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AMMAN (JT) — Individuals will be banned from possessing automatic weapons and all relevant licences in this regard will be considered null and void under an amended bill proposed by the government.

The Cabinet announced the changes on Wednesday, as it discussed suggested amendments to the draft weapons and ammunition draft law, apparently aimed to further control crime and possession of individual arms.

As stipulated in the new amendments, individual and judicial persons can obtain licences for pistols, but automatic weapons will be limited to security companies and private guards, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

The draft law also lists penalties of imprisonment and temporary hard labour between three months and three years or a JD1,000 fine or both penalties against everyone convicted  for practising festive firings, in addition to confiscating the weapon used, Petra added.

New articles were added to the draft law that completely ban carrying, selling, purchasing, possessing or importing any hunting rifles (pump-action or automatic) which use fixed or mobile ammunition depots that can accommodate more than one bullet.

Such articles exclude the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army, Public Security Department, Gendarmerie Department, General Intelligence Department, Civil Defence Department, and any government employee who is provided with such weapons as part of their job.

All previous licences for possessing and carrying the mentioned hunting rifles are void, and those who have such licences registered in their names have to hand these rifles to police stations within six months after the law goes into effect.

“They will receive fair compensation,” the Cabinet said in a statement. 

Under the draft law, people with valid gun licences are not allowed to carry their weapons in public buildings, universities and other educational institutions, and during official and public occasions, conferences, meetings or demonstrations.

AMMAN — The Language Centre at the University of Jordan (UJ) was filled with cultural exchange and anticipation on Tuesday as the second annual Korean Speech Contest was under way.

Jordanian student volunteers greeted guests and participants at the entrance of the auditorium with a bow and the formal greeting in Korean, “Anyeong-haseyo”, literally translated as "peace upon you", similar to the Arabic greeting of “As salam alaikum”. 

The volunteers expressed to The Jordan Times their enthusiasm for Korean culture and wanting to share this with their fellow students, friends and family. 

One of the volunteers, a third-year Jordanian student majoring in music and Korean, said her interest in traditional Korean music as well as current Korean-pop boy bands inspires her to pursue both of her fields of study with more zeal. 

While another volunteer, majoring in Korean, and aviation and engineering, expressed his hopes of working as an engineer in Korea upon completion of his degree. 

Korean Ambassador to Jordan Choi Hong-ghi, in an opening address to the audience, stressed the poetic importance of the Korean language as the driving force behind the development of Korea’s economic, cultural and agricultural sectors. 

Tuesday's event was sponsored by the Korea International Cooperation Agency as part of Korean Cultural Week, and held in cooperation with UJ's Korean language programme. 

In commemoration of the friendly relations the two countries hold, the ambassador mentioned the $100,000 grant to the UJ Language Centre by the Korean embassy in order to enhance and encourage further language and cultural exchange. 

Bagdagul Mussa, representative of the department of Asian languages, expressed to the audience his appreciation of the partnership between the countries’ language programmes. 

As a result of this partnership, the Korean language department provides jobs for Jordanian Korean speaking graduates which ultimately foster continued strong ties in the developing of mutual economic interests. 

Speeches at the contest were judged on pronunciation, vocabulary utilisation, sentence composition, content, and overall fluency. The judging board consisted of Korean language professors at UJ, as well as the consulate of the Korean embassy in Aqaba. 

The content of participants’ speeches ranged from their love of Korean dramas, music and culture, to the difficulties and rewarding experiences of Jordanian family life.  

As one participant noted to The Jordan Times after the event, among the many similarities that connect Korean and Jordanian cultures are the strong familial ties and the general sense of respect and responsibility both cultures feel towards elders and family. 

AMMAN — Thirty-seven young people representing 18 Arab countries concluded on Wednesday an eight-day UNDP initiative aimed at exchanging views and establishing projects based on social values such as gender equality, diversity and respecting others.

The programme, hosted by the Higher Youth Council's Amman Youth Hostel, also aimed at developing young people's capabilities and exchanging expertise on leadership skills in social development, according to organisers.

Khalid Abdel Shafi, director of the UNDP regional centre in Amman, said that over the last few years, young people have expressed despair of their economic and political marginalisation.

"Such initiatives give us hope, especially because what the participants presented was innovative and creative," said Abdel Shafi, adding that the UNDP would follow up on the participants' projects through its regional centres.

The projects presented in the initiative will help the UNDP deal with youth issues in the future, and the ideas tackled would encourage decision makers to pay more attention to such topics, he said.

