Local

AMMAN — Basil Tarawneh, the government’s coordinator on human rights, on Thursday said that a “large” number of ministries and public and security institutions had delivered their response to notes included in the 2014 report issued by the National Centre for Human Rights.

At the second meeting of the government committee tasked with studying and following up on the report’s recommendations, Tarawneh said that a special supplement will be issued to highlight measures taken to implementing suggestions.

AMMAN — Two Jordanians died and two others were injured in a road accident on Wednesday night in Saudi Arabia during their journey to perform Hajj, the Foreign Ministry announced Thursday. 

A medical evacuation plane was sent to Saudi Arabia Thursday to bring home dead and injured Jordanian upon directives of His Majesty King Abdullah, the ministry’s spokesperson Sabah Al Rafie told The Jordan Times.

Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam and the religious high point of a Muslim’s life, and it is performed during a five-day period from the ninth through the 13th of Dhu Al Hijjah, the 12th month of the Muslim lunar calendar.

Rafie identified the dead as Radwan and Ziad Shraideh Al Daajah, adding that the injured were also from the same family, describing their health condition as critical.

The four Jordanians, who were travelling in their private car, were transferred to King Khalid Hospital in Hael in Saudi Arabia, the spokesperson noted.

Another Jordanian family had a road accident on Tuesday night in Saudi Arabia’s Jouf area while heading back to the Kingdom, resulting in the death of a mother and her daughter and the injury of two sons, the official noted. 

The family were from Irbid’s Omari tribe.

Bodies and the injured young men were brought back home Thursday morning through land borders by relatives who travelled to Saudi Arabia to do so, Rafie said, adding the injured were reported to be in fair conditions. 

The foreign ministry official estimated the Jordanian community in Saudi Arabia to exceed 400,000 people, making it the biggest community of Jordanians abroad.

AMMAN  — The two Houses of Parliament will meet in a joint session on Sunday to settle their disagreements on the 2015 decentralisation law, the Independent Elections Commission Law (IEC) and the draft prohibition of chemical weapons law.

The Senate on Thursday insisted for the second time on its position on the reform-oriented decentralisation bill, insisting that 10 per cent of the elected governorate council seats be allocated for women, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Under senators’ amendments, the number of the elected governorate council members will increase to 85 from 75 after adding the women’s quota.

Last week, the Upper House rejected MPs’ amendments to the law which included no quota for women in governorate councils, insisting that 10 per cent of the elected governorate council seats be allocated for women.

The deputies themselves had initially approved a 15 per cent women’s quota, supporting a proposal by MP Wafaa Bani Mustafa in that regard, but they went back on their decision ahead of the final vote.

According to Article 92 of the Constitution: “Should either House twice reject any draft law and the other accept it, whether or not amended, both the Senate and the Chamber shall hold a joint meeting under the chairmanship of the president of the Senate to discuss the matters in dispute.”

The Senate had refused for the second time to endorse the Lower House’s changes to the IEC Law. The House had decided to include appointment of the agency’s employees in the oversight agency under the jurisdiction of the civil service by-law, insisting instead that recruitment at the IEC should be governed by a special by-law.

The Upper House on Thursday also refused to make any compromise on its position on the draft prohibition of chemical weapons law, scrapping a provision added by MPs allowing the use of chemical agents for crowd control.

The Upper House insisted that all chemical agents, including tear gas, should not be used even in crowd control as MPs had proposed.

Defending their rationale, senators, in a session held in April,  said the decision was aimed at bringing the law into harmony with the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction, which Jordan has ratified.

As reworded by MPs, “only” tear gas in the form of grenades or aerosol cans and “no other chemical agents” shall be used by security bodies to control riots.

YINCHUAN, China /Amman – Jordan’s tourism officials were in China over the past few days, hoping to lure greater numbers of tourists from this Asian country into the Kingdom.

Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) was in Ningxia province and Beijing between September 10 and 15, where it launched a promotional campaign as part of the 2015 China-Arab States Expo, which concluded Monday in Yinchuan, the capital of the autonomous region Ningxia Hui.

JTB prepared a Petra-themed pavilion at the expo, showcasing the Kingdom’s tourism attractions and offering interested visitors cultural and social information.

The event was a special forum to promote the Kingdom’s tourist attractions to Chinese holidaymakers.

On Monday, JTB officials met with eight Chinese tour operators to discuss possible cooperation; these agencies would further encourage tourists from China to visit the Kingdom’s attractions, said Tohama Nabulsi, the director of JTB media and communication.

Official Chinese figures show that around 119 million Chinese tourists travelled abroad in 2014; this year, 120 million are expected to make visits outside the country. 

The figures show a great potential in such a huge market. Moreover, Chinese tourists are described in Europe and other countries as big spenders, the official noted.

In 2014, only 9,000 tourists came to Jordan from this Asian country, according to Ministry of Tourism figures.

According to Nabulsi, among the obstacles that limit tourism between Jordan and China is the lack of direct flights between Amman and Beijing, the language barrier and dietary preferences, or what the official called tourists’ “loyalty to Chinese food”.

Chinese food restaurants are available in Amman only, she said, adding that JTB will send three Jordanian tour operators to China to learn the language as part of a campaign that will focus on attracting tourists from there.

Chinese tourists, Nabulsi said, prefer to visit major international attractions in Europe and the US. JTB will focus on Chinese youth, hoping to attract them to adventures in the Kingdom and will bring Chinese journalists to write about Jordan in an attempt to familiarise the Chinese public with tourist sites the Kingdom has to offer.

She added that because Facebook and Twitter are banned in China, JTB is in the process of creating an account on Chinese social media networks.

Wun Hui Chang, a Chinese teacher of English based in Yinchuan, said she knew little about Jordan.

