BackgroundFollowing
World War I and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the UK received
a mandate to govern much of the Middle East. Britain separated out a
semi-autonomous region of Transjordan from Palestine in the early
1920s, and the area gained its independence in 1946; it adopted the
name of Jordan in 1950. The country's long-time ruler was King HUSSEIN
(1953-99). A pragmatic leader, he successfully navigated competing
pressures from the major powers (US, USSR, and UK), various Arab
states, Israel, and a large internal Palestinian population. Jordan
lost the West Bank to Israel in the 1967 war and barely managed to
defeat Palestinian rebels who threatened to overthrow the monarchy in
1970. HUSSEIN in 1988 permanently relinquished Jordanian claims to the
West Bank. In 1989, he reinstituted parliamentary elections and
initiated a gradual political liberalization; political parties were
legalized in 1992. In 1994, he signed a peace treaty with Israel. King
ABDALLAH II, the son of King HUSSEIN, assumed the throne following his
father's death in February 1999. Since then, he has consolidated his
power and undertaken an aggressive economic reform program. Jordan
acceded to the World Trade Organization in 2000, and began to
participate in the European Free Trade Association in 2001. In 2003,
Jordan staunchly supported the Coalition ouster of Saddam in Iraq and
following the outbreak of insurgent violence in Iraq, absorbed hundreds
of thousands of displaced Iraqis, most of whom remain in the country.
Municipal elections were held in July 2007 under a system in which 20%
of seats in all municipal councils were reserved by quota for women.
Parliamentary elections were held in November 2007 and saw independent
pro-government candidates win the vast majority of seats. In November
2007, King ABDALLAH instructed his new prime minister to focus on
socioeconomic reform, developing a healthcare and housing network for
civilians and military personnel, and improving the educational system.
الأحد يناير 17, 2010 2:02 am
