The Economist: Jordanian Brotherhood accuses regime of tyranny

Mustafa Kamel

The Brotherhood’s arms are spread throughout the world like cancer cells, especially in Jordan, where its political party, the Islamic Action Front, used the Democracy Index report for 2020 issued by the Economist, repeating terms like “authoritarian” as an excuse to attack the Hashemite Kingdom and incite public opinion against it. This was rejected by the Adaleh Center for Law and Human Rights in Jordan, which stressed that the recession is due to external matters and the spread of the corona virus, adding that the application of all martial laws is to limit the spread of the virus, along with the existence of political will available to all.

The Brotherhood issued a statement on Sunday, February 14, in which it exercised its methods of leveling charges against the Hashemite Kingdom, in which it claimed that local and international reports reveal what it called the hegemony of authoritarianism and security in managing the country’s affairs, claiming that the continuation of the existing approach has damaged Jordan’s image globally and exacerbated the state of popular tension and accumulated internal crises.

False promotion

In contrast to what the Brotherhood party in Jordan is promoting in an effort to attract attention internally, Asim Rababa, head of the Adaleh Center, asserted that the Hashemite Kingdom is not, as some claim, an authoritarian state. Rather, it is reviewing the Democracy Index for 2020 issued by the Economist.

During an interview with the Arabic-speaking French radio Montecarlo International, Rababa indicated that what explains this decline is the restriction on the climate of public freedoms due to Covid-19, which has occurred on the world level.

Regarding Jordan’s description as an authoritarian country, Rababa explained that he does not agree with that, as there are many legislative indicators such as a law that regulates political parties and their actions and public participation in elections.

“If Jordan were an authoritarian state, the margin in which civil society and freedom of opinion and expression would operate would narrow,” he said, stressing that there is political will in Jordan and not as some claim its absence, in addition to the presence of many channels through which Jordanian citizens can participate.

Personal gain

In a secret telegram issued by the US embassy in Amman, former US Chargé d’Affairs Daniel Rubinstein said that the relationship between the Brotherhood and the Jordanian government has increased in tension in recent years, reaching its climax after the Hamas takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007. He noted that the Brotherhood is exploiting sensitive issues for Jordanians, such as the Israeli attacks in Gaza, in order to gain the support of the Jordanians and to repeat its traditional calls for the abolition of the peace treaty between Jordan and Israel, which was signed in 1994.

Years ago, former US Ambassador to Jordan Stephen Beecroft revealed that the Brotherhood, which was dissolved in the Kingdom, continues to be active in its political wing represented by the Islamic Action Front, adding that the focus of the terrorist group and its wing are often ideological or political, although the financial system provides the necessary tools to reveal the hidden and real old-fashioned organization of the group and exposes the conflicts resulting mostly from internal corruption and conflicts of interest.

Beecroft pointed out that the group formed an umbrella organization that supervises and controls the political, charitable and spiritual activities of the Islamist movement in Jordan. As for the Islamic Action Front, it is the political wing of the group, and the latter controls it directly through governance structures and financial relations.