Jordan Islamists see proposed constitutional amendments inadequate

By ABDUL JALIL MUSTAFA | ARAB NEWS
Aug 15, 2011

AMMAN: Jordan’s main opposition party, the Islamic Action Front (IAF), said Monday the recommended amendments to the constitution included "positive aspects”, but fell short of meeting the people’s aspirations.

"We see that the amendments, despite their importance, do not respond completely to the demands of the Jordanian people, given the transformations currently experienced by the region,” the IAF said in a statement.

A royal committee that was set up three months ago by King Abdullah for the revision of the constitution submitted its recommendations to the monarch on Sunday.

The king described the proposed amendments as a "historical” achievement that put Jordan on the threshold of a new era of political reform.

The panel proposed, among other things, the setting up of a constitutional court, the supervision of general elections by an independent body, the trial of cabinet ministers by civil courts and strictly defining the need for the government to adopt temporary laws.

The IAF, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood movement, described the proposed amendments as "positive aspects”, but demanded further revisions of the constitution in order to ensure "a promising transition to the future and to surmount the crisis we live”.

The further amendments proposed by Islamists included naming prime ministers from coalitions enjoying parliamentary majorities and the election of the upper house of Parliament.

"These amendments will prove that the nation is the source of powers and elevates Jordan to the rank of democratic states,” the IAF statement said.

So far, the king used to appoint prime ministers and to name members of the upper house, the senate, from citizens with outstanding records in the public life.

King Abdullah set up the royal committee for the revision of the constitution in May at the height of pro-reform protests that were inspired by the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.

Source: Arab News.
Link: http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article489136.ece.