AMMAN, 18 January 2006 — Jordan’s mainstream Islamist movement said yesterday the state security prosecutor charged one of its leaders with defaming the state for accusing the authorities of corruption in its appointments of senior jobs. Islamic Action Front (IAF) deputy head Jamil Abu Bakr was summoned by the state security prosecutor earlier this month and released on bail after being charged with “harming the dignity of the state” for comments posted on the party website last year.
The charge carries a maximum three-month prison term, lawyers said. Abu Bakr who also runs the party website said the article which also had comments from two Islamist deputies only questioned the criteria applied in top appointments during former Prime Minister Faisal Al-Fayez’s term last year.
“This is legitimate political criticism about fighting corruption and nepotism which King Abdullah himself always talks about the need to combat. We did not accuse any officials by name,” Abu Bakr told Reuters.
Hamza Mansour, the head of the IAF, said the legal action by the authorities against a leader of the country’s largest organized political movement, signaled a government desire to “silence critics.” “This proves the government’s intention to confiscate freedoms and silence mouths,” said Mansour, whose IAF party with 17 seats in the 110-member Parliament is the political arm of the country’s powerful Muslim Brotherhood.
IAF fears over a crackdown on public dissent have mounted since national security chief Marouf Bakheet was appointed last November as prime minister shortly after triple suicide bombings in Amman hotels killed 60 people. King Abdallah gave Bakheet a strong mandate against Islamist militancy prompting concerns by moderate Islamists and independent politicians it would lead to a tougher crackdown on public freedoms under the pretext of a war on Muslim radicalism.
Jordan’s monarch said after the bombings the country would not turn into a police state but independent politicians say tougher anti-terror legislation being drafted could infringe even further the right of expression. The draft laws that the government intends to push through parliament soon will prosecute people who express sympathy for suicide bombings and uphold views that may incite or encourage such attacks, officials say.
