In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Compassionate,

My dear brother, Prime Minister, Excellencies, Distinguished guests, Ladies and gentlemen, My dear friends, Thank you so much for allowing me this opportunity to be able to exchange with you today, and I am truly, truly honoured to be among you to talk about something that is so important to me, the role of faith in the future of our world.

Too much of what’s heard in the news or seen online about religion today is all about what separates people. Around the world, suspicions are inflamed by what different groups don’t know about others. And such ideologies of hate distort the word of God to stir up conflict and justify crimes and terror.

And we need to take these dangers seriously. But they should never be allowed to distract us from the truth that faith should draw humanity together.

It is faith that brings us the Golden Commandments, commandments held in common by multiple world religions, to love God and the good, and love our neighbor.

It is faith that inspires the everyday experiences of people in countries like India and Jordan, where different religious and ethnic groups have lived and worked together in amity throughout history.

It is faith that allows us to prosper and thrive, bringing together different civilizations and cultures around the common principles of humanity.

So, my friends, where did human diversity begin? God Almighty says in the Holy Quran: Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim “People! We created you from a single pair of male and female and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other. The most honoured of you in the sight of God is the most righteous of you.’ [49:13] Saddaka Allahu Al Atheem; to understand each other, to recognize our shared humanity, to act righteously in the sight of God—This is my faith, the faith I teach my children; the faith shared by 1.8 billion Muslims around the world, a quarter of humanity. This is traditional, tolerant, plural, and Madhahib-based Islam dedicated to the love of God; following the Prophet Mohammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and seeking to live in virtue and treat others with justice and kindness.

Every day when I was growing up, I heard among the names of God: ‘the Compassionate, the All-Merciful’. Every day I heard the greeting, Assalam u Alaikum the blessing of peace. Every day, I learned that it was a Muslim’s duty to defend the defenceless and help those in need. Every day, I was taught my family’s Muslim heritage, the heritage that strengthens me in fulfilling my sacred duty today, towards my people, my country, and as Hashemite Custodian of Jerusalem’s Islamic and Christian Holy Sites.

A hundred years ago, my great-great-grandfather, Sharif Hussein bin Ali, who had launched the Great Arab Revolt, was asked to help Christian refugees fleeing into the Arab world families with their meagre belongings, escaping persecution in their old homeland. And the Sharif instructed his sons, Emirs of Arab countries, and other local leaders, to protect these strangers, “in the same way you would protect yourselves, your properties, your children.” The teaching behind the Sharif’s letter compassion, mercy, respect for others was passed on to me by my father, His late Majesty King Hussein. And my father passionately believed that leadership at any level, in any place; in school and community; in the army or the public service or in any other role all leadership, means serving for the hopes and the good of others.

This is my duty, rooted in our religion, Islam. It is why my highest priority is serving Jordan’s people encouraging their talents, struggling against their hardships, and securing a better future for all. And I am not alone. My fellow Jordanians, Muslim and Christian alike, have worked together to build the future, not only for our country, but for neighbours near and far, including hosting millions of refugees from regional turmoil.

Indeed, Jordanians are working globally for dialogue and peace. Among many things, my country was honoured to initiate World Interfaith Harmony Week an annual UN observance promoting mutual understanding. And the text of our resolution specifically included language to be inclusive of all people of good will, including both Muslims and Hindus.

My friends, It was wisely said, the world is one family. However different our countries and our peoples are, we have a shared responsibility to each other, as well as to the future.

The Prophet Mohammad, peace and blessings be upon him, said: ‘None of you has faith until you love for your neighbour what you love for yourself.’ Compassion, mercy, tolerance these are values that are shared by billions of Muslims and non-Muslims around the world. And these values require us, together, to act for our common future.

And the truth is that today’s global war against terror is not a fight between different religions or peoples. It is between moderates, of all faiths and communities, against extremists whose faith is hate and violence.

