Jordan's king replaces cabinet

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Jordan's king replaces cabinet

By Greenberg

Wednesday, February 2, 2011; 12:45 AM

AMMAN - Bowing to anti-government protests inspired by a wave of unrest across

the Arab world, King Abdullah II of Jordan dismissed Prime Minister Samir Rifai

and his cabinet on Tuesday and ordered a new premier to carry out speedy

political reforms.

The surprise move by the monarch, a key U.S. ally, was intended to prevent

growing demonstrations across the country from gathering steam. But the Islamist

opposition promised more protests, charging that the new prime minister is unfit

to rule and that the king's step did not go far enough.

Members of Islamist and secular groups had demanded the dismissal of Rifai and

his cabinet, widely accused of corruption. The government was also blamed for

cutting subsidies that led to rises in fuel and food prices and for moving too

slowly on political reform.

Cabinet dismissals are not rare in Jordan and are used to offer a semblance of

change without disrupting the underlying authority of the ruling Hashemite

family. The prime minister's job has frequently rotated among members of a few

well-connected clans - Rifai's father and grandfather each held the position

more than once - and Abdullah's statement after the dismissal did not directly

address the allegations that protesters had levied against the government.

In a letter accepting Rifai's resignation, Abdullah praised him for fighting

corruption, among other accomplishments. Rifai did not comment publicly, but in

a letter to Abdullah he took credit for working " to expand popular participation

in government and achieve development. "

Analysts and ordinary Jordanians agreed Tuesday that the swelling protests on

the streets and the uprisings in Tunis and Egypt had hit home in the royal

palace.

" I'm happy that the king listened to the people, " Muhammad Absi, a university

student, said after hearing the news. " We did not like the previous prime

minister, and the new one is clean. "

The new prime minister is Marouf al-Bakhit, an ex-general and former premier who

has not been tainted by the allegations made against Rifai and his ministers.

In a letter of appointment, Abdullah ordered Bakhit to " take practical, speedy

and tangible steps to embark on a course of real political reform. " The king

called for a " national dialogue " among all political groups to draw up a new

election law and instructed the new government to pursue economic reforms that

would include job creation, and to " fight all forms of corruption. "

Zaki Bani Irsheid, a leader of the Islamic Action Front, the political arm of

the Muslim Brotherhood, which is the largest opposition group in Jordan, said

that Bakhit had overseen rigged elections during a previous term as premier and

was not qualified to serve. He said that no dialogue could begin on a new

election law before the dissolution of parliament, widely seen as a rubber-stamp

assembly chosen in a fraudulent vote.

The monarch's actions " are not enough and do not meet the demands of the

people, " Irsheid said. " It was a step forward, and then a step back. Zero was

accomplished today. "

Some observers said that Abdullah had taken a skillful step to deflect public

anger by appointing a well-regarded premier.

" In principle, the change is good, " said Radwan Abdullah, a Jordanian political

analyst. " The new prime minister does not belong to the corrupt class. "

Considered a moderate politician, Bakhit served several years ago as Jordan's

ambassador to Israel and has supported the peace treaty with it, along with

strong ties with the United States. He was last appointed prime minister in 2005

after a triple bombing of hotels in Amman claimed by al-Qaeda in Iraq and was

credited with maintaining security and stability during his two-year tenure.

Tuesday's cabinet change seemed to reinforce the king's status in Jordan as a

uniting national figure immune to public criticism, in contrast to Egyptian

President Hosni Mubarak, who has been the target of throngs of protesting

Egyptians.

Mubarak " stepped all over the Egyptian people, " Muatazz Assaf said in a

conversation this week in his computer supply store. " The king listens. "

Greenberg is a special correspondent. Special correspondent Ranya Kadri

contributed to this report.