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AMMAN — The Industry, Trade and Supply Ministry has recorded some 400 violations since the beginning of the year until mid-February, including 72 violations of bakeries that have not complied with the new decision determining the bread prices, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Saturday.

At a press conference on Saturday, Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply Yarub Qudah said that the ministry is strictly monitoring the local market to ensure compliance with price limits set in the law.

He said that the ministry has put in service a toll free call service centre free to receive citizens’ complaints and observations at 06-5661176.

Qudah also said complaints can be sent on the ministry’s social media channels, smart phone application and its website.

AMMAN — Madaba Public Security Department personnel have arrested a man suspected of shooting dead a child in Madaba, a security source said on Saturday.

The suspect confessed that a bullet was fired accidently from his gun as he was walking near the child’s house, the source was quoted by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, as saying.

Security authorities confiscated the gun and sent it to the criminal laboratories administration, before referring the case to court.

On Friday evening, the child was transferred to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

AMMAN — The Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company (JPRC) on Saturday said all gas cylinders sold in the country are "safe and secure".

JPRC Spokesperson Haidar Bashaireh was quoted in the Jordan News Agency, Petra, as saying tha the company has received calls from citizens complaining that the life span of the gas cylinders they buy is shorter than it used to be.

He added that, before leaving the company's filling stations in Amman, Irbid and Zarqa, all gas cylinders undergo intensive check-ups to ensure their compliance with the technical standards.  

AMMAN — Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) Mayor Yousef Shawarbeh on Friday said that 60 per cent of the Sahafa (press) Tunnel overpass of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) construction has been accomplished, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He added that the achievement ratio is high and it is going according to the plan, expecting construction work in the area to be completed by next September.

Shawarbeh also checked on work progress of construction at the Sports City Intersection, expected to start in mid 2018. Amman Traffic Department Director Col. Bassem Kharabsheh said that a traffic plan is currently being prepared to mitigate road congestion once construction begins at the site.

AMMAN — Twenty-one people on Saturday were injured in a traffic accident that involved two medium-sized vehicles in southern Shouneh. The injured were transferred to the Southern Shouneh Hospital for first aid before being discharged after receiving treatment, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Three people were also injured on Friday when a vehicle turned over in Zarqa, a source at the Civil Defence Department said, noting that department personnel provided first aid to the injured and transferred them to the Prince Hashem Military Hospital. The injured were listed in fair condition, Petra added. 

AMMAN — University student Rustom Chukchi brought honey all the way from northern Caucasus to showcase it to the Jordanian public in Amman on Saturday. 

Chukchi said he relied on the heritage of his ancestors to be able to continue his studies in Jordan. 

“I study here in Amman and I wanted to find a way to support myself financially so I thought about selling honey from my homeland,” he told The Jordan Times as he showcased his products at the weekly Productive market in Amman. 

Chukchi was among 26 participants who took part in the market organised under the umbrella of the initiative Ana Montaj ("I am productive" in Arabic). 

Shan Tsay, who initiated the idea of the market, said the weekly event is designed to support productive people in Jordan. 

“This market is held for the second year. The idea of this campaign is to support every productive individual whether they are Circassians, Palestinians, Jordanians or Armenians,” she stated. 

A wide range of traditional handicraft items, traditional food and accessories were on display at the market. 

Safaa al Zmaili, another participant, showcased different kinds of fruit preserves. 

Although she is a teacher, she said she wanted to take advantage of the holiday break to make different kinds of fruit preserves to support her family financially. 

“This bazaar helps me get exposed to more people and promote my products to the public,” she noted. 

Organised at the International Circassian Cultural Academy in Amman, the bazaar will be held every Saturday until summer time. 

AMMAN — Twenty year-old Jordanian Sinan Abderrahim Assaid recently returned from the ECOSOC 2018 Youth Forum in New York, where he presented the "S-Toilet", a tech-solution for public bathrooms that aims to improve health while reducing cost of sanitation.

Aghast by the state of sanitation in the scarce public bathrooms across Jordan, Assaid said he had developed the S-toilet, a bathroom working like a vending machine to be installed in crowded public areas such as malls and companies.

"To use the bathroom, people will need to insert money as they would for a vending machine but, when they are about to leave, they will be able to get their money back if they used the place in a clean and respectful way," explained the mechatronics engineering student, who cited a range of sensors set to measure the sanitation level of the used bathroom.

"If the place is still clean after you use it, you will get your money back. However, if the floor or the seat is wet, or if you didn’t wash your hands, the bathroom will not give you your cash back," the young man told The Jordan Times, stressing that this aims to "encourage people to use bathrooms in a healthier way, while reducing the cost of continuous cleaning of public bathrooms".

