US embassy cable - 03AMMAN2561

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 AMMAN 002561 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
FOR DRL/PHD,NEA/ARN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID, KDEM, KSEP, PGOV, PHUM 
SUBJECT: EMBASSY AMMAN'S APPLICATION FOR HRDF GRANT FUNDS 
 
REF: A. STATE 79965 
     B. AMMAN 1210 
     C. 02 AMMAN 5996 
     D. AMMAN 1432 
 
1.  Embassy Amman welcomes the opportunity to compete for 
funds from the Department's Human Rights and Democracy Fund 
(HRDF).  The following proposals are tailored to criteria in 
reftel, i.e. supporting critical mission human rights 
priorities, relevance to foreign policy objectives, and 
within Embassy Amman's proven capacity to administer funds to 
assistance programs.  In 2002, Post administered programs 
with human rights components totaling over USD 19 million 
through USAID and USD 100,000 through Public Affairs (reftel 
B). 
 
2. PROPOSED PROGRAMS 
 
A.  Supporting Family Guidance Center in Zarqa 
 
    i.  Background 
 
As reported in reftel C, The Family Guidance Center, directed 
by long-time embassy contact Nadia Bushnaq, provides social 
services to poor families in Zarqa.  The Center provides a 
range of services (mostly to women), such as guidance on how 
to cope with spousal abuse and raising children in poverty. 
The Center has psychiatrists and legal counsel on site and 
operates a hotline.  There are 40 employees, half of whom are 
"field workers" performing outreach services throughout 
Jordan.  A USAID funded family planning physician regularly 
meets women at the center. 
 
The Center was registered in 1982 as a local NGO with the 
Ministry of Social Development.  Bushnaq, who has 25 years of 
experience in social work, is directly involved with 
administering funds, and the Center has a full-time financial 
accountant and auditor.  The Center produces an annual report 
for the Ministry of Social Development.  Since 2000, the 
Center has received 100,000 from the Ministry of Planning for 
a Women's development center;  over 150,000 USD in E.U. funds 
for an action plan against child abuse, volunteer youth 
program and a senior citizen community service program; over 
USD 100,000 from the Swiss Government to purchase a building 
for the Center's activities;  and USD 10,000 from the British 
Council for human rights and family protection projects.  In 
addition, the Center works with USAID on family planning 
programs.  Bushnaq will maintain a separate account for the 
DRL funds and will provide a financial report detailing how 
the funds were used. 
 
    ii.  Proposal for legal assistance program 
 
The Center provides legal services for approximately 500 
people, most of whom are women.  Many of these women are 
victims of abuse, divorcees, and widows.  The Center 
currently has a full-time attorney and part-time attorney to 
assist the women with filing their cases and seeking redress 
through the Jordanian courts.  The Center also provides legal 
counsel to poor families attempting to manage their financial 
affairs. 
 
Bushnaq would like to hire an additional attorney.  This 
attorney would be the Center's "field attorney" and would be 
able to provide services to women beyond the Zarqa area. 
Bushnaq said she could hire a competent attorney for this 
position with an annual salary of USD 2000.  With the new 
attorney, Bushnaq anticipates the Center could provide legal 
services to an additional 200 people in one year. 
 
In addition, the Center's legal team is looking to enhance 
available funds to pay for the fees associated with carrying 
legal actions in the local courts.  For example, a court 
action for child support from a father who has abandoned his 
family can cost a woman over USD 100 in court fees.  These 
high costs are often prohibitive for poor people.  USD 5,000 
would create a fund that could be used within 12 months of 
receipt of funds.  Thus, USD 7,000 will adequately fund this 
program for one year. 
 
     iii.  Proposal for democracy and human rights program 
for young adults 
 
Bushnaq is seeking to use the Center's Zarqa facilities to 
provide discussions, activities and training courses on 
democracy, human rights, and self-sufficiency.  The program 
would be aimed at young adults (age range 18-25), most of 
whom come from poverty stricken neighborhoods in Zarqa. 
Bushnaq envisions discussions, group exercises, and 
organizing sporting events and field trips throughout Jordan. 
 All activities will carry an underlying human rights theme. 
Participants would be able to engage in individual (or 
marital) counseling if they choose to. 
 
The curriculum would be geared toward enlightening the 
participants on the negative effects of physical and verbal 
abuse, and will encourage them to participate in and support 
civic institutions.  Post will work with Bushnaq in selecting 
the curriculum and materials.  Bushnaq estimates that she can 
run the program with over 100 participants for approximately 
USD 15,000.  Costs include: hiring a full-time project 
director, assistant, and full-time social worker; purchasing 
curriculum materials such as books and videos; and outlays 
for transportation and administrative costs. 
 
     iv.  Post recommendation 
 
Post strongly endorses funding both programs.  The legal 
services program will directly serve the needs of women who 
have suffered human rights abuses such as rape and physical 
abuse by facilitating opportunity for redress via the legal 
system.  This will serve the critical mission priorities and 
foreign policy objectives of a) empowering women in Islamic 
society, particularly those suffering from abuse and poverty, 
and b) promoting use of Jordanian courts by people who 
traditionally have not done so because of cultural or 
financial reasons.  Proper use of the courts by mainstream 
society for redress of grievance is an essential component of 
any democracy. 
 
