Amman, Jordan 
August 3, 2001 

It is true that during the time of the uprising ONE PRACTICAL STEP IS WORTH 
MORE THAN A DOZEN REVOLUTIONARY PROGRAMS.  But what is a practical step in 
the field of action if it doesn't take us one step closer towards victory?! 
Still, there are benefits and lessons to be drawn even from bad practical 
steps in the time of the uprising, and what happened in downtown Amman 
today, especially in connection to Jordanian opposition parities, is one 
such experience replete with lessons. 

Background: 

On the eve of July 31, 2001, a gathering made up of the leaders of Jordanian 
opposition parties and the Unions of Professional Associations resolved to 
demonstrate in support of the Aqsa Intifada in downtown Amman after Friday 
Prayers in Al Husseini Mosque.  The call for the demonstration came after 
the Jordanian regime insisted on banning any Jordanian protests in support 
of the Intifada, including the banning of an impromptu march that almost 
departed from the complex of the Union of Professional Associations in Amman 
towards the Prime Minister's Office on the eve of July 31.  Subsequently, 
official calls were issued to the public by the leaders of the opposition 
parties and the professional unions to join the demonstration on August 3, 
2001, after Friday Prayers in al Husseini Mosque in downtown Amman. 

A Fickle Opposition: 

However, after a nightly meeting with officials of the Jordanian Government 
on August 2, 2001, it seems that the leaders of the Jordanian opposition, 
including Islamist, Arab Nationalist, and leftist party leaders, bowed 
before government pressure and intimidation thus agreeing to call off the 
Friday march on August 3. 

The newspapers this morning carried the news of the cancellation of the 
demonstration in support of the Intifada all over the front pages. 

But whether these opposition leaders care to know it or not, they have shed 
on the street today a great deal of whatever credit they had left, for 
bowing down meekly before pressure during the momentous events in the West 
Bank and Gaza which reverberate so closely to Jordan. 

A Crackdown on a Spontaneous March: 

The opposition leaders failed the people, but the people did not fail 
Palestine.  As soon as Friday prayers were over in Al Husseini Mosque, 
hundreds gathered and started chanting: "Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar!" (God 
is Greater, God is Greater!).  A street storm was brewing.  Thousands began 
to pour in to join in a moment of true freedom.  With the exception of very 
few second rank leaders from the Union of Professional Associations, there 
were no leaders what so ever in sight.  The protest was totally leaderless 
and disorganized.  Even the independent activists who took the lead in the 
protests that occurred at the beginning of the Intifada in October and 
November had a rather weak showing. 

The whole thing did not last a few minutes, maybe ten, maybe fifteen.  The 
people were getting ready to move.  Three individuals emerged in the fray to 
lead.  Then, the attack began.  An army of undercover policemen and special 
anti-riot troops launched their onslaught at the heart of the protest from 
several directions.  Dozens of police and anti-riot jail vehicles surrounded 
the field isolating the people who were coming in from outside from the 
hundreds who were at the core.  Then the beatings began.  Several young men 
were dragged away to an unknown destiny.  Chases were taking place between 
the alleys.  Several protestors were beaten senseless to the ground.  I saw 
one of those being whisked away into safety by a by-stander who dragged him 
unconscious into a cab.  As far as the oppressors were concerned, the 
protestor had the right to remain silent. 

After about another round of clashes, only the shell of the protest 
remained.  Chairs and batons were flying around.  Protestors on the sides 
were yelling at the security troops: "Ya Yahoud, ya Yahoud" (You Jews! You 
Jews!). 

[Self-alienated and westernized Arabs who think that is "anti-semitic" 
should feel free to come down to one of the protests to tell that to the 
protestors directly if they feel so strongly about it : ) ] 

Some of The Lessons of the Botched Spontaneous March: 

1) The leaders of opposition parties and the unions disappointed the people 
yet one more time.  They should not complain if the people don't jump at the 
push of a button the next time around they issue a call for a demonstration, 
especially if they do so after obtaining approval from the regime. 

2) An uprising or even a protest cannot last very long without some kind of 
leadership or organization sustaining it.  Without such organization and 
leadership, the protest takes the form of one solitary Arab citizen against 
the whole oppressive apparatus.  Surely spontaneous eruptions are signs of 
life, but they do not make political headway. 

3) They were not ready to protest two days ago.  The people were ready 
today.  Yet even the independent activists missed the opportunity to turn 
this into a massive protest as in the onset of the Intifada in October and 
November.  Instead of sitting back and complaining that the people are not 
doing anything about Palestine, the activists should keep their fingers on 
THE PULSE OF THE STREET. 

4) What remains missing in the revolutionary camp is leadership and 
organization.  The problem is inherent in the elites, the intellectuals and 
the activists, not in the people's willingness to make sacrifices. 

5) The Zionists' secret weapon in the Arab World is the Arab regimes. 
Zionists may fool western public opinion into thinking that they are fending 
off three hundred million Arabs because they are so good at war.  The truth, 
however, remains that without the protection Arab regimes render to the 
Zionists, the latter would become ground beef.  What the Arab World needs, 
therefore, is a good revolution.  More specifically, the Arab World needs a 
good radical grass-roots movement with a principled leadership and superior 
organization.  Any attempts to search for solutions to the Arab dilemma 
should start with those premises in mind. 

Later 
Ibrahim Alloush 

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