US embassy cable - 03AMMAN6999

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 006999 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/29/2013 
TAGS: PGOV, KDEM, JO 
SUBJECT: ISLAMISTS WELCOME KING'S CALL FOR POLITICAL 
DEVELOPMENT 
 
REF: AMMAN 06812 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm for Reasons 1.5 (B,D) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (C) The Jordanian Islamic Action Front (IAF) publicly 
embraced King Abdullah's call for political development and a 
more democratic elections law.  The IAF sees the current 
electoral system as limiting its power in Parliament and 
hopes to capitalize on political reform measures to expand 
its influence.  End Summary. 
 
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WE'RE DEMOCRATS TOO! 
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2.  (U) As reported reftel, King Abdullah recently outlined 
his goals for the incoming government of Prime Minister 
Faisal al-Fayez, including a new emphasis on political 
development.  The letter specifically mentioned the drafting 
of a "democratic elections law" prior to parliamentary 
elections currently slated for 2007. 
 
3.  (U) The IAF, political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, 
hailed the King's call for greater democracy and political 
pluralism.  In a press interview October 26, Abdul Latif 
Arabiyat, president of the IAF Shura Council, said that it 
was "very good that the King gave such clear instructions. 
We hope that the government will follow them."  He further 
stated that, "We are ready to negotiate, we remain 
open-minded, we are ready to cooperate with the new 
government." 
 
4.  (U) Arabiyat also welcomed the smaller size of the new 
cabinet, downsized from 29 to 21 ministers.  "Twenty is good, 
I wish they were 15, God willing!," commented the IAF leader. 
 
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ELECTIONS LAW CONTROVERSY 
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5.  (C) One of the main IAF priorities is the scrapping of 
the provisional one-person, one-vote elections law adopted 
without Parliament's approval in 2001 and which governed the 
June 2003 parliamentary elections.  According to the IAF and 
many political analysts, the tribal nature of Jordanian 
society prompts many voters to cast their sole ballot on the 
basis of family, rather than ideological, considerations.  If 
Jordanians could cast two votes in multi-member 
constituencies, the IAF contends, they would cast the first 
for a member of their tribe and the second for the candidate 
who most closely reflects their political views. 
 
6.  (C) Believing that a two-vote system would increase its 
representation in Parliament, the IAF is considering 
presenting a proposal, with the support of other opposition 
parties, to change the current elections law.  In addition to 
two votes for each voter, the IAF is reportedly weighing 
inclusion of a quota for political parties in its elections 
law proposal.  The IAF also hopes that "democratic reforms" 
would extend to other representative institutions.  According 
to Arabiyat, "We need to focus on the principles that govern 
all elections, for Parliament, university student councils, 
municipalities or other bodies." 
 
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COMMENT 
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7.  (C) The IAF will undoubtedly seek to capitalize on the 
King's call for political reforms for its own benefit.  While 
Arabiyat's comments suggest that the IAF may adopt a 
relatively conciliatory approach in its initial dealings with 
the new government, it will not hesitate to resort to a more 
confrontational stance to further its agenda.  Parliamentary 
debate on the future of the provisional elections law should 
prove a key IAF battleground. 
 
Please visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at 
http://www.state.sgov/p/nea/amman/ or access the site through 
the Department of State's SIPRNET home page. 
GNEHM