The Coordinating Committee for Civil Society “Himam” denounces the terror acts that targeted the city of Karak. Condolences are expressed to the families of the victims of the security forces and civilians.
In a statement issued today December 21st in Amman, “Himam” noted how confronting terrorism is strengthened by the unity of sate institutes in partnership with all sectors of the community involved in the struggle against violent extremists and takfiris stating that the security approach alone will not defeat terrorists.
The statement expressed support and understanding of the conditions and the challenges facing the government and its security forces in dealing with terror acts.
The Coordinating Committee of Civil Society said that Jordan is in the heart of a burning region and therefore the government can’t allow itself to appear to be complacent, confused and not fully prepared. “Himam” argues that the lack of developing the means to deal with the dangers of terror makes us worried that the communal peace is threatened and that the armed and security forces are in danger. This lets society to lose its faith in its institutions and its ability to implement security and the rule of law.
“Himam” praised the popular response by the people of Karak in support of their security forces as they tried to stand up to the terrorists. At the same time “Himam” stated that this is the responsibility of the security and armed forces and that the presence of civilians endangers their own lives and increases the chances of the fall of victim while disturbing the movement of the security forces. We call on the need for preventative planning in how citizens should act in times of crisis and the need to remove the people from the theatre of confrontation.
“Himam” also calls on the government to ensure the right of the public to know what is happening and to update the public with credible information. We note that such a free flow of credible information from public sources will ensure that the chaos that is created and the rumors that are spread will be curtailed once credible information is made available. This will also strengthen the public’s trust in their security forces. “Himam” noted that the various government narratives of what happened weakened its credibility and reflected negatively on the security forces as being unprofessional.
At the same time “Himam” insists that providing information to the public doesn’t mean in any way exposing the details of the investigations and hurting in any other way the work of the security forces. We are simply asking for an improvement in crisis management and the proper flow of credible information.
“Himam” feels that the terrorist act in Karak has revealed the existence of community incubators nurturing terroristic thought, and therefore we call on the government to review its anti extremism strategy in a way that ensures more consultation and partnership with civil society. Among the reasons for the spread of this terroristic ideology is the retraction of the values of justice, and the rule of law as well as poverty and unemployment.
The strengthening and guaranteeing of human rights and the feeling of the public of the existence of justice and the rejection of marginalization will strengthen security and lessen the chance for the growth of an enabling environment for extremists.
The Coordinating Committee for Civil Society “Himam” calls on the government to benefit from the unity of society in rejecting terrorism and to act quickly to put a plan that restores faith in the government’s ability to challenge terrorism.
We call on the parliament to create an independent fact finding committee to study the details of what happened during this terror operation in Karak and to present recommendation to the parliament so that we can know what are the challenges facing us and what were the lessons learned from the way this crisis was managed.
“Himam” the civil society coordinating committee is made up of the following organizations:
Ahel, Tamkeen Fields For Aid, Al Hayat Center for Civil Society Development, Center for Defending Freedom of Journalists, Ruwwad, Community Media Network, Partners Jordan, The Justice Center for Legal Aid, Adala Center for Human Rights, Phoenix Center for Economics and Informatics Studies, Al Quds Center for Political Studies, Identity Center for Human Development, Leaders of Tomorrow, Sisterhood is Global Institute/Jordan, Afaq Jordan for Development & Training, Tomorrow’s Youth Center, I am a Human Society for Rights of Disabled People.
