Stateless Again: Palestinian-Origin Jordanians Deprived of their Nationality

al Zaytouna, Centre for Studies and consultations

Report’s Introduction: (published 2 years ago.)

More than half of the 6.3 million population of Jordan is of Palestinian origin—that is, from areas west of the River Jordan, including the West Bank, today’s Israel, and Gaza. With the exception of persons from Gaza, the vast majority of those persons of Palestinian origin have Jordanian citizenship. However, since 1988, and especially over the past few years, the Jordanian government has been arbitrarily and without notice withdrawing Jordanian nationality from its citizens of Palestinian origin, making them stateless. For many of them this means they are again stateless Palestinians as they were before 1950.

Some Jordanian officials have said they are doing so in order to forestall supposed Israeli designs to colonize the West Bank, by maintaining the birthright of Palestinians to live in the West Bank. Yet the real reason may be Jordan’s desire to be able to rid itself of hundreds of thousands of Jordanian citizens of Palestinian origin whom Jordan could then forcibly return to the West Bank or Israel as part of a settlement of the Palestinian refugee problem caused by the 1948 and 1967 Arab-Israeli wars. At least that appeared to be the interpretation of a high-ranking Ministry of Interior official who in July 2009 said that certain Jordanians of Palestinian origin would remain Jordanian nationals only until such time that a refugee settlement had been reached.

So far, Jordan has withdrawn its nationality from thousands of its citizens of Palestinian origin—over 2,700 between 2004 and 2008 alone. It has done so, in the individual cases Human Rights Watch identified, in an arbitrary manner and in violation of Jordan’s nationality law of 1954. Under that law Palestinian residents of the West Bank in 1949 or thereafter received full Jordanian nationality following Jordan’s incorporation of the West Bank in April 1950.

The West Bank came under Israeli occupation in 1967, and Jordan ceased to exercise control over the area, although it maintained its claim to sovereignty, and Jordanian law continued to apply in the West Bank. In 1983 Jordan introduced color-coded travel cards for Jordanians of Palestinian origin in the West Bank, in order to facilitate their travel to and from the West Bank under Israeli occupation: a green one for West Bank residents, and a yellow one for West Bankers who had moved to the East Bank. The introduction of this system of green and yellow cards in practice created three tiers of citizenship rights, differentiating original East Bank Jordanians and the two groups of West Bank-origin Jordanian nationals (whom Jordanian law still formally considered its nationals and citizens with equal rights).

Jordanians residing in the West Bank sometimes lost their right to live in the East Bank. Today, possession of a green or yellow card can serve as the official basis for withdrawing nationality.

In July 1988, at the height of the first Palestinian intifada, or uprising, against Israeli military occupation, the late King Hussein decided to sever “administrative and legal” ties with the West Bank. The motivations behind that decision, as well as its constitutionality, remain disputed, but include a sharp decline in Jordan’s economic fortunes at the time, and the growing international recognition of the Palestinian Liberation Organization as the representative of the Palestinian people. King Hussein explained his decision as one of
deference to Palestinian wishes for national autonomy.

One consequence of this severing of ties with the West Bank was that Jordanians of Palestinian origin residing in the West Bank at that time lost their Jordanian nationality.
However, Jordanians of Palestinian West Bank or Jerusalem origin then living in Jordan’s East Bank or residing in a third country generally maintained their Jordanian nationality. That is changing today for an undetermined number of Jordanians of Palestinian origin living in Jordan, as officials cancel, in a haphazard and arbitrary manner, the so-called national number that each Jordanian acquires as proof of Jordanian nationality.

Hundreds of thousands of Jordanians of Palestinian origin appear liable to have their national number revoked, including some 200,000 Palestinian-origin Jordanians who
returned to Jordan from Kuwait in 1990-91.

Officials base withdrawal of nationality on the 1988 severance of ties with the West Bank. They also claim that League of Arab States decisions prohibit dual Arab nationality and that Palestinians may thus not hold Jordanian nationality too. In 1988 the Arab League adopted a decision prohibiting dual Arab nationality, but Palestine has not been recognized as a state under international law, and the Arab League decision is not binding law in Jordan.

Withdrawal of nationality in fact has not been based on Jordanian law, but on vague interpretations of the 1988 severance decision and on new, unwritten conditions that lack a clear legal basis. Jordanian officials claim that Jordanians of Palestinian origin must renew their residency permit for the West Bank as issued by the Israeli military’s Civil
Administration in order to maintain their Jordanian nationality. This Israeli permit grants the right to reside in the West Bank, and, therefore (for those permit-holders residing elsewhere) the right to return to the West Bank should a Palestinian state come into being. Some Jordanians have been unable to renew this permit, and on this basis had their Jordanian nationality withdrawn. Others had never obtained that permit, having lived in Jordan all their lives, or have an open-ended residency permit from the Israelis that does not require renewal, but nevertheless had their nationality withdrawn.

