AMMAN — A group of Islamist activists led by current and former Muslim Brotherhood leaders are set to open an office in Amman next week, amid reports of a widening schism within the Islamist movement.
According to Islamists, the decision taken by the National Initiative for Building, or “Zamzam” — a socio-political movement launched by the liberal wing of the Muslim Brotherhood — represents the first official step into the political realm for the coalition.
The group includes liberal and centrist Islamists and independent activists advocating “social, political and economic reform” in Jordan.
“Starting next week, the Zamzam initiative will have a permanent presence in Jordan to coordinate activities and reach out to the local community,” said Rheil Gharaibeh, former Muslim Brotherhood politburo chief and founding member of the initiative.
According to the initiative’s founding committee, the 600-strong coalition will work to increase its membership base in the capital, while establishing branches in the country’s 12 governorates in order to build a broad “coalition for reform”.
Despite having gained enough members to license the initiative as a political party, Zamzam leaders insist that the coalition does not harbour political ambitions or serve as a rival to the Muslim Brotherhood.
“We are not a political movement and we will not be taking part in elections,” said Gharaibeh.
“Instead, we will be focusing on placing the interests of Jordan and Jordanian citizens above politics.”
According to observers, the initiative was launched largely as a direct response by liberals and centrists in the Brotherhood movement to the growing dominance of so-called hard-line party “hawks”, led by overall leader Hammam Saeed and deputy overall leader Zaki Bani Rsheid.
Despite assurances, Islamist sources say the Zamzam initiative marks an informal “separation” between Brotherhood centrists and liberals — led by Gharaibeh and Ahmad Al Kofahi, another Zamzam founder — and the conservative hard-line wing that currently dominates leadership within the movement.
“The launch of the Zamzam initiative was at first a rejection of the hawks’ leadership,” said a Brotherhood source who serves on the movement’s shura council, its highest executive body.
“But with the opening of an official office and talk of participation in municipal elections, it is clear that they are now set to go their separate ways.”
The Brotherhood has not barred members from taking part in the initiative, with Gharaibeh claiming that Islamists account for some 20 per cent of its membership base.
However, should Zamzam organisers move to encourage members to promote positions that stray from the Brotherhood’s party line — such as its boycott of upcoming municipal elections and its stance on the Syrian crisis — Islamist sources say the movement’s hard-line leadership is set to expel them.
“If the Zamzam initiative leaders make any attempt to undermine the Brotherhood’s position, they are ready to expel the entire liberal wing of the party,” the source claimed.
by: Taylor Luck
source: http://jordantimes.com/zamzam-initiative-to-open-amman-office
