On March 8, 2022, the Jordanian House of Representatives (the lower house of Jordan’s parliament) announced that it had passed a draft law regulating the operation of political parties in Jordan. The draft law stipulates that first instance courts have jurisdiction over legal disputes related to the operation of the political parties in the kingdom.
Under the draft law, first instance courts have the right to dissolve any political party within three months from the day they detect that the party is engaged in any of the following:
- Executing a foreign political agenda.
- Affiliating with a foreign entity.
- Accepting foreign funding.
- Refraining from submitting all required documents to the Independent Authority for Elections.
- Violating the Jordanian Constitution by adopting violent principles or extremist ideas.
Additionally, the draft law imposes criminal penalties on members of political parties. These penalties include a term of imprisonment of one to five years, a fine of 1,000–5,000 Jordanian dinars (about US$1,410–$7,050), or both.
The draft law imposes the previously mentioned criminal penalties on political party members when they carry out a number of illicit acts, including the following:
- Inciting the public to participate in armed protests against the government.
- Establishing organizations aimed at violating the Constitution and subverting the ruling regime.
- Supporting or promoting directly or indirectly extremist and terrorist organizations and groups.
On March 10, 2022, the Legal Committee of the Jordanian Senate reviewed the provisions of the draft law and approved all of them except one. The provision in question seeks to deregister existing political parties and require their members to submit new applications to reestablish the parties after its enactment. The committee referred this provision back to the House of Representatives for further review and revisions.
According to article 93 of the Jordanian Constitution, in order for a bill to become a law, the House of Representatives and Senate must both approve the bill and then the king must assent to and ratify it. The law comes into force following its promulgation by the king and a period of 30 days from its publication in the Official Gazette.
Concerning the current draft law on political parties, Jordanian King Abdullah II has stated that he considers the passage of the draft law by the House of Representatives as an important step in the process of political modernization.