Assaid, who teamed up with three other current and former students from the University of Jordan, also aims to change the culture of using public bathrooms in Jordan. "When you go into Google and type 'public bathroom', what usually comes up is sentences like 'public bathrooms are gross, scary or disgusting'," the young man, who came up with the idea nine months ago during a university exam, explained.

Through this project, the recipient of a scholarship from the Ministry of Higher Education and the US Department of State, voiced his hope to "take public sanitation in Jordan to the next level". 

"Jordan suffers from a lack of public restrooms, especially in underprivileged areas. S-Toilet aims to introduce an innovative and highly sustainable solution to this issue," Assaid highlighted, noting that his project directly targets the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 for good health and well-being and the SDG 11 for sustainable cities and communities.

After presenting his project at the ECOSOC conference in New York, Assaid, who was dubbed one of the "champions of change" by the UNDP, is now planning to take part in the regional Hult Prize competition to be held in Tunis in March.

"All too often, young people in the Arab states are portrayed as universally, perpetually in despair. While many Arab countries are indeed in a state of turmoil, the truth is that young people across the region are finding ways to keep their societies moving forward and be at the forefront of development worldwide," said UNDP Regional Hub for Arab States Director Khaled Abdelshafi.

As part of its Youth Leadership Programme, UNDP's Regional Bureau for Arab States supports young Arabs like Assaid, who are "putting their creativity to the service of their communities using technology and innovation to support change that matters in daily life".

The Youth Forum, held annually by ECOSOC since 2012, offers "a unique opportunity for youth to voice their opinions, share ideas, and think together about what they can do to achieve the SDGs and 2030 Agenda", Abdelshafi told The Jordan Times.

AMMAN — The Lower House Labour Committee is currently reviewing a series of recommendations submitted by a coalition of 11 organisations aimed at amending the Labour Law to make it more gender-sensitive. 

“We will continue to review the recommendations for three weeks before we take them under the Dome,” Amman Third District MP Khalid Ramadan told The Jordan Times in a recent interview, explaining that “a temporary amended Labour Law was issued back in 2010, and the objective is now to start the next session of Parliament with a new Labour Law”.

Pay equity among men and women, maternity and paternity leave, daycare for children at the workplace and flexible work arrangements are the main issues addressed in the recommendations submitted to Parliament, according to Gender Equality Consultant at the International Labour Organisation Reem Aslan. 

“We are trying to include the principle of pay equity in Articles 2 and 53 of the Labour Law through the National Committee on Pay Equity,” Aslan told The Jordan Times, stressing that “women in Jordan are being paid less than men despite occupying the same position, with pay gaps reaching up to 40 per cent”. 

Regarding the paternity and maternity leave, the consultant noted that men suffer from this issue as much as women, pointing out that “as per the current legal framework, fathers do not have the right to paternity leave in the private sector”. 

Concerning the flexible work arrangements, Aslan explained that “the concept has been already adopted by the Jordanian government, but is still not recognised by the law, and thus we are still struggling to include it as an article”.

 “The labour committees of both Houses of Parliament have already approved to amend Article 72 of the Labour Law in order to guarantee workplace daycares,” Director of the Jordan Labour Watch Ahmad Awad told The Jordan Times, explaining that “the challenge now is not to amend Article 72, but articles related to other issues such as maternity leave, in addition to removing the restrictions imposed on the freedom of association”.

“Even if we had an excellent Labour Law, we would still be unable to implement it on the ground without free and independent trade unions,” Awad continued, expressing “low hopes” for the rest of the amendments to work due to “the imbalance of power between the Lower House Labour Committee and the rest of the House of Representatives”. 

For her part, Jordanian National Commission for Women Secretary General Salma Nims told The Jordan Times that “there are a total of 11 articles in dire need of amendment in the Labour Law, but they are not open for discussion”, explaining that “under these circumstances, we decided to explore the articles, which are already open for amendments and study ways to introduce gender-sensitive concepts in them”. 

Concerning the proposed amendments, Nims highlighted the need to amend Article 12 related to work permits for non-Jordanians, pointing out that “the law should be modified in a way so that children of Jordanian women married to foreigners have the right to work in Jordan”.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Thursday congratulated retired servicemen on the occasion of the Veterans Day. 

"On the day of the retired military and veterans, I salute their persistent giving and their unceasing efforts as they were in service. God protect you, you are the greatest of Jordan and its people in every location and every time #ABH," His Majesty tweeted.

