Jordan Times
Friday, August 25, 2006
We are All Jordan
Commission holds inaugural meeting
King directs 27-member panel to form a sub-committee to set up
work mechanisms and draft regular reports on progress made
AMMAN (JT) — His Majesty King Abdullah on Thursday said the formation of the We
are All Jordan Commission is to preserve the national consensus resulting from a
meeting of key local leaders in late July to set the country’s priorities.
The Monarch was speaking at the first meeting of the commission, which was set
up earlier this month to follow up on the recommendations of the We are All
Jordan Forum, which brought together private and public sector leaders to
address current and potential challenges.
During Thursday’s meeting, the King directed the 27-member panel to form a
sub-committee to set up work mechanisms and draft regular reports on progress
made.
At the forum meeting, the King said the commission’s mandate was to follow up on
the recommendations of the high-ranking gathering and stage its periodic
sessions, stressing that it would serve as a Royal advisory body, without
transgressing the authority of any constitutional institution.
Members include the prime minister, the president of the Senate, former prime
ministers, the speaker of the Lower House, former ministers and representatives
of the private sector, the media and women’s organisations, in addition to the
secretary general of the National Policies Council as rapporteur.
Last week, the King met with deputies and senators and urged them to “work as
one team” to implement the recommendations of the We are All Jordan Forum.
The lawmakers were members of the forum, which took its decisions through a
democratic process.
During the meeting with heads of parliamentary committees and blocs, King
Abdullah said he was optimistic that the ongoing Lower House extraordinary
session would succeed in passing laws in the political and socio-economic
sectors.
The King stressed that the success of the extraordinary session in this regard
would send a positive message to Jordanians and the region.
The participants in the Dead Sea forum meeting produced the “We are All Jordan
Document” in which they defined a group of draft laws to be given priority when
Parliament meets for an extraordinary session, the timing of which remains
unspecified.
Deliberations occurred over six major topics, including the Palestine issue,
political reform, external challenges, domestic development, economic reform and
social security.
The proposed legislation includes an anti-corruption commission law, an
anti-terror law and the laws that govern mosque preaching and iftaa (issuance of
religious edicts), among others.
Regarding the political process, priority will be given to the Elections Law,
the Municipal Elections Law, Press and Publications Law, Right to Access
Information Law, the draft anti-money laundering law, Financial Disclosure Law,
and the law governing the work of the National Human Rights Centre.
Regarding economic reform, there was focus on a proposed tax law, which the
communiqué said should address the shortcomings in previous such legislation to
ensure justice for all citizens.