We need to recognize and reject the misinformation such groups promote about Islam, or indeed, any other faith.

We need to take back the airwaves and the Internet from the voices of hatred those who have victimised our world, not only with bombs and terror, but with ignorance and lies.

We need to make sure young people learn the true values of our religions. And let us teach them to honour our shared civilisation of global learning. Much ancient thought and science was preserved through the efforts of Islamic scholars working in the Arab House of Wisdom and elsewhere. And here in India, hundreds of years ago, Muslim scholars translated Sanskrit writings, and Hindu librarians collected texts of many traditions. And today, academics and scientists across the world share ideas that can take us all into an exciting future of prosperity and peace.

So my friends, Above all else, our peoples need to ensure that no one, no one is excluded from the promise of that future. We cannot afford to allow young people to be left without hope, trapped in isolation, and vulnerable to the false promises of outlaw groups.

So inclusion is the path to the coexistence we need to build strong successful countries. It is our strongest defence against turmoil and our greatest promise of a future of prosperity, security, and peace.

This is not just the responsibility of institutions and public bodies, global and national as important as they are. It is at heart a matter for every person, in how we live our daily lives, in how we treat others, and in our strong hand of friendship.

Today, let all people, Muslim and non-Muslim, reach out to each other. In the hands of friendship, we have the power to grasp a better future for our entire world.
 

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Major win. Women activists protest in front of Jordan’s parliament in Amman with banners calling on legislators to repeal a provision that allows a rapist to escape punishment if he marries his victim, on August 1. Photo credit: AP

Amman – The controversial Article 308 of the Jordanian Penal Code, which allowed rapists or sexual assault perpetrators to escape punishment by marrying their victims, has been abolished by the Lower House of Parliament, marking a victory for women activists.

They have been fighting for years against the “provocative” article that had a negative effect on the lives of many young women.

The abolishment was hailed as a triumph of justice, and is expected to lead to a decrease in sexual violence and abortion. Nearly 140 rape cases were reported in Jordan last year, crimes against morality and public morals increased 22% and abortion crime prosecutions were up 60%, a report by IT Criminal Management Police Department stated.

Suha Mehdi, a student, said ending Article 308 was a win for all.

“A rapist is a rapist and cannot be defined in any other way. He cannot be regarded as a victim as many try to place the blame on the girl insinu¬ating that she allowed this to hap¬pen. This is absurd and, now that Article 308 is gone, many will think twice about making any assault on women,” she said.

Read the full report in The Arab Weekly.

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Freedom of thought needs an atmosphere of tolerance where people can speak their mind and no one is forced to accept the beliefs of others. In the Middle East, though, tolerance is in short supply and ideas that don't fit the expectations of society and governments are viewed as a threat.

Where religion is concerned, the "threat" can come from almost anyone with unorthodox ideas but especially from those who reject religion entirely.

Increasingly, atheists in Arab countries are characterised as dangerous extremists – to be feared no less than violent jihadists.

Persecuting atheists is the inevitable result of governments setting themselves up as guardians of faith. Among the 22 Arab League countries, Islam is "the religion of the state" in 16 of them: Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, the UAE and Yemen. 

For most of them, this is more than just a token gesture; it also serves political purposes. Embracing religion and posing as guardians of morality is one way for regimes to acquire some legitimacy, and claiming a mandate from God can be useful if they don't have a mandate from the public.

State religions, in their most innocuous form, signal an official preference for one particular kind of faith and, by implication, a lesser status for others. But the effects become far more obtrusive when governments rely on state religion as an aid to legitimacy – in which case the state religion has to be actively supported and policed. That, in turn, de-legitimises other belief systems and legitimises intolerance and discrimination directed against them. 

The policing of religion in Arab countries takes many forms, from governments appointing clerics and setting the theme for weekly sermons to the enforcement of fasting during Ramadan. 

