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Reform movements at odds over protesting intelligence agency

16-05-2013 04:20 PM


Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - various pro-reform movements throughout Jordan reacted towards a call by Islamist youth activists to protest in front of the General Intelligence Department (GID), the country's spy agency, with several movements denouncing the move as an attempt to undermine the pro-reform discourse.

The Islamist youth pro-reform movement, an offshoot of Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood, called for a demonstration on Thursday near the GID (Mukhabarat) headquarters to protest the role of the agency in meddling in political, social, and educational affairs in the kingdom.

On Wednesday, dozens of Jordanians issued a statement denouncing the move, warning against attempts to undermine the country's sovereign institutions.

"We also have reservations on the role of GID in interfering in political affairs and contributing to rigging the elections.. but this does not mean that we accuse its leaderships of disloyalty," Wednesday's statement said, adding that such calls go against the interests of Jordan and its people and lead to strife between components of Jordanian society.

Other movements however announced partaking in the protest, including the Jerash Coalition and the Free Tafileh movement.

The Jerash Coalition for Reform said that their decision to take part in the protest stems from the need to coordinate between reform movements and support events that agree with its objectives for freedom and change.

"We recognize the importance of the intelligence agency in any country, but such an agency must hold the country's interests first and foremost," a statement by Jerash reformists said, expressing rejection of the agency's role in aiding corrupt officials, according to the statement.

The statement accused the spy agency of attempting to spread divisions between segments of Jordanian society based on tribalism and geo-demographic divisions.

The movement called on GID to "lift its grip" off political and civil life in Jordan, and focus on its purpose to protect the kingdom and its citizens.

Similarly, The Free Tafileh movement announced that it will take part in the protest, accusing GID of protecting corrupt officials and its role in "squandering national resources, wagering Jordan's sovereignty, and stirring conflicts," according to their expression.

The call to protest in front of the intelligence agency headquarters stirred disagreements among pro-reform populist and youth movements over the objectives and targets of their activism amid the current developments affecting the country.

The Free Tafileh Neighborhood movement, composed of Tafileh residents of Amman, however blasted the planned protest, stressing that it "makes us vulnerable to division on demographic bases."

In a statement issued Thursday, the "Ahrar Hay al-Tafaileh" movement said it refuses to partake in the protest and called for canceling it, warning against measures to exploit the pro-reform movements as "tools in the hands of conflicting opponents within the state," alluding to the relationship between the regime and the Muslim Brotherhood movement.

The statement criticized the discourse of the activism movement, citing that its political discourse is diminishing in its focus on comprehensive national interests.

The movement questioned the timing of the protest amid the pressures facing Jordan as a result of regional conditions, particularly the Syrian crisis, stressing that maintaining Jordan's security and stability is the ultimate objective.




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