ZARQA, JORDAN:
Abdul Rahman, a 48- year old school teacher, looks from his balcony
with amusement at voters entering a nearby polling station to choose Jordan's new parliament. He chose to sip coffee rather than go vote.
"I
never considered voting, despite the promise by King Abdullah of fair
and free polls," he told The Media Line. "The parliaments have been, and
will always be, under the control of the King and his people. Each time
they say free elections, the government later admits to rigging the
elections," he added cynically.
This
small country of just 5.6 million people is facing a growing financial
crisis. Gas prices are rising and rumors that government-subsidized
bread prices will rise have set off demonstrations.
Officials
here worked hard to get people to vote, telling them the elections
would be an important step on this pro-Western monarchy’s road to
democracy. The ballot was the first here since the Arab Spring, which
has mostly bypassed Jordan, began two years ago.
More
than 1400 candidates competed for 108 individual seats and 27 reserved
for party lists. Another 15 seats are reserved for women.
The
turnout was higher than expected, 56.8 percent according to the
Independent Election Commission. Early results show the winners as a mix
of former parliament members, businessmen, and independents.
Jordan's
King Abdullah hailed the elections as an important marker of reform
because the parliament will now be able to choose the prime minister.
The parliament will also be responsible for running day-to-day affairs
in the kingdom, although the King will still have control over security
and foreign policy.
But
what makes many Jordanians feel that this election will not make any
difference is the boycott by the Muslim Brotherhood. Its political
wing, the Islamic Action Front object to the election system, saying it
favors tribal and rural areas, which tend to be more pro-government,
over the cities.
During
the voting, dozens of clashes between supporters of rival candidates
and burning of polling stations, were reported, said security sources.
Organized
vote buying was also reported in several districts where key government
loyalists were running, according to eye witnesses and observers.
Shopkeeper Abu Jehad said voting is mainly about family and business interest.
"People
are no longer interested in politics,” he told The Media Line. “All
candidates are the same -- they give big promises and disappear after
polls," the 66 year old man said from behind his shop counter. He said
most people have little interest in the elections and believe they are
corrupt.
Authorities have struggled to gain public confidence following a series of blunders in running previous polls.
Vote buying and interference from security forces in results marred the past two elections of 2008 and 2010.
This
time, an independent commission was set up for to run the elections,
but the new body faced a daunting task to distance itself from the
government.
"We
are not the government. We are independent and our procedures are in
line with international standards. It is very difficult to manipulate
voting," spokesman of the Independent Election Commission Hussein Bani
Hani told the Media Line.
The
Islamist movement said the elections would not end the political crisis
between the palace and opposition groups. The group also accused
authorities of exaggerating voting rates to legitimize the elections.
"This
is a drama that ended in total failure. Official numbers about voting
are false. Participation in the polls was low," the Islamic Action Front
(IAF) said in a statement posted on its website.
Former Islamist MP Musa Wahsh said the election process is dubious from start.
"The
government and its security forces have been working for months to
manipulate the results. Several machines for printing identification
cards have gone missing from the civil affairs department," Wahsh told
the Media Line.
He
said authorities mobilized the army and security forces to vote and
charged that soldiers and security personnel given multiple
identification cards to vote several times.
Activist Mohammad Khalaf al Hadid described the elections as "political comedy" executed by the authorities.
"The
royal court sent a list of 70 candidates it wanted to win. They asked
security forces to vote for them. We have proof on video that security
forces voted without using ink," he told the Media Line. After casting a
ballot, the voter’s finger is dipped in long-lasting ink to ensure he
cannot vote again.
Hadid said he expects "major political turmoil in the coming months as distance between authorities and the people grows."
Demonstrations in Jordan have been relatively benign compared to those in North Africa
that uprooted regimes that ruled in similar fashion. But over the past
few months, protests have escalated from demands for reform to calls to
topple the regime.
The
Islamist movement distanced itself from those calling for the ouster of
King Abdullah, but remains adamant that his power must be lessened.
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