This is a follow-up to my reply to Iraqi blogger Zeyad, who felt that the majority of Jordanians regard the late Zarqawi a martyr.

The death of al-Qaida’s chief in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, is still reverberating in Jordan, where the majority of the population sees him as a terrorist. An opinion poll conducted by the non-governmental organization Epsos Stat Center for daily al-Ghad indicated that 59 percent of Jordanians consider their countryman Zarqawi, whose real name is Ahmed Fadel al-Khalayila, a "terrorist." The poll, which surveyed 1,014 people over 18-years-old from various walks of life, also showed that 67 percent refused to see Zarqawi as a "martyr," as he was dubbed by Jordan’s Islamist movement, sparking an uproar among Jordanians.

…The poll, with a margin of error of 3.2 percent, indicated that 70 percent of the sample saw offering condolences for Zarwqawi’s death as a provocation of national sentiments, especially for the families of the Amman bombings in which 60 people died. Only 15 percent, mostly in the 18 to 39 age bracket, described Zarqawi as a "martyr" or an "ordinary citizen." Source: [UPI]

In addition, here is the article on the poll in Alghad (Arabic) and media-analyst and blogger Abu Aardvark’s take on the survey. Who knows, maybe this poll combined with the recent anti-Zarqawi demonstrations will motivate Zeyad to reconsider his position.

Human rights groups on Wednesday welcomed a decision by the government of the Philippines to stop sending domestic helpers to Jordan, saying such a step would highlight the abuse Philipinos and other nationals are subjected to at the hands of Jordanian families that employ them.

"These types of measures will positively contribute to providing protection to domestic helpers who suffer due to lack of proper legislations that could protect them," said Assem Rababah, President of the Adaleh Centre for Human Rights Studies (ACHRS) in Amman, Jordan. Hundreds of Filipina domestic helpers working with Jordanian families are being physically and sexually abused, and spend months or years without being paid, according to rights activists. Source: [IRIN]

This is a bold movement by the government of the Philippines. Hopefully it will shine some light on the abuse that many of these maids are subjected to on a daily basis.