Il nuovo governo (conservatore) giordano ha giurato stamattina. La notizia sulla Reuters.
The traditional establishment fears reforms would hand their countrymen of Palestinian origin a bigger political role. Many ordinary Jordanians have become disenchanted with governments backed by a conservative establishment that regards democratic change as a challenge to its hold on power.
The new government comes after an abrupt move by the monarch last month to end parliament’s life in mid-term. It was accused of inept handling of legislation and obstructing free market reforms crucial to spur the stagnant economy.
Parliament, a stronghold of tribal support, was elected in 2007 under an electoral law that reduced the representation of the largely Palestinian-dominated cities, which are Islamist strongholds, in favor of rural and Bedouin areas.
Many Jordanians are resisting the political empowerment of their countrymen of Palestinian origin, a majority of the country’s six million population, for fear they will settle permanently in the kingdom if they cannot return to the Palestinian territories.
(grazie, Carlo!)
Un giorno per parlare della condizione delle donne nel mondo arabo. Ma parlare sul web. Un’idea di una blogger, donna, seguita da altre blogger, in Egitto ma non solo. Sotto il banner di Kolena Laila, siamo tutte Laila.
…a fare un workshop sul blogging nel mondo arabo.
mabrouk!
Il governo israeliano approva la mappa delle priorità nazionali: le colonie israeliane in Cisgiordania che avranno un sostegno da parte dello Stato, e dunque anche la necessità di essere protette. E il ministro delle finanze Yuval Steinitz dice la mappa è un messaggio positivo verso i coloni, e che si opporrà a qualsiasi ipotesi di restituzione del Golan occupato alla Siria, perché fa parte della storia ebraica.
Un ottimo primo passo, per riprendere un processo di pace.
Zvi Barel, su Haaretz, la chiama la mappa della follia nazionale:
The folly lies in how the new map renders void the decision to freeze construction in the settlements. The following is an excerpt from the government resolution in 2002 about drawing up a national priority map: “The incentives and concessions in housing are meant to bolster the socioeconomic basis of national priority areas, to facilitate the lives of second-generation inhabitants and promote the government’s policy on programmed population distribution across the country.” The objective, then, is to create housing opportunities in the settlements and increase the number of settlers, along with other dubious facts on the ground. If I were settler, I would wonder what to do with government subsidies for construction at a time when the government is not granting building permits.
But the diversionary tactic being performed on the settlers is not the main concern. After the moratorium expires, in nine months, the benefits will remain. There’s no expiration date. These benefits are not to compensate for lost construction days, or to soften the blow Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu allegedly dealt the settlers. It’s a strategy, and not even a new one. With those benefits, the fringe settlements could become new population centers and demand a status currently reserved for the “settlement blocs” – those that merit inclusion in the new map of Israel because of the size of their populations.
Il 22 e il 23 dicembre, visita ad alto livello a Damasco: il premier turco Erdogan va a un meeting di carattere strategico, per firmare vari accordi.
L’agenda diplomatica, a Damasco, sembra piuttosto fitta, perché prima di Erdogan dovrebbe arrivare Saad Hariri. La stampa araba parla oggi di un invito ufficiale fatto a Hariri dalla Siria
