By Khetam Malkawi
AMMAN - The Lower House and the Jordan Press Association (JPA) on Saturday decided to end a heated dispute that has been ongoing for some time between lawmakers and the media industry.
The two sides reiterated that coverage of House deliberations is a right the general public is entitled to as legislation is an issue of great interest to the people.
At a meeting with the JPA board, House Speaker Abdul Hadi Majali said that media are “a partner of the House” as both sides play a monitoring role over the executive branch and have their channels of communication with the public, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.
During the meeting, which took place at the Lower House, the House Permanent Bureau decided to freeze an earlier decision they made to limit reporters’ freedom in covering House news, JPA President Abdul Wahab Zgheilat told The Jordan Times. The new instructions were seen as restrictive to journalists’ right to access information and freedom to do their job.
He added, however, that both agreed it is important to “regulate” the work of reporters covering Parliament.
The reporters were barred from moving freely between the offices of the House, and had to receive all the information they needed and arrange appointments with deputies through the media officer. Media outlets objected to the measures.
“The Permanent Bureau will meet on Tuesday to look into the arrangements and discuss their decisions with the JPA,” Zgheilat said, adding that the association’s board “supports regulating the entry of journalists to the House to better facilitate the work of lawmakers and journalists”.
The row between the press and the legislature began last month when some deputies attacked the media during a debate of an amendment to the Culture Law stipulating a 5 per cent tax on the advertising revenues of media outlets. The media industry had expected the lawmakers to scrap the tax, especially after dozens of House members had signed a petition requesting that the government amend the law and remove the levy.
Media circles perceived the negative remarks by the MPs during the deliberations as an act of revenge of the press, which had highlighted the findings of polls showing a shrinking popularity of the legislators. Four major dailies imposed a boycott against the House before having a change of heart four days later, but the crisis was not over.
Zgheilat said the law is now going through constitutional channels, highlighting the fact that the Senate has rejected the tax and reduced it to 1 per cent.
The law is back at the Chamber of Deputies. If both Houses remain in disagreement over the law, according to the Constitution, a joint meeting will be held and resolutions will be taken on a two-thirds majority basis.
The JPA president voiced hope that members of Parliament will show understanding of the situation of the media and their “financial burdens under the current global financial crisis”.
Mediation and positive signals traded between the Fourth Estate and the legislature have not stopped. A group of lawmakers visited the JPA last week to bring the two sides closer. Before that move, a total of 48 MPs had signed a statement calling on the two camps to end their differences through “dialogue and reason” and to work together to “serve the interests of the country”.