The democracy and human rights program for young adults will 
serve a human rights priority by focusing on young adults, 
particularly males, who have yet to become entrenched in 
habits or behavior that is abusive and destructive to their 
families.  Post believes it will also be a window for us to 
promote USG human rights and democracy goals through a 
curriculum delivered by a credible, local organization. 
 
The Center has good relations with the GOJ and Bushnaq is a 
long-time embassy contact (she has participated in our 
international visitors program).  She has a proven track 
record as an administrator of donor funds.  PolOff has made 
several visits to the Center in Zarqa, including one with 
Senior Coordinator for International Women's Issues April 
Palmerlee in October 2002 (reftel c).  Based on our visits to 
the Center and discussions with those who have received 
services from the Center, we are highly confident the Center 
would make outstanding use of HDRF funds. 
 
B. Supporting human rights training for GOJ officials 
 
     i.  Background 
 
In January 2003, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs established 
a Human Rights Directorate (reftel C).  Subsequently, the 
MFA's new Human Rights Coordinator contacted Post to inquire 
about possible training opportunities for its diplomats in 
the United States.  We responded that we did not have funds 
to pay for Jordanian diplomats to travel to the U.S. for such 
training, and suggested the possibility of a training program 
here. 
 
     ii.  Proposal to train MFA diplomats on human rights law 
and public policy 
 
Post would like to organize a one-week seminar for MFA 
diplomats interested in receiving human rights training.  We 
believe it will be most effective to bring expert/experts 
from the United States human rights academic community as the 
instructors and have them conduct the seminar at the Embassy. 
 The experts could come during the summer when their class 
schedule in the US is presumably lighter.  Cost estimates for 
such a program:  airfare (est. 2000 USD per traveler from 
U.S.), 200 USD per day honorarium, 200 USD per diem, and 
approximately 1000 USD for materials and incidental expenses 
lead to an estimate of 11,000 USD for two experts conducting 
a five day seminar on human rights law and public policy. 
Post will coordinate with Department on appropriate 
candidates in US academia to conduct the training. 
 
     iii.  Post recommendation 
 
We highly recommend funding this program.  The GOJ has 
recently taken significant steps to establish an enhanced 
human rights component (reftel D), and we have applauded 
these efforts while prodding them to do more.  Now, they are 
asking for our help in training.  This training would serve 
the critical mission human rights priority and foreign policy 
objective of enhancing the GOJ's capacity to move forward on 
human rights issues that we regularly encourage them to 
consider. 
 
c.  "Freedom of expression" training for Jordanian Judges 
 
     i.  Background 
 
The Jordanian Government recently rescinded Article 150 of 
the Penal Code, which had granted the GOJ considerable 
latitude in its discretion to prosecute journalists, editors 
and publishers for publishing material that was considered, 
inter alia, "harmful to the national unity".  The repeal of 
Article 150 is a step forward, and we could help the GOJ 
build on this by offering training to the judiciary on 
freedom of expression, specifically as it relates to the 
press. 
 
The judiciary should be encouraged to view freedom of 
expression as a valuable right needed for a society to grow 
and thrive politically and economically, as opposed to 
viewing freedom of expression merely in a penal context.  In 
addition, the judiciary should be exposed to comparative 
interpretations of freedom of expression in legal systems 
throughout the world, and given background on how other 
judiciaries and societies have dealt with this important 
human right during various stages of development. 
 
     ii.  Proposal for judicial training on freedom of 
expression 
 
We propose a three-day workshop for Jordanian judges 
organized in partnership with a local NGO to discuss a) the 
value of freedom of expression in society and b) comparative 
interpretations of freedom of expression by judiciaries 
worldwide.  Linking freedom of expression and economic 
development will be a key component of this workshop 
(building on World Bank studies linking freedom of expression 
with economic development.)  Post will invite a judicial 
expert and/or law professor from the U.S. to discuss the 
comparative aspects of the workshop, and we will also include 
a session focusing on Jordanian law to led by local legal 
experts and freedom of expression advocates. 
 
We anticipate the capacity to invite 10-15 judges to this 
workshop, with an estimated cost of USD 8,000-15,000: USD 
2000 per traveler from U.S., USD 200 per day honorarium, USD 
200 per diem, and approximately USD 2000 for materials, and 
miscellaneous expenses. 
 
     iii.  Post recommendation 
 
We highly recommend funding this program as the third of our 
HRDF proposals.  There is a compelling need to educate, and 
convince, the GOJ and the judiciary of the need for a 
healthy, developing right to freedom of expression in Jordan. 
 We believe the GOJ has taken affirmative, initial steps 
toward enhanced freedom of expression through the repeal of 
Article 150, and we should do what we can to help the GOJ 
build on it. 
 
3. (SBU) COMMENT.  Post is very enthusiastic about 
implementing the above programs.  We have the experience, 
contacts and resources to make these proposals successful. 
We also believe that these programs will go far, on a 
dollar-for-dollar basis, toward goals of assisting abused 
women, encouraging and strengthening democratic institutions, 
and encouraging the GOJ when they take initiatives to train 
their officials on human rights issues. 
GNEHM