US embassy cable - 03AMMAN4246

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 004246 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/10/2013 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, KDEM, JO 
SUBJECT: COMPOSITION OF NEW JORDANIAN PARLIAMENT, 
ALLEGATIONS OF IRREGULARITIES AND POST-ELECTION CLASHES 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Edward W. Gnehm.  Reasons 1.5 (B)&(D). 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. (C) The new Jordanian Parliament elected June 17 is 
better-educated and somewhat younger than its predecessor, 
and includes a large number of former ministers, lawyers, 
engineers and medical doctors.  PolOff has been meeting with 
newly elected MPs and political analysts to discuss their 
views -- ranging from optimism to cynicism -- about the 
elections and the incoming Parliament.  Reports of election 
irregularities, as well as stories of clashes between 
supporters of losing candidates and security forces, have 
generated continued public attention to the electoral process 
and the upcoming legislative session.  End Summary. 
 
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THE NEW PARLIAMENT ) A NEW BREED OR MORE OF THE SAME? 
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2. (U) King Abdullah has scheduled a special session of the 
newly elected Parliament to convene on July 15, although the 
official opening of the regular session will not occur until 
the fall.  The members of this new Parliament are, overall, 
more educated and younger than members of previous 
Parliaments.  The 110 deputies in the lower house include 10 
former ministers, 12 lawyers, 12 medical doctors, 12 retired 
army officers, and 12 engineers.  Ten of the new MPs hold 
PhDs, while ten more have earned Master's degrees and another 
21 hold Bachelor's degrees. 
 
3. (C) Despite the improved educational credentials, 
political analyst Jamal Refai and new parliamentarian Raed 
Qaqish expressed to PolOff concern about the Parliament's 
willingness to effect change and to discuss new ideas to 
address Jordan's economic and social problems. 
Interestingly, PolOff had met with Qaqish a few days prior to 
the election and was impressed with his enthusiasm and zeal 
for becoming an MP and tackling Jordan's ills.  Since the 
elections, however, Qaqish had become discouraged and 
disappointed at what he described as a group of MPs that is 
only interested in the perks of the position and the prestige 
associated with it.  Although he had made a strong effort to 
meet with his counterparts and share his ideas, Qaqish said 
he discovered that his innovative agenda faced an uphill 
battle in a Parliament where two-thirds of the seats were won 
by tribal and pro-government independent figures. 
 
4. (C) Similarly, at a luncheon hosted by the CAO for leading 
journalists, participants described the new MPs as an 
unfocused group with disparate interests and, with the 
notable exception of the Islamic Action Front (IAF), no clear 
agenda or goals.  They further noted the lack of expertise 
needed to deal with complicated legislative issues, and the 
shortage of parliamentary resources such as knowledgeable 
staffers and research services. 
 
5. (C) On a more positive note, MP and former lower house 
speaker Saad Heil Srour told PolCouns that he was pleased 
with the youth, education, and energy he has noticed in the 
newly elected deputies with whom he has spoken in the last 
week.  Several &young8 and/or female MPs had impressed him 
in particular, and he believed they would bring new life to 
the Parliament.  Several new, younger and Western-educated 
MPs attended the official July 4th celebration and expressed 
a desire to support an active reform agenda in Parliament. 
 
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ELECTION IRREGULARITIES OR SOUR GRAPES? 
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6. (C) Jordan's three main newspapers reported that as of the 
July 2 deadline to contest the results of the June 17 polls, 
54 complaints were filed pending review by the newly elected 
Parliament.  Among the main complaints are allegations of 
vote buying by individual candidates, persons voting more 
than once by ironing out the star-shaped mark stamped on all 
voter ID cards, and voters using ID cards without district 
stamps (anyone holding a card without designation of a 
district number -- a replacement for a "lost" card -- was 
ineligible to vote).  Embassy contact Sheikh Hamad Abu Zeid, 
running in Amman's fourth district, recounted how two ballot 
boxes allegedly appeared at the central election center 
stuffed with voter ballots.  (Comment: Given that under the 
electoral regulations all ballots should have been counted at 
polling places in the presence of candidates' 
representatives, this should be a fairly easy allegation to 
verify or disprove.  End comment) 
 
7. (C) Some losing candidates told PolOff that they would not 
"waste their time" filing a complaint since the newly elected 
Parliament, which is charged with reviewing all such 
complaints, has a vested interest in legitimizing the 
results.  They argued that an independent review committee 
should be formed before the next elections in 2007 to give 
the electoral process an acceptable level of credibility and 
independence. 
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POST ELECTION CLASHES 
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8. (C) Al Arab al Yawm reported on June 20 that supporters of 
unsuccessful candidates had clashed with public security 
forces in the area of Na'ur -- between Amman and the Dead Sea 
) with crowds firing guns into the air, setting fire to 
garbage containers, vehicles and shops, and damaging water 
tanks.  As a result, the road leading to the Jordan Valley 
was temporarily closed.  (Note: The road closure forced the 
motorcade of Secretary Powell, which was driving from the 
airport to the World Economic Forum, to divert to an 
alternate route.) 
 
9.  (C) The Amman Governor imposed a curfew and sought the 
assistance of local candidates and community leaders to 
restore law and order.  Embassy contacts also reported that 
the protests and vandalism that occurred in the Na'ur area 
were primarily directed at the local Palestinian origin 
population.  Supporters of a losing tribal candidate 
reportedly blamed the Palestinian community for backing the 
victorious candidate -- from another tribe with ties to the 
South.  In the northern governorate of Irbid, protesters 
clashed with governorate employees requiring the intervention 
of riot police and resulting in the arrest of 20 individuals. 
 Scant coverage of these events appeared in the press and 
Jordan TV has ignored them altogether. 
 
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COMMENT 
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10. (C) With the exception of the allegation of two "new" 
ballot boxes appearing in one district, we tend to discount 
allegations of large-scale voting abuse as sour grapes. 
Embassy and other diplomats who observed the polling saw no 
evidence of such abuses and, in fact, saw several instances 
in which election officials blocked attempts at voting fraud. 
 Nevertheless, widespread coverage of the allegations may 
cause a skeptical public to closely scrutinize the new 
Parliament. 
 
11. (C) The post-election clashes are disturbing, but were 
caused by local politics and tribal rivalries. 
GNEHM