Also marking the occasion, HRH Crown Prince Hussein saluted veterans and army retirees in a post on his official Twitter account

"On Veterans Day, we salute our retired servicemen for a lifetime of sacrifice in the service of #OurJordan."

February 15 was designated a national day in recognition of the achievements of veteran warriors and ex-servicemen under Royal directives to the government in March 2012.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday held a summit meeting that focused on Jordanian-Russian strategic partnership relations, as well as the current regional and international developments.

During a one-on-one meeting held at the Kremlin, followed by expanded talks, both leaders highlighted the importance of sustaining consultation and coordination between the two countries on various issues of mutual interest, in addition to further developing cooperation at the economic, military and security levels, according to a Royal Court statement.

In joint remarks to the press, His Majesty affirmed the deep ties that Jordan and Russia share, noting that “this is an auspicious year”, marking the 55th anniversary of establishing ties, just as last year was equally important.

 The King cited his meeting with President Putin in 2017 and “the leadership that you showed, as well as the joint cooperation between our two countries on bringing better days to Syria”.

His Majesty said President Putin’s directives last year allowed for “much stronger Jordanian-Russian coordination, and we have been able to make good political grounds in southern Syria, and this is due to your guidance and your vision of trying to solve the issues there as quickly as possible”.

Highlighting the close coordination between the two countries, the King said he expects this year will mark further advancement in cooperation.

His Majesty also praised Russia’s role in the peace process and President Putin’s work to reach a solution between the Palestinians and the Israelis that would “bring more hope to our region”.

For his part, President Putin welcomed the King and expressed Russia’s keenness on bolstering cooperation with Jordan.

“We have met one year ago sharp in Moscow. Both we and our colleagues are in constant contact with one another. Certainly, personal meetings are always very important,” he said.

 “In the course of our meeting, we are going to talk about our bilateral agenda, as well as about the situation in the region, but from the outset, let me tell you that this year we are celebrating the 55th anniversary since the establishment of diplomatic ties between our countries,” President Putin added.

“We are going to further strengthen our mutual trust and cooperation,” he said.

The expanded talks — attended by HRH Prince Ghazi, the King’s special adviser for religious and cultural affairs and the personal envoy of His Majesty — tackled opportunities to develop cooperation between Amman and Moscow in trade, fields and to increase Jordanian agricultural exports to the Russian market through facilitating procedures. 

During the discussions, which continued over a lunch banquet, both leaders reviewed means to enhance cooperation between the two countries in several vital sectors, where they stressed the importance of holding meetings of the joint Jordanian-Russian committee before the yearend. 

They also discussed the possibility of benefiting from Aqaba Port as a regional gateway for Russian industries to enter several markets, especially in Africa, and went over bilateral cooperation in the energy sector.

The talks also covered the memorandum of understanding between Jordan and the Eurasian Economic Union — which comprises Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kirghizstan — that would facilitate the entry of Jordanian goods to these markets.

On the Palestinian issue, His Majesty stressed the importance of reintensifying efforts to end the stalemate in the peace process and realise the just and comprehensive peace, based on the two-state solution, relevant international resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative, until the establishment of an independent Palestinian state within the June 4, 1967 lines and with East Jerusalem as its capital. 

Deliberations also focused on the repercussions of the Syrian crisis and efforts aimed at reaching a political solution, where, in this regard, King Abdullah highlighted the importance of achieving progress in the political course to guarantee the stability of Syria and the entire region. 

King Abdullah expressed his gratitude for the role of Russia and President Putin in working with the Kingdom and the US to render success to the de-escalation zones in southern Syria.

His Majesty added that these zones constitute a “model” that can be applied to other regions in the war-torn country, to pave the way for a political solution in line with the Geneva understandings. 

Discussions also focused on Sochi meetings on Syria, which Russia has recently hosted to guarantee the success of Geneva talks.

Both leaders addressed various regional issues and crises, and endeavours to reaching political solutions to them, as well as efforts exerted in the war against terrorism within a holistic strategy. 

Interfaith, anti-extremism

During Russia’s one-day visit, King Abdullah met with Patriarch Kirill I of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow and the Grand Mufti of Russia Sheikh Rawi Ainuddin in the presence of HRH Prince Ghazi, the King’s special adviser for religious and cultural affairs and the personal envoy of His Majesty.

Speaking at the meeting with Patriarch Kirill, His Majesty thanked the patriarch for the warm welcome and for expressing views on mutual challenges. “This is a time for all of us to stand together, shoulder to shoulder, to express what unites us in this world,” the King noted.

