PROTEST MARCH THIS SATURDAY IN THE THE HASHEMITE KINGDOM OF JORDAN

If it weren't for the Hashemite Regime in today's Jordan, yesterday's Transjordan, and before that the East Bank of Palestine, the Israelis would never have been able to vanquish the Palestinian people in days past and would never be able to do to the remaining Palestinians what is happening today. The Hashemite Regime, established by the British in the 20's, has played a critical role in allowing the Western world to keep the Arab world divided and co-opted, weak and submissive. At crucial times the Hashemite Regime has also conspired with the West, and with Israel from the beginning, against its own people, most of whom of course are of Palestinian origin. Today's King -- himself named for the original Abdullah who was rewarded by his British patrons with the area of the region that became Jordan, an area incidentally which he had never even visited previously -- was mothered by a British woman, schooled in Britain and the U.S., and has always been more fluent in English than Arabic.

But of course much of these matters are off limits to the media in the "Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan".

The Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty, signed by today's Abdullah's father in his last days, was the culmination of a long secret courtship, Hussein having been kept in power by a combination of CIA and Mossad money and assistance.

Hussein then paid off -- as he had long promised to do -- by signing a formal treaty with Israel as soon as he could, Yasser Arafat and Oslo giving him the excuse to do so. Hussein also paid off by snatching his brother off the throne at the last minute, and turning it over to his son, also something the Americans and the Israelis wanted and helped bring about.

Today's Jordan, now ruled by a weak and even more co-opted son of Hussein, is ripe for not only political and military manipulation and chicanery, but also for economic penetration, the following information but the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

The text from a flyer about a demonstration in Amman on Saturday is below.

And for more background information about the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Israeli/U.S. connection in the past go to: http://www.MiddleEast.Org/jordan.htm

This is indeed true. It is in fact a replay of the Zionist ploy in Palestine.

Over fifty years since the Basil Conference, and until the declaration of the Zionist state on the 15th of May, the Zionists only managed to buy out only 5.6 % of Palestinian land, out of which more than one third was bought under Ottoman rule by the way. But that 5.6 % turned into the foothold from which the rest of Palestine was to be occupied. Since the Wadi Arabah Treaty, Zionists have been buying lots of land n Jordan in shady deals that are not well-publicized. But the concept of control has changed drastically since the first half of the twentieth century. It is not longer mainly geographic, but also economic, political, and cultural. Hence, the Zionists are buying land as well as economic and other establishments in Jordan. In the grand Zionist plan, Jordan is to serve as a gateway to the rest of the Arab World and markets. Therefore, the current official Jordanian onslaught on the anti-normalization movement in Jordan should be viewed from that perspective. Basically, the regime is suppressing those who are trying to expose and slow down the Zionification of Jordan. It is important, therefore, to raise our voices in support of the anti-normalization movement in Jordan.

Ibrahim Alloush

Israeli have a preferential treatment when it comes to exporting to the U.S. with or without Jordan being involved. The U.S.-Israel 16 year old Free Trade Area Agreement(FTA) states that all bilateral trade in industrial goods between Israel and the US will be exempted from tariffs. However, Israel has many other things to benefit from having its businesses in Jordan including cheap labor and an existing infrastructure in areas called Qualifying Industrial Zones (QIZs).

There are two essential conditions for goods imported from Jordan to the U.S. to be free from tariffs . First, the product has to be produced in a QIZ which by definition should encompass portions of territory of both Jordan and Israel. Second, at least 8% of the appraised value of any product has to come from Israeli sources (the number originally stood at 11.7% but that proved to be an obstacle for attracting investors apparently due to the high prices of Israeli inputs).

One missing condition is that of local ownership. Operations with 100% foreign ownership are allowed in QIZs. The largest QIZ investments to date are in factories (many of which owned wholly or in part by Israelis) producing ready-made clothing destined for major US retail chains, including Walmart and GAP Sportswear. Jordan's government argues that the QIZs have created many new jobs for Jordanians, but workers are getting paid no more than 60 cents an hour and some of the labor are foreign workers from Sri Lanka.

Needless to say, the U.S. is not only fully aware of but has thrown its full weight behind QIZs. The QIZs are integrating Israel into Jordan's economy, and encouraging the local Jordanian business community to normalize its relations with Israel.

The first QIZ was established in Irbid in 1998. A total of five are currently in operation and another nine are in the works. The new FTA between Jordan and the U.S., which was signed last October and will take effect in the middle of this year, promises to transform Jordan into one enormous QIZ possibly without the condition of Israel's participation. However, it will probably be a long time before the products produced under the FTA enjoy the same status as those currently produced in QIZs.

Osama Qasem

-----------------------------------------------

Flyer Received Today:

The Professional Syndicates and the Political Parties call for your participation in a March from the Professional Unions Building to the UNDP Building in Shmeisani.

This March is organized in response to the call by Iraq to the people of Arab world to consider Saturday 24-2-2001 a symbolic day of rage against US and Zionist Oppression and to show Unity with the people of Iraq and Palestine. This day also coincides the arrival of US Foreign Minister Colin L. Powell (The Gulf War General ) to the region.

Your Participation is an expression of your refusal of US and British hegemony; your refusal of Arab Silence and your support for the people of Iraq and Palestine.