Arab Media & Society

Ahmad Abdel ‘Atti, a more senior Brotherhood blogger, has addressed this issue in his own blog. He recognizes that some might perceive blogging as threatening to the inner-workings of the Brotherhood and its secrecy, and that this is a challenge that the organization has not yet addressed.[50] Despite this, he suggests that the leadership will be able to contain any internal division, and that although diversity between generations is in fact a double-edged sword, youth should be encouraged to use this technology and not be criticized for doing so.[51] He stresses that blogging has provided the Brotherhood with media capabilities it previously did not enjoy in reporting on issues of corruption, torture, military tribunals and the arrest of organization leaders.[52] He therefore calls for a top-down initiative promoting cooperation with bloggers in an effort to implement blogging as part of a larger media project.[53] Abdel ‘Atti’s call for internal consensus reveals how media technology that allows individuals to influence media discourses might present a challenge to the organizational norms of opposition groups.

The case of the IAF in Jordan

The IAF is the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordanian politics. Following the legalization of political parties in Jordan in 1992, the IAF was created with the intention of providing a common platform for all Jordanian citizens who sought the application of Islamic principles to political life in the country.[54] The Brotherhood’s decision to form a political front, which came after much internal debate, offered the organization a legal path to political mobilization and provided a means to broaden its reach and influence by appealing to independent Islamists.[55]  Despite the inclusion of independents in its platform and democratic internal governance, the IAF has yet to craft a separate identity from that of the Jordanian Brotherhood.[56] The recent self-imposed disbandment of the Jordanian Brotherhood’s Shura Council and the call for new elections within the organization in the wake of the IAF’s recent electoral defeat this past November suggest that the fates of these organizations remain intertwined.[57]

Even before the legalization of political parties in 1992 and the creation of the IAF, the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan enjoyed a less antagonistic relationship with the Hashemite regime relative to the case of the MB in Egypt.  Historically, the Brotherhood was used by the regime as a counterweight to Nasserist Pan Arabism,[58] however its agenda became increasingly opposed to state policies over the course of the 1980s.[59] Being the best-organized political movement in Jordan[60] the Brotherhood achieved significant victories in the 1989 general election, taking 40 percent of parliament and establishing themselves as the most formidable opposition force to the Hashemite regime.[61] Despite the short-term political liberalization that Jordan enjoyed in this period with the resumption of parliamentary elections and political parties, this policy can be seen as merely a “survival strategy”[62] employed by a regime that was attempting to placate domestic discontent with economic hardships and the peace process with Israel.[63]  Furthermore, the one-vote law introduced in 1993 that greatly limited the ability of the IAF to win seats in parliamentary elections,[64] and continues to be a point of contention in the group’s political platform,[65] indicates that the regime is perhaps more concerned with keeping the IAF in check rather than allowing them any advantage.

The inconsistent nature of the relationship between the IAF and the regime on parliamentary issues, fluctuating between cooperation and marginalization, is also evident in their media dealings. After the brief democratic opening in the early 1990s, amendments to the media laws were introduced aimed at rolling back any gains the movement might have made. These included tighter press regulation passed in 1997, which instigated outcries from the opposition, human rights observers and liberals. Under the new laws, most of Jordan’s weekly papers were shut down around the time of the parliamentary elections. This, in addition to discontent over the signing of the peace with Israel, prompted the Brotherhood to boycott the 1997 elections.[66] The regime was then able to pressure a new, more compliant parliament to pass even more restrictive press legislation[67] that would become the controversial 1998 Press and Publications Law.[68]

More recent measures taken by the government to constrict press freedoms have been criticized by international and local observers alike. A recent report by Amnesty International states, “There is absolutely no respect for the right to inform and be informed when someone wants to express opposition to the monarchy for criticizing the regime’s leading players.”[69]  Jordanian blogger and columnist for the Al-Dostour daily Batir Wardam suggests that, despite parliament’s announced plans to increase press freedoms, recent amendments made to the Press and Publications Law in 2007 legalizing the imprisonment of journalists for publishing materials that infringe upon the national unity and integrity of the state have been justified under the pretext of terrorism. He goes on to say that these developments demonstrated the government’s desire to maintain its hegemony over the media, even in an age of opening.[70] But this time around, the IAF reportedly supported this new legislation in parliament to the outspoken dismay of more liberal critics of the regime.[71] Such a stance, despite the fact that previous amendments hurt the IAF, indicates the presence of a rift between outspoken advocates of media freedom, such as Wardam, and Islamists over restrictive media legislation.[72]

Electronic media, including that of the IAF, have also been increasingly under pressure, although at a lower level than in Egypt.  According to a report by Human Rights Watch, in January of 2006 two individuals were charged with “belittling the dignity of the state” for publishing articles by parliamentarians on the IAF’s website.[73]  Although these charges were dropped, the website itself was allegedly temporarily shutdown this past June.[74] More recently, the Jordanian regime has interpreted the restrictive article II of the aforementioned Press and Publications Law to also apply to electronic media.[75] 

In the run-up to the November 2007 parliamentary elections, the Jordanian government issued specific guidelines on broadcast media for electoral campaigns, placing limits on the amount of radio and television time allotted for political advertisements, and levying heavy fees on electoral banners.[76]  Faced with a situation similar to the Egyptian MB in 2005, the IAF moved online.  While the group used various websites in campaigning for the IAF, we have yet to see the level of visibility of the IAF in the Jordanian blogosphere as that of the Brotherhood in Egypt. The IAF’s apparent deviation from the more liberal voices in Jordan over such media issues as the recent changes to the Press and Publications Law suggests that its internet efforts will be limited to supporting electoral campaigns and not involved in participating in the broad-based media activism that has been enabled by the blogging phenomenon.

The IAF’s online campaign: to inform & counter

This year, the IAF launched an internet media campaign that moved traditional campaigning activities like publicizing candidates, organizing rallies and distributing literature online. A new website designed specifically for the November 20^th 2007 parliamentary elections was recently launched with the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan’s website, http://www.ikhwan-jor.com/ and the IAF’s official site, http://www.jabha.net/, playing supporting roles.

The address of the website, http://www.20112007.com/, is simply the date
of the election, thus putting electoral success at the center of the IAF’s online strategy. The site informs users about the IAF’s program and candidates, and counters mainstream local media coverage casting the IAF in a negative light. While other sites existed before, the current election website is significant in that it is the first IAF site designed explicitly as a campaigning tool.  The current efforts of the IAF resemble those of the MB in Egypt in the run-up to the 2005 elections whereby online media was used to inform the public and counter government media restrictions and to mobilize constituents. 

This website provides information on Jordan’s electoral law and details of its amendment in 2001,[77] and explains broader aspects of the party and MB’s reasons for entering elections and their goals.[78] These points are listed in a document entitled, “The most prominent features of the electoral program for the IAF’s parliamentary candidates.”[79]  Here Jordanians can see the group’s stance on internal issues, such as its desire to reform legislation and address social issues in all aspects of Jordanian society, including women’s rights, and matters of foreign policy, namely supporting resistance in Palestine and Iraq.[80]

The site also listed all parliamentary candidates with IAF nominees highlighted,[81] and biographical profiles for their candidates.[82] These profiles featured their educational and professional backgrounds, but also any previous affiliation they might have had with Islamic charitable organizations. It also provided phone numbers for each candidate, allowing constituents to directly engage with the parliamentary hopefuls.[83] Overall, the IAF attempted to package its candidates as highly educated, experienced, and personable individuals who have demonstrated interest in the social welfare of Jordanians. This can be seen as a more interactive electronic application of existing print media used by the IAF inform constituencies of the group’s agenda and its candidates. 

The new website also worked to counter the stream of negative stories carried in the Jordanian press prior to the elections depicting the IAF as divided, manipulative and politically weak. After the announcement of the IAF’s candidate list, the weekly Al-Majd alleged discontent among the hard-line members of the Jordanian Brotherhood over the fielding of more moderate IAF candidates.[84] In an apparent effort to dispel the image of internal divisions in the organization’s leadership, the website has featured stories of rallies attended by thousands in support of the IAF.[85] The party also refuted ambiguous allegations circulated in Jordanian papers of a deal between the IAF and the Jordanian government.  The IAF site countered that the purpose of the meeting was for the party to complain to the government about electoral irregularities and violations[86] during past municipal elections and to agree upon measures to ensure the legitimacy of the upcoming parliamentary elections.[87] The website also responded to an editorial featured in the November 16^th edition of Al-Ghad criticizing the IAF’s adoption of the campaign slogan “Islam is the Solution” as a means to play on people’s emotions and achieve power rather than provide a practical political program.[88] On behalf of the IAF the author counters, saying the group is legitimately pursuing this electoral program in the interests of all those who yearn for the implementation of Islamic principles.[89]

Most recently, on the day of elections the website provided updates from its correspondents in the field who reported any alleged irregularities at polling stations including the buying of votes, bussing in of voters from other districts to vote, and the restriction of access of non-state press agencies to polling centers.[xc] Statements issued by the IAF’s Supreme Electoral Committee calling for an end to these violations were also featured on the website.[xci] While the IAF has attempted to use websites to support its campaigning efforts and counter negative press, it does not yet appear that the group has been active in employing blogging to the degree of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood. 

The IAF and the Jordanian blogosphere

In the Jordanian blogosphere, the Islamist presence is largely overshadowed by liberal bloggers, many of which have been critical of the IAF. According to an article that appeared in a new Jordanian weekly publication Al-Sijil,[xcii] Jordanian blogs are mostly used by journalist to re-post their articles from newspapers,[xciii] while liberal blogs lament setbacks in Jordanian democracy.[xciv] While some have covered issues pertinent to the recent elections,[xcv] there do not yet appear to be any blogs that directly support the IAF.[xcvi] Furthermore, the critique of the IAF by some of Jordan’s most vocal bloggers over its stance on the recent changes to the Press and Publications Law is indicative of a blogosphere that is inhospitable to the IAF.  This, taken with the fact that Jordan has yet to witness suppressive measures to the degree that has been witnessed in Egypt, suggests that the Jordanian blogosphere predominantly remains an alternative space for the discourse of liberal minded individuals, rather than an effective medium for the mobilization of the Islamist opposition.[xcvii]

Additionally, other factors related to the group’s organizational dynamics may inhibit IAF blogging.  Since the Egyptian MB has had to ally with other political organizations in order to field its candidates for parliamentary elections, the group has consistently wavered between being a social organization and a political party.  The relatively more permissive environment of Jordan has allowed the IAF to serve as an official political party entity on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, allowing boundaries between the grassroots activities of the Brotherhood as a social organization not to conflict with the political program of the IAF. The Egyptian MB, on the other hand, has created space for an individuated form of grassroots political activism by a younger tech-savvy generation of Muslim Brothers.