Who is next, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Mozambique, Cuba?
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Jordan's king fires Cabinet amid protests
By JAMAL HALABY, Associated Press Jamal Halaby, Associated Press – 1 hr 39 mins ago
AMMAN, Jordan – Jordan's King Abdullah II fired his government Tuesday in the wake of street protests and asked an ex-prime minister to form a new Cabinet, ordering him to launch immediate political reforms.
The dismissal follows several large protests across Jordan_ inspired by similar demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt — calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Samir Rifai, who is blamed for a rise in fuel and food prices and slowed political reforms.
A Royal Palace statement said Abdullah accepted Rifai's resignation tendered earlier Tuesday.
The king named Marouf al-Bakhit as his prime minister-designate, instructing him to "undertake quick and tangible steps for real political reforms, which reflect our vision for comprehensive modernization and development in Jordan," the palace statement said.
Al-Bakhit previously served as Jordan's premier from 2005-2007.
The king also stressed that economic reform was a "necessity to provide a better life for our people, but we won't be able to attain that without real political reforms, which must increase popular participation in the decision-making."
He asked al-Bakhit for a "comprehensive assessment ... to correct the mistakes of the past." He did not elaborate. The statement said Abdullah also demanded an "immediate revision" of laws governing politics and public freedoms.
When he ascended to the throne in 1999, King Abdullah vowed to press ahead with political reforms initiated by his late father, King Hussein. Those reforms paved the way for the first parliamentary election in 1989 after a 22-year gap, the revival of a multiparty system and the suspension of martial law in effect since the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.
But little has been done since. Although laws were enacted to ensure greater press freedom, journalists are still prosecuted for expressing their opinion or for comments considered slanderous of the king and the royal family.
Some gains been made in women's rights, but many say they have not gone far enough. Abdullah has pressed for stiffer penalties for perpetrators of "honor killings," but courts often hand down lenient sentences.
Still, Jordan's human rights record is generally considered a notch above that of Tunisia and Egypt. Although some critics of the king are prosecuted, they frequently are pardoned and some are even rewarded with government posts.
It was not immediately clear when al-Bakhit will name his Cabinet.
Al-Bakhit is a moderate politician, who served as Jordan's ambassador to Israel earlier this decade.
He holds similar views to Abdullah in keeping close ties with Israel under a peace treaty signed in 1994 and strong relations with the United States, Jordan's largest aid donor and longtime ally.
In 2005, Abdullah named al-Bakhit as his prime minister days after a triple bombing on Amman hotels claimed by the al-Qaida in Iraq leader, Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
During his 2005-2007 tenure, al-Bakhit — an ex-army major general and top intelligence adviser — was credited with maintaining security and stability following the attack, which killed 60 people and labeled as the worst in Jordan's modern history.
_________________________ "Money doesn't change men, it merely unmasks them." - Henry Ford
Do most Jamaicans know what they want, or are we just going to jump on a bandwagon? I was in Jamaica over the weekend and as usual most people that I spoke still seem to have a do not care attitude or "CHO, a-just-so-it-go" response.
AP – Yemenis chant slogans and hold banners during a demonstration against the government, in Sanaa, Yemen, …
By AHMED AL-HAJ, Associated Press Ahmed Al-haj, Associated Press – 1 hr 57 mins ago SANAA, Yemen – Tens of thousands of protesters Thursday staged unprecedented demonstrations against Yemen's autocratic president, a key U.S. ally in battling Islamic militants, as unrest inspired by uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia spread further in the Arab world.
The West is particularly concerned about instability in Yemen, home of the terrorist network al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. U.S. counterterrorism officials are worried that Yemeni security forces will be more focused on protecting the government, allowing al-Qaida to take advantage of any diminished scrutiny.
President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in office for more than three decades, announced Wednesday he would not seek re-election in 2013 and would not seek to pass power to his son. Saleh's pledge was seen as an attempt to defuse growing calls for his ouster.
Opposition groups said they are suspicious of Saleh's offer, however, and want concrete proposals for change.
On Thursday, they led tens of thousands in protests in seven towns and cities across Yemen, with chants of "Down, down, down with the regime!" and banners calling on the president to resign now.
In the capital of Sanaa, several thousand government supporters staged a counterdemonstration, carrying banners warning that the opposition is trying to destabilize Yemen. Military helicopters hovered in some areas, and there was a heavy security presence around the Interior Ministry and the Central Bank.
