Written By: Saleem Ayoub Quna

Reading the various commentaries and statements that were carried in the local media, in connection with changing the name of the art and culture festival from Jerash to Jordan, one would think that a major disaster has happened signaling the end of the world! Many self-acclaimed and other genuine intellectuals alike shed many tears and precipitated to voice their concern and shock over this sudden “dramatic and catastrophic” shifting of a name! Some described the change as an act of “assassination”, others said it a” killing”, a third group lamented the “burial” of the festival and so forth. But come July and August this summer, those commentators may be surprised that people will be going to the old location of the festival in Jerash to enjoy the action and fun there just as they used to do for the last quarter of a century. So all I am saying is what is the problem?

What is more important: the title of a book or its content, one may simply ask, the volume of a poem or its essence, the color of fabric or its material?
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Popular Ammani-born female poet Suhair Hammad is starring in Palestinian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir’s first feature film Salt of this Sea (Le Sel De La Mer / Milh Hada Al-Bahar).

The film has been officially selected to the Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard. Two talented and beautiful Arab women make Arab cinema history.

“Jacir’s film tells the story of 24-year-old Soraya who grew up in a Palestinian worker and refugee community in New York. One day she discovers that her grandfather’s hard-earned savings since his exile in 1948 are frozen in a bank in Jaffa, Palestine. This information prompts her to fulfill her long-held dream of returning to Palestine.”

It’s noteworthy that one of Annemarie’s producers is no other than Hollywood star Danny Glover.

RELATED LINKS

Swiss Films
http://www.swissfilms.ch/detail_f.asp?PNr=2146533355

The Poetry of Suhair Hammad
http://SuheirHammad.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3S8do-Gimc&feature=related

Variety
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117970519.html?categoryid=13&cs=1
http://www.variety.com/VR1117984500.html

Cannes Film Festival ‘08 (PDF file)
http://www.festival-cannes.fr/assets/Pdf/General/pdf-9135.pdf

Philistine Films
http://www.philistinefilms.org/page1.html

Written By: Wendy Merdian

March holds one of my favorite holidays, ‘Mothers Day’. My children have been whispering little hints of the projects they have been making, precious creations of crayon, glitter, glue-stick and stickers. My husband will present me with a nice gift for the kitchen to make my job there easier or prettier. I will never forget a ‘Mothers Day Gift’ I was given one year by a friend: a week’s work of ‘maid service’. It seemed like a dream come true in those foggy, fuzzy days of pregnancy, non-sleeping babies and busy toddlers.

But by the end of that week, I was more exhausted from having a stranger in the house than the house-keeping. She didn’t speak any of the languages I spoke, had a different definition of ‘clean’, and a VERY different concept about child-care! I found it very strange to have someone hovering all the time; I knew that was what she was supposed to do, but as someone who likes family time to be just family, I found it intrusive and almost more work as I had to put things away faster than she did or I would never find them again!

I tried to bring her into the family circle, but without a language in common, it was hard. When I forced her to eat with us, she was visibly uncomfortable. When one of my little ones, who was just learning to clean up his toys, said: “Why should I if Maria is here?” I realized this was counter productive and I could never be the ‘live-in type’. I was the Mistress of My Domain, and just not cut out to have another woman be a part of it every day. We would be a messier, but happier family with ‘help’ once a week.

Another key to our once-a-week helper working so well is that we were not ‘like family’. It was a friendly business arrangement. We had clear expectations for a results-based employee/employer relationship where she went home to her own house and life. In their book “Global Woman: Nannies, Maids and Sex Workers in the New Economy”, Barbara Ehrenreich and Arlie Russell Hochschild mentioned a Filipina domestic worker lamenting: “to be considered ‘family’ is the kiss of death for us”. For them, it means expectations of more work, but none of the benefits. One of the benefits given many Jordanian families is the ‘protection’ that would be given to a daughter, but to their helper, is feels like prison. “Global Woman” is a must-read for any Jordanian woman with or considering live-in help, to see what life and choices are like for powerless women. To balance the seriousness of the situation with a little humor, make sure to see “Nanny Diaries”, too.
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As spring begins to take its course throughout the Kingdom, Jordanian bloggers have had a lot to talk about these past two weeks. HM Queen Rania has become a vlogger, after launching her own YouTube channel with a video that seeks to battle stereotypes that have plagued the Arab world. Global Voices covered the early reactions by Jordanian bloggers, but the Queen’s initiative has since picked up steam on the local blogosphere, as the video yields over 2,000 comments and nearly 1 million views in just over a week.

