Ignoring vocal international protests, the cabinet, parliament, and
King Hussein pushed forward a repressive press law in a year that saw a
continued deterioration of press freedoms. Its ratification by royal decree
on September 1 marked the culmination of a year-long battle between journalists
and the government of Prime Minister Abdel Salam al-Majali, which had introduced
similarly draconian amendments to the press and publications law in May
1997. In January, the High Court of Justice overturned the amendments because
they had not gone through the parliamentary process, prompting the government
to submit a similar law to parliament in June.
Several provisions of the new law legalize censorship and provide authorities
with a variety of methods to sanction independent or critical journalism.
Article 37 bans coverage on a wide array of topics, including any news
or information deemed to "infringe on the independence of the judiciary";
"defame the heads of Arab, Islamic, or friendly states"; or harm
"national unity." Violators of these prohibitions are subject
to fines as high as 10,000JD (US$14,090), while repeat offenders are subject
to penalties of up to 20,000JD (US$28,180). There has been a marked increase
in self-censorship among the press, which the ambiguously worded restrictions
appear designed to promote.
Article 31 empowers the Press and Publications Department (PPD) to censor
foreign publications deemed to violate the law's numerous prohibitions,
while Article 35 allows for censorship of books published in the kingdom.
The former provision directly contradicted a pledge made by King Hussein
in June, when he directed then-Prime Minister al-Majali to "put an
end to every form of censorship and restrictions on the Arab and foreign
press."
Other censorship provisions include Article 39, which grants the judiciary
sweeping powers to censor news coverage on criminal investigations or trials.
And perhaps most disturbing of all is Article 50, which allows the judiciary
to indefinitely close down publications that are the subject of litigation
for matters of "public interest" or "national security."
Authorities continued to gag the press in a variety of other ways. On three
occasions, there were media blackouts on coverage of major events, such
as the trial of leading political opposition figure Leith Shubeilat; a
triple homicide in Amman; and a water pollution crisis. Foreign newspapers
were banned by the PPD for their coverage of domestic political issues.
Journalists continued to be arrested in connection with their published
criticisms, further enhancing an atmosphere of intimidation, while criminal
defamation statutes were employed against outspoken members of the press.
In August, Prime Minister al-Majali resigned under pressure and was succeeded
by Fayez Tarawneh. Since taking office, Tarawneh has attempted to portray
a more congenial image in the government's relations with the press. One
of his first official acts was to replace PPD Director Bilal al-Tal, who
was notorious for his heavy-handed treatment of journalists. Foreign newspapers
reported that bans on their distribution had all but stopped by the end
of the year. PPD Director Iyyad Qattan announced that the government had
instructed the attorney general to cancel all prosecutions of journalists
initiated by the PPD during the year, and Minister of Information Nasser
Judeh publicly declared that the government was committed to a "soft
implementation" of the new press law. But self-censorship remained
widespread.
At year's end, it appeared the government was intent on passing the responsibility
of reining in journalists to the pro-government Jordan Press Association
and its disciplinary council, which has the power to sanction journalists
accused of ethics violations and strip them of their accreditation. It
remains to be seen to what extent the association was prepared to implement
this plan. |
|
Attacks on the Press in Jordan in 1998 |
| Date |
Journalist |
Incident |
| 08/25/98 |
All Journalists | Censored |
| 08/10/98 |
Hussein al-Umush, Abed Rabbo | Imprisoned |
| 08/08/98 |
Nahed Hattar, Al-Mithaq | Attacked |
| 07/02/98 |
Hussein al-Umush, Abed Rabbo | Imprisoned |
| 06/30/98 |
Nidal Mansour, Al-Hadath | Legal Action |
| 06/29/98 |
Mansour Shammout, Al-Arab al-Yawm | Legal Action |
| 06/28/98 |
Al-Hadath |
Threatened |
| 06/02/98 |
Nidal Mansour, Al-Hadath | Legal Action |
| 05/12/98 |
Al-Quds al-Arabi | Censored |
| 04/11/98 |
Yousef Gheishan, Al-Arab al-Yawm | Imprisoned |
| 04/10/98 |
Al-Arab al-Yawm | Harassed, Censored |
| 03/19/98 |
All Journalists | Censored |
| 03/16/98 |
Raja Talab, Shihan | Legal Action |
| 03/16/98 |
Riad Hroub, Shihan | Legal Action |
| 03/16/98 |
Riham Farra, Shihan | Legal Action |
| 03/16/98 |
Abdel Hadi Raji Majalli, Shihan | Legal Action |
| 03/07/98 |
Bassam Badareen, Al-Quds al-Arabi | Legal Action |
| 03/02/98 |
Omar Qoulab, Al-Bilad | Imprisoned |
| 03/02/98 |
Sami Zubaidi, Al-Bilad | Imprisoned |
| 03/02/98 |
Abdel Hadi Raji Majalli, Abed Rabbo | Imprisoned |
|
|
