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AMMAN — The Directorate of Scholarships at the Higher Education Ministry on Sunday will announce the list of students covered by the support funds in the following semester, Higher Education Minister Adel Tweisi told The Jordan Times in a recent interview. 

Forty-three-thousand students will benefit from the aid this year, according to the minister, who noted that the number of scholarships has increased compared to last year, which stood at 38,000. 

“The students are becoming more aware of the funds and the number of applications has increased,” Tweisi said when asked about the reasons explaining the raise, adding that “the economic situation of the Kingdom is also a huge factor, and we need to provide support for the needy Jordanian families”.

In addition, the minister highlighted that all applicants meeting the necessary requirements have been granted either scholarships or loans. He noted that all beneficiaries must be Jordanian nationals registered at an official Jordanian university programme for the bachelor or intermediate diploma level through the unified admissions programme.

Lina Al Khalil, a student who entered the Hashemite University through the parallel programme, voiced her disagreement with the scholarships system. 

“I feel like we are second-class students,” Khalil said, noting that her family is “just as needy as the families of the students registered through the unified programme”.

“It is just not admissible,” she continued, noting that “even when we pay higher fees than them, they still deprive us from any sort of aid”.

When asked about the scholarships coverage, the minister pointed out that all eligible applicants will be granted funds in accordance to the criteria system, with full assistance scholarships for the students with the highest number of points, while scholarships and loans will cover a maximum of 45 credit hours for the rest of the beneficiaries. 

A total of JD35 million has been allocated to support the students, with JD20 million coming from the Jordanian government, JD10 million from the Kuwaiti Fund, and JD5 million from the student loans payback, according to the minister.

“The announcement of the beneficiaries comes earlier this year in order to allow students to register for the next semester with no hustle, so they can arrange their affairs and start the registration without paying in advance,” Tweisi pointed out. 

The early announcement of the list has been met with excitement by the students, who noted the convenience of registering while knowing whether they will receive support or not. 

“Every year I have to pay at the beginning of the semester as if I did not receive the scholarship and that causes a lot of difficulties for my family,” student Zainab Awwad told The Jordan Times, expressing her “peace of mind” over the early announcement. 

“I always take side jobs in the months prior to the registration because my family is never able to pay,” Muhannad Akel said, expressing how “the ministry has finally made a move to help us before it’s too late”.

AMMAN — The Banker Magazine has named Finance Minister Omar Malhas the best finance minister in the Middle East, acknowledging his efforts in "maintaining the stability of the economy amidst regional challenges", the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Saturday.

The Banker, an English-language monthly international financial affairs publication owned by The Financial Times Ltd. and edited in London, said that the government in general and the Finance Ministry in particular have dealt with local and regional challenges with "high level of professionalism" and maintained the stability of the national economy.

The magazine added that the economic stability was achieved despite the circumstances resulting from the crises in Syria and Iraq, which constitute the most important export markets for the Kingdom, Petra added.

AMMAN — The Civil Defence Department (CDD) on Saturday said that it has dealt with 128 house flooding cases until Saturday morning, and rescued 89 people who were stranded by rainwater in low-altitude areas.

CDD personnel across the Kingdom have dealt with 25 cases of childbirth, some of which were conducted inside ambulances, according to a CDD statement. Other cases included traffic accidents, vehicle derailment and pumping water from houses that were flooded with rainwater.

AMMAN — Deputising for Prime Minister Hani Mulki, Minister of Public Works and Housing Sami Halasa on Saturday attended a ceremony organised by the Jordan Press Association to celebrate the beginning of infrastructure service delivery to a plot of land for journalists in Zarqa's Ghabawi neighbourhood.

Halasa expressed the ministry's readiness to provide all necessary support to the project that the ministry is supervising, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

AMMAN — The Amman Stock Exchange on Saturday released a statement issued by the Jordan Media Commission (JMD) to public shareholding companies, urging them not to deal with unlicensed media institutions, including online outlets.

The commission called on companies not to deal with media outlets unless they show their licences issued by the JMD, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

AMMAN — A legal aid organisation based in Amman has urged the Ministry of Labour to implement “clear standards and mechanisms” for the expulsion of migrant workers after the arrest of 10,408 foreign labourers and the deportation of 6,558 of them over the past year, according to statistics issued by the ministry. 

“Tamkeen Fields for Aid recommends the Jordanian government to join the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families of 1990, to amend the national legislation accordingly, and for inspections of the working places of migrant workers to be increased,” the organisation stated on a press release.  

