Women’s movement says new Cabinet ‘a step backwards’

AMMAN — The women’s movement on Wednesday expressed disappointment in the new government, describing it as a “big step backwards” in the development and empowerment of women in Jordan.

“I am really disappointed with the new Cabinet because it included only two women and this is a major step backwards for women in Jordan,” said Secretary General of the Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW) Salma Nims.

On Wednesday, Premier Hani Mulki formed a new Cabinet naming two women to assume three portfolios, a decrease by two female ministers from his previous government.  

Minister Lina Annab retained her Tourism Ministry post, while Majd Shweikeh kept her post as the ICT minister and was also named minister of public sector development.

Yasera Ghosheh, who was minister of public sector development, and Khawla Armouti, who was minister of social development, left the government.

Nims told The Jordan Times that Mulki’s government witnessed a “continued decrease in the number of women, unlike [his predecessor] Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour who appointed five female ministers in his last Cabinet”.

“We have qualified women that could assume important portfolios, and we were hoping to witness an increase in the number of female ministers as a message from the government that it believes in the development, progress and political participation of women.  This is surely a pity,” she stressed.

Nims added that Wednesday’s appointments “do not correspond with the increase in the number of women in the Lower and Upper Houses”.

“We have five women who won outside the quota and 10 qualified and distinguished women appointed to the Senate.  I don’t see any explanation to this decrease.”

Sisterhood Is Global Institute Executive Director Munir Idaibes also said this was “a sharp drop in women’s representation”.

“We were really hoping to see five women or more in the new Cabinet,” Idaibes told The Jordan Times.

Jordanian Women’s Union President Tahani Shakhshir echoed Nims and Idaibes’ frustration, saying “there is no explanation as to why the government decided to shrink the number of women”.

“This is a 180 degree step backwards instead of going forward. There is a deliberate exclusion of women that is really unacceptable and we at the union are in disagreement,” Shakhshir charged.

She added that the “disappointing appointments are in direct contrast with His Majesty King Abdullah, Her Majesty Queen Rania and HRH Princess Basma’s constant directives and efforts to improve women’s status and political participation”.

It is also clear, Shakhshir added, that most of the sensitive and important positions in the government “are tasked only to men and this is really frustrating. Any society whereby women are not active is a backward society”.