JORDAN: REGULATION OF CHARITIES

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 002383 SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/ARN, EB/ESC/ESP AND S/CT TREASURY FOR OFAC AND OFFICE OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/07/2010 TAGS: ETTC EFIN PTER PREL JO SUBJECT: JORDAN: REGULATION OF CHARITIES REF: A. STATE 90100 ¶B. 01 AMMAN 4871 Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm. Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d) ¶1. (c) Jordanian charities and non-governmental social service organizations are registered with and monitored by the Ministry of Social Affairs and by the Ministry of Religious Affairs in the case of religious organizations. Their activities complement government-provided social services, especially in poor areas of the country. A number of groups also direct charitable contributions to Palestinian beneficiaries in the West Bank and Gaza. Some of the larger organizations, such as the Hashemite Welfare Foundation, operate under the patronage of members of the royal family. In addition, the Ministry of Industry and Trade supervises the large and influential professional associations -- such as the engineers, doctors, lawyers, and pharmacists associations -- as well as chambers of industry and commerce. ¶2. (c) Post has no information that Jordanian NGOs are providing financing for terrorist organizations. When we raise the possibility, Jordanian government officials note the small scale of Jordan's charitable infrastructure, especially compared to that of the Gulf countries. However, the professional associations are relatively well provisioned financially (for example, they collect membership dues and manage pension funds for members) and their leaderships espouse political beliefs similar to those of domestic Jordanian Islamic opposition groups, such as the Islamic Action Front. This includes at least rhetorical support for Palestinian "resistance groups." ¶3. (c) The oversight exercised by the government organizations mentioned above is not stringent, and there may be some unregulated groups with a putatively charitable agenda. Although the Jordanian security services, primarily the General Intelligence Directorate (GID),are aware of the potential of charitable organizations to provide funding for terrorist activities, the GID's limited resources are primarily focused on investigating suspected terrorists and interdicting weapons for possible use in terrorist operations. The GID would likely be effective in monitoring or stopping a specific financial transaction if provided the necessary lead information. However, due to the complexities of distinguishing legitimate charitable contributions from monies being funneled to terrorist groups, many such small transactions could occur without being detected. ¶4. Comment: The Jordanians are aware of the potential misuse of charitable contributions for terrorist purposes. However, since most officials believe the scale of such activity is small, they tend to focus their limited resources on the most immediate threats. Upcoming GOJ participation in ATA counterterrorism legislation training could help to raise the sensitivity of Jordanian officials to these issues, as could more focused training opportunities on mechanisms for countering illicit financial transfers. Gnehm