Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
02AMMAN3947
2002-07-17 13:14:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Amman
Cable title:  

JORDAN: ENGAGING ISLAM

Tags:  PREL KISL PTER EFIN EAID KPAO KDEM KIRF PHUM JO 
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 AMMAN 003947 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/02/2012
TAGS: PREL KISL PTER EFIN EAID KPAO KDEM KIRF PHUM JO
SUBJECT: JORDAN: ENGAGING ISLAM

REF: STATE 61142

Classified By: AMBASSADOR EDWARD GNEHM FOR REASONS 1.5 (B)
AND (D).

----------------------
SUMMARY AND BACKGROUND
----------------------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 AMMAN 003947

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/02/2012
TAGS: PREL KISL PTER EFIN EAID KPAO KDEM KIRF PHUM JO
SUBJECT: JORDAN: ENGAGING ISLAM

REF: STATE 61142

Classified By: AMBASSADOR EDWARD GNEHM FOR REASONS 1.5 (B)
AND (D).

--------------
SUMMARY AND BACKGROUND
--------------


1. (C) Embassy Amman's chief goals include promoting
moderation and reform within Jordan through contact work and
a wide range of programs. Our Economic Reform efforts seek
to achieve these goals through improved living standards,
increased employment opportunities, and encouraging Jordan's
continued commitment to economic reform and liberalization.
Political Reform efforts aim at consolidating past democratic
changes and advocating greater liberalization in Jordan,
consistent with U.S. interests. Education Reform efforts are
geared towards skills enhancement and inculcating civic
education and democratic values. The Embassy's efforts in
the area of Civil Society seek to achieve a number of key
objectives including greater transparency and respect for
human rights. Finally, Embassy programs aim at promoting
Religious Moderation and Tolerance as ends in themselves.


2. (C) Despite the extent and effectiveness of our efforts at
promoting moderation and reform, we are not the only force at
work in Jordan. Islamists have their own highly-developed
programs for assisting people and, ultimately, consolidating
political power through them. The Muslim Brotherhood
provides charitable assistance directly in the form of food,
money, and tuition grants. It also has influence in
government-run institutions such as hospitals, schools,
universities, and religious enterprises. Because of these
programs, the Muslim Brotherhood claims (without further
justification) it offers assistance in more cities and towns
throughout Jordan -- and therefore by implication has more
supporters -- than the GOJ itself. Jordan contains may poor,
unemployed, disillusioned, and otherwise disenfranchised
persons who turn to movements or causes like the Muslim
Brotherhood that may appear to offer them redress.



3. (C) In point of fact, there has been a significant
Islamist presence among Jordan's predominantly moderate
population since at least 1945. Islamists in Jordan (mainly
and most importantly the Muslim Brotherhood and its political
arm, the Islamic Action Front) are well-organized and often
highly-educated, with a significant history of participation
in Jordanian public life. Support for Islamic activism is
heaviest in but not exclusive to metropolitan Amman. In past
elections, Islamists have won at many as 27.5% of the
parliamentary seats in districts spanning much of the length
of Jordan from Irbid in the north to Tafileh in the south.
There is a strong perception that Islamist influence has
grown since the start of the Al-Aqsa Intifada and in the wake
of the U.S.-led war on terrorism. Extreme Islamist rhetoric
can be strongly anti-American.


4. (C) Embassy programs have helped dampen anti-American
sentiment in some quarters. But, given Jordan's place in the
center of a tense, combustible, and economically troubled
region, extreme Islamist rhetoric resonates more strongly
than it otherwise would and can breed sympathy for terrorism
even in Jordan. Jordan's situation therefore calls for
careful evaluation of our past efforts at promoting
moderation and reform as well as for careful consideration of
the path ahead. The following paragraphs address both of
these topics in detail.

--------------
Economic Reform
--------------


5. (C) Jordan has made significant strides towards improving
its investment climate, and its privatization program is
widely viewed as the best in the Middle East and one of the
best among developing countries world-wide. Jordan has far
outpaced the region in recent years by enacting economic
reforms that allowed it to accede to the WTO in 2000 in
record time, and become fully TRIPS-consistent in the
process. Jordan also entered into a Free Trade Agreement
(FTA) with the United States in 2001.


