BIOS FOR NEW JORDANIAN CABINET MINISTERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 004577 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/24/2013 TAGS: PINR PGOV PHUM JO SUBJECT: BIOS FOR NEW JORDANIAN CABINET MINISTERS REF: A. AMMAN 4533 ¶B. AMMAN 4491 Classified By: PolCouns Doug Silliman, per Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d). ¶1. (U) The official Jordanian news agency, Petra, announced 21 July the release of a royal decree approving the new government of Prime Minister Ali Abul Ragheb. Five ministers from the old cabinet have been removed, and eight new figures have been brought in. Of the newcomers, former jailed lawmaker Samir Habashneh was made Interior Minister. A number of ministries were split, expanding the size of the cabinet by three to 29 members. ¶2. (U) New members of the cabinet are: ¶A. (C) Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and Minister of Administrative Development Mohammad Halaiqa: Muslim, West Banker. Born in Shioukh in 1951, Halaiqa obtained his B.Sc. in chemistry from the University of Jordan in 1976 and a Ph.D. in industrial chemistry from University of Leeds in the U.K. At the Amman Chamber of Industry, he served as director-general (1990-92) and director (1992-3). He is past assistant secretary-general (1993-94) of the Higher Council for Science and Technology and one-time director-general of the Jordan Export Development Corporation (1994-97). From 1997 he was secretary-general of the Ministry of Industry and Trade and later its Minister. He then served as Minister of State for National Economy. Halaiqa also served as Jordan,s chief negotiator for accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and is generally regarded as one of the keenest economic minds in the country. The Embassy has a high opinion of his professionalism, as demonstrated during successive rounds of WTO talks. ¶B. (U) Minister of State for Legal Affairs Abed Shakhanbeh: Muslim, East Banker. Born in Madaba in 1950, Shakhanbeh obtained his B.A. in law from Damascus University in 1971. He earned his M.A. in law from the University of Jordan in 1987 and a Ph.D. from Cairo University in 1992. He worked in the Ministry of Justice from 1973 until 1992 when he was appointed secretary-general of the Inspection and Control Department. For the past eight years, Shakhanbeh has served as director of the department. ¶C. (U) Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Tawfiq Kreishan: Muslim, East Banker. Born in Ma an in 1947, Kreishan obtained his B.Sc. in accounting and business administration from the Arab University of Beirut in 1972. He served as director of the accounts department at the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company and, as a deputy in GOJ,s 12th Parliament (1993-97),served as a member of the Foreign Affairs, Agricultural and Water Affairs, and Rural and Badia Affairs Committees. He was Minister of Municipal, Rural, and Environmental Affairs in 1994 and 1997. ¶D. (U) Minister of the Interior Samir Habashneh: Muslim, East Banker. Born in Bethlehem in 1951, Habashneh earned his B.Sc. in Agricultural Engineering from Baghdad University in 1974. Upon graduation, he worked in the cooperative society and then as a consultant at the Ministry of Youth in 1992. He became a deputy in the 12th Parliament (1993-97) for Karak, was appointed Minister of Culture in 1995, and became a senator in 2001. Habashneh was imprisoned in 1976 for four years for links to a leftist group during a ban on political parties. He replaces Ghaftan Majali, perhaps in response to allegations by the Islamic Action Front (IAF) and unsuccessful candidates of irregularities in the June 17 Parliamentary elections. Others say his appointment was aimed at easing anger toward a government widely criticized for allegedly curbing public freedoms, including restrictions on street protests in support of Iraq and the Palestinians during the last three years. (see ref A for further commentary) ¶E. (C) Minister of Information Dr. Nabil Sharif: Muslim, West Banker. Born in Al Arish, Egypt, in 1952, Sharif obtained his B.A. in English literature from Kuwait University in 1977 and his M.A. and Ph.D. in the same field from Indiana University (1981, 1982). He taught English in Kuwait in the late 1970s and was an assistant professor of English literature first at Yarmouk University (1982-87) and later at the University of Jordan (1987-91). He worked as the cultural affairs editor at Ad Dustour newspaper (1988-92) and as a columnist for Jordan's Jerusalem Star (1985-88), papers owned by the Sharif family. For the past 15 years, he has contributed a regular column to Ad Dustour and has been its editor-in-chief since 1992. He is the only Arab board member of the Paris-based World Editors Forum and has published a number of books in both English and Arabic. Sharif is well known to the Embassy and can be characterized as a secular leftist or pan-Arabist in his political outlook. His paper has taken a generally critical stance toward U.S. policies in the region, in particular during the war in Iraq when his paper ran banner headlines in red accentuating the resistance against U.S. forces and Iraqi civilian casualties. He has expressed to PA offices a view that the government should divest its media holdings and dismantle the Ministry of Information as a way to encourage press freedom, but Embassy does not anticipate much movement on those issues even with him in the Minister's chair. ¶F. (C) Minister of Health Dr. Hakem Qadi: Muslim, East Banker. Born in Mafraq in 1947, Qadi obtained his B.Sc. M.Sc. in medicine in 1972 and 1974 from Ein Shams University in Cairo. He received his Ph.D. in the same field from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and served at the Royal Medical Services from 1972 until his retirement as a major general in 2000. Qadi, until his appointment, had worked in a number of private hospitals and headed the King Hussein Medical Center. Qadi's service at the Center was, by some accounts, undistinguished. This is his first government appointment. (see ref A for further commentary) ¶G. (C) Minister of Industry and Trade Dr. Mohammad Abu Hammour: Muslim, East Banker. Born in Salt in 1961, Abu Hammour obtained his B.Sc., M.Sc., and Ph.D. in economics from Yarmouk University (1984, 1990, 1997). He worked at the Central Bank of Jordan (1987-98) and the University of Jordan, where he was a part-time lecturer and member of committees discussing Master,s dissertations. For several years, he worked in a number of offices at the Finance Ministry before becoming its secretary-general in late 2000 -- a position which he held until his appointment. Abu Hammour is very well known to the embassy as a serious, if perhaps not brilliant, financial technocrat. He is extremely hard working and was highly respected by the IMF in his finance ministry job. He is a master of budget management and a strong supporter of economic reforms. He has been instrumental in successfully pushing the military pension reform plan, balancing the political influence of the military, and reducing the budget deficit to a sustainable level. ¶H. (C) Minister of Environment Dr. Hisham Gharaibeh: Muslim, East Banker. Born in Irbid in 1948, Gharaibeh obtained a B.Sc. from the Faculty of Commerce in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1970. He earned an M.B.A. and Ph.D. in business administration from the University of Texas (1974, 1979). He served as a professor in administration and then became dean of the economics and administrative sciences department. He worked as a consultant for the Arab Organization for Administrative Development and as a consultant for several Arab and international organizations, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Until his appointment, he served as Vice-President of Yarmouk University from 2000. Embassy feels that while his experience in matters of environmental affairs is arguably limited, his extensive managerial background may help the nascent ministry (formed in January of this year) to develop the proper infrastructure, personnel, and organizational chart. ¶3. (U) Former National Economy Minister Samer Tawil was made Minister of Tourism and Antiquities -* a portfolio that he took over from Nader Dahabi, who until Sunday used to be minister of both tourism and transport. Dahabi retains only the latter post. Mohammad Adwan lost the Information portfolio to Sharif but retained the post of Minister of State for Political Affairs and acquired the new position of Minister of State for Prime Ministry Affairs. Rowaida Maaitah, Minister of Social Development, remains the only woman in the cabinet to the dismay of activists who hoped for an increase in the number of women in government after the introduction of a six-seat women's quota in the current Lower House. ¶4. (U) In line with the tradition of sitting governments stepping down after the election of a new Lower House of Parliament, Abul Ragheb tendered his resignation on Sunday. Parliament,s extraordinary session, which began 16 July, will discuss a number of the 230 temporary laws passed by the Abul Ragheb government during a two-year parliamentary hiatus. HALE