Jamaat Amman decries ‘systematic campaign’ against security agencies

AMMAN — Members of the Amman Group for Future Dialogues (Jamaat Amman) on Monday condemned what they said is a "systematic campaign" against the Public Security Department (PSD), calling for criminalising offences against security and armed forces.  

The campaign was launched after Royal directives to the government to proceed immediately with merging the Civil Defence and Gendarmerie departments into the PSD, according to a Jamaat Amman statement. 

King Abdullah has directed the government to implement the necessary legislative and administrative measures for the merger in a manner that ensures enhanced security coordination, improves the quality of services provided to the public and mitigates the burden on the general budget. 

Jamaat Amman, a think tank comprised of experts in the economic, political, social and educational sectors, according to the statement, said that the "systematic campaign" takes various forms, including rumours, fake videos and old videos used out of context, urging the those involved to stop spreading news regarding the Kingdom's security agencies, except for information issued by official sources. 

Jamaat Amman also called for developing a system to allow citizens to report grievances against security forces personnel, urging the concerned authorities to reinstate the policy of preventing the publication of the names and photos of service personnel to maintain their safety and privacy.