US embassy cable - 04AMMAN2552

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 002552 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/01/2014 
TAGS: KWMN, PGOV, KDEM, JO 
SUBJECT: JORDANIAN WOMEN ACTIVISTS AT ODDS OVER NATIONAL 
STRATEGY 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm for reasons 1.5 (b) (d) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (C)  Infighting among Jordanian women's groups has 
hindered development of a coordinated national strategy for 
advancing women's rights in Jordan.  Several leading women's 
groups boycotted a recent conference to discuss women's role 
in political development, saying that the organizing group -- 
which happens to be headed by the GOJ spokesperson -- did not 
sufficiently consult with them prior to scheduling the event. 
 Several groups aired their gripes during a meeting on March 
21 with the Prime Minister, who agreed to chair a national 
conference in May in the hopes of gaining consensus.  The 
fray underscores the competitiveness inherent to the 
personality-driven women's and NGO movements in Jordan. 
Unfortunately, the sniping is hindering their collective 
ability to move their agenda forward.  End Summary. 
 
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DISPUTE EMERGES OVER WOMEN'S "NATIONAL STRATEGY" 
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2.  (U)  Based on meetings with women's groups in recent 
months seeking input for the GOJ's political and social 
reform agenda, Prime Minister Faisal al-Fayez charged them 
with developing a coordinated plan for advancing women's 
rights in Jordan.  The Jordanian National Commission for 
Women (JNCW), headed by King Abdullah's aunt, Princess Basma, 
first formulated a women's national strategy in 1993, and is 
in the process of updating it.  According to JNCW official 
Ibtisam Atiyat, the strategy has five pillars: legislation, 
human security, social protection, economic empowerment and 
participation in public life, the media, and communication. 
 
3.  (U)  However, differences among women's groups emerged 
after the Jordan chapter of "Sisterhood Is Global Institute" 
(SIGI) (headed by Minister of State and GOJ spokesperson Asma 
Khader) drafted its own "national strategy" and scheduled a 
conference on March 24 to discuss political development in 
Jordan.  Complaining publicly that they were not sufficiently 
consulted about the document or the conference preparations, 
six major women's groups, including the JNCW, rejected the 
document and boycotted the meeting.  Amneh Zoubi, President 
of the Jordanian Women's Union (JWU) -- one of the oldest and 
most active women's NGOs in Jordan -- said that SIGI should 
not have taken the lead on such an important project because 
the group represents only a tiny portion of Jordanian women. 
She claims SIGI only invited women's groups to attend the 
opening ceremony of the meeting, and criticized SIGI's 
document saying women's organizations were not sufficiently 
consulted about the language and priorities. 
 
4.  (C)  JNCW Secretary General Amal Sabbagh told poloff that 
a draft she saw included issues outside the realm of women's 
empowerment, such as a demand to abolish the State Security 
court.   She added: "As a woman, there are more important and 
pressing issues we need to focus on," including legislation 
advancing women's legal rights, economic empowerment, and 
enhancing women's political voice and social status.  She 
claims SIGI prepared at least four versions of the document 
and "no one knows which is the final one." 
 
5.  (U)  For their part, SIGI officials say they consulted 
with other organizations about the document, which it 
initially drafted in January 2003 and presented to Parliament 
in June.  Executive Director Lina Qoura said in a press 
interview: "Several organizations and specialists 
participated in drafting the document.  But others refused to 
share their thoughts and ideas for various reasons."  She 
added that SIGI approached several NGOs asking them to 
prepare papers for the conference, "but the majority of them 
apologized, saying they were busy and did not have time to 
prepare the document."  She stressed that the document was 
not one of the major themes in the conference and that it was 
going to be presented as one of the participant's working 
papers.   Disputing Zoubi's claims, Khader told reporters 
that invitations were sent to all women's organizations for 
the conference and those "who answered the call took part in 
the committee that drafted the document." 
 
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PM MEDIATES, AGREES TO HEAD ANOTHER CONFERENCE 
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6.  (U)  The dispute prompted the boycotting groups to submit 
a memo complaining about SIGI's initiatives to the Prime 
Minister, who met with them on March 21 to discuss their 
concerns.  Emphasizing the need to coordinate, al-Fayez 
responded to the discord by agreeing to chair another women's 
conference in May, this time hosted by the JNCW, focusing on 
political development.  Sabbagh says that the JNCW's 
conference will include a wide spectrum of women's and civil 
society groups to ensure that all views are adequately 
represented. 
 
7.  (U)  Senator May Abu Samen, head of one of the boycotting 
organizations, the Jordanian National Federation of Women 
(JNFW), said the meeting was positive and "the Prime Minister 
was very supportive and understanding of all the points of 
view that were put forward for discussion."  However, she 
said he "stressed the need to cooperate and coordinate our 
efforts in order to realize King Abdullah's vision of 
empowering the status of women in Jordan."  Nancy Bakir, 
human rights adviser to the Prime Minister, said in a press 
interview: "I feel with the women in Jordan, when they see 
that all their hard work and efforts over the many years are 
being... monopolized by just one private institution."  She 
suggested the boycott of the conference was within the 
groups' rights to freely express themselves and in line with 
the democratic process evolving in Jordan. 
 
8.  (C)  However, Sabbagh singled out Khader for particular 
criticism, saying privately that during the women's meeting 
with the Prime Minister, it was clear that Khader was 
speaking in her capacity as SIGI head, not as Minister of 
State.  She said that Khader, as an attorney and human rights 
and women's activist, over the years has worked hard to 
advance women's rights in Jordan.  However, Sabbagh 
criticized her domineering tactics, suggesting Khader is 
abusing her government position to advance her personal 
interests, and that of her organization. 
 
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COMMENT 
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9.  (C)  The personality clashes and competitiveness among 
women's groups in Jordan overshadow much good work that is 
being done by individuals and organizations to empower women 
economically, politically, and socially.  Poor communication 
also hinders their ability to work together effectively, pool 
resources, identify needs and gaps in assistance, and avoid 
overlaps in programs.  Personality differences, and Asma 
Khader's forceful style, probably were contributing factors 
in this particular disagreement.  Ironically, many activists 
tell us that it was Khader, through her ministerial position, 
who paved the way for the PM's outreach to women's groups. 
Ultimately, the lack of cohesion hurts women's efforts to 
advance their agenda with the GOJ and the public, as well as 
their ability to attract additional resources in the midst of 
competing priorities.  It also presents a potential challenge 
to U.S. efforts to support women's empowerment programs in 
Jordan. 
 
Visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman or access the site 
through the State Department's SIPRNET home page. 
GNEHM