To shield the government-approved version of religion from criticism, a variety of mechanisms can be deployed. These include laws against "defaming" religion and proselytising by non-Muslims but general laws regarding public order, telecommunications and the media may also apply.

In Algeria, for instance, the law forbids making, storing, or distributing printed or audiovisual materials with the intention of "shaking the faith" of a Muslim. In Oman, using the internet in ways that "might prejudice public order or religious values" is an imprisonable offence.

For Muslims who publicly abandon Islam the problem is even worse. In Mauritania, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen anyone convicted of apostasy faces the threat – at least in theory – of execution.

Using a state religion as an aid to legitimacy turns the personal beliefs of individuals into a political issue, because disagreeing with the state's theological position also implies disloyalty to the state. Those who happen to disagree must either conform or risk becoming not only a religious dissident but a political one too.

Equating religious conformity with loyalty to the state allows Arab governments to label non-conformists not merely as dissidents but extremists. This in turn provides an excuse for suppressing them, as has been seen in Egypt with the Sisi regime's campaign against atheism and in Saudi Arabia where "promotion of atheist thought" became officially classified as terrorism.

Although Saudi Arabia's war on atheists stems from fundamentalist theology, in Egypt it's the opposite: the Sisi regime presents itself as a beacon of religious moderation. To describe the Sisi brand of Islam as moderate, though, is rather misleading. "Militantly mainstream" might be a better term. Theologically speaking it is middle-of the-road and relatively bland but also illiberal and authoritarian in character.

The result in Egypt is a kind of enforced centrism. While allowing some scope for tolerance – of other monotheistic religions, for example – the regime sets limits on discourse about religion in order to confine it to the middle ground. The main intention, obviously, was to place Islamist theology beyond the bounds of acceptability but at the other end of the spectrum it also means that atheism, scepticism and liberal interpretations of Islam have become forms of extremism.

Defining 'extremism'

Absurd as it might seem to place atheists in the same category as extremists such as terrorists and jihadists, the issue hinges on how "extremism" is defined: extreme in relation to what? Violent and intolerant extremism is a global phenomenon but confusion arises when governments try to define it by reference to national or culture-specific values.

Arab states are not the only offenders in this respect, though. They have been assisted by western governments defining "extremism" in a similar way – as rejection of a specific national culture rather than rejection of universal rights and international norms.

In its effort to prevent radicalisation of students, for example, the British government defined extremism as "vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values". Also in the context of eradicating extremism, the education minister talked about actively promoting "British values" in schools.

Approaching the problem in this way invites other countries to do likewise – even if their own national and cultural values would be considered extreme in relation to universal rights and international norms. Thus, Saudis can justifiably claim that atheism is contrary to fundamental Saudi values. Furthermore, the British minister's idea of instilling British values into British schoolchildren is not very different in principle from "instilling the Islamic faith" in young Saudis – which the kingdom's Basic Law stipulates as one of the main goals of education.

This article was first published on al-Bab.
 

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Picture courtesy of I Change, the group started by Esraa Tayseer Kudair and her team who organised the protest against 'honour' killings in Jordan. Some rights reserved.

With banners that read ‘kill her, you will be protected’, ‘there is no honour in killing’ and ‘justifying crime is a crime,’ the campaigners, many of them high school students, expressed their horror and outrage at the growing number of women murdered in so-called ‘honour’ crimes in Jordan over the past 12 months.

The demonstration was led by 17-year-old student activist Esraa Tayseer Kudair through her group I Change to spotlight legal provisions that, she says, represent a “license to kill.” Pointing in particular to Article 340 of the Jordanian Penal Code, she says, “Criminals can receive a lower sentence if the crime is related to family honour so what’s to stop them? It’s like they are giving them excuses to carry out these crimes.”

Describing her shock and sadness every time reports surface of another woman brutally murdered in the name of family ‘honour’, Kudair says she feels compelled to act. I Change is planning visits to schools around Amman to lecture on the criminal dimension of honour killings, which are still seen as a means of resolution in some Jordanian communities. “We’re the new generation and it’s up to us to work together and change things,” Kudair says.

