Activists call for strict safety measures at children’s play areas

AMMAN — Dozens of activists and children held a protest on Thursday outside the Medina Munawara Street branch of fast-food restaurant Hardee’s to call for stricter safety measures at eateries’ play areas.

The protest was held after five-year-old Ezziddin Al Hirsh reportedly died of electric shock at the restaurant’s play area during the Eid Al Fitr holiday in late July.

The protesters, who included relatives of Hirsh, called for introducing public safety measures at all play areas at schools, kindergartens, restaurants, malls, hotels and others.

In a statement they issued, the demonstrators also stressed the need to have a supervisor who has received first-aid training onsite at the play areas, where he/she will be responsible for the children’s safety.

Calling for installing surveillance cameras at these locations, the protesters said the area should be properly lit and there should be no exposed electric sockets.

Government inspectors should also check the rides regularly to ensure their safety and proper maintenance, imposing fines and tough penalties if any negligence is proven, the statement said.

The demonstrators also called for installing a sign showing a 24-hour hotline for complaints to report any violations.

“We, the children of Jordan, are all Ezziddin, and we have the right to play in a safe environment,” the protesters said in the statement.

The family of Ezziddin was dining at Hardee’s during Eid Al Fitr when they noticed that their child, who was playing along with his sibling, was missing.

After more than an hour’s search, Ezziddin was found dead due to an electric shock in the play area and was then taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead upon arrival. 

Following the incident, the northern Amman prosecutor issued orders to arrest the director of the evening shift at the Hardee’s branch pending further investigation.

The branch was closed upon instructions from the governor, and the family of the deceased child accepted a “confession atwa”, a truce that entails acknowledging the wrongdoing on the part of the restaurant.

Amman Governor Khaled Abu Zeid also decided to form a permanent committee to check on all restaurants and tourist areas in the capital in terms of their public safety standards.

The committee will be responsible for holding regular inspections and restaurants will be obligated to cooperate with its inspectors in order to license their establishments.

The governor tasked the tourism and public works ministries, the Jordan Standards and Metrology Organisation, the public security and civil defence departments and the Royal Scientific Society with forming the committee.