DESPITE APATHY AND MILD APPREHENSION, JORDANIANS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 006692

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/13/2012
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM JO
SUBJECT: DESPITE APATHY AND MILD APPREHENSION, JORDANIANS
UNDERSTAND MAIN MESSAGE OF "JORDAN FIRST"

REF: AMMAN 6522

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


1. (C) SUMMARY. Jordanian reaction to the recently
launched "Jordan First" initiative (reftel) has been
characterized primarily by apathy and mild apprehension.
Some welcome the campaign, while others are skeptical for
various reasons, including the fear that "Jordan First" could
exacerbate domestic East-Bank/West-Bank tensions. In
general, Jordanians are willing to wait and see what
direction the "Jordan First" campaign takes.
Public apathy aside, members of the "Jordan First" committee
appear to be enthusiastic about their mandate and eager to
get moving. PolOff met with two "Jordan First" committee
members, who said "Jordan First" is a crystallization of what
the King has always wanted, i.e. a focus on economic
opportunity, political participation and social issues.

2 (C) In the bigger picture, "Jordan First" is an attempt
by the GOJ to re-focus Jordanians away from regional issues
and towards domestic matters affecting their daily lives.
Given Jordan's pragmatic regional policies in the past, this
core message of the "Jordan First" campaign seems to be
getting through. More broadly, the initiative represents
something relatively new in Jordan -- a policy formula that
honestly asserts the government's moderate policies instead
of dressing them up in pan-Arab rhetoric or denunciations of
neologism. End Summary

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COMMITTEE MEMBERS: "JORDAN FIRST" IS WHAT THE KING HAS
ALWAYS WANTED FOR THE PEOPLE
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3. (C) In separate meetings on Nov 5 and 6, PolOff met with
two "Jordan First" committee members, former Member of
Parliament Mahmoud Kharabsheh and Senator Marwan Doudin.
Both focused on the need for Jordanians to view "Jordan
First" as a mentality and not a mere slogan. "This is a
higher order and should be a daily practice for all
Jordanians, regardless of where they come from. We are going
to focus on the economy, on social programs, and on political
participation," Kharabsheh said. It is, according to Doudin,
the embodiment of what King Abdullah always wanted. From the
first day of his regime, Doudin said, the King has attempted
to be a leader for all Jordanians. "He wants to help all
Jordanians. 'Jordan First' has been his message all along."

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FOCUSING ON POLITICAL PARTICIPATION AND THE ECONOMY
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4. (C) Both Doudin and Kharabsheh mentioned that the King
cited a recent report indicating that 48 percent of
Jordanians don't care about elections. "Jordanians don't
give a damn about elections. The King is appalled by this,"
Doudin said. According to Doudin, one of the reasons for
such apathy lies in the failure of the Jordanian opposition
to work truly within the Jordanian political system. "The
opposition here has unfortunately developed the fallacy in
their minds that opposition is a permanent job. They should
work within our system in an effort to become the majority,"
Doudin said. Despite the King's call for a consolidation of
political parties, the opposition should not be discouraged
or worried. "The King said to the committee in our first
meeting that it will look ridiculous to the world if we claim
to be a democracy without opposition."


5. (C) Kharabsheh said that "Jordan First" will also focus
on "employment based on merit," indicating that the campaign
may face up to the entrenched patronage system here. Doudin,
a Palestinian-Jordanian, said the committee has some ideas on
how to approach the issue. "I understand there is a lack of
opportunity for many, especially young people, and like
everyone around the world, we have issues with transparency."



6. (C) On "Jordan First" and the press, Doudin made an
ominous comment about the need for the media to report within
the framework of the initiative. He said the Jordan First
Committee would establish a media subcommittee to "determine
the limits and red lines that the media can abide by. We
cannot just run loose."

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WE STILL ARE COMMITTED TO REGIONAL STRUGGLES
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7. (C) Kharabsheh, an East-Banker and former Member of
Parliament, said that Jordan remains committed to the
Palestinian cause and support for the Iraqi people. "Jordan
has always existed in a difficult area. In light of this big
(regional) challenge to Jordan, we must enhance our domestic
situation in all areas." Doudin agreed, and took a swipe at
the anti-normalization opposition here. "Our peace treaty
with Israel is an example of putting Jordan first. Some
oppose it, but imagine the past two years without that
treaty. Where would we be? We're doing it quietly, but
we're working very hard to solve the Palestinian problem."

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SOME PALESTINIANS SEE SLOGAN AS PRO-EAST BANK
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8. (C) On October 20, PolOff met with the outspoken former PM
Taher Masri at his villa in Abdoun. Masri, a
Palestinian-Jordanian, agreed that there are too many
political parties for Jordan's own good. This however,
cannot be solved by government intervention or slogans. "We
need elections," he said, noting that opening avenues of
political participation would in the long run discredit the
opposition, including the Muslim Brotherhood. Masri said the
"Jordan First" strategy is being met with cynicism among
Palestinian-Jordanians, who believe the Jordan first strategy
is pointed at preserving East-Banker interests. "They see it
as 'the Jordanian first', not 'Jordan First'. It is
frightening to them."


9. (C) On October 20, PolOff met with former political
adviser to the King, Adnan Abu Odeh, also a
Palestinian-Jordanian. Abu Odeh strongly believes that the
King is trying to bring the country together with the "Jordan
First" initiative, but that it is "bad timing." Abu Odeh
commented that "Jordan First", as an ideal, is going to have
a tough time in a culture that has a historical propensity to
view issues in a "Pan-Arab" context. Against that backdrop,
the current regional situation only makes "Jordan First" a
tougher sell. "If you introduce something like this now,
people are going to be suspicious." Odeh worries that many
East-Bankers will see the "Jordan First" initiative "as a
validation of what they have always wanted to believe: That
they are more important to the King than the West-Bankers
are."

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COMMENT
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10. (C) With "Jordan First," the King is seeking to lead
public opinion to accept a long-standing, but seldom
articulated notion: that Jordan must place its national
interests above the emotion-laden (and usually pan-Arab)
agenda of the street and Arabic media. Jordanians recognize
that King Hussein and his grandfather, King Abdullah I,
pursued pragmatic policies in dealing with the early Zionists
and, later, Israel, in confronting a Palestinian challenge to
Hashemite rule in 1970, and in trying (unsuccessfully) to
walk a fine line between the U.S. and Iraq in 1990. These
policies -- the historical precursors to "Jordan First" --
were generally masked by high rhetoric designed to blunt
opposition.


11. (C) Although it focuses on a domestic agenda, the new
"Jordan First" media campaign is a clear attempt by the King
to prepare Jordanian public opinion for the possibility of
simultaneous conflicts on Jordan's east and west flanks. An
underlying message in the King's August 15 speech to the
nation (ref b) and his October 9 MBC interview (ref c) was
that Jordan must chart its own course and take responsibility
for its own stability and well-being. And -- despite cynical
comments by some about the "Jordan First" media campaign
itself -- the overall message resonates with many sectors of
the Jordanian population: certainly with the military,
government, and East Bank nationalists, but also with the
West Bank economic elite and those West Bankers who
appreciate the benefits of citizenship, stability and
(relative) prosperity Jordan offers them. The King's
addresses seem to have re-focused many Jordanians on the need
for the government to protect Jordan's stability and
prosperity in potential hard times to come.
GNEHM