Letter to Ali Abul Ragheb on the establishment of a higher media council

In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Compassionate,

Your Excellency Ali Abul Ragheb,

Greetings,

It is with high regard, respect and affection that I send this letter to you and your colleagues, wishing you all further accomplishment and success in the service of our beloved homeland.

Our vision of a modern Jordan is based upon justice, freedom, and a dignified life. We have long reiterated the importance of such a vision, based on a comprehensive and integral frame, which in turn invests in the future of politics, economy, society and culture.

Within this frame, our call for a structured Jordanian media has been stated. We aspire for such a system to achieve development, and to be in harmony with open economical, social, political and cultural policies adopted by Jordan, thus keeping pace with modern developments witnessed by the world at large.

Our desire to elevate our national media should be based on the development of a new Jordanian media example that considers the spirit of the age, serves the noble aims of the Jordanian state, expresses the nation's conscience and identity, and reflects the will of Jordan First and the aspirations of its people. This would allow the media to act as a monitor and compete in the media market.

In this context, we have set specific basic parameters for a modern state media: pluralism, freedom of expression, and respect of diverse views. We also pledge to support the independence of media organisations and their administrations, and to endeavour to elevate the professionalism of the media through enhancing excellence and creativity in a climate of pluralism, freedom and responsibility.

These elements and components necessitate the formation of a higher media council to act as a regulatory, non-executive commission, which works to crystallise our vision and translates it into a reality.

We hope the new council will cooperate with the government to achieve goals and to put in place a media policy that serves the nation's causes and articulates Jordanians' conscience with integrity, balance and objectivity.

We seek God Almighty to keep and guide us all to the well being of our people and the elevation of our precious homeland.

Peace, God's mercy and His blessings upon you,

Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein
Amman, 2 December 2002