6. (C) Jordan's macroeconomic fundamentals are sound, and the
Kingdom is set to enjoy a third straight year of 4%-plus GDP
growth. But there remains a large gap between performance
and expectations, which have been inflated by highly
publicized reform efforts that have had little tangible
effect at the microeconomic level. GDP growth has not
noticeably improved incomes or job opportunities, in large
part because population growth rates are high (over 2.8%).
As a result, wages are stagnant and unemployment remains high
(15% by GOJ/IMF estimates). Bureaucratic inefficiencies and
corruption/"wasta" also hamper growth. Moreover, regional
factors (i.e., sanctions against Iraq and ongoing violence in
Israel and the West Bank) mar Jordan's economic landscape by
adversely impacting tourism, trade, and foreign investment.
Ultimately, resolution of the "expectations gap" requires
economic growth that significantly outpaces population
growth, resulting in higher living standards and increased
employment opportunities.


7. (C) Current efforts: Much of Jordan's progress has
resulted, and continues to result, from our multi-faceted
assistance programs. USAID programs in particular foster
policy and regulatory reform, job creation, trade-capacity
building for small Jordanian companies, and access to
microfinance for low-income sectors of the economy. USAID is
also working with the GOJ to decrease the population growth
rate, as a means of reigning in this significant drag on per
capita GDP growth. Many of USAID's economic programs are
centered on supporting two tracks, the U.S.-Jordan FTA and
King Abdullah's recently announced Social and Economic
Transformation Plan (SETP). The FTA has become a major
centerpiece of our efforts to boost job creation. Although
the FTA is only 7 months old, a dozen or so local companies
have already benefited by at least $7 million and additional
projects are in the pipeline. The SETP seeks to broaden the
impact of positive economic change so that it is felt
throughout all segments of Jordanian society.


8. (C) Another USG initiative, the Qualifying Industrial
Zones (QIZ) initiative, is perhaps our most impressive
success story. Designed to enhance Jordanian-Israeli
commercial contacts, the QIZs are beginning to transform
Jordan's economy and social structure. The QIZs have
generated over 22,000 jobs since 1998 and over $210 million
in exports during 2001 alone. Over 70% of QIZ jobs go to
women, many of whom have never worked outside the home. And
the jobs, along with the multiplier effects of their wages on
local economies, are creating pockets of support for
political moderation in traditionally conservative
communities.


9. (C) Looking Ahead: Given the potentially destabilizing
impact of poverty in general and the "expectations gap" in
particular, King Abdullah recently announced the SETP. The
SETP seeks to spread benefits of growth expected from ongoing
economic policy reforms to lower-income Jordanians. Our
current and future economic assistance programs will support
the SETP. Apart from its direct developmental benefits, the
SETP seeks to bolster political stability by ensuring that
all Jordanians have a stake in Jordan,s future. Stability
in Jordan will, in turn, promote regional stability. USAID
projects will continue to play a major role in addressing
many of the areas related to poverty alleviation, health,
water, and economic opportunity.


10. (C) The GOJ has risked a lot by undertaking comprehensive
economic reforms, both in terms of its relationships with its
neighbors (notably Iraq and Syria),and internally by
exposing Jordan's economy to global competition. We, in
turn, have a great deal at stake in Jordan's economic success
-- not just in aid dollars, but in the political dividends
that will accrue if Jordan emerges as a positive exemplar of
liberalization's effects on a developing country. Creating
such a positive example not only advances our MEPP goals, but
also furthers our counter-terrorism goals by using
prosperity-derived economic development to discourage new
recruits to terrorist organizations. We must make all
reasonable efforts to ensure that Jordan succeeds, so that
the GOJ remains solidly behind reform and other governments
in the region see that the U.S. supports strong internal
commitment to reform. This means, inter alia, supporting
Jordan's debt reform efforts, helping Jordan accede to the
WTO's Government Procurement Agreement, maintaining robust
ESF and FMF levels, and assisting the GOJ in making the SETP
succeed.