No official informs those whose nationality has been withdrawn of that decision: rather, they are told that they are no longer Jordanian nationals during routine interactions with the bureaucracy such as renewing passports, registering a child’s birth, renewing a driver’s license, or trying to sell shares. At best, officials explain that it is due to a failure to renew Israeli residency permits. There is no clear means of administrative redress. Some of those affected who have influence in high places have managed to have the decisions reversed, but judicial redress is difficult, if not impossible. The High Court of Justice, with jurisdiction over reviewing the legality of administrative decisions, has ruled that the 1988 disengagement was an act of sovereignty and thus not subject to its jurisdiction, but this precedent notwithstanding, it has taken cases against alleged arbitrary withdrawal of nationality. Lawyers described to Human Rights Watch, however, that toward the late 1990s the court rarely ruled in favor of those contesting their loss of nationality.

Withdrawal of nationality dramatically complicates the lives of those affected: children lose access to free primary and secondary education, and university education may be out of reach due to vastly higher costs for non-nationals. Some say that healthcare costs are higher than for Jordanians. The same goes for renewal of drivers’ licenses, with higher fees and shorter validity. To live in Jordan, Palestinian non-nationals require a residency permit subject to approval by the General Intelligence Department (GID). Non-Jordanians cannot be employed by the state, and have greater difficulty on the private job market, as many employers will require proof of nationality to hire those of Palestinian origin, or clearance by the GID. Palestinians cannot practice one of the organized professions such as law, as membership in the corresponding professional association is mandatory but restricted to Jordanian nationals. Palestinians can still obtain Jordanian passports, valid for two or five years, but only as travel documents, not proof of nationality, and at higher fees than Jordanians.

Jordan should halt the arbitrary withdrawal of nationality from Jordanians of Palestinian origin. The government should appoint a commission to investigate and publicly report on the legal status of Jordanians of Palestinian origin who lived outside of the West Bank at the time of Jordan’s 1988 severing of ties with the West Bank. Jordan should reinstate Jordanian nationality to those arbitrarily deprived thereof, and provide them with fair compensation.

January 10, 2012 | 13 Comments »

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13 Comments / 13 Comments

  1. Mr. Wright you are wrong.

    Perpetuating an antisemitic canard about Jews owning the world will, undoubtedly, win you friends.
    Isn’t it time you changed your discordant tune?
    It seems that China now owns the world.

  2. If Britain created the problem, let them settle the problem. Rothschild’s Bank of England owns the world’s finances, including the United States Treasury and Federal Reserve. Pay the Palestinians or shoot them, leaving Israel alone.

  3. May I remind you that Jordan was 80% of the land mandated to Britain, by The League of Nations, to be turned into a Jewish homeland.

    Britain, treacherously in its own selfish interests and by breaking its mandated trust, created Trans Jordan and gave it to the Arabs.

    All those living within the total mandated territories, Jews, Christians, Bahais and Arabs and any others were thus called Palestinians.

  4. The world used to be flat, now its round. All Arab leadership is demanding the end of Israel. Many of the rank and file would be happy to get out of the refugee camps and have a normal life. Now rather than later.

    I will soon publish an article which will allow you to believe that there is hope of a solution.

  5. Again, wishful thinking.

    Whether or not the Palestinians exist is immaterial. There are 2.5 million Palestinians in the area, and they do not want to be called Jordanians.

    They want to be called Palestinians and have sovereignty over Jerusalem.

    Israel keeps on offering suggestions which are agreeable to Israel. And it would be wonderful if the Arabs would agree; but they won’t.

    That is the problem here.

    Offering the Judean and Samarian Arabs Jordanian citizenship will not stop the problem. They want to remain in Judea an Samaria and have sovereignty over it.

    You example for me is not the same.

    Yes, I am American. And, of course, I wish to remain American. But if you suddenly strip me of Malaysian nationality, I will not complain as I do not consider myself a Malaysian. In fact, I was never a Malaysian to begin with as my ancestors came from Europe. In a like fashion, many of the people in Judea and Samaria consider themselves Palestinians. Their ancestors did not come from present day Jordan and all the suggestions that they be removed to Jordan, a land where they have no connection, will not be agreeable to them.

    Those Palestinians who are stripped of Jordanian nationality kept it primarily to get papers such as licences, passports, etc. Jordan does not want them (Remember Black September); and is now stripping them for minor reasons to avoid having them foisted permanently on Jordan. The Jordanians see them as Palestinians not Jordanians. This view may have evolved over the years; but it is steady now.

