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Al-Ahram Weekly 25 February - 3 March 1999 Issue No. 418 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 25 February - 3 March 1999 Issue No. 418
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Features Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters A choice and a prayer
By Khaled Dawoud
"We have no opposition in Jordan, I am the only opponent," said Leith Shubeilat who refers to himself as an independent Islamic opposition figure. The son of a former prime minister, Shubeilat, 56, said that he has been involved in politics since he was 15, was sentenced to death once and to imprisonment twice. Yet, in all three cases, the late King Hussein intervened to commute the sentences, issuing special pardons for Shubeilat. After he was sentenced early last year to nine months imprisonment for allegedly inciting violence in the southern city of Ma'an in protest against the US policy towards Iraq, King Hussein also intervened and pardoned him. But Shubeilat refused the pardon, spent his whole term in prison and was released two months ago.
Shubeilat
He was also the man who succeeded in doing what the Jordanian government failed to do by travelling to Iraq last year and convincing officials there to release a number of Jordanian prisoners held in Iraqi prisons. The move was a clear embarrassment for Jordanian officials whose repeated appeals to release the prisoners were simply ignored by Baghdad.
Asking him the often-posed question on the future of Jordan after King Hussein, Shubeilat's response came as quick as a bullet: "Before we speak of the future, we have to discuss the changes which took place in the last two weeks of King Hussein's life. The changes he made proved that the basic justification for maintaining a monarchy, which is stability, was blown away. In monarchies, crown princes are usually named and remain in their position for long periods of time to receive the necessary training so that they are capable to fill the post in the future. But what happened here in Jordan was astonishing. The man who was named and trained as crown prince for 34 years [former Crown Prince Hassan] was suddenly thrown out in a very unkind manner without any gratitude for his record. When King Hussein made his speech from London [a few days before his return to Jordan on 19 January] he said he was coming to carry out changes. He also said he was totally cured of cancer. We thought the changes he was planning would restore partnership with the people and their institutions which were weakened over the past 40 years. But nothing of this has happened."
For Shubeilat, the current Jordanian parliament, elected in 1997, "does not represent the Jordanian people and has no power of any kind. We all know who takes all decisions in Jordan, although our constitution states that our system is a representational monarchy. This means that the parliament comes before the king. But we combined both the presidential and monarchical systems. The king takes all the decisions as if he was the president of a republic, and at the same time, for being king, he cannot be questioned. Knowing this, all politicians in Jordan had no option but to be loyal to the throne."
According to Shubeilat, what is most worrying concerning Jordan's future is that the late king was known for his charisma and powerful network of international relations. "Now, we have become orphans, and a big responsibility was given suddenly to an untrained young man who did not personally expect to fill this post. I am sure he [King Abdullah] was as surprised as we were by this sudden change."
However, this does not mean that the outspoken opponent does not wish the new king well. "I don't know how he is going to be, but I wish him success, of course, because his success will be a success for Jordan. But this does not mean that I will stop my criticism of the way things have been carried out, leaving people with no other option but to pray to God that the late king's choice will be a good one."
As for the future of relations between Jordan and Israel, Shubeilat, who heads a small organisation campaigning against normalisation with Israel, said he expected stronger ties between the two countries. "Our army is not being trained now to fight against Israel, but it sees its mission as protecting regional security in alliance with Turkey, Israel and NATO. The strong international presence at Hussein's funeral was a clear indication that in order for Jordan to continue existing, it has to be a Zionist Jordan. When the Iraqi issue is solved and after Syria also solves its own problem with Israel, Jordan will be useless, and the first people to turn against it will be the ones who came here to the king's funeral to express support."
Shubeilat, who was secretary-general of the Jordanian Engineers Syndicate, believes that Arabs are being humiliated every day by accepting the current conditions for peace with Israel. "What is being offered right now is slavery. There is no peace process, but a process of surrender and humiliation. Peace is between two equals, not between a master and a slave. For the first time in history, we see negotiations taking place between two parties while an actual war continues on the ground. The expansion of settlement in the Occupied Territories, the continuing immigration of Jews to Palestine and the suppression and racism practised against Palestinians every day, all these are acts of war. Nevertheless, we run to them [Israel], seeking their satisfaction while they are killing our people every day. How come the United States is bombing Iraq every day, and we here in Jordan receive four American presidents with hugs. We have no shame anymore."
Asked whether his outspoken criticism of the regime was not evidence of democracy in Jordan, Shubeilat was outraged. "Do I have to get killed in order to prove to you that there is no democracy in Jordan? And who said that I might not be killed? My life was threatened several times by security and intelligence bodies. I was in prison three times for speaking out my views. I am being watched 24 hours a day and my phone is bugged. All my friends are being harassed or imprisoned. So, what kind of democracy are you talking about? My existence is evidence that there are people who are ready to pay the price for freedom. That is all."
