'Jordan does not beg for aid it is int'l moral duty'

(MENAFN- Jordan Times) AMMAN — Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh on Wednesday said that Jordan 'does not beg for financial assistance' from the international community as it is neither a gift nor a favour, but a moral duty, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

This moral duty touches on the obligations of international organisations, which means they are required to provide more support to host countries, the speaker added.

Opening a meeting of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, attended by senior officials and MPs, Tarawneh said the consecutive refugee crises have weakened Jordan's economic growth and increased unemployment rates. 'Jordan has received a largeinfluxofrefugees over the past ten years that probably big countries cannot bear or cope with.'

Tarawneh also said that the 'non-stop' influx of refugees into the Kingdom has also had security and social consequences, adding, 'limited-resource Jordan feels it is left alone by the international community', Petra reported.

The speaker added that the 1.3 million of Syrians living in Jordan amounting to one fifth of the Kingdom's population, with only 10 per cent of them living in refugee camps while the remaining 90 per cent living in major cities and governorates, constituting 'tremendous' pressure on infrastructure, services and job opportunities.

On the Palestinian issue, Tarawneh urged stakeholders to abide by the international commitments made at the recent Rome meeting in support of UNRWA and called for exerting pressure to stop the continued threat to weaken the relief agency's role, according to Petra.

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