The marches were largely peaceful, although witnesses said police opened fire in one provincial town, critically wounding a protester. In the capital, scuffles and stone-throwing briefly erupted between government supporters and opposition marchers, but police stepped in and there were no reports of injuries.
The Obama administration has cautiously praised Saleh's offer of reform, in contrast to the sharp tone on Egypt, where President Hosni Mubarak is trying to cling to power until September, despite demands delivered in 10 days of massive protests that he leave office immediately.
The White House said President Barack Obama called Saleh and urged him to follow through on his pledge to reform his government, and asked that Yemeni security forces refrain from violence against protesters.
U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley welcomed Saleh's "positive statements" about including opposition elements in a reform process, but said that "it is important for governments across the region ... to follow statements with actions."
Saleh is a weak but increasingly important partner for Washington.
Yemen has become a main battleground against al-Qaida. The government, which receives millions of dollars in U.S. military aid, has allowed American drone strikes on al-Qaida targets and has stepped up counterterrorism cooperation.
The U.S.-born radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, thought to be hiding in Yemen, is believed to have inspired and even plotted or helped coordinate recent attacks on the U.S. Those include the failed December 2009 bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner and the unsuccessful plot to send mail bombs on planes from Yemen to the U.S.
Al-Awlaki also is believed to have inspired the deadly 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, and had ties to some of the 9/11 hijackers.
Yemen is the poorest Arab country, with nearly half the population living below the poverty line of $2 a day.
Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi acknowledged Thursday that frustration of the young generation is widespread across the Arab world, including in his country. But he warned that interference from outside countries — he mentioned Iraq, Afghanistan or Pakistan — would be counterproductive.
Speaking in Brussels, where he sought development aid, al-Qirbi argued that Yemen's government was better placed to hold constructive internal dialogue. He said Yemen's leaders never severed contacts with opposition parties and civil groups.
However, Yemen's opposition groups said they don't trust the government's promises.
While some opposition figures have expressed readiness for dialogue, demands could harden as protests continue, said Mohammed al-Sabri, a spokesman for a coalition of opposition groups.
"We will be able to answer the call of the people, regardless of what it is, including their slogans of ending the regime and pushing out the leader," al-Sabri said.
The anti-government demonstration in Sanaa brought together young people, workers and women in black robes who initially planned to gather in downtown Tahrir (Liberation) Square, the same name of the site in downtown Cairo where Egypt's protesters have gathered daily since Jan. 25.
However, government supporters, including civil servants, pre-empted the protesters, taking control of the square first. One of the demonstrators, unemployed Iyad Nasser, said he and others had been paid to show up.
Several dozen of Saleh's supporters headed to where the anti-government protesters had assembled, near Sanaa's university, and scuffles erupted. Police separated the two camps.
In the city of Aden, thousands of marchers defied security forces and armored personnel carriers that tried to close the main streets to prevent them from gathering. Protesters also scuffled with security forces in the town of Jaar in the southern province of Abyan, where al-Qaida militants have been active.
Yemen's government is riddled with corruption. Tens of thousands of residents have been displaced from their homes by conflict. The country is wrestling with a lingering rebellion in the north and a secessionist movement in the south.
With the Arab world transfixed by Egypt's uprising, dissatisfaction with corruption, unemployment and poverty is beginning to rise to the surface elsewhere.
Jordan has been the scene of several large rallies against rising prices, and King Abdullah II sacked his Cabinet this week, bowing to public pressure. The Muslim opposition and their leftist allies are expected to stage more protests outside the prime minister's office's Friday, repeating their call for the newly appointed premier to step down. But the numbers are expected to be smaller than usual because some political groups said they would not participate in order to give Marouf al-Bakhit the chance to form his Cabinet.
In Algeria, opposition leaders, human rights groups, unions, students and jobless workers are planning a march next week, despite a ban by the government. One of the protesters' key demands is to lift a state of emergency in effect since 1992 when the country spiraled into a civil war between Islamists and government forces. Algeria's state news agency on Thursday quoted the president as saying the state of emergency would be lifted in the "very near future."
Syrians have been organizing online campaigns for a "day of rage" in Damascus on Friday and Saturday. More than 13,000 people have joined a Facebook page calling for "the Syrian Revolution 2011," although many of the members are believed to live outside the country.
_________________________ "Money doesn't change men, it merely unmasks them." - Henry Ford
by: President Barack Obama | The White House | Speech
Editor's Note: In a remarkable speech, President Obama delivered a starkly different message from that of his predecessor George W. Bush, to the people of Egypt and to Muslims around the world. In light of the revolutionary spirit and the rapidly changing political situation in the Middle East, this speech is worth another viewing.
