This is an extract from Arab Advisor’s latest report on Jordan’s cellular boom.
A full 71% of Jordanian households have a cellular line, only 5% short of the fixed line household penetration which stands at 76%.
This is what we Jordanians are best at: “tagg 7anak,” which roughly translates to: “indulging in useless conversations.”
What is this about really? Some sort of smear campaign against Jordan?
A Syrian publishing house that translated a best selling book written by a Jordanian author on Saturday said their only goal was to publicize the problem of honour killings.
“Honour crimes are a social problem and I am interested in highlighting the abuse that is inflicted on women. In my opinion, regardless of whether the story is true or fabricated, it reflects the reality in our life,” Syrian Cadmus Press Executive Director Ziad Muna told The Jordan Times in a telephone interview.
In his six-page book introduction, he wrote: “When we heard about Khouri’s book on what are called honour crimes, which are being committed on daily basis in Jordan and elsewhere in the region, we did not hesitate for one second to translate and publish the book.” “There is an urgent need to be publicly vocal, and through all means, in exposing these crimes that are committed against Arab women,” Muna said.
Source: [The Jordan Times]
This book is a hoax and was pulled off the shelves by the publisher. I discussed the book and how bogus it is in a previous post. The only reason I can imagine that they would translate it is to give Jordan a bad name! Why else? Really!
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This is a quick post to Kudos to you for your courage! Caption: [An Iraqi woman cries tears of joy after casting her vote outside a polling station in the holy city of Najaf, Jan. 30, 2005. (Faleh Kheiber/Reuters)] |
Last night we watched the highly-acclaimed Lebanese movie West Beyrouth on DVD. It was quite a treat. The first time I saw this film was when it came out in the late 1990’s. Watching it for the second time was a refreshing reminder, as I totally forgot how wonderful this movie is. It is the story of Beirut during the civil war as seen through the eyes of two teenagers living in the west side of the city. The boys, who are trying desperately to cross to the other side of Beirut to get some films developed, experience firsthand the cruelty of a war that shattered their country for years.
The movie was a delight. The camera work was exceptional as was the acting and the witty, humorous story line. The DVD, which we got as a gift from Amal, had subtitles in English, enabling my dear husband to follow the storyline and enjoy it as much as I did.
While on my way to work this morning I kept thinking to myself about the movie scene in my country: Will Jordan ever be able to produce such a well-made film eventually gaining world-wide acclaim? Will this happen in my lifetime? I know there are many initiatives currently on-going in Jordan to improve the movie scene but I wonder: Will I live to see the day of such a fine Jordanian production? We just have to stay hopeful, I guess.
Okay, before I go and embrace the day (likely to prove a very long one) I will leave you with some newswire highlights.
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This was taken last summer in Egypt’s Sinai Desert. Keep checking the gallery for more pictures. |