The Ministry of Labour was not available for comment despite several attempts by The Jordan Times.

The organisation also called for the awareness level on the rights of “this vulnerable category in our society” to be raised, and for the practice of “administrative, arbitrary and illegal detention of migrant workers to be eradicated and stopped”.

In this regard, the press release criticised the circular issued  by the Minister of Labour preventing migrant workers from cancelling their work permits prior to the end of the work contract between them and the concerned employers, expressing that “it is an explicit violation of the right to work and the freedom of choice associated with it, and it also promotes forced labour as past experiences have clearly shown that some employers exploit workers in the name of the clearance”.

The statement also stressed how the circular “prevents migrant workers from renewing their work permits under a new employer, punishing them with deportation  in coordination with the original employer and the Directorate of Residency and Borders”.

“This circular reinforces the concept of forced labour and contradicts the international agreements signed and ratified by Jordan,” the organisation pointed out, adding that “it clearly violates the bilateral agreements between Jordan and the countries of origin of the workers, taking Jordan multiple steps back and erasing all the positive developments the Kingdom made in international forums”.

In addition, the organisation stressed that the Kingdom’s legislation related to the status of migrant workers stipulates that their rights should be protected as prescribed under the Labour Law, the social security system, the Penal Code and the Residency and Foreign Affairs Law. 

“However, while this legislation offers some partial protections to migrant workers, it also deprives them from some of their rights,” the statement said, noting that “the Jordanian legal system still lacks a legal framework that is clearly based on the full equality between migrant workers and Jordanians when it comes to their rights”.​

“The problem lies in the enforcement of the current legislation, and particularly with a not effective inspection,” Tamkeen Director Linda Al Kalash told The Jordan Times in a recent interview, adding that “the number of inspectors is not enough for the whole country”.

Kalash also stressed “the prosecution, detention and deportation that the workers face due to executive authority rather than judiciary, and the gaps in the legislation regarding the regulation of work in the agricultural sector — which has not been issued until now despite the amendments of the Labour Law in 2008.”

AMMAN — “No Palestine refugee should be deprived from the UNRWA services,” said the director of UNRWA operations in Jordan, Roger Davies, during his speech at the inauguration ceremonies of an “eligibility and registration office” in Karak and the new health centre in Madaba on Thursday.

“In particular we are aiming at vulnerable individuals who might be unable to travel to seek UNRWA services provided in camps, where the transportation cost might inhibit some of them to take such a trip, whilst others’ health conditions may keep them from seeking UNRWA services,” Davies was quoted in an UNRWA statement as saying. 

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) celebrated the inauguration of its first eligibility and registration office in Manshiyet Abu Hammour in Karak Governorate, and also the inauguration of Madaba Health Centre. 

Part of its continuous efforts is to facilitate providing services to Palestinian refugees living in areas relatively remote from the Agency’s service centres, as recent UNRWA surveys indicated that a significant number of beneficiaries reside in Karak and Madaba governorates.

The registration and entitlement office in Manshiyet Abu Hammour will serve some 12,000 Palestinian refugees living in Karak Governorate, who have been accustomed to visiting agency’s offices either in Aqaba or in south Amman area, Wehdat office. 

Davies stressed the fundamental role of local community and its partnership with UNRWA. 

He expressed his gratitude for the support provided by the Mansheyet Abu Hammour Sports Club, which provided the necessary office space for UNRWA’s Relief and Social Services Department staff.

Simultaneously, UNRWA celebrated the inauguration of Madaba Health Centre, with the grant of the Saudi Fund for Development for the rehabilitation of a building provided to UNRWA by the camp committee.

The centre aims at providing healthcare services for Palestinian refugees suffering from non-communicable diseases, in addition to providing dental treatment on Saturdays every week for beneficiaries living in Madaba Governorate and surroundings.

In his remarks, Davies noted that UNRWA’s recent surveys indicated that a significant number of UNRWA health service beneficiaries were treated for diabetes and hypertension in the health centres at Talbiyehand Wihdat camps. 

UNRWA has been working with the government and the Madaba Camp Services Committee to allocate a proper office space for the health centre, while the Saudi Fund for Development funded the rehabilitation of the building and the medical equipment required for the centre that will serve approximately 39,000 beneficiaries, according to the statement.

He also stressed that UNRWA seeks to facilitate access to health and relief services, in order to reduce the economic burden on Palestinian refugees, in particular the transportation burden that forces them to travel far from their areas of residence, and might sometimes need to reach other governorates. He also noted that some refugees might not be able to take such a trip for health reasons or financial.