-Matt Renner, Truthout
Watch the speech in the player below, or read the transcript here. For translations of the transcript, visit the White House site here.
Excerpt from the President's speech:
I know there has been controversy about the promotion of democracy in recent years, and much of this controversy is connected to the war in Iraq. So let me be clear: No system of government can or should be imposed by one nation by any other.
That does not lessen my commitment, however, to governments that reflect the will of the people. Each nation gives life to this principle in its own way, grounded in the traditions of its own people. America does not presume to know what is best for everyone, just as we would not presume to pick the outcome of a peaceful election. But I do have an unyielding belief that all people yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn't steal from the people; the freedom to live as you choose. These are not just American ideas; they are human rights. And that is why we will support them everywhere. (Applause.)
Now, there is no straight line to realize this promise. But this much is clear: Governments that protect these rights are ultimately more stable, successful and secure. Suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away. America respects the right of all peaceful and law-abiding voices to be heard around the world, even if we disagree with them. And we will welcome all elected, peaceful governments -- provided they govern with respect for all their people.
This last point is important because there are some who advocate for democracy only when they're out of power; once in power, they are ruthless in suppressing the rights of others. (Applause.) So no matter where it takes hold, government of the people and by the people sets a single standard for all who would hold power: You must maintain your power through consent, not coercion; you must respect the rights of minorities, and participate with a spirit of tolerance and compromise; you must place the interests of your people and the legitimate workings of the political process above your party. Without these ingredients, elections alone do not make true democracy.
Registered: 01/04/01
Posts: 1259
Loc: St Bess, Jamaica
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Allahu Akbar (God is great!) this wont stop till all puppet regimes in the region are toppled and the West is forced to change its policy on Palestine.
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Assalamu alay kum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu (Peace, mercy and blessings be upon you)
Come on Cuba, I am betting on you!! I need to open a store in Havana!
Quote:
Cuban political prisoners freed against wishes Buzz up! ..– Sat Feb 12, 10:28 pm ET HAVANA (Reuters) – Two political prisoners who had refused to leave prison were freed against their wishes on Saturday as Cuba released more jailed government opponents.
Hector Maseda and Angel Moya were among the last of 52 prisoners President Raul Castro agreed to release in a deal brokered in July by the Roman Catholic Church.
Maseda, whose wife, Laura Pollan, heads the "Ladies in White," Cuba's leading dissident group, was told Friday he could go free after almost eight years behind bars. But he said he would not leave until the government dropped its insistence on keeping him on parole.
He said he was taken from prison Saturday against his will and was still on parole, which imposes conditions on his freedom.
"Today, tomorrow and all the time, I will say I am being freed against my will and I am being forced by (the government). I do not agree with (parole)," he told Reuters from his home in Central Havana. Maseda, 68, was head of an outlawed political party.
Moya, whose wife, Berta Soler, is also a leader of the Ladies in White, had refused to leave jail until the rest of the 52 were freed, but he said he was also forced out on Saturday.
When he arrived at his home near Havana, about 100 jeering government supporters greeted him, shouting, "Viva Fidel, Viva la revolucion."
"These people that shout at us today will applaud us tomorrow," he said.
With the release of Maseda and Moya, who is 46, just seven of the 52 prisoners remain behind bars.
All were jailed in a 2003 government crackdown that drew international condemnation.
Castro wants to free them and all other political prisoners to end what has been one of the communist-led island's thorniest international problems.
The release process has been an extended one because Cuba wanted the freed prisoners to go to Spain, which agreed to take them.
But the last ones in jail have refused to leave Cuba and the government is finally letting them go.
Cuba views dissidents as mercenaries who work for its archenemy, the United States.
(Reporting by Nelson Acosta; Editing by Jeff Franks and Peter Cooney)
_________________________ "Money doesn't change men, it merely unmasks them." - Henry Ford
Registered: 02/13/04
Posts: 3695
Loc: Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Lincs, why is Venezuela on your hitlist? Last time I checked the majority of their population wanted them in power. Matter of fact, people might be surprised to find out how many people in Cuba still support their revolution.
The last time I checked the majority of people wanted to power. In reality, people may be surprised at how many people in Cuba to continue to support their revolution.
Dear, again in the http://www.mmolive.com/ valentine's day. I don't know how many of you have me to your chocolate, but I see clearly... !This year I can send--to reduce weight tea?
