His Majesty King Abdullah II
Letter of Designation to His Excellency Dr. Ma'rouf Al-Bakhit
November 24, 2005
Amman, Jordan
In the name of God, the most Merciful, the
Compassionate
Ma'rouf al-Bakhit, may God protect you,
Greetings,
I extend to you an Arab Hashemite greeting full of appreciation and respect. I
have come to know you in different contexts through the posts -- diplomatic,
academic and military - that you have assumed. You always met expectations in
excellence, competency and belonging; you have dedicated your competence and
experience to the service of our homeland and our people, and of this we are
proud and appreciative.
The hectic pace of life demands that we accelerate the achievement of our
national goals and maximize the gains of our people. Following the resignation
of the government of Adnan Badran, I entrust you with the task of forming a new
government that will realize our vision for reform by continuing to build on
work already started, correcting whatever gaps or shortcomings may exist and
extracting from the negative aspects the appropriate lessons that we might avoid
them in the future.
The achievements of the previous government, in terms of action towards its
objectives under difficult regional and international conditions, are
appreciated and have been noted. Nevertheless, there remain the aspirations of
our people and the higher strategic goals we are committed to achieving for
every citizen, male and female, through building a modern Jordan, capable of
production and competition, whose people are knowledgeable and cultured and seek
a place among the advanced countries in terms of development and cultural and
civilizational values that are translated into democracy, pluralism, equal
opportunity, rule of law, openness, modernity, public freedoms, security and
internal stability, that eschew incitement and violence.
These goals impose on you and your colleagues the missions and principles which
I hope the government will implement and commit to according to scientific rules
and mechanisms that can be implemented. Our people deserve that we exert all our
efforts and dedicate our time to enhancing their living standards and to raising
living standards to be among the best and most modernized, to a standard in
which the people closely monitor the government's work of the government,
confident and optimistic that the government will be unhesitant in continuing
its effort to continue the march of production, development and reform.
The terrorist attacks on our capital that resulted in the death of dozens of
innocent citizens, Arab brethren and dear friends, and left scores more wounded,
increases our resolution to cling to our unchanging basic beliefs and our
democratic reformist approach, from which there is no retreat. They
simultaneously affirm the extent of our need to adopt a comprehensive strategy
to confront takfiri culture.
Such a strategy does not envision security solutions alone, but also takes into
account the intellectual, cultural and political dimensions of standing up to
those who are charting paths of destruction and sabotage to realize their aims.
This necessitates accelerating the drafting of an anti-terrorism law and waging
a merciless war on takfiri schools of thought which draw on fanaticism,
backwardness, closed-mindedness and secretiveness, are nourished by ignorance or
naivety and legitimate their deeds with misleading fatwas and interpretations of
our religion, thus imposing an imminent threat to society and its interests. We
cannot accept this, nor can we be hesitant or slow in confronting it.
In connection with the fight against terrorism, it saddens and infuriates us to
see terrorists, saboteurs and merchants of takfiri thought don the cloak of
Islam and speak in its name, when their bloody discourse is entirely unrelated
to our religion and to Islam's teachings of tolerance, established fourteen
centuries ago and which still demand moderation, respect for human life, the
advancement - not the destruction - of human society, dialogue and debate with
the “other” - all of which are values that constitute the core of the Amman
Message. The message has been approved and supported by the esteemed Muslim
scholars and faqihs from various countries of the world who attended the
International Islamic Conference held in Amman last July.
The government, therefore, is invited to give the concepts, meanings and goals
of the Amman Message the importance they deserve -- under the present conditions
in particular - and to communicate them to every corner of our country and to
the widest sector of Islamic states, so that Muslims will know the truth about
their religion. Awareness will help pull the carpet out from under this
misguided and misleading group of criminals, who have begun to face difficulties
because people were made recently aware of how untrue and damaging their ideas
really are.
In this context, the media also has a responsibility to serve the homeland,
defend its achievements and promote tolerance, acceptance of the other and
respect for the freedom of expression, in a way that is consistent with Jordan's
interests. All of this should emanate from our belief that freedom is a culture,
a practice, and a civilizational and humane value.
As we have affirmed always, reform is not an option but a necessity for the new
Jordan we seek, towards which important strides have been made. Thus the
government is required to uphold reform both as a concept and as a daily
practice. Democracy, as is well-known, is a culture and practice, not a
collection of mere slogans to be uttered on appropriate occasions. The
government, then, is asked to institutionalize the processes of reform,
modernization and development, and in that vein, the recommendations of the
National Agenda and Administrative Regions committees could be considered
guidelines on which the government could draw in designing a comprehensive
reform program.
In light of the output of these two committees, the government is required to
draft a number of laws in a speedy and urgent manner, with consideration to
modernity, justice and social changes. The intended legislation includes a new
elections law, a political parties law and a municipalities law. These should
facilitate the renewal of our political and parliamentary life, guarantee wider
participation in decision-making and contribute to placing our country on the
map of creative, progressive countries which interact with and adapt to
circumstances in accordance with our people's interests in the age of
globalization and competition in which only productive people, free citizens and
law-abiding states thrive.