Commending “the strong moral position” of the Russian Orthodox Church at home and across the world, His Majesty said: “The belief that to love thy God and love thy neighbour is what binds us together,” according to the Royal Court. 

“Your influence in our part of the world, your voice in our part of the world is desperately needed in this time,” the King told Patriarch Kirill.

Noting the global efforts to fight the scourge of international terrorism, and Russia’s role in this regard, His Majesty said that another major challenge is strengthening “Christian communities in our region, in Palestine, and — more importantly I think — in Jerusalem”.

“Christian Orthodoxy has been part of our past. It is, today, our present; and it must, must be part of our future. And if that is not the case, then we will all pay the price,” the King asserted.

“We observe, and recognise, and commend the role that the Russian Orthodox Church has played in Syria, not only in reaching out to protect our Christian brethren there, but also, your support has gone to the weak and the disenfranchised… as we in Jordan have welcomed our Christian brethren who flee violence both in Syria and Iraq from these oppressive terrorist organisations,” His Majesty said.

The King stressed that Jordan’s role also entails making sure that “our Christian brethren” can go back to their homes in Syria and Iraq, “because those communities are ancient communities”.

His Majesty also highlighted Jordan’s efforts in launched the Amman Message to identify what is right about Islam and to reach out to other religions.

“One of the outcomes of that is — again, probably not understood in the international community — is that if Muslims in nations outside of our region are given equal rights as citizens as part of that nation, their loyalty is to that nation, not to the centres of Islam in our part of the world,” the King explained.

“To paraphrase an old saying, for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing; and we are all good men, and we have to speak in a louder voice of what unites us, what brings us together in this tremendous challenge that we have,” His Majesty said.

For his part, Patriarch Kirill said: “The Russian Orthodox Church attaches great importance to the dialogue that we’ve managed to foster with the leadership of Jordan, and in particular with Your Majesty.”

“I recall our conversation with you back in 2012… how you told me about the inter-religious interactions in Jordan. You told me about the peaceful coexistence of different religions. And certainly, I have had the joy to see that personally,” the Patriarch said.

“So, I would like to congratulate you, Your Majesty, on the policy that you are pursuing with regards to different religions, groups, Muslims, Orthodox Christians — everyone feels at home, feels that they are on an equal footing and that equal opportunities are open before them,” he added.

 “I’d like to thank you for maintaining a high level of inter-religious dialogue and cooperation in Jordan,” Patriarch Kirill said.

“When you come to Jordan, you do not feel in any way that you represent a religious minority in this country… all religious groups treat each other with respect. And, certainly, you are to be credited for that to a large extent,” he noted.

“But it is also something that we should credit to your late father, King Hussein,” the Patriarch said, recalling a meeting he had with King Hussein.

“And even back then, we learned from King Hussein how warm the relations were between Muslims and Orthodox Christians in Jordan back then. And you have not just managed to preserve this wonderful tradition, you have also helped to develop it amid the challenges and threats of today,” he added.

Patriarch Kirill also noted that “the Russian Orthodox Church attaches great importance to inter-religious as well as to inter-ethnic dialogue”, stressing the importance of working together “at the international as well as inter-religious bases in order to foster one single front to fight terrorism”.

Also on Thursday, His Majesty visited Moscow Cathedral Mosque where he met with the Grand Mufti of Russia Sheikh Rawi Ainuddin.

During the meeting, they reviewed challenges associated with terrorism and its impact on the image of true Islam, with King Abdullah stressing the importance of the role of mosques in defending the Islamic faith, which calls for love and peace, and renounces hatred and extremism.  

King Abdullah said that Jordan has a duty to defend the true image of Islam, and pointed out the initiatives launched by Jordan to enhance communication and understanding between followers of religions.

At the meeting attended by a number of Islamic scholars in Russia, His Majesty also underlined the pivotal role of Islamic scholars in spreading the values ​​of tolerance and moderation among societies. 

His Majesty stressed that voice of moderation of Russia’s Muslims is very important for Muslims and their causes. 

For his part the grand mufti expressed his appreciation of King Abdullah’s efforts to highlight the true image of Islam in all international forums. 

He added that King Abdullah’s visit is considered historic since His Majesty is the descendant of the Prophet Mohammad. 

The mufti emphasised the importance of 2004 “Amman Message” that has shown the true image of a tolerant and moderate Islam.

He underlined the significance of Jordan’s efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East and His Majesty’s continuous efforts to work out a just and permanent peace that leads to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The grand mufti also praised the historic role of His Majesty as the custodian of the Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem.