Local

AMMAN — The government on Monday decided to lower fuel prices by between 2.7 per cent and 3.6 per cent as December 1, but raised the price of gas cylinders by 7.1 per cent.

Under the decision, one litre of unleaded 90-octane gasoline will drop by some 3.6 per cent, from JD0.555 to JD0.535, while a litre of unleaded 95-octane gasoline will drop by around 2.7 per cent, from JD0.72 to JD0.7.

The price of one litre of diesel and kerosene will go down to JD0.4 from JD0.41, registering a drop of around 2.4 per cent.

The price of the 12-kilogramme gas cylinder, used for cooking and in winter for heating purposes, will go up to JD7.50 from JD7, under the new pricing list, at a 7.1 per cent increase.

A government pricing committee meets monthly to adjust prices in a manner that corresponds to changes in oil prices on the international market.

Prices of oil derivatives in the local market are calculated based on international prices of oil, with the addition of other costs such as shipment, handling and taxes.

In remarks to The Jordan Times last week, Gas Stations Owners Association President Fahed Al Fayez had expected prices of oil derivatives for December to drop by 3 to 4.5 per cent.

He based his prediction on the average prices of fuel on the international market.

AMMAN — UNESCO on Sunday launched an initiative in partnership with Italian trumpet player and composer Luca Aquino and the Jordanian National Orchestra Association (JOrchestra) to record musical compositions in Little Petra.

The project, titled “A journey to discover Petra’s melody”, aims to encourage appreciation of music across different cultures, while also underlining the importance of artistic and historical heritage and promoting the ancient Nabataean city of Petra, some 235km south of Amman, as an attractive tourist destination. 

The initiative was launched at the Jordan National Gallery of Fine Arts in Amman and forms part of the broader #Unite4Heritage UNESCO campaign, which supports safeguarding cultural heritage and diversity around the world.

UNESCO Representative to Jordan Costanza Farina said this musical experience demonstrated how the arts can build robust bridges between cultures and transcend geographical, linguistic or physical barriers.

“We wanted to share an experience that we think is very inspirational, so we put together musicians from different countries to play in a beautiful place like Petra,” Farina told The Jordan Times.

“The main message we wanted to share is that cultural diversity unifies us. We all share this passion for music,” she added.

The initiative emerged from Aquino’s concept of integrating natural acoustic reverberations of archaeological sites into music composition. 

“I’ve been in Jordan three times, and the last time I visited Petra I thought to myself that I have to record here,” the composer told The Jordan Times.

“When we arrived with the musicians to test the acoustics, we were sure that Petra was a great place with a great sound after playing the very first note,” he said.

The recording session in Little Petra brought together musicians from countries such as Jordan, Italy, Romania, Syria and Armenia.

Located some 8km north of the rose-red city, Little Petra is most famous for its Siq Al Barid, a scaled-down version of the iconic Petra Treasury.

The area was prime location for wealthy Nabataeans looking to build villas away from the main city and in the cool shade of the surrounding canyon.

In her speech at the launch event, Farina said celebrating heritage is a responsibility at this moment in history, given the destruction of many cultural heritage sites by terrorist attacks. 

“Launched in response to the unprecedented recent attacks on heritage, the campaign #Unite4Heritage calls on everyone to stand up against extremism and radicalisation by celebrating the places and cultural traditions that make each country such a rich and vibrant place,” she noted.

“Our response should be a firm recognition that cultural diversity is our shared heritage and the greatest opportunity to create dialogue, discover and cooperate,” Farina added.

The project is a collaborative effort between UNESCO, the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority and Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organisation.

AMMAN — Spanish flamenco singer extraordinaire Curro Piñana is scheduled to perform in Amman on Tuesday, presenting different styles of flamenco songs to his audience that tell stories, some of which date back hundreds of years ago.

Piñana, who belongs to a family involved in flamenco music, will be accompanied by his brother, guitarist Jose, according to the organisers.

Winner of the Lámpara Minera at La Unión in 1998, one of the most prestigious flamenco awards, Curro will perform 10 songs that reflect the spirit of desperation, hope and struggle, and one of them will be the story of mine workers, organisers said.

The concert, hosted by the Spanish embassy in Amman and Instituto Cervantes, will take place at the Royal Cultural Centre at 7:30pm.

“This is not my first time in Jordan, as I performed more than once at the Jerash festival,” Curro said in an interview with The Jordan Times, adding that he likes the way the Jordanian audience interacts with flamenco.

The artist started singing flamenco when he was seven years old, and his training began with his grandfather, Antonio Piñana Senior, who taught him the wide range of singing styles.  

Trained as a psychologist, Curro currently combines his work at the Murcia Conservatory of Music with teaching flamenco singing.

The vocalist said some flamenco songs and vocals were influenced by Arabic culture and heritage in Andalusia.

Curro released his first album in 1998, in which he adapted poems by Andalusian scholar and poet Ibn Al Arabi that were translated into Spanish. 

So far he has released seven albums, writing some of the songs himself, but influenced by old flamenco songs.

AMMAN — The Jordan Exporters Association (JEA) on Monday commended a Cabinet decision on Sunday to extend income tax exemptions on export profits until the end of 2018.

The Council of Ministers also decided to form a task force from relevant ministries and institutions to draw up the technical and legal frameworks necessary to adopt an alternative programme to support local industries, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. JEA President Omar Abu Wishah said the decision would contribute to stimulating national industries.

AMMAN — Amman Chamber of Commerce President Issa Murad met with Slovenian National Council President Mitja Bervar and discussed means to boost trade and economic ties, and activate agreements signed between the two countries, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Monday.