As for the other social and economic topics which the National Agenda deals
with, the government should be committed to the national interest and place
Jordanian citizens' interests at the forefront. This requires drafting
legislation that will be submitted to constitutional processes within a
specified time, in a manner that renders the timeframe for program
implementation specified in these drafts a binding obligation on every holder of
public office, who will be held accountable if he or she errs and rewarded if he
or she excels.
The government is also required to prepare practical and quick plans to deal
promptly with poverty and unemployment, and is required to design a transparent,
computerized database that can identify poor families and to guarantee that
support is channeled to those who deserve it. The combination of poverty and
unemployment is a great obstacle and challenge to our ambitions. It demands
collaborative efforts to create more job opportunities, especially for youth and
those with qualifications and experience, in a way enhances national
development. Perhaps the government will continue what has already been started
by building houses for those with limited income through the allocation of state
lands for the construction of housing projects, units of which could be
distributed to this important constituency at nominal prices, compatible with
their financial abilities. It is also important that the government starts
working on including larger segments of society in health insurance plans and
social care within available means.
Economic achievements have been great, and all of us are proud of them. Our
national economy has attained high growth rates over the past years, and Jordan
has become a destination for Arab and foreign investors. But we should not stop
at that; we must move forward with resolution and determination to realize more
achievements and gains in a way that enhances sustainable development, while
taking into consideration a just distribution of the benefits of development in
all the Kingdom's governorates.
Guaranteeing Arab and foreign investors' confidence in the promising investment
climate requires that the government remove or correct administrative and
structural imbalances in the economy, services or facilities, and remove
bureaucratic obstacles that have arisen in some departments, most often due to a
lack of awareness of, indifference to or illogical interpretations of the law.
Here we direct attention to the importance of reconsidering the tax law in a way
that realizes justice, activates investment, prevents tax evasion and supports
the budget. I would like also to emphasize the need to accelerate the completion
of the privatization program, since we have achieved tangible success in this
area. It is not necessary to wait until privatization is complete to start
allocating company shares to the members and retirees of our armed forces.
As we affirmed to the past government, this government should not accept
negligence or hesitation and should act decisively to fight corruption and the
corrupt, favoritism and slanderers and libelers. Here we should reiterate that
in the field of fighting corruption, we have an achievement that cannot be
underestimated; Jordan was ranked as the 37th [least corrupt] country in the
world according to Transparency International, an international organization
known for its integrity and objectivity. It is a rank of which we are proud, but
cannot accept it as sufficient. We should work to attain a leading rank among
the countries that were pioneers in this field; this is an ambition that can be
realized, and it should be the impetus to pass the anti-corruption law which has
been with Parliament for a while now, waiting for light to be shed on it.
Jordan's security and stability are a hallmark of Jordanian excellence thanks to
our armed forces and security institutions and their alertness, readiness,
professionalism, accumulated experience and patriotism; so we extend to them our
trust, and support their continued training and material upgrading in accordance
with the most up-to-date systems and means, so that they will always be Jordan's
first line of defense, the guardian of democracy and an asset that protects
Jordan from the greed of others, from terrorist conspiracies and from saboteurs.
Jordan's Arab and foreign relations are at their best at the moment, and they
are based on the principles of respect, trust and non-interference in the
internal affairs of any country, under any circumstances. These principles have
given Jordanian diplomacy credibility and respect all over the world. This means
that the government is called on to enhance and develop our ties with others in
different fields, retaining our unwavering principles - our commitment to
international legitimacy, international and Arab conventions and treaties - and
pay special attention to Arab Jordanian relations, while exerting relentless
efforts to support common Arab action.
The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is facing a critical moment following the
developments and changes of the past few months, especially the withdrawal of
Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip and the international community's feeling of
optimism about this step. This step, which we support, should be followed by
subsequent withdrawals from the West Bank in accordance with the roadmap, to
which both Palestinians and Israelis should commit themselves, leading to the
establishment of an independent, viable Palestinian state, and to the end of a
conflict that has spread over so many years and impeded the development of the
region's peoples and states.
I would like to affirm here our continued support to the Palestinian Authority,
its legitimate, elected leadership and its struggle to establish its authority
in the Gaza Strip, and to state our readiness to offer our experience, and
whatever else the Palestinians may ask for to ensure the success of the
forthcoming legislative elections which we hope will produce a legislative
council that represents the aspirations of the Palestinian people and the
domination of one authority. We will also continue our support to the people of
Iraq. We look with optimism to every step that enhances their unity and
guarantees a consensus among all segments of Iraqi society in facing the
challenges they face, in a way undermines Iraq's enemies who are betting amongst
themselves that the Iraqis will not reach consensus. We will always be
supportive of Iraqis as they build a strong, unified country that accommodates
pluralism and peaceful competition, and that eschews violence and terror.
While we affirm that there should be a commitment to the directives included in
our letter, and call for their practical application, we extend to you our trust
and full support, expecting to receive your recommendations on the names of your
colleagues, the ministers, and we ask God to help us and grant us success, to
direct our steps on the path good, to inspire all of us to follow righteous ways
and to enable us to serve Jordanians and realize a bright tomorrow for Jordan,
first and always.
May God Almighty protect dear Jordan as an independent, Hashemite, Arab and
proud homeland.
Peace be upon you, God's mercy and his blessings
Abdullah II ibn al-Hussein
Amman 22 Shawwal, 1426Hijri
24 November, 2005 A.D.