    They do not want them moving into Jordan proper. If they do, they strip them of nationality. They want them staying in Judea and Samaria so they can be rid of them at the first possible moment.

    Hence the odd requirement that if they want to keep their Jordanian paperwork, they must permanently reside in the West Bank and not Jordan.

    It would wonderful if all of these Arabs would suddenly have a flush of Zionist enthusiasm and decide to make a move to Jordan so Jews worldwide could move to Israel.

    But I doubt that will happen. Their Arab ancestors, many of them – not all, came from Haifa (expelled in 1948), or Israel (pre-1967), or Gaza, etc. Most do not want to be Jordanian per se, apart from some paperwork privileges.

    All of your suggestions are based on the almost insane idea that Arabs will willingly agree to make life easy for Zionists.

    As desirable as that might be, it is delusional.

    You are exporting Israel’s problem to Jordan.

    Don’t be upset if the Jordanians do not accept your “gift” so willingly.

    And if the Palestinians did overthrown Hussein?! They would still not give up their claim – false as it may be – on Judea and Samaria.

    In order to deal with this problem … as distasteful as it may be to you … try to understand the Arab viewpoint.

    The Arabs is NOT a Jew. He does not accept the Abrahamic Covenant. If he is Christian (and they are only 8%) he belongs to a replacement theology church like Roman Catholicism, Greek Orthodoxy, or Lutheranism.

    He views the Jews as invaders to the Arab homeland.

    Your rationales to him mean nothing.

    Israel is so small. Nassers answer to that was: So is California. Would you give up California or one of your 50 states without a fight.

    God gave us this land. Their answer is: Your scripture is corrupted. Allah gave it to the believers.

    All the Arab knows is that he was tossed off the land, and he wants it back.

    And here is the clue: He wants it back as much as you do.

    Now, he may be wrong; but that is the way he sees it.

    How are you going to get him to move and make your life easy?

    Either war at a genocidal level or you pay him enough to move.

    I mean on the order of $100,000 or more per Palestinian to move out of Judea and Samaria, with the offer of a foreign passport, say to Chile, or Argentina, or Brazil, because we know the Arab states will not help them.

    Chile, Brazil, and Argentina have a lot of Arabs, and may accept those coming in with money.

    This is the only solution apart from a genocidal war (Click Here).

    This will cost.

    This is why the Mideast Problem is so insolvable.

    Each side wants the other side to make their life easy and solve their problem for them.

  6. Queen Rania of Jordan.

    “Rania Al-Yassin was born in Kuwait to Palestinian parents from Tulkarm.”

    She is, therefore, a Palestinian by Arab reckoning.

    Will her citizenship be revoked?

    Will she be booted out of Jordan?

    Will she be denied entry to the West Bank? To PA land?

    Will she seek refuge in Israel?

  7. This issue is the true one the United Nations should be working on. Who are the Jordanians not of Palestinian descent? The U.N., E.U. and everybody, in my opinion, should take steps to encourage Muslim countries to enroll Muslim refugees into their own state. Otherwise this problem will never be solved. This is a shameful humanitarian crisis caused by the politics of wanting to root the Jews out of Israel, and it ain’t going to happen. The Jews were there long before any other culture.

  8. “..King Hussein decided to sever “administrative and legal” ties with the West Bank.” Apparently, everyone but the fool jews are capable of unilateral acts without first begging everyone else if it is OK with them. It will never be OK with the other for the Jews to gain anything. This is the usual jewish hand wringing as to how cruel something is which is a form of begging for sympathy to achieve gain. It is simple and obvious on its face. Jordan is europes swindle of the jews by the UK creating a jew free muslim/ arab apartheid state with the extra added slap in the face of being on the palestine mandate “trust” territories designated as the Jewish homeland in internationally legally binding treaties. Obviously the mythical state of Jordan is really the mythical state of Palestine but everyone wants to swindle the jews even further. Perhaps the unwillingness of the jews to reassess and reclaim its legal rights is due to the embarrassment of not demanding these rights earlier and the acceptance of the 47 partition and res 242. However, all of this was done under duress, especially of the 2000 year holocaust of the jews by the europeans, and no la recognizes contracts made under duress. It is time to “wheel and come again” meaning start fromthe beginning go back and unilaterally declare the illegality of jordans creation and the annexation of the est bank. Further if jordan as created and will remain then this legalises transfer as an exchange of populations. If no current Israeli leadership can act on behalf of Israel and the Jews then it is time for a radical change in Israeli and Jewish leadership. The first step is to lift Israelis and Jews out of their ignorance and into the light of truth and history. They need to be educated as to the real facts and not the revisionism that seeks to make heroes out of appeasers.

