmen since late May.

The head of the tribal council in Taiz, Sheikh Hammoud Saeed Al-Mikhlafi, relayed this message to an AFP news agency correspondent via telephone:

“We the tribes, in support to the oppressed and in retaliation against the illegitimate government have deployed around government installations, which we now control in order to protect from thugs.”

In the country’s capital Sanaa, approximately 4,000 protesters gathered in front of Vice President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s residence, calling for President Saleh to create a transitional council to allow a new government to be born. A young activist named Omar al-Qudsi relayed this sentiment to a Reuters’ correspondent:

“We will remain in front of the residence of the vice president for 24 hours to pressure him for the formation of a transitional council. The era of Saleh has ended.”

The developing situation in Yemen has become a concern for Western powers due to its geographical location, its oil shipping lanes, and its oil-giant neighbor, Saudi Arabia. If the chaos in the country continues, al-Qaeda operatives could benefit the most from the freedom of movement. As recent as 9 June 2011, the US has launched airstrikes against designated al-Qaeda targets in Yemen to disrupt their efforts to gain from the ongoing turmoil.

Zinjibar was once home to approximately 50,000 residents. But as a result of the continual clashes, it is reported now to resemble a ghost town. The continual clashes of the Saleh regime and its opposition are coming at the expense of its residents, the very people that the government is supposed to protect. One can only wonder where this large number of displaced individuals has gone and if they are able to find access to basic resources, such as food and water.

For more information, please see:

Boston Globe-AP sources: US planes hit Yemeni militants-09 June 2011

Bloomberg-Yemen Opposition Seeks Formal Declaration That Saleh is No Longer President-08 June 2011

CNN-Witnesses: Tribal fighters take over major city in Yemen-08 June 2011

Al-Jazeera-Yemen opposition offer for talks rebuffed-07 June 2010

BBC Yemen-30 dead in Zanjibar and ‘clashes’ in Taiz-07 June 2010

Reuters-Yemen’s Saleh injuries believed more serious-07 June 2011

By Tyler Yates
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

MANAMA, Bahrain – Bahrain’s ‘Arab Spring’ appears to be ready to become an Arab Summer as protests have resumed in the small Middle Eastern gulf country.  The renewed fervor comes just a week after Bahrain lifted martial law, which it began imposing in March after initial protests in February.

The passage of martial law came just days after Saudi and United Arab Emirates forces moved into Bahrain to quash the pro-democracy movement, resulting in at least 30 deaths.  In the months following the law’s passage hundreds of members of the opposition, as well as many doctors and nurses, who treated injured protesters, have been arrested.

In recent weeks, the government has been targeting women for arrest.  For Gulf Arab culture, there are few things more humiliating to a family than having a female family member detained.  Analysts in the region say this is the first time a government has targeted the opposition by arresting women.

Nabeel Rajab, the vice president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, sees the lifting of martial law as an insincere gesture.  “The lifting [of the] state of emergency…was more to attract the Formula One…which was going to act as an indicator if Bahrain has come to normal or not,” he said.

The 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix, one of the Formula One Championship races, was scheduled to be held on 13 March, but was canceled due to the protests.  The race has been rescheduled for 30 October.

Bahrain’s hopes for normalcy appear to be premature, as hours after martial law was lifted, protesters again took to the streets. Bahraini troops have responded aggressively. There are reports of the usage of tear gas, rubber bullets, and sound guns against the protesters.

Bahrain has a majority Shi’ite population, but is ruled by a Sunni family headed by King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa.  The protests come from the disenfranchised Shi’ite population who want democratic reforms leading to more rights.

The protest organizers are calling for the protests to continue until their demands are met.  One Facebook post urges people to gather in main streets and squares to show the imminence and importance of the movement.

Tensions between the Sunni and Shi’ite have been especially heated lately, and repercussions of the Bahrain protests have reverberated in Iran and Saudi Arabia.  With Iran supporting the Shi’ite majority and the Saudi’s supporting the Sunni leadership, the situation in Bahrain is on its way to becoming a proxy war between the two Middle Eastern powers.

For more information, please see:

Jerusalem Post — Gulf becomes fault line for Sunni-Shi’ite Tensions — 7 June 2011

NPR — Women The Latest Target of Bahrain’s Crackdown — 7 June 2011

Al Jazeera — Bahrain police target ‘Shia processions’ — 6 June 2011

BBC News — Bahrain protests: Trial opens for 47 doctors and nurses — 6 June 2011

Al Jazeera — Security forces attack Bahraini protesters — 2 June 2011

Washington Post — Bahrain lifts emergency law — 1 June 2011

by Zach Waksman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

MAJDAL SHAMS, Golan Heights, Israel — This morning’s protest rally along the fence that marks the border between Syria and Israel became a battlefield when Israeli forces assembled along the fence shot at the assembled protesters.

The protest was scheduled to mark the 44th anniversary of the Arab world’s defeat in the Six-Day War of 1967 against Israel, known as “Naksa Day” or the “Day of Defeat.”  In preparation for the protest, the Israeli military dug trenches and erected barbed wire at the border in an effort to stymie efforts to breach the borders.  Despite these efforts, troops opened fire when protesters attempted to breach the fences, despite several warnings to stop. Syrian state television reported that as many as twelve people were killed, with dozens more injured.

One of the injured, 16-year-old Mohammed Hasan, said, “We want on this occasion to remind America and the whole world that we have a right to return to our country.”  In commemorating the war, the rally was meant to bring the world’s eyes to the situation of an estimated half-million Palestinian refugees who lost their homes during Israel’s war of independence.  Also among the injured was Palestinian politician Mustafa Bargouthi, who told Al-Jazeera that the he was one of several people who were beaten by Israeli soldiers as the protesters peacefully approached the Golan Heights checkpoint.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disagreed with Bargouthi’s assessment.  After last month’s protests resulted in hundreds of people breaking through a border fence and fighting with Israeli troop, he deployed thousands of troops to the borders as a deterrent. Netanyahu also instructed his troops to use restraint and decisiveness in facing down the protesters today. “Unfortunately, extremist forces around us are trying today to breach our borders and threaten our communities and our citizens.  We will not let them do that,” he said.

Since the shootings, the Israeli military has said that the Syrian government was behind today’s incident in an effort to distract the world from its own unrest.  Avital Leibovich, spokesman for the Israeli army, called the incident “an attempt to divert international attention from the bloodbath going on in Syria.”

Casualty counts are still unfinished.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera — Israeli forces fire at ‘Naksa’ Protesters — 5 June 2011

Arutz Sheva — IDF Digs Trenches to Stop Border Assaults — 5 June 2011

Atlanta Journal-Constitution — 12 dead as Israeli troops fire along Syrian border – 5 June 2011

Jerusalem Post — PM: We will protect borders with determination, restraint — 2 June 2011