 “The Jordanian government continues to support UNRWA, [and] its mandate and to provide the necessary support for the Agency to extend its services, reaching to Palestine refugee across the Kingdom,” the director general of the Department of Palestinian Affairs, Awad Abu Yassin, was quoted in the statement as saying.

Abu Yassin stressed that such support for the agency is aimed at preserving the Palestinian refugee cause. “It is unacceptable that UNRWA mandate or services are provided by any other organisation or agency than UNRWA,” he said.

Davies, on behalf of UNRWA and Palestinian refugees, expressed his gratitude to the agency’s partners for their continued support. 

“The inauguration of the registration office and the health centre in two governorates is a clear sign of the successful partnership and complementary role between UNRWA and its partners, to provide better quality and more effective services to Palestine refugees in various governorates within Jordan.”

AMMAN — President of the Princess Sumaya University for Technology (PSUT) Mashhoor Al Refai on Thursday announced the introduction of the first robot to serve in the university, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The Japanese-made robot “Pepper” was delivered to the university as a result of friendy relations between Jordan and Japan and efforts made by the Chairman of the Board of Trustees at PSUT HRH Princess Sumaya, he said.

The robot is the “first of its kind” in Jordan and is considered the first “intelligent robot in human form”, Rifai said during a ceremony on Thursday. He added that PSUT students, under the supervision of their professors, managed  to programme “Pepper” and its languages. 

Rifai pointed out that “Pepper” was “appointed as an employee at the university”, and became “part of the university family”.

“The robot is an active member in scientific research and in the training of students on its manufacturing and development,” he said. 

PSUT students will develop an Arabic version of the robot’s programming to be presented to Jordanian students with the aim of encouraging them to enter this scientific specialty, Petra reported.  

Pepper is the world’s “first robot designed to live with humans”, it can recognise faces and objects around it, according to Petra. It is also “the first robot capable of recognising and distinguishing the emotions of humans, and thus changing its behaviour and interactions”, Petra said.

For his part, Sanad Bushnaq, who attended the ceremony, stressed that “Jordanian talents can match the Japanese, if the right environment is offered and the existence of this robot in Jordan is a proof”.

AMMAN — Prompted by people’s unawareness about their rights on basic legal matters, seven female lawyers created a Facebook page to raise people’s knowledge of their legal rights and duties.

Under the “Know Your Legal Right” initiative, the lawyers simplify legal texts under Jordanian laws and regulations in videos they post on their Facebook page “Know Your Legal Right”, the founder of the initiative, Amani Jaabari, said on Thursday.

“We post videos on our Facebook page that handle each time one of the laws. A specialised lawyer explains the law to the people in the video in a simple language,” Jaabari told The Jordan Times.

The initiative seeks to explain laws and regulations to people on all matters, she said, noting that most frequently asked questions are about laws pertaining to labour, tax, insurance, divorce, marriage and social security among other topics.

“I started the Facebook page when I discovered that there’s wide ignorance amongst people on the simplest laws and legal matters… during my time at work, I get stopped by many people every day asking for advice on very simply legal procedures,” Jaabari said.

She started up the page last year, the lawyer said, noting that there are now over 70,000 followers.

“Know Your Legal Right initiative is not-for-profit. Any lawyer who wishes to volunteer and seeks to raise the awareness of people on their rights and duties guaranteed by the laws and regulations of the country is welcome,” Jaabari said.

AMMAN — Mohammad Al Qasim expressed his rejection of US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel by painting a mural in Salt. 

The outpouring of anger triggered by the decision prompted him to join protesters using what he is good at: Art. 

“In the beginning, I was thinking of doing a small painting on paper but I wanted to make a bigger impact so I came up with this graffiti work,” he told The Jordan Times over the phone on Thursday. 

Initially, he was thinking about executing this project in his area, Sibahi, near Salt, but due to the lack of “proper canvas” for such a work he decided to carry it out in Salt. 

“After I saw how big the wall is, I knew that I needed help, so I shared a Facebook post seeking help,” he added. 

Qasim noted that the Salt municipality financed his project, adding that eight art students joined in the venture to help him. 

“It was very cold at the time but we were determined to go on until we wrap it up. We knew that there was no way back,” he added. 

Qasim said it took them three days to finish the paining, working from 8am until 7pm daily. 

He described art as a “very important tool” in spreading positive energy and conveying messages to the public. 

“Art is hope! I wanted to show hope in this issue: Jerusalem.”