Jordan's Herak warns government against price increases

Protests of the Jordanian opposition group Herak The weekly Friday protests of the Jordanian opposition group Herak did not take place this Friday in the capital Amman but instead moved into different provincial areas. Three separate protests took place on Friday in the southern governorate of Karak, with protesters blasting government performance and rejecting any measures to raise prices.The participants warned the government that Jordan may see "a revolution" against the expected hikes in fuel prices. Protesters also called for boycotting the upcoming parliamentary elections slated to be held in January.
In al-Marj district of Karak, a protest started following the Friday prayers with the participation of Islamist movements and labour associations.
Head of the supervisory committee of the Karak labour associations, Mohammad Tarawneh blasted Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour for attempting to convince people of his government's strategy to raise prices of basic goods.
"The government is attempting to get the people fully concerned with their daily livelihood so that they would forget about reform demands and combating corruption," Tarawneh said.
Tarawneh called for boycotting the upcoming elections, saying that the incoming parliament will be illegitimate as it will be held according to "a biased" electoral law.
The Karak Islamic Action Front leader Othman Qaralah said during the protest that the government has not shown any response over the past 20-months to meet people's demands, and worked instead on intensifying the security grip and offending leading activists in the reform movements.
Ali Dalaeen, speaking on behalf of the Popular Karak Movement for Reform, blasted Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour, alleging that he 'deceived people when he was part of the opposition under the dome.'
Dalaeen held the government and the regime responsible for any escalations that result from the government's decision to raise prices.
Another protest took place following the Friday prayers in Southern Mazar district, with protesters reiterating boycotting elections and rejecting government measures to raise prices.
A protest also took place in the town of Faqoua in Karak, calling for genuine and tangible reform measures.
In Irbid province, pro-reform activists marched in a demonstration called for by the Muslim Brotherhood, and called for constitutional amendments "that guarantee people's authority" and called for reformulating the electoral law "in a manner that meets people's demands".
Protesters rejected any solutions to the economic crisis afflicting the country that would harm the citizens' spending power, and considered the government's recent meetings with various segments of society as a means to 'permeate for upcoming decisions that will cause deterioration in the people's living conditions.Also on Friday, the youth and popular pro-reform movements of Tafileh region staged a protest calling for "tangible political, economic, and social reforms".Protesters in Tafileh stressed the need to unify efforts to confront the difficult conditions afflicting the country, and rejected any government attempts to raise prices.
A statement issued by Tafileh youth and popular movements stressed that activists will continue to take to the streets every week until the Jordanian people's reform demands are met.