--------------
Political Reform
--------------


11. (C) The Jordanian Political System: Jordan's Constitution
describes the country's system of government as
"parliamentary with a hereditary monarchy." Although
directly elected legislative assemblies have served
sporadically in Jordan since the 1920s, the period since 1989
has marked a new era in Jordan's political history, with
increased openness towards opposition groups, restoration of
electoral and parliamentary processes previously suspended,
and recognition of political parties. The GOJ allowed
Islamists to participate in the 1989 parliamentary elections,
where they won 27.5% of the seats. Islamists won only 20% of
the seats in the 1993 elections, and then boycotted the 1997
elections. Parliament was dissolved in June 2001 and has not
been reconstituted. Nor have new elections been announced.
Several long-time Embassy contacts predict Islamists would
win around 22% of the seats if elections were held today, and
more than that if the regional situation deteriorates further.


12. (C) Current Programs: Since Parliament is not now in
session, the Embassy does not currently attend parliamentary
meetings. However, Embassy Officers attended Parliament
frequently in the past and continue to meet regularly with
parliamentarians and other persons representing all facets
and levels of Jordanian political life. Recent months have
seen the restoration of contacts between the Embassy and
moderate leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood opposition and its
political arm in Jordan, the Islamic Action Front. The
Islamist political leadership has committed to continued
dialogue with the Embassy and to additional meetings.


13. (C) The GOJ has generally supported the Embassy's
advocacy on behalf of U.S. interests. We have no better
regional partner on counter-terrorism than Jordan. Our deep
military-to-military relationship facilitates cooperation in
military operations, from Afghanistan to a number of United
Nations peacekeeping deployments. Recently, the GOJ went on
record hailing President Bush's June 24 speech on the Middle
East as marking "the beginning of the end of the conflict
between Arabs and Israelis," despite very widespread
criticism of the speech within Jordan and throughout the
region.

14. (C) Looking Ahead: We are actively encouraging the GOJ to
hold free, fair, and open elections leading to the
restoration of a functioning Parliament, at the earliest
reasonable opportunity. In addition, our 2004 Mission
Performance Plan proposes a number of other measures aimed at
consolidating past democratic changes and promoting greater
liberalization in Jordan (see below).

--------------
Education Reform
--------------


15. (C) The Jordanian Educational System: Jordan enjoys
relatively high educational status in terms of access to
education and education levels, compared to other Arab
Countries. It has the second highest adult literacy rate in
the region, at over 86%. On the other hand, illiteracy among
women (20.6%) is more than twice the rate for men (9.9%) and
illiteracy is especially high (27-28%) in some tribal and
rural areas like Ma'an and Mafraq. Education is compulsory
through the tenth grade. As of 1997, there were seven public
and thirteen private universities. Due to the overall
strength of Jordan's educational system, broad-based
education reform programs are not called for. However, the
present Minister of Education is U.S.-educated, and wants to
modernize and upgrade a number of elements in the curriculum.
Moreover, there is a need to address pockets of illiteracy
affecting certain geographic areas and gender/ethnic
groupings.


16. (C) Current Programs: The Embassy is working closely with
Ministry of Education officials in the areas of
English-language instruction and civic education. Around
thirty Peace Corps volunteers are working (primarily in rural
areas) to improve English skills among local teaching staff
and students, upgrade teaching resources and materials, and
develop innovative and effective pedagogical methods that
complement Jordan's national curriculum. The Embassy is also
involved in a second program specifically aimed at improving
English-language instruction in the middle schools. (The
British Embassy's elementary-school English-language program
complements this program.) Our middle-school program
includes the teaching of English at model schools using
English-language textbooks. Finally, teacher training is
complete for a third program involving civic education and
democracy, using textbooks that adapt U.S. models to the
Jordanian context. The civic education/democracy program is
scheduled to enter classrooms in twenty schools this
September. While high-level Ministry of Education officials
strongly support these programs, lower-level Islamist
employees criticize what they label "propagandization"
through the use of U.S. textbooks.