Eman hopes the initiative will be fruitful but is annoyed by a few things:

“What I find upsetting on the other hand is the fact that some of the replies are being offensive, attacking the idea and urging the Queen to address Jordanians rather than the west! to the ones who think this way I say: you seem to have no idea about the activities of the Queen and have no clue about what she’s already accomplished and what she’s still doing in this regard.”

Ahmad Humeid wonders if it can really make a difference:

“Queen Rania cannot be expected to single handedly change geopolitics with a YouTube clip. But at least she is doing something to create a bridge of understanding. And she’s using the right media to do it.”

When it comes to battling stereotypes, Qwaider thinks the Queen may be the best person for the job, while Nasim is amazed at how the video caused a big buzz on the Jordanian blogosphere, even before news of it reached local newspapers and radio stations. Elsewhere, the Queen, who was recently awarded an honorary PhD from the University of Jordan, also took the time to launch a new national education project entitled Madrasati (my school) prompting Naseem Tarawnah to discuss educational reform in Jordan, while Khalaf gives his own unique perspective on the topic.

Initiatives such as the Queen’s may only serve to highlight what online free speech is all about, especially for Jordanian bloggers. However, not all is well with free speech in Jordan. Lina gives her take on the recent jailing of several journalists; one of whom ran into trouble for an article he published online. Wael Atill looks at a recent case of identity fraud that has targeted popular Jordanian talk radio host, Mohammad Al Wakeel, that even warranted the launching of an investigation by the Minister of Interior! Meanwhile, amidst rumors of a possible new law for Jordanian online news sites, as well as the implementation of a big brother system in Internet cafes, Hareega wonders if cyber-activism in the Arab world is even worth it any more. Meanwhile, Tololy criticizes an article on the “Arab” blogosphere, which focuses only on Egyptian blogs.

“Spring in Amman”. Photo courtesy of Roba Assi

Spring may be the best time for extra-curricular activities; Deemco joins the Action Committee on a trip to a home for the elderly, while Melissa Manning and Wendy Merdian end their three-part series on 7iber dot com, as they conclude their journey of the long forgotten biblical sites of Jordan. Back in the city, Tololy stumbles unexpectedly upon camels grazing in Amman.

Photo Courtesy of Tololy.

The Observer weaves an interesting fictional tale about a Jordanian spinster that might look to be a play in the making! As Ola points to a new blog for Jordanian filmmakers, Amin Matalqa, director of the Jordanian film Captain Abu Raed, posts a brilliant photo essay of sorts, tracing a visit to the Irbid Refugee Camp nearly one year ago; a journey that ended with his discovery of Udey Qiddissi, who would go on to play the role of Tareq in the film.

Photo courtesy of Amin Matalqa

Speaking of films, Qwaider gives his opinion of the barely controversial Dutch film “Fitna” as blogger Nizar gives his:

“This shows basically nothing about Islam it’s self because all you see is only extreme misinterpretation of a Holy book, and this can be done in all religious books and actually it can be done even clearer in most religions.”

Elsewhere, Jordanian bloggers have been tracking a new advertising war between two telecom giants in the country, Zain and Umniah, whose cell phone deals have caused a consumer frenzy. Samer thinks the campaign is just silly , while theone thinks newspapers are probably pleased with the new war.

Photo courtesy of Adoosh

Politically Speaking:

On the political side of the blogosphere, Jordanian bloggers are discussing familiar topics. First up has been the issue of the much touted Amman-Zarqa railway, whose plans have been recently scrapped. Ahmad wonders if we can learn anything from the Dubai experience.

Naseem Tarawnah looks at the new traffic law that Parliament recently rejected, while wondering if the King’s National Housing Initiative is really all that sustainable. Meanwhile, Emad Salameh reviews the government’s decision to lift duty taxes on renewable and energy-conserving devices such as solar panels, but believes the government should be imposing more protectionist policies for local industries.

The search for water in Jordan has been moving at a sluggish pace, and with fears of water shortages and prices increases during the upcoming summer season, the movement has not improved. Batir Wardam looks at the fundamental right to water, and how the average Jordanian fits into the picture.

