Civil society coalition gathers gov’t, organisations to address national human rights situation

AMMAN — Deputising for Prime Minister Omar Razzaz, Minister of Political and Parliamentary Affairs Musa Maaytah on Tuesday affirmed the government's keenness to improve the human rights situation in Jordan, citing the 10-year comprehensive plan that was initiated in 2016 with that aim.

Maaytah made his remarks during an event titled "The Status of Human Rights in Jordan" held by HIMAM, a civil society coordinating coalition in the Kingdom, in Amman.  

The minister said that the 10-year comprehensive national plan for human rights involves all concerned entities, aiming to boost partnership between the executive and legislative authorities to gather recommendations and proposals to be manifested as laws and regulations. 

Soon, the government will announce what has been achieved from the plan, Maaytah said, noting that in the past four years, the greatest part of the plan has been accomplished.  

In spite of this fact, Coordinator of HIMAM and Executive President of the Centre for Defending the Freedom of Journalists Nidal Mansour said at the event: "The status of human rights in Jordan is not well, according to the latest annual report of the National Centre for Human Rights [NCHR]."

"The government thus needs to research quickly the approach to address these challenges [facing human rights] and improve Jordan's indicators in the field," Mansour continued.

"This is a report by the NCHR, not a civil society institution, but rather a national institute of the state," Mansour said, noting that it is important for the Kingdom to compare itself to countries “doing well” in the field of human rights rather than countries “doing poorly”.  

He said that HIMAM is working on a paper to institutionalise cooperation between civil society institutions and the government, and will keep on supporting the human rights situation through coordinating with the government coordination team on human rights, as well as other concerned entities. 

For his part, Chairperson of the NCHR's Board of Trustees Irhail Gharaibeh said that "human rights are like a complicated network integrated in all aspects of life, making them a product of a comprehensive system of tools, factors and matters that regulate human life".

Thus, human rights are “not complete” unless implemented within a democratic hub under proper governance, where people belong to a society that provides them with the rights to proper education, health, work, freedom of speech and non-discrimination. 

"At the NCHR, we cooperate with all authorities, specialised parties and civil society institutions to improve Jordan to serve as a role model in the region," Gharaibeh said, noting that the centre rejects all forms of administrative detention and ruling based on political views that are not violent or harmful.

Senior Human Rights Advisor at the Office of the UN Ekkehard Strauss said that the United Nations this year chose "youth" as the International Human Rights Day theme.

He highlighted the importance of empowering Jordanian youth, especially girls and marginalised segments, through training and education, so they can take informed decisions about their lives.

During the event, EU Ambassador to Jordan Maria Hadjitheodosiou said that the European Union's human rights and democracy policy encompasses several political, economic, social and cultural rights, and the EU views all human rights as universal and interdependent. 

The EU believes in democracy as the only political system which can fully realise all human rights, Hadjitheodosiou said, noting that any country that aims at joining the union must have respect for human rights. 

"Sustainable peace and stability, long-term development and prosperity, cannot exist without respect for human rights and democratic and inclusive institutions," the EU ambassador pointed out.

She added that stability in the Kingdom is critical for the region, which she described as the top partnership priority, as the EU will work on supporting Jordan in this field, with belief in the role of organisations in promoting freedom, democracy and human rights in Jordan and throughout the world. 

The event included two panel discussions: "Human rights crisis, examples and challenges" and "Overcoming the human rights crisis, a vision of the present and future", according to organisers. 

A human rights exhibition was also integrated into the event, providing an open space for civil society institutions to showcase their programmes, projects and activities and present their studies and reports to visitors. 

The exhibition aimed at supporting university and school students through raising awareness about human rights issues and civil society institutions and their work.

Also on Tuesday, Razzaz met with a group of people with disabilities and highlighted the support the government provides, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

During the meeting, the premier discussed measures, decisions and national regulations aimed at taking care of people with disabilities and providing them with an honourable life as part of national duty and human rights endeavours.

The meeting, during which the prime minister listened to the demands and needs of people with disabilities on matters that would make their lives easier, was attended by the Government Coordinator for Human Rights Abeer Dababneh.