Murad highlighted the importance of facilitating the process of granting visas to Jordanians seeking to travel to Europe. He said a Jordanian economic delegation will visit Slovenia in January to hold talks at the public and private sector levels to enhance trade exchange. The Slovenian official said his country seeks to benefit from Jordan’s experience in IT and exchange technical expertise with the Kingdom.

AMMAN — The Water Ministry on Tuesday will publish a call for tenders in local and international newspapers for the implementation of the first phase of the Red Sea-Dead Sea Water Conveyance Project (Red-Dead).

A ministry statement said the winning bids will be determined according to the technical standards set by the government. The ministry added that the Red-Dead is one of the most important national projects seeking to meet the country’s increasing needs for water resources as part of the 2025 Water Strategy and executive plan.

The project, which also involves Palestine, seeks to provide Jordan with its water needs at reasonable prices, while at the same time preventing further shrinking of the Dead Sea, according to the ministry. In recent remarks,Water Minister Hazem Nasser said 300 million cubic metres of water will be pumped each year under the first phase of the project. Jordan signed an agreement with Israel in February on the first phase of the project’s implementation.  In its following phases, the Red-Dead project entails annually transferring up to 2 billion cubic metres of sea water from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea.

AMMAN — Two people died and four were injured in incidents across the Kingdom on Monday, according to the Civil Defence Department (CDD). A man died when his tractor overturned in Jerash’s Burma area, a CDD statement said. In Mafraq, a 50-year-old woman died in a hit-and-run accident on Balaama-Irbid Road.

In Amman’s Jofeh neighbourhood, a man received mild burns when a fire erupted in his apartment. CDD personnel rushed to the scene and took him to Al Bashir Hospital where he was listed in fair condition.

In Irbid, three people were injured in a two-vehicle collision, the statement said, adding that CDD personnel administered first aid before taking them to Princess Basma Hospital, where they were reported to be in fair condition.

AMMAN (JT) — The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) recently handed over new classrooms at Al Taybeh Primary School for Girls to the representatives of the Ministry of Education, during an official ceremony.

The extension increases the capacity of the school by around 30 per cent, allowing it to cater to an additional 360 students, both Jordanians and Syrian refugees, the NRC said in a statement. “With more than 80 per cent of Syrian refugees living outside of formal refugee camps, NRC decided to increase its services that also benefit Jordanian host communities who continue to generously host Syrian refugees,” Petr Kostohryz, NRC Jordan country director said during the ceremony.

“School-aged children comprise 35 per cent of all Syrian refugees in Jordan, and about half of those are waiting for a chance to pursue their education,” the statement quoted Irbid Education Director Ali Dweiri as saying at the ceremony. Heidi Johansen, from the Norwegian embassy, said more than half of Norway’s funding in Jordan focuses on education “where we see the greatest needs”.

AMMAN – A song broadcast by Jordan Television on Sunday to promote the 2015 population census became social media fodder, eliciting humour and criticism.

Social media users panned the song’s lyrics and the concept behind it.

Valentine Kassisieh expressed her surprise on Facebook when she found out about the song.

“Seriously there is a song about population census? I swear to God I thought it was a joke. I don’t know whether to laugh or cry”.

Taking a humorous approach, Randa Annab commented that the song, performed by Omar Saqqar, should compete in the Jordan “Don’t Got Talent” show, in reference to the popular “Got Talent” reality contest shows broadcast around the world.

“I hope that all who have a hand in this disaster are held accountable,” Momen Migdady wrote on Facebook.

Raffoul H. Abubaida (@raffoul) said Jordan Television should have broadcast useful information about the census instead of playing this song.

Tweeting a photo that shows the penalties stipulated against those who make it difficult for census takers to do their job, he wrote: “This is what should have been broadcast not a silly song.”

Jordan Television Director Mohammad Tarawneh said the channel welcomes constructive criticism, adding that the song was “an individual initiative” by a Jordanian.

“Jordan Television did not produce this song. He approached us and we hosted him as a guest in the morning show Yawm Jadeed (New Day),” he told The Jordan Times over the phone.

AMMAN — Activists on Monday criticised the government for using only masculine nouns in Arabic to address Jordanians and residents in advertisements encouraging them to cooperate with census takers.

In the ads, the government highlighted the significance of the census in “contributing to the advancement and prosperity of Jordan”.

“The ad took us by surprise. The Department of Statistics was supposed to have been receiving funds to take gender into account. The language of the address is considered exclusionary to women,” said gender expert, Randa Naffa.

Moreover, she added that such an occurrence means that “women’s causes are not taken seriously.”

“When there are certain gains from women, such as paying taxes, they are treated equally as men, but when it comes to a significant issue like the census, they are marginalised,” Naffa told The Jordan Times, adding that the way women are addressed says a lot about how they are deemed.

“It is a matter of culture. We have to start with the basic things, like how we address women,” she said.

Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW) Secretary General Salma Nims also voiced her disappointment over the ad, saying that the promotional campaign tied to the census was “not properly studied nor directed to women as one of the main components of the census”.

“The number of women, the families they head, and their social situation are the most important components of population censuses. How come a national survey targeting citizens, residents and visitors fails to address women?” 

She said the JNCW and other related organisations should have been engaged in promoting the census and its importance.

Moreover, the advertisement linked cooperating with census takers with religion, saying that it is a “religious obligation to take part in the census”, she noted.

“Religion should not be used in this way. It is citizenship that we need to focus on. This message is also inappropriate for residents and visitors to the country,” Nims said.

Social media users in Jordan criticised the language and content of the ad, saying that excluding women and citing the census as a religious duty make it a failure.