ANTI-NORMALIZERS, ISLAMISTS DEFY GOVERNMENT AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 AMMAN 006771

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/12/2014
TAGS: PGOV PREL KISL IS JO
SUBJECT: ANTI-NORMALIZERS, ISLAMISTS DEFY GOVERNMENT AND
PRESS ATTACK AGAINST REFORMIST MP

REF: A. AMMAN 04629

B. AMMAN 03484

C. AMMAN 02764

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires David Hale for Reasons 1.5 (b),(d)

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SUMMARY
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1. (C) The Jordan Engineers Association (JEA) announced a
"boycott" of MP Raed Qaqish after he appeared on an Al Hurra
television program debating an Israeli official. The GOJ
publicly rebuked the JEA and the related Professional
Associations Council (PAC),reminding them that the PAC
Anti-Normalization Committee had earlier been ruled
unconstitutional for engaging in prohibited political
activity. The PAC refused to back down, declaring that the
JEA decision was an "internal matter" beyond the government's
authority. Qaqish received a supportive statement from his
colleagues in Parliament, although members of the Islamic
Action Front (IAF) were quick to distance themselves from it.
Qaqish alleges that he is being personally targeted for his
reformist, pro-Western agenda and criticized a "very weak"
Prime Minister al-Fayez for refusing to personally weigh in
on the matter. If the GOJ declines to back up its warnings
with action, it could further embolden anti-normalizers. End
Summary.

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AL HURRA PROGRAM SPARKS ANTI-NORMALIZERS' IRE
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2. (SBU) The JEA announced July 28 that it had decided "not
to invite or honor the presence of Raed Qaqish at any
events." Qaqish is a JEA member and MP in the Chamber of
Deputies (Christian, East Banker - Balqa, 1st District) --
one of the Chamber's few outspoken liberal reformists.
According to the press, the JEA's decision was prompted by a
recommendation of the PAC Anti-Normalization Committee in
response to Qaqish's appearance the week before on Al Hurra,
during which he debated Israeli official Ranna Gissan over
the security barrier in the West Bank (and, ironically,
stoutly defended Jordanian opposition to the wall). Qaqish
promptly complained to Minister of Interior Samir Habashneh
about the "boycott" and asked that Habashneh take action
against the JEA if it did not reverse its decision.


3. (U) Habashneh sent a public memo August 4 to the PAC
rebuking it for harming Jordan's national unity and economy.
He threatened to take "necessary measures" if the Council and
its Anti-Normalization Committee did not refrain from
"illegal" actions against individuals they deemed to be
normalizers with Israel. He further referred to a November
2002 ruling by the Court of Cassation's Special Bureau for
the Interpretation of Law, which found the PAC and the
Anti-Normalization Committee to be engaged in prohibited
political activity. Habashneh met with PAC leaders on August

5.


4. (U) The PAC, in response, mounted a vigorous defense.
Its president claimed that the boycott decision was "an
internal JEA matter" that had nothing to do with the
Anti-Normalization Committee. He reiterated the PAC's
position against normalization with Israel and said it would
not abandon its "educational" campaign aimed at informing
citizens about how to refrain from dealing with the Jewish
state. He stated that the GOJ's actions were a setback to
the political reform and that complaints should be taken up
by the courts, not the Interior Ministry. JEA chairman Wael
Al-Saqqa announced that there would be "no backtracking on
our decision to resist normalization," which he characterized
as a "national and religious duty."

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MEANWHILE, BACK IN PARLIAMENT . . .
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5. (U) In addition to turning to the Minister of Interior,
Qaqish sought the support of his fellow MPs. Sympathetic
colleagues issued a statement in the name of Parliament
(currently in recess) August 7 denouncing the JEA decision
and accusing the PAC of "intellectual terrorism", only to see
the statement rescinded when other MPs cried foul. In press
reports, Islamic Action Front (IAF) Deputy Ali Abul Sukkar
(West Banker, Zarqa - 2nd District) said that he and others
had protested because the body's Permanent Bureau, which
traditionally endorses such statements, had not discussed the
issue. The Permanent Bureau met August 8 and authorized a
second statement. The new statement called on the
associations to focus on developing their professions, rather
than on side issues, and urged the GOJ to ensure that all
parties to the controversy, including the PAC, abide by
current laws.


6. (U) Sukkar alleged to reporters that "parties outside
Parliament" had "intervened" to alter the second statement,
and that the published text did not accurately reflect the
consensus of the Permanent Bureau. IAF members issued their
own statement reiterating their support for the professional
associations and rejecting attempts to interfere in their
affairs, alleging that such acts were "unwarranted and
unconstitutional."
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PERSONAL VENDETTA?
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7. (C) Qaqish claimed to PolOffs August 9 he had been
personally targeted by anti-normalizers and Islamists who
pounced on his appearance on Al Hurra to destroy his
political career. The reasons he was being targeted, he
said, included his pro-Western positions, his ties to the
U.S. (where he studied and has good contacts in the NGO
community),and his vocal backing for reform. The fact that
he was seen as a young upstart in Parliament, and came from
the Christian community, also played a role. Qaqish noted
that this was not the first time he has been embroiled in
controversy. He was attacked by Islamist elements for
traveling to the U.S. on an NGO-sponsored trip without
"parliamentary approval," and for bringing members of another
U.S. NGO to a meeting in Salt to discuss development projects
(ref b).


8. (C) Qaqish criticized PM al-Fayez for refusing to weigh
in on the controversy, describing him as a "very weak"
leader. Fayez had talked with Qaqish on the phone, but
rather than offer support, he urged Qaqish to meet and work
things out privately with the JEA to prevent further
"escalation" (which Qaqish refused to do). While Qaqish
confided that he "feared for the future" -- not only
regarding his career, but also for the future direction of
Jordan -- he said he felt emboldened to speak out against the
Islamic fundamentalists who attacked him. "I know I'm
playing with fire by doing this, especially since I'm
Christian," Qaqish stated, "but I have to defend myself."


9. (C) Not all the attention directed at Qaqish has been
negative. Qaqish said he was gratified by numerous calls of
support from constituents, civil society figures, and fellow
reformists in Parliament. While much of this encouragement
has been private, others have spoken out in defense of
Qaqish. Human rights activist Walid Saadi was quoted as
saying the whole controversy was absurd given that Qaqish's
rebuttal of Israeli arguments on the security barrier was a
national duty "especially for members of Parliament, rather
than an act of treason."

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THE STORY CONTINUES
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10. (C) On August 10, Qaqish announced that he would contest
the JEA decision in court. The following day, Government
Spokeswoman Asma Khader was quoted in Arabic daily Al-Dustoor
as saying that the government had "no position" on
anti-normalization. (Note: The Jordan News Agency, Petra,
reported Khader as saying that membership in professional
associations should be based on professional, not political,
criteria, and that "the JEA's actions against Qaqish are not
based on professional standards.") Qaqish told PolOff he was
"deeply disappointed" with Khader's statement and that he was
now rethinking his plan to take the matter to court. "I
don't want to pursue legal action if the government is going
to sit back and let me become a scapegoat," stated Qaqish.
The New Reformist bloc in Parliament (of which Qaqish is a
member) met late in the evening August 11 to determine their
next course of action, and planned to speak August 12 with
Lower House Speaker Abdul Al-Majali (who has been away).


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COMMENT
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11. (C) Anti-normalization forces continue to test the
government's willingness to confront them. Qaqish, who seems
to relish some aspects of his "celebrity" status, provided
anti-normalizers an opportune vehicle as he is not closely
associated with the government and has made several enemies
in Islamist circles. Habashneh's failure to take action to
back up his warning to the professional associations runs the
risk of emboldening the anti-normalizers further, especially
since Habashneh has chastised them before with no real
consequences (see ref a). Khader's ill-conceived statement
may not reflect GOJ thinking; she has a habit of providing
uninformed, off-the-cuff answers to the media. But it will
probably encourage Qaqish's detractors to continue their
campaign. As Qaqish argued to us, it may take a gesture by
the King, rather than by a government increasingly perceived
as ineffectual, to rein in those fighting normalization.

12. (C) This incident illustrates how the highly
politicized, Islamist-influenced professional associations
are regaining some of their former preeminence in the absence
of a more representative, aggressive Parliament. Jordan's
professional associations, which historically filled a
political vacuum left by the absence of legal parties, now
appear to be trying to exploit the political vacuum left by
an unimpressive and constrained Parliament. Since the
associations traffic in the most extreme anti-U.S.,
anti-Israel and anti-reform rhetoric, the regime is likely to
move quickly to quell signs of renewed association activism.


Please visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ or through the
Department of State's SIPRNET site.
HALE