17. (C) In the area of higher education, the Embassy is
involved with U.S.-Jordanian academic exchange programs,
support of Jordanian post-graduate and post-doctoral students
attending U.S. universities through the Fulbright program,
and one of only two American Studies programs in the region
(at Jordan University). These programs are received
enthusiastically by Jordanians, and they carry great weight
in promoting a positive understanding of American society,
culture, government, and institutions. The Embassy also
supports increased use of the English language and quality
English teaching at many levels through the Regional English
Language Office, the Arabic Book Translation Program, the
American Language Center, the American Center for Oriental
Research, and other initiatives. 1700 students, for example,
received English-language instruction through the American
Language Center in FY2001. During the same year, six books
translated through the Arabic Book Translation Program were
accepted as textbooks or as assigned reading in Jordanian
universities. The AMIDEAST office in Amman provides
counseling and information services to Jordanians who wish to
study in the United States.

18. (C) Looking Ahead: Much of our work will lie in
continuing or expanding upon the range of successful programs
we are currently involved in. At the middle-school level,
expansion will involve the maturation of pilot
English-language and civic education programs as they enter
the mainstream curriculum throughout Jordan. We also
anticipate expansion in other areas, including preschool and
life-skills education, particularly for women and girls.
There is, as noted above, a fear in some quarters that our
involvement in reforming middle school curricula is aimed at
promoting a "secret" U.S. agenda. While such fears do not
presently pose a serious risk of undermining our efforts,
this risk should be monitored and assessed periodically.

--------------
Civil Society
--------------


19. (C) Jordanian Civil Society: NGOs promoting a number of
important aims ranging from human rights to health care and
economic development operate within Jordan. Some of the many
NGOs operating in Jordan include Save the Children (operating
a junior-achievement type program),the Cooperative Housing
Foundation (micro-enterprise financing),the Royal Society
for the Conservation of Nature (environmental conservation
and rural economic growth),the American Center for Oriental
Research (restoration and preservation of antiquities),
Habitat for Humanity (low-income housing),the Royal
Commission on Human Rights (monitoring cases alleging human
rights violations),the Jordanian Society for Citizens'
Rights (human rights and other issues),the Jordanian Women's
Union (women's rights),the Jordan Evangelical Theological
Seminary (training of Christian pastors and missionaries),
and the International Labor Organization (labor issues).


20. (C) Regional tensions present the GOJ with difficult
choices in balancing public order with open expression.
Despite Jordan's history as one of the more open systems of
civil society in the region, and the existence of a vibrant
NGO culture within Jordan, critics charge that the GOJ has
retrenched on its recognition of press freedoms and freedom
of association since the beginning of the Al-Aqsa Intifada.


21. (C) Current Programs: Our programs promoting civil
society target a number of areas, some mediated through NGOs
like those listed above and others through direct Embassy
involvement. As examples of the former, the Embassy
supported creation of the Royal Commission on Human Rights as
well as the Arab Society for Civic Education (a regional
civil society NGO headquartered in Jordan) -- both of which
institutions now operate without direct Embassy oversight.
As examples of the latter, the Embassy sponsors speaker
programs aimed at encouraging women to vote and participate
in local politics, as well as exchange programs designed to
expose Jordanians to U.S. institutions and society. The
Embassy co-sponsors with NGOs numerous workshops, lectures,
and other programs directed at promoting democracy and human
rights.


22. (C) Other programs seek to encourage ethics and
transparency in bureaucratic processes. We are also engaged
in the area of judicial reform, where the Embassy sponsors
exchange visitor programs exposing key members of Jordan's
judicial establishment to key elements of the U.S. legal
system. The Embassy has directed, and continues to direct,
resources into a number of programs intended to improve the
efficiency of Jordan's legal system, including English
language instruction for judges, Alternative Dispute
Resolution training programs, and case management training.
Finally, the Embassy supports, through the USAID Mission,
development of private business associations as advocacy
groups and spokespersons for private enterprise. These
associations promote private sector-led development of
Jordan's economy and encourage a new generation of business
leaders who understand "new economic" principles.


