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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Jordan holds landmark talks on security-sector reform |
| 2005-01-14 |
| Jordanian security officers, retired generals, scholars, and politicians gathered here earlier this week with a handful of European specialists to discuss reforms of the security sector in the country, representing a historic foot in the door into the last untouched frontier of public discussion in the Arab world - the security institutions of the armed forces, police, and intelligence departments. The one-day gathering, cosponsored by the University of Jordan's Center for Strategic Studies (CSS) and the Geneva Center for Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF), brought together 40 people for frank and constructively analytical discussions revolving around two core issues: What is the appropriate role for the security services in the country's public and private life and where should be the dividing line between strict security threats and the tendency of security-relate institutions to involve themselves in sectors such as the mass media, higher education, and appointments to the bureaucracy? What kind of oversight or control of security institutions must the civilian institutions of society exercise, especially an elected Parliament and the Cabinet? The seminar was the first of its kind in the Arab world, according to both DCAF and CSS organizers, who see the reform of security institutions as a critical missing element in the wider political and economic reform agenda in the Arab region. Among the topics discussed were the wider moves towards transparency and accountability in Jordanian governance, the challenges of institutional development, Jordanian security and defense reforms within the regional context, and external assistance. The gathering did not aim to issue any recommendations or conclusions, but rather to start a long-term debate about issues both Jordanian reformers and their European colleagues see as crucial to enhancing wider the Arab reform process. CSS director Dr. Mustafa Hamarneh told The Daily Star in an interview that they have joined and led this endeavor, "because we wanted to start a specialized debate in the country on the security issue. When you open up the whole national reform process for discussion, you cannot keep untouched islands here and there, and security is a crucial issue for serious discussion, evaluation and reform." The discussion clarified some of the key issues that need to be explored, most of which are widely discussed privately among Jordanians but never in public, given their obvious sensitivity. Some of the issues proved more complex than some participants might have assumed. A CSS presentation of the results of a recent public opinion poll it carried out, for example, showed that the public in Jordan expressed the highest degree of confidence in the security and defense services among all state institutions (around 60 percent on average, compared to just 30 percent confidence in Parliament and 11 percent in political parties). Yet the public also fears retribution or punishment by the security services and other state institutions if it speaks out on democracy aspirations or criticizes the government; that fear has increased from 70 to 80 percent in the last five years. |
| Posted by:Fred |