Khalaf revisits the ancient issue of oil exploration in Jordan, a topic that found a place in the final weeks of the recent Parliamentary session, while Jameed thinks the creation of a new $200 million cancer care and research facility is a great idea.

HM Queen Rania has started a new initiative in honor of International Youth Day, where via the power of YouTube, she’ll be attempting to break down the stereotypes associated with the Arab world.

Wendy Merdian and Melissa Manning continue their journey through Jordan’s biblical archeological sites, completing the final part in the series. [1] [2]

Biblical Archeology In A Day
Written By: Melissa Manning & Wendy Merdian
Photography By: Melissa Manning

Site VII - Um Ar Rasas, Burj Sa’man

The ruins we visited in the vicinity of the village, Um Ar ‘Rasas, are not actually biblical sites as they date from the Byzantine and Umayyad periods, the fifth to the eighth century AD. Before visiting the ruins of the Byzantine town, Kestron Mefaa, we stopped about one km away to see an usual tower; unusual in that the 15 meter tower is solid and has no internal stairs, though it appears to have had a room at the top of the tower with four windows, once facing each directions. Rough crosses are hewn into three sides of the tower, with finer carving at the top.

The peculiar architecture of this tower, Burj Sam’am in Arabic, seems to indicate that it is a Stylite tower of the fifth century, used by a Christian holy man.

During the pre-Constantine rule of the Roman Empire Christians were persecuted and many were martyred for their faith. Once Christianity became the official religion of the Empire and intense persecution ceased, a movement sometimes known as “white martyrdom” rose up, with holy men and monks demonstrating their piety by undertaking such ascetic feats as living atop pillars or towers. One of the most famous, Simon Stylites, a Syrian ascetic, lived atop a pillar in Aleppo, Syria for 37 years. Pilgrims came from miles around to visit this holy man and to listen to him preach God’s Word. After Simon Stylites became famous, other holy men began to imitate him, themselves living atop towers in order to pray and preach away from the distractions of the world. Our guide suggested that these Stylite towers may have even been the prototype for the Islamic muzzein, from which the call to prayer is given.

The scaffolding surrounding the tower is part of ongoing excavation and preservation work. Near the tower is the ruins of a church, cisterns, and a three-story building which may have been some sort of lodging quarters for visiting pilgrims.
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Written by: Saleem Ayoub Quna Photography by Ogba Faraj

Jabal Luwiebdeh’s reputation as a quiet and peaceful residential neighborhood in the old part of Amman was heavily contested Saturday afternoon, March 8^th, as more than 1500 people, mostly children and youth, took to its streets to mark the second anniversary of Luweibdeh Spring Carnival.

The parade, led by a mounted patrol of six policemen, started at Paris Square and proceeded on in the main streets of the Jabal up to the National Gallery Park where it took a U-turn to end on the playgrounds of the Terra Sancta School. The participants walked to the beat of drums and bagpipes performed by the Mountain Lions’ Scout Troupe and the tunes of a four-member local French band. A third scout group from Ibn Rushd private school in Zarqa joined the procession while enthusiastically chanting and dancing all along the way.

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Wendy Merdian and Melissa Manning continue their journey through Jordan’s biblical archeological sites. Be sure to read up on part one and stay tuned for the final part in the series!

Biblical Archeology In A Day
Written By: Melissa Manning & Wendy Merdian
Photography By: Melissa Manning

Site IV - Khirbet Iskander

From Machaerus we returned to the King’s Highway, once an ancient trade caravan route, and traveled south to the Khirbet Iskander site. Though the name “Khirbet Iskander” means the “ruins of Alexander” in reference to Alexander the Great who conquered the area in 323 BC, the site is actually the ruins of a fortified Early Bronze Canaanite city, the only one of it’s kind to be discovered and dating back to 2300 BC.

The Early Bronze Period, 3500-2000 BC and divided into four sub-periods, is so significant because this is the period in history when the first cities rose up in Mesopotamia and Egypt. It is also the period when writing was first discovered. The rise of urban centers influenced the rise of cities in the biblical lands of present day Jordan and Israel. This was the land of Canaan, peopled by the Canaanites. The Israelites didn’t come to the area until 1200 BC.

We didn’t actually go down to the site, where excavation is ongoing, but instead viewed it from the highway. Before leaving the area our leader revealed yet another hidden treasure: a Roman road milestone inscribed with the name of Nerva, Emperor of the Roman world from AD 96-98. Imagine, just lying in a ditch off the highway!