23. (C) One important lesson deriving from our past
experience with promoting civil society in Jordan is that,
while it is often possible to gain converts and funding for
"new" projects, it is much more difficult to secure long-term
support. After an initial "honeymoon" period, some of our
best programs either wither for lack of follow-on funding, or
are taken over by other embassies and organizations. For
example, some of our ideas for elementary educational reform
have been adopted by the British Embassy acting under the
auspices of the British Council.


24. (C) Looking Ahead: As with programs geared towards
educational reform, much of our future work in building civil
society will center on the continuation or expansion of the
successful programs we are currently involved in, including
speaker programs, exchange programs, and programs with NGOs.
In addition, the GOJ (with assistance from USAID) is
introducing a pilot "village clusters" community development
program working with both international and local NGOs to
promote grass-roots development based on local involvement
and priorities, as part of the SETP. We will assist in the
continued rollout of this important program in coming years.
We are also working with various governmental and
non-governmental organizations to fight honor killings,
support implementation of the International Labor
Organization's core labor standards, and more generally
enhance the already healthy respect for workers' rights in
Jordan.

--------------
Religious Moderation and Tolerance
--------------


25. (C) Religious Moderation and Tolerance in Jordan: About
96% of Jordan's 5.2 million inhabitants are Sunni Muslim.
The GOJ estimates the percentage of the population that is
Christian at about 4%, although the actual figure is probably
lower. There are also small numbers of adherents to Druze,
Shi'a, and Baha'a traditions. Jordan's Constitution calls
for the safeguarding of "all forms of worship and religious
rites" within certain limitations, and states "there shall be
no legal discrimination with regard to Jordanians' rights and
duties based on . . . religion."


26. (C) As an example of the depth to which principles of
religious tolerance permeate, Christian students are not
required to attend religious instruction required for Muslims
in public schools. As another illustration, the Royal
Institute for Interfaith Studies and the Royal Academy for
Islamic Civilization Research sponsor research, conferences,
and discussion on a wide range of religious, social, and
historical topics from both Muslim and Christian
perspectives. Political Islam finds expression in Jordan's
relatively moderate version of the Muslim Brotherhood, the
Islamic Action Front (the Muslim Brotherhood's Political
Party arm),and other more moderate (and less important)
Islamist political parties.


27. (C) Current Programs: The Embassy has a number of
programs aimed at furthering inter-religious dialogue and
tolerance and, more specifically, at engaging Islam. The
Embassy has sponsored successful speaker programs aimed at
accurately portraying Islam in the United States, some in
cooperation with Islamist NGOs such as the Center for Islamic
Thought. The Embassy recently brought Georgetown
University's Imam Yahya Hendi to Jordan as an exchange
visitor. During his highly successful visit, Hendi
communicated his view of Muslim experience in the U.S.
post-9/11, to counter rumors and anecdotes now circulating in
the region about treatment of Muslims in the U.S.


28. (C) Looking Ahead: Our program efforts for visiting
Muslim scholars have been very successful, though more
efforts along these lines are clearly called for. One
important lesson learned through our exchange visitor
programs is that, whereas visitors attempting to justify U.S.
policy in political terms often fail to get their message
across, visitors taking more indirect approaches (e.g.,
explaining the nature of Islam in America) often encounter
more success. Apart from bringing U.S. speakers to Jordan,
we should also encourage greater dialogue between Muslim
religious leaders in Jordan and their counterparts in the
U.S. One way to do this might be to encourage Muslim
institutions in the U.S. to sponsor conferences in Jordan or
Jordanian visitors to the U.S.

--------------
COMMENT
--------------


29. (C) Jordan is wedged among Israel, the West Bank, Syria,
Iraq, and Saudi Arabia, at the center of a tense and
combustible region of vital interest to the United States.
Jordan's geographical and political position in the region
present a number of unique challenges, which we must account
for in our attempts to promote moderation and reform within
the country. Along with the challenges, a number of positive
factors make Jordan a relatively fertile ground for our
efforts. These positive factors include a reform-minded
King, a savvy albeit nascent business elite that is
supportive of Jordan's efforts to enter the global economy,
and a moderate Islamist movement that professes support for
the existing regime and a willingness to engage in dialogue.
Within this framework, our efforts and programs hold great
potential for continued success.
Gnehm