Jordanian Parliament Urged to Reject Bilateral Immunity Agreement

December 8 -- Leading human rights organizations have called for Jordan's lower house of parliament to refuse ratification of a Bilateral Immunity Agreement (BIA) that had been signed by King Abdullah last December. Jordan's upper house of parliament had endorsed the measure, but calls have been made for that body to rescind its decision and instead reject the agreement. If Jordan does not sign the BIA, it risks losing $250 million in Economic Support Funds (ESF) from the U.S. These funds support critical rule of law, democracy, and anti-terrorism programs in Jordan.

As a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Jordan is one of eleven U.S. allies threatened with the suspension of ESF aid if it does not enter a BIA with the U.S. Under a BIA, countries agree not to extradite U.S. nationals found within their territories to the jurisdiction of the ICC for prosecution of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. The Bush administration has actively pushed for BIAs to be conducted with all countries worldwide. Under the Nethercutt Amendment, ICC members who have not signed BIAs risk losing more than $326 million in ESF. In addition to these funds, ICC member countries that do not sign a BIA with the U.S. will also lose International Military and Education Training (IMET) and Foreign Military Financing (FMF) as a result of the American Servicemembers Protection Act of 2002.

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Updated December 8, 2005

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