  9. Prof. Paul Eidelberg

    In his commentary to Exodus 32:9-10, Rabbi Avraham Trugman writes: “After the people sinned by worshipping the Golden Calf, God initially said to Moses, ‘I have seen this people, it is a stiff-necked people. And now leave Me and My anger will burn against them and I shall consume them and I will make you a great nation.’ Moses responded by pleading for the people and succeeding in eliciting God’s mercy. As part of his plea, Moses even audaciously tells God that if He will not forgive the people, He should “erase me from Your book that You have written.”*

    Trugman comments: “Moses’ compassion for the Jewish people was one of the reasons why God chose him to be the redeemer, for this was in God’s eyes an indispensable leadership quality.”

    Moses’ compassion for the people of Israel calls to mind Abraham’s compassion for the very different and hardly righteous people of Sodom and Gomorrah.

    Now I ask: Was compassion displayed by the government of Ariel Sharon toward the people of Gush Katif? I am referring to a government a majority of whose cabinet ministers voted for the abandonment of a flourishing Jewish community and the consequent expulsion of its 8,000 Jewish residents—men, women, and children.

    Whereas two ministers in that cabinet resigned, Benjamin Netanyahu voted with the majority.

    When the expulsion law was voted for in the Knesset, Mr. Netanyahu, as I recall, abstained.

    Most lacking here is compassion. And it is in this light that we are to understand the black-hearted, black-shirted thugs that the Netanyahu government sent to destroy certain Jewish outposts and to brutalize and expel its Jewish residents.

    More than courage is lacking in Israel’s government. It is not enough to call the leader of that government “spineless,” as has MK Arieh Eldad and others. No, it needs to be emphasized that Israel is in the grips of a cruel and ruthless government, and this is the unseen reason why Israel is confronted by cruel and ruthless foes.

  10. to begin there is no such thing as palastine or people the whole articale is based on horse shit its time you wake up and acknowledg the truth instead of living in a fantasey world

  11. Curious,
    Your way of looking at the problem is at best naive.
    Stripping “Palestinians” of their Jordenian citizenship, is like stripping you of your US nationality. They are Jordenian as you are an American. (I guess.)
    This process of withdrawl of nationality begun more than 4 decades ago, (Remember Black September 17,000 murdered “Palestinians”?)and is meant to provoking unrest amongst the “Palestinians” and increase rage against Israel. King Abdallah knows very well that if the contrary happens,and “Palestinians” arabs will join forces with Israel, his artificial kingdom days are over. Jorden BELONGS to the “Jorden Palestinians”. They are more than 70% of the present habitants of this country, King Abdallah is the one that has to leave, as he is a nomad Beduin. His family was given the crown by the British to protect British interests. He is the one that has to be stripped off his jordenian citinzenship. BB and his staff of blind politicians do not understand that The kingdom days are numbered. They try to keep a worthless peace agreement with Jorden, but when he will evantually be ousted, we will have a serious enemy, most probably controlled by the local Muslim Brotherhood type regime along our longest border.
    Make friend with the Jordenian Palestinians, Help them overthrow King Abdallah, give them all they need to do that, and above all I say, GIVE JORDAN BACK to it’s lawful owners. Can you see the advantages?
    Ira.

  12. As I understand, there are palestinians INSIDE the West Bank , who are also denied citizen rights by the PA, who therefore have refugee status and live in camps similar to Sabra and Shatila

  13. I understand your anger; but before you place an argument, you have to think 2-3 steps ahead.

    If you press the issue and ask: Jordan, why don’t you give them Jordanian Passports?

    The Jordanians will respond, Why don’t you give them Israeli Passports, or give Palestine Independence and they can get Palestinian Passports?

    Nothing will get solved.

    If you continue to say that withdrawl of nationality is cruel, they will bring up Israeli restrictions on the Palestinian spouses of Arab Israelis.

    If you say this is necessary for security or the Jewish nature of Israel, they will bring up the Jordanian nature of Jordan.

    Neither Israel NOR the Arabs will solve anything if they wait for the other side to solve the problem.

    Israel cannot solve the Palestinian problem without destroying itself, and the Arabs will NOT solve the problem.

    The ONLY solution is to offer Palestinians citizenship OUTSIDE the Arab/Muslim world. South America is a good solution. Palestine Solution.

    Nothing will get solved by asking the Arabs to do what is right.

    They won’t!

    Does this amaze you?

    Did you expect that Arabs would adopt a Jewish love for Israel?

    What you should do is think outside the box.