"The UNDP on December 2 is scheduled to release a pan-Arab human development report focusing on youth concerns," the director noted, adding that the report shows UNDP's interest in young people and its efforts to empower them.

The programme, dubbed "Empowering young leadership in the Arab region", mainly targets young women to encourage them to communicate and integrate into society through creating local leaders able to found effective initiatives that achieve sustainable development, the organisers added.

Mazen Hayek, spokesperson of the co-organising MBC media group, said the programme is important as it creates a base of expertise among participants which could be useful for reaching innovative solutions that help the youth contribute to developing their local communities.

Participants in the programme were between the ages of 19 and 30, and have a desire to effect social change and the ability to participate in future events, organisers said, noting that they had received some 4,000 applications to join.

AMMAN — The Public Security Department (PSD) will start implementing strict measures against reckless drivers, and finding a suitable place to impound their vehicles is important to curb this phenomenon, PSD Director Maj. Gen. Atef Saudi said Wednesday.

Saudi made these remarks during the inauguration ceremony of a 20-dunum impound square in the Swaqa area that can accommodate around 1,000 vehicles, and which was established in cooperation with the Ministry of Public Works and Housing, a PSD statement said.

Saudi reviewed the penalties levied to prevent reckless drivers from committing repeat offences, such as confiscating their cars and driving licences, a JD100 fine, and referring them to the administrative governor.

Other procedures include transferring vehicles to the impound square and charging a towing fee of JD150, as well as booking the vehicle for at least 14 days at a cost of JD1 per day after the 10th day until the driver pays all fines and fees, the PSD director added.

Interior Minister Salameh Hammad said deterrent legal procedures are required to ensure better traffic organisation and punish drivers who jeopardise their lives and others', according to the statement.

The PSD and the ministry established the new impound square to achieve balance between Traffic Law procedures and monitoring and restricting vehicles of drivers who insist on underrating the law.

Public Works Minister Sami Halaseh, Civil Defence Department Director Lt. Gen. Talal Kofahi and Gendarmerie Department Director Brig. Gen. Hussein Hawatmeh also attended the ceremony, which was followed by a visit to Swaqa Correctional and Rehabilitation Centre to check on the conditions of its inmates.

AMMAN — The Water Ministry has detected a "major" violation on water resources in the Qastal area, which was implemented through digging a tunnel underneath the service street near the airport road.

The incident in Qastal, some 30km south of Amman, was discussed during a Cabinet session on Wednesday to review the Water Ministry's efforts in preserving water resources and halting violations on them, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The agency quoted a source as saying that ministry personnel had been monitoring the area based on a tip they received. 

The ministry coordinated with the prosecutor general, who headed a campaign to the location with security personnel and in coordination with the Public Works Ministry, and blocked the road for inspection.

The violation entailed installing a four-inch (10.6cm) carrier to siphon water from the 32-inch (81.3cm) main below the service road towards Amman and pumping more than 2,400 cubic metres of water a day of subscribers' share through a 5km-long pipe.

The tunnel where the illegal fixture was installed was fortified with cement and steel, with the suspects being careless to the dangers such tunnels could cause on the busy artery, which runs parallel to the airport road, Petra reported.

Jiza prosecutor general and technical teams on site tracked the carrier to a farm with a huge pool that can accommodate more than 10,000 cubic metres of stolen water.

A raid of the farm revealed that it was also equipped with pumps to convey water to other pools, in addition to special places to fill tankers with the goal of selling water illegally, Petra added.

Evidence was collected from the scene and the farm's owner was identified ahead of taking the necessary legal measures against him and other involved suspects. 

Technical teams dismantled the illegal fixtures, Petra reported.

The Water Authority of Jordan’s Law stipulates that those who abuse water carriers and mains, wastewater, pumping, purification or desalination stations; or cause the pollution of water resources, pipes or stations used for drinking water; and dig or are involved in the digging of wells without obtaining a licence, will be jailed for up to five years and fined up to JD7,000.

In addition, violators of water and wastewater projects will be jailed for up to three years and fined up to JD5,000, according to the law’s recent amendments.

AMMAN — A security force arrested 13 suspects classified as “dangerous”, two of whom were killed in an exchange of gunfire during a morning raid in Mafraq on Wednesday, an Interior Ministry source said.

The suspects are involved in 135 cases, including attempted murder, possession of firearms, drug dealing and scams, according to the source.

The suspects were hiding in a fortified area protected by surveillance cameras and high walls built illegally over the main street, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, quoted the source as saying. 

