PM orders detailed review of ‘tribal territories’

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour has instructed a concerned agency to prepare a detailed study on the issue of tribal territories, or wajihat, and settlements made so far regarding tribes’ claims.

According to the Jordan News Agency, Petra, the premier made the request during a visit to the Department of Land and Survey (DLS) on Tuesday, accompanied by Finance Minister Umayya Toukan. 

Ensour was quoted as telling DLS chief Muin Sayegh that he wanted the agency to prepare a presentation next time he pays a visit to the department, so that the government could “take the correct and just decision that contributes to bringing closer points of view regarding this important issue”.

The issue of wajihat has been a concern for the state for decades. The term refers to state lands claimed by bedouin tribes as their own, relying on a division of territories between major tribes during the Ottoman era for grazing and farming purposes.

When Jordan won its independence in 1946, “the state recognised the tribes’ right to wajihat”, according to a report by the Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism. 

The issue surfaced during and after the Arab Spring (2011-2013) taking a violent turn as mostly unemployed youths from tribes started to block highways to pressure the government to give them lands they claim. 

The issue has triggered a debate pitting those who claim the lands as “historic rights” and their supporters against others who say that none has the claim to treasury lands, especially when they rely on measures taken by the Ottomans in the 19th century, according to the report.