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Jordan, Fearing Islamists, Tightens Grip on Elections

[New York Times] Thanassis Cambanis - This month's legislative elections were supposed to be a watershed in Jordan's slow but committed march to democratic change. But Hamas' rise to power in the Palestinian Authority and its violent takeover of Gaza in June have cast a heavy shadow over politics in Jordan, where a Hashemite monarch maintains a tight, authoritarian grip on a restive Palestinian majority and an activist Islamic opposition. Jordan's system restrains not only Islamists but also secular liberal parties and advocates of Palestinian rights. Jordan's only significant opposition party, the Muslim Brotherhood's Islamic Action Front, commands deep support in urban areas, especially among Jordanians of Palestinian origin. The party has put forward 22 candidates, even fewer than it did in 2003, saying they would not stand a chance against the widespread government fraud it expects. Zaki Bani Rsheid, the secretary general of the Islamic Action Front, contends that in a completely open election, Islamists would win a plurality of votes and the right to form a government. (In the last parliamentary election in 2003, the Islamic Action Front won 17 of 110 seats.)
2007-11-13 01:00:00
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