An exchange of gunfire led to the injury of five Arab suspects who were taken to Mafraq Public Hospital, where two of them died, the source said, adding that the security force found stolen vehicles, weapons, ammunition, security cameras, and a counterfeit currency and documents at the scene. 

The source added that the raid was conducted after all attempts to have the suspects turn themselves in failed.

The suspects were reportedly using the area as a safe house to hide after “committing their crimes”.

The source urged every wanted suspect to turn herself or himself in to the authorities, stressing that the Interior Ministry will not allow anyone to violate the law or the state’s sovereignty.

AMMAN — Media experts are scheduled to convene on October 24 to come up with recommendations on addressing the challenges facing journalism and improving its role in facing terrorist propaganda.

The conference, titled “Media and Current Challenges” and held by the Jordan Press Association, will be attended by journalists working for newspapers and news website, representatives of newspapers’ management and media experts, Tareq Momani, the syndicate’s president, told The Jordan Times on Wednesday.

“The conference will be held at a time during which we are witnessing an increased focus on social media and other media tools by terrorist groups to promote their agendas and schemes… Participants will seek to come up with recommendations on how media can effectively face and tackle such attempts,” Momani said.

“Social media tools in particular are becoming increasing popular. Therefore, one of the conference’s sessions will concentrate on news portals and social media,” he added.

Other topics to be discussed include the contemporary situation of newspapers and news websites, future challenges for media, the repercussions of regional political developments on media outlets, the challenges facing private and public media, and the political, social and cultural role that electronic media and competition with dailies plays, said Momani, who is also chief editor of Al Rai Arabic daily. 

The conference, which will attract some 120 participants, will also shed light on the future role of social media networks in news, and on potential jobs created by these networks. The aim is to address and attempt to find solutions to the financial difficulties media outlets face, he added.

“We expect a set of recommendations to be issued and we will follow up on the implementation of these recommendations with concerned entities,” said Momani.

AMMAN — At a time when very few people knew what entrepreneurship was, Samih Darwazah, founder of Hikma Pharmaceuticals, dreamed of excellence and worked hard until it was achieved.

In line with his vision of the production of high quality and affordable medicine, Darwazah established the Amman-headquartered company — now a multi-national group operating in over 50 countries, listed on the London Stock Exchange, and noted as the biggest pharmaceutical company in the region — in 1978.

Darwazah, who passed away on May 15 of this year, was remembered by family, friends, colleagues and public figures at a memorial on Tuesday, which marked what would have been his 85th birthday.

The ceremony, attended by Prime Minister Abduallah Ensour and senior government officials, diplomats and unionists, highlighted Darwazah’s contributions to both the Kingdom and the region as a businessman and a philanthropist.

Asma Rawashdeh, principal of the Samih Darwazah Elementary School for Girls in Shobak, highlighted Darwazah’s belief in the importance of education, especially for women. She herself studied and taught at the school he established and supported throughout his lifetime.

Hanna Nasir, founder of Birzeit University in the West Bank and an old companion of Darwazah’s, affirmed Darwazah’s passion for education, citing the recent inauguration of the Samih Darwazah Institute of Pharmaceutical Industries at the university as an example.

Meanwhile, Senior Corporate Vice President for Technical Affairs at Hikma Ibrahim Jalal shared some memories of his 35-year relationship with Darwazah.

Jalal, who started working at the company in 1979, said Darwazah always treated employees as family members and encouraged them to pursue degrees and take part in training programmes, both locally and internationally.

He said that the group, which is inspired by Darwazah’s attitude and vision, is a “melting pot” of workers from all walks of life.

Jalal added that back in the 1980s, Darwazah strove for Hikma productions to meet American standards in order to export Jordanian medicine to the US.

“Although many believed it could never happen, Samih believed that his team could do it, and in 1995, Hikma started exporting to the United States,” he said at the ceremony, held at the Royal Cultural Centre.

Also speaking at the ceremony, former prime minister Abdul Karim Kabariti recounted his experience with Darwazah as both a former minister of energy and a senator.

Kabariti underscored Darwazah’s “high self-discipline”, rational decision-making and his ability to accept criticism.

He said that Darwazah’s book, “Building a Global Success”, is internationally recognised for its value and is taught at a number of prestigious universities, including Harvard.

Darwazah was “humanitarian with no limits”, as former prime minister and Senate president Taher Masri put it, adding that he was loyal to the Palestinian cause and the region and did not believe in “artificial political borders” dividing Arab countries.

The deceased’s eldest son, Said, who is CEO and Chairman of Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC, said that even when facing his second round of cancer, his father never lost his smile and positive attitude. 

“He sustained his faith until the last moment,” he said.

Said also mentioned the special importance that Darwazah’s honorary doctorate from the American University of Beirut held, adding that out of all the awards and recognition this one was an acknowledgment from his home university.

In 2004, Darwazah received the Kingdom’s Order of Independence first class and in 2007 he was named as Ernst & Young’s Middle East entrepreneur of the year. 

In 2013, Darwazah ranked first on the Emerging Markets Leaders 100 list released by Scrip magazine, which is specialised in the pharmaceutical industry.

According to Hikma financial statements, revenues generated by the company in 2014 reached $1.49 billion, while gross profits were $581 million.

“Each one of us has lost Abu Said in his/her way,” Said concluded.

AMMAN — Jordanian genetic engineers are planning to take their issue to court after “knocking on all doors” to “reclaim” their rights, according to their representative.

After years of what they describe as a “conspiracy” orchestrated against them by the “sharks of the industry”, genetic engineers are now renewing their calls to lift the “injustices”, said president of the Jordanian Society for Genetic Engineers (JSGE), Ramzi Foudeh.

“We lost our job title in 2008 when the Public Health Law was amended. The decision was taken under the pretext that this specialisation is not available in Jordan despite the fact that is it taught at several universities,” Foudeh told The Jordan Times earlier this week.

As a result, genetic engineers cannot obtain licences to open genetic test labs or practise their profession legally.

“Cancelling our job titles has also deprived us of working in the public sector. Employment through the Civil Service Bureau has been zero for the last five years.  Lab technicians always come before us,” Foudeh charged.

According to a statement by the JSGE, “big lab owners are monopolising the sector, banning genetic engineers from having their own job title so that they do not share the huge profits genetic test labs generate.”

“Our job title was dropped out of fear of our ability to compete with them,” claimed Foudeh, noting that there are currently 3,000 genetic engineers in Jordan and 2,000 undergraduates.

He said the unemployment rate in this specialisation reaches 94 per cent, driving many to work in jobs that have nothing to do with their education.

On the other hand, Qasem Rahahleh, director of the Health Ministry’s licences and professions department, said the department grants genetic engineering graduates practising certificates as genetic test lab technicians, under which they can work in private and public labs.

“So far, a total of 1,020 practising certificates have been issued,” he told The Jordan Times, adding that the department is not concerned with job titles.

“They [genetic engineers] should be more specific with identifying their problem,” he said.

Foudeh, on the other hand, said the society has raised its issue to the Cabinet, which maintained that genetic engineers do not have a clear job title and formed a committee to study the issue.

The committee, which included members from the Health Ministry, the Civil Service Bureau and the JSGE, recommended reinstating the genetic engineers job title. A copy of the committee’s findings was e-mailed to The Jordan Times.

“But the decision remained on the shelf,” the JSGE president said, adding that a press conference will soon be held to announce escalatory measures, which include resorting to court.

AMMAN — The Professional Associations Council called on Wednesday for halting the export of olives to Israel due to the recent attacks on Palestinians.

In a statement, the council called for drawing up a national plan to resist any decision that would be listed under “normalising” agricultural and economic relations with Israel, while Palestinian women, children and the elderly are being killed.

The syndicates urged olive and oil traders in the Kingdom to contribute to maintaining the country’s security by not signing any deals with Israel.

According to the statement, any citizen who attempts to export products to Israel will be accused of “normalising” and will face “harsh consequences”.

The associations also urged the government to ban any deals to export olives to Israel.

Fayyad Zyoud, Jordan Olive Products Exporters Association chairman, told The Jordan Times the traders who deal with Israel only represent themselves and do not belong to organisations or official entities.

“Local trade organisations mostly do business with the 1948 Arabs of Palestine and not Israeli settlers,” Zyoud added.

He said that exporting local products is necessary to sustain the economy, adding that there are no direct exports to Israel.

He said that this year, the production of olives amounted to around 220 to 230 tonnes, which is an increase of 25 to 30 per cent from previous years.

According to Zyoud, olive and olive oil are usually exported to Gulf countries.

He said at a press conference earlier on Tuesday that around five to six tonnes are exported to “traditional” markets, like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates.

The chairman added that one of the “barriers” of exporting to the Gulf is the increased production expenses, which prevents their sale at competitive prices.

“We try to export olives to markets we don’t usually deal with, like East Europe, Latin America, Turkey, and Japan to have a variety of options even if the exported amounts were limited,” Zyoud told The Jordan Times.

Last March, Jordan was named among the top 10 olive-producing countries with around 20 million trees across the Kingdom.