* Protestors say government procrastinates over reforms
* Islamists say protests to continue until demands met
By Suleiman al-Khalidi
AMMAN, March 18 (Reuters) - More than a thousand Jordanian activists staged street protests on Friday urging King Abdullah to accelerate the tempo of promised political reforms, saying procrastination would only fuel growing dissent.
The pro-democracy protestors who marched in downtown Amman, mainly supporters of the mainstream Islamist Muslim Brotherhood and leftist allies, said they would continue weeks of street protests inspired by uprisings elsewhere in the Arab world, until their demands are met.
"This is a continuation of the movement to demand reforms and to accelerate it, especially since the steps taken so far are worrying and do not inspire confidence," said Jamil Abu Bakr, a leading figure in the Muslim Brotherhood, told Reuters.
While the U.S. ally has faced nothing like the mass uprisings that toppled veteran authoritarian leaders in Egypt and Tunisia, dissent has built up and the opposition has become more vocal in its slogans and calls for change.
"We want to reform the regime," chanted the crowd, urging the monarch to introduce constