Jordanian Anticipation of a General Amnesty .. Has Its Issuance Approached?

Al-Taj News –

Ghada Al-Khouli

Legal expert and consultant Dr. Sakher Al-Khasawneh confirmed that the general amnesty, despite being issued under a law and passing through the prescribed legislative stages, has become established by constitutional custom in Jordan as being issued upon royal direction to the government, and is usually linked to a need or occasion.

Al-Khasawneh said in an interview with “Al-Taj News” today, Tuesday, that the general amnesty cannot be anticipated unless royal directives are issued in this regard, noting that the previous general amnesty, as well as the last two amnesties issued, did not include all crimes, and that the exceptions in them were greater than the cases covered.

He explained that, to avoid this problem, an amending law to the previous General Amnesty Law could be issued, which would lead to expanding its scope to include a larger number of crimes.

Regarding the problem of overcrowding in correction and rehabilitation centers, following Interior Minister Mazen Al-Faraya’s statement that the prison occupancy rate in Jordan had exceeded 200% of their capacity, Al-Khasawneh explained that detention or imprisonment may be ordered by the courts to enforce criminal judgments, or by administrative governors under the powers granted to them under the Crime Prevention Law.

He pointed out that determining the scale of the problem and identifying appropriate solutions require determining the categories of people present in correctional centers and identifying the authorities that issued decisions to detain or imprison them.

Al-Khasawneh noted that previous years witnessed numerous amendments to issues of detention and imprisonment, including that detention in misdemeanor cases became minimal, while prison sentences of six months became subject to replacement with a financial fine.

He added that prison sentences of up to three years can be replaced with community-based sentences, in addition to the abolition of executive imprisonment in financial cases.

He stressed that taking any measure to address the overcrowding issue in correction and rehabilitation centers first requires knowing the categories most present there, determining the nature of their cases and the authorities that issued decisions to detain or imprison them, allowing the decision-maker to take the appropriate action.

Regarding administrative detention under the Crime Prevention Law, Al-Khasawneh noted that administrative detention, as long as it has not been brought before the Constitutional Court, is considered legal.