After three months of deliberations, which were marred by controversy, public skepticism and the resignation of three members, the Royal Committee to Modernize the Political System handed its recommendations to King Abdullah Oct. 4. During the meeting the king said, “The democratic model Jordanians seek is an embodiment of the political will and national interest. The political system establishes for a new and critical phase in line with efforts to modernize the state in its second centennial … that political reform is being implemented in parallel to the government’s economic and administrative reforms.”

Headed by former Prime Minister Samir Rifai, the 92-member committee includes public figures from across the political and ideological spectrum. Its final report proposes draft laws for elections and political parties, and 22 constitutional amendments related to the two proposed laws, parliamentary work and ways to empower women and youth. 

The king said that the recommendations of the committee will go through the constitutional channels, “so that the government would adopt them without any intervention and submit them to parliament.”

During the meeting Rifai said the committee had worked on a consensus-based approach, a controversial issue for some members who wanted to vote on each recommendation.