‘Amman governor bans journalist training without explanation’

AMMAN — A human rights organisation on Thursday voiced its rejection of a recent decision by the Amman governor to ban the group from conducting a training workshop for local journalists a week earlier.

Tamkeen Fields for Aid (TFA) said they were about to conduct a two-day training course for 24 local journalists earlier this month to train them in reporting on human trafficking and rights of migrant and Syrian workers when they were informed by the hotel that the Amman Governor Saad Shihab “had refused to hold the event”, according to TFA Executive Director Linda Kalash.

“The hotel informed us that they were instructed by the governor not to open any hall for us and did not give any reason,” Kalash told The Jordan Times.

She stressed that her organisation had followed the proper procedures of informing the governor 48 hours before holding an event by sending a notice.

“We are just required to send a notice and I am really surprised that they refused such an event,” Kalash said.

She added that this was “an arbitrary act on the part of the authority and it is only meant to put pressure on the civil society”.

“I visited the Amman governor office on Wednesday and asked for reasons and they would not provide any. They also refused to give me an official paper stating that they refused to hold the event, I am assuming it is because they know I might file a lawsuit against them,” Kalash added.

 Amman Governor Shihab was unavailable to comment on the incident all day on Thursday despite repeated attempts by The Jordan Times.