The situation is getting worse for women in Jordan amid a regression in societal attitudes towards equality

Their voices join a growing chorus from activists who say that the situation is getting worse for women in Jordan amid a regression in societal attitudes towards equality. Last year saw a 53 percent rise in the number of women killed for reasons related to ‘honour’, according to a report released by the Sisterhood is Global Institute (SIGI) in October. That month, five deaths were reported during a single week, including two sisters shot by their brother for leaving the house without permission and an 18-year-old man charged with killing his sister for using a mobile phone the family didn’t know about.

Asma Khader, executive director of SIGI, describes the growth of a more conservative mindset in recent years causing a “decline in freedoms” for women and girls. “The political will is for gender equality here; the problem is the mentality of the people. We are not only fighting the perpetrators, we are fighting the whole society,” she explains.

In patriarchal communities, leaving the house without permission, talking with a male non-relative and marrying without consent can all be considered violations of a woman’s virtue. Even if a woman is raped, says Lubna Dawany, a prominent lawyer and human rights activist, she might still be killed to “cleanse the family (because) it was through her that they were shamed.”

Social media is also playing a part. “Women are sharing information about their lives on social media, often under pseudonyms, which gives their guardians a lot of insecurity about what they’re doing on these platforms,” says Aseel Abu Albandora, project coordinator at the Jordanian Women’s Union. “Conservativism continues on Facebook,” she adds, explaining that most girls are not allowed to post pictures of themselves. “Social media just becomes a new tool to spy on female relatives and accuse them of wrongdoing.”

While movements to confront honour culture and the crimes committed in its name have gathered pace over recent years, the mentality is often deep-rooted and ingrained from an early age. A Cambridge University study conducted in 2013 found that almost half the boys and one in five girls interviewed during a survey of 850 students in Amman, believed that killing a daughter, sister or wife who had ‘dishonoured’ the family was justified. 

Often it’s a family decision to carry out the crime.

“I’m very disappointed to say that it’s a lot of young people who commit these crimes,” says Albandora pointing to gender discrimination inherent in school curriculums and the social pressure on young men to be seen to protect the family name. Coming from a conservative tribal community, she is all too aware of the priority placed on upholding ideals of honour. “Often it’s a family decision to carry out the crime. They all sit down and decide who will kill her,” she says.

Sometimes boys under the age of 18, who are subject to a significantly lighter sentence than adult relatives, are made to carry out the crime. Dawany recalls dealing with one young man under pressure to kill his little sisters, both of whom had fallen pregnant. “He didn’t want to do it…but it’s the whole society, his friends, his relatives, his teachers, saying he’s not a real man. Eventually he decides, yes, he does want to be a ‘real’ man.”

Albandora believes that stronger legal deterrents will lead the way. “It’s a matter of changing the law. If ‘honour’ crimes are clearly illegal then it will raise awareness and people will know they can’t get away with it.” Articles 340 and 98 of Jordan’s Penal Code give judges discretion to grant the perpetrators of ‘honour’ crimes reduced sentences in mitigating circumstances, which include cases involving adultery or crimes committed in a ‘fit of fury’ respectively. 

A reduced sentence may also be granted if the victim’s family waives their personal right to litigate. Adam Coogle, Middle East researcher at Human Rights Watch, explains that, “prosecutors are using these articles less and less and they do now tend to prosecute ‘honour’ crimes as murder. The problem is the families removing their legal claim, which qualifies the perpetrator for a shorter sentence.”

According to Dr. Salma Nims, secretary general of the Jordanian National Commission for Women, this is a frequent outcome for ‘honour’ crime cases, most of which occur within families. Looking at recent figures, she believes that the situation is getting worse and that a “paradigm shift” is needed in the way ‘honour’ crimes are perceived in Jordan. “We need to deconstruct the concept of honour and stop applying it to women,” Nims says.

“The most important and difficult thing to do is to change a culture, to change a way of thinking for an entire people,” says Dawany.

Last year, Jordan’s Iftaa Department, which is responsible for issuing religious decrees, released the country’s first fatwa prohibiting the murder of women in the name of family honour. But much work remains to be done in Jordan, both at the legal level, where, says Khader “escape routes must be closed,” and in local communities, where men are treated as heroes for murdering a female relative to restore their family’s ‘honour.’

Olivia Cuthbert is a Jordan-based freelance journalist focusing on women's rights, issues affecting marginalised groups and the situation of refugees in Jordan as well the environment and other areas related to international development.

This article was first published on Open Democracy
 

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Nevertheless, walking today in the rain with Esraa and Mohamed, two volunteers with the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) here in Jordan, was indeed a very special experience. ‘Camp Hussein’ not far from downtown, in north-west Amman, was set up in 1952 to house thousands of Palestinian refugees, after the Arab-Israeli war of 1948. Today, the winds of change have blown over this sprawling area. It however continues to be one of the poorer quarters of the city; the people who live here are not only Palestinians but also refugees from other countries like Iraq, Syria, Sudan, and Somalia besides poor Jordanians.

Esraa and Mohamed had prior appointments with six refugee families, who had contacted JRS sometime earlier. As a ‘Family Visit’ team of JRS(there are four two-member teams) this ‘first visit’ is important : to make a personal contact with the family, to listen to their pain and suffering, to assess their needs and above all, to see in what ways JRS can serve, accompany and if needed, to advocate for them.

There was always a warm welcome at every house. As one listened to the heart –rending stories of these refugee families, one often wondered if compassion and love were just dreams of the past. Everybody had fled war and violence; their travels to Jordan were arduous, but somehow they made it. Once here, there are issues of loneliness and isolation, of not being easily accepted, of education for the children and of employment. The rented ‘homes’ they now lived in had the minimum of facilities (one could see it); the rentals kept increasing. Most find it extremely difficult to make both ends meet.

We listened to the Iraqi woman who fled Mosul and also a violent husband; to the Syrian woman with three children, whose husband is now taken away from her and now detained far away in another camp, because he was ‘working’ and that is against the law; then, there was another woman whose husband has been deported back to the country from which he had fled- and the family has absolutely no knowledge of his whereabouts. Some want to die; others feel totally helpless and hopeless.  Listening to their pain, seeing their tears, made the rains and chill, the steep climbs and the slippery slopes, pale into insignificance. As one walked on, the words of Charlie Chaplin kept tugging at my heartstrings “I always love walking in the rain, so no one can me crying.” We did however experience the refugees crying.

For the refugees, JRS represented by Esraa and Mohamed, comes as a life- line. The two of them listened with their hearts. The bonding was infectious, the warmth was palpable. One could feel this, as Esraa embraced an elderly woman and as Mohamed took out some sweets from his bag to give the little children. Today was also ‘Valentine’s Day’, when the world celebrates ‘love’ – even if it is very commercial and cosmetic! (Plenty of reminders in the shops, newspapers and WhatsApp messages). One could not help reflecting on the real meaning of ‘love’: the courage to reach out in compassion, to our sisters and brothers who are displaced, excluded and marginalised. In a very extra-ordinary way, through seemingly ordinary deeds, I was part of an experience in which   Esraa and Mohamed communicated to those they encountered, what love actually means!

When I was young, there was a popular love song ‘Walking in the Rain’; it was a boy-girl romantic song. Today, in a very different context and a more challenging reality, I cannot but help remember the chorus of that song:

“Feels like I'm walking in the rain
I find myself trying to wash away the pain
Cause I need you to give me some shelter
Cause I'm fading away
And baby, I'm walking in the rain”

14^th February 2017
Amman Jordan

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