“I’m not interested to visit the Middle East because of trouble there,” she said when asked by The Jordan Times if she would be willing to visit the Kingdom.

However, Li Ye, a government employee in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, said he knew that Jordan was different from other countries in the region in terms of stability and security, but for the time being, he prefers to visit the West and nearby Asian countries, such as Thailand and Malaysia.

JTB officials said they are aware that more efforts should be exerted on larger scale. Most importantly, they agreed, the Chinese public needs to become aware that Jordan is a safe country that has much to offer to tourists.

AMMAN – Fair weather conditions are expected to prevail during the weekend as temperatures are forecast to remain steady at about two degrees above annual average, a meteorologist said on Thursday.

Raef Rafed, head of the Jordan Metrological Department’s forecasting division, said dusty conditions are predicted to ease off completely in the coming days, adding there is no chance for rain in the forecast.

Rafed told The Jordan Times over the phone that temperatures are expected to drop on Monday. 

On Friday, the meteorologist said temperatures are forecast to range between a high of 34°C and a low of 20°C in Amman and hilly areas. No change in temperature is expected on Saturday. 

As a slight decrease is expected on Sunday, temperatures may range between a high of 33°C and a low of 20°C in Amman and hilly areas.

Rafed said that next Tuesday, September 22, marks the Autumn Equinox, or the first day of autumn, ending nearly 94 days of summer in the Kingdom. 

The length of day and night become equal during the Autumn Equinox, with the number of daytime hours dropping gradually in the countdown to winter.

Jordan usually witnesses a drop in temperatures and several Red Sea troughs that cause unstable weather conditions and light rainfall during the first days of autumn.

AMMAN — Nine Jordanian women were among the most powerful 100 Arab women for 2015, according to a Forbes Middle East list released Thursday. 

Social Development Minister Reem Abu Hassan and Industry and Trade Minister Maha Ali were among the top 10 most powerful Arab women in government.

Jordan, with 11 entries into the competition, had the fourth highest number of entries following Egypt (22 entries), Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates (17), and Kuwait (13).

The list includes seven achieving Jordanian women in the corporate and business sector, including Ittihad Bank General Manager Nadia Al Saeed, Munir Sukhtian Group CEO Deema Sukhtian and Randa Ayoubi, founder and CEO of Rubicon Group Holding.

In the list were also Mary Nazzal Batayneh, founder and chair of Landmark Hotels, as well as founder and CEO of Handasiyat.net Nermin Saad and Commercial Lead for the Middle East at Monsanto Rand Abu Ghanimeh.

Saudi Arabian Lubna Al Olayan, CEO of Olayan Financing Company, was at the top of the list, followed by Emirati Raja Al Gurg, managing director of Isa Saleh Al Gurg, and Qatari Sheikha Mayasaa Al Thani, chair of Qatar Museum.

According to Forbes Middle East website, 60 per cent of the most powerful businesswomen hold executive management positions, while another 24 per cent have worked their way up to the top of their family business. 

For the third consecutive year, the list hounours the successes and positions of the most powerful Arab women, who are “smashing through the glass ceilings and paving the way for future generations”, said Khuloud Omian, editor in chief of Forbes Middle East.

However, the Middle East still has a lot to do to reach true equality in the workplace, she noted.

AMMAN — The Public Security Department (PSD) announced Thursday that it will distribute cash gifts to families of its martyrs on the occasion of Eid Al Adha.

The move is in honour of the sacrifices the fallen policemen offered to the Kingdom, the PSD’s media centre said.

The gifts will be disbursed the wives or sons, and to the parents in case the martyr was unmarried. 

AMMAN — The Chinese Cultural Counsellor in Amman Nie Guoan on Thursday delivered a donation of equipment and devices to the University of Jordan’s foreign languages faculty.

Guoan said the present is meant to assist in establishing a Chinese educational area for students at the Asian languages department, noting that the JD60,000-donation included office furniture, scanners, printers, air-conditioners and 20 modern computers.

The donation also included Chinese films and CDs to serve the educational process at the department, and video devices for direct communication with Chinese universities in a bid to boost exchanging expertise, the diplomat added.

AMMAN — Labour Minister Nidal Katamine on Thursday met with Philippine Ambassador to Jordan Junever M. Mahilum-West and discussed joint cooperation in labour fields, particularly on issues related to domestic workers from the Asian country.

Katamine said the ministry works on a regular basis on updating regulations that seek to guarantee the rights of both domestic workers and employers to be in accordance with best international standards.

The ambassador reviewed the status of Filipino workers in the Kingdom and made some recommendations to improve their work conditions.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF), on Wednesday handed over the banner of "His Majesty the Supreme Commander" banner to three combat squadrons at the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Azraq. 

“The solemn flag handover military ceremony was held in appreciation of the heroic efforts of the members of the first, second and sixth squadrons at the airbase,” according to a Royal Court statement. 

The ceremony, which was attended by several Royal family members and high ranking officials and officers, comes as testimony of JAF's key role and commendable achievements in protecting and safeguarding the country, the statement said.  

The banner of the Supreme Commander, which was presented by His Majesty in person, is considered the most prestigious military honour granted to JAF’s combat squadrons, and is a show of appreciation of the bravery and sacrifices offfered by the pilots of these units and their role in defending the country, according to the statement. 

In the centre of the banner, whose base colour is maroon, lies an image of the Royal Crown lifted on two ears of wheat. On the top corner of the flag to the side of the wand appears the emblem of the honoured unit.

During the ceremony, which began and concluded with the national anthem, squadrons of F16 aircraft of the Royal Jordanian Air Force were flying above the location, with the Hashemite flag hanging from their wings.