Country Report Jordan
The Economist Intelligence Unit, May 2013, Pages: 26
The worsening tribal violence at the country's universities-the latest outburst having started in April-is challenging the government's authority.
Jordan has seen a steady rise in violence at its universities in recent years, with 58 major brawls in 2011 alone. However, a particularly serious event at the Al Hussein Bin Talal University in the southern city of Maan in late April, which resulted in four deaths and was followed by violence in a number of towns in the Maan area, has focused greater attention on the issue. A week after the deaths, which occurred when supporters of brawling students from two tribes brought weapons onto the campus, neither university authorities nor the Jordanian security forces were clear on what initially provoked the incident. Campus violence on other occasions has been triggered by various issues, including student elections and the accusation that young men from one tribe harassed a girl from a rival tribe.
The severity of the Maan trouble has provoked demonstrations by pro-reform activists, widespread comment in Jordanian universities and debate in the Jordanian parliament. Much of the comment focused on the need for better campus security, stricter university admission criteria and tougher penalties for students involved in violence, but there was also a focus on the violence as a sign of the loss of government authority to tribal influence. It was striking that, in the wake of the trouble, calm was only restored when tribal leaders from throughout Jordan brokered a month-long truce between the two tribes to allow the security forces to investigate the incident.
Country Report Jordan
Tribal violence worsens, challenging government authority
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