Jordan calls early election
Posted: 24 November 2009 0402 hrs

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AMMAN: King Abdullah II of Jordan dissolved parliament on Monday and ordered a general election two years early, after months of press criticism of the ineffectiveness and in some cases alleged corruption of MPs.

In a royal decree, the king dissolved parliament from Tuesday and instructed the government to take the necessary steps to organise the snap poll.

The outgoing parliament elected two years ago, which was dominated by independent and tribal MPs loyal to the king, had been increasingly unpopular.

Within 30 minutes of the dissolution announcement, websites were awash with postings applauding the decision.

The most popular website Ammon carried more than 200.

"The best news I heard in two years - our political life was in a coma and this measure was necessary," wrote a man calling himself Irbidaoui.

Dozens of readers saw in the royal decree the "best gift for Eid," the Muslim Feast of the Sacrifice which starts on Thursday in Jordan.

One writer who did not give a name said: "Let them go home, we've had enough of their inertia and their corruption."

Another, Motaz Abu Rumman, commented: "MPs' salaries equal 10 million Jordanian dinars (10 million euros) a year. That will be money saved for the budget next year."

There had been increasing wrangling between pro-government MPs and the Islamist and leftist opposition over the electoral law and constituency boundaries.

It was not clear if any changes could now be made before the early election, which had not been due before November 2011. It was the second time the king has dissolved parliament early since he acceded to the throne in 1999.

Only six of the 22 candidates fielded by the Islamic Action Front were victorious in the last general election on November 20, 2007, a tally sharply down on the 17 seats it won in the previous polls in 2003.

After that vote, the IAF, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood, charged that there had been widespread vote-buying in some constituencies despite pledges of transparency from the government.

Even in their traditional stronghold of Zarqa, an impoverished city east of the capital Amman, the Islamists failed to win a single seat.

The Islamist group had withdrawn all of its candidates from municipal polls in July 2007, complaining that there were insufficient safeguards against electoral fraud.

However Jordan's US ally praised the conduct of the 2007 parliamentary election, saying that it had been a "smooth process that included independent national observers, a high percentage of women candidates and female voter turnout, and active participation by Jordanian civil society."

"We commend the government and Jordan's citizens for ensuring another step has been taken on the country's path of political development," a US statement said at the time.

Seven women won election that time - one more than the statutory quota. It was the first time a woman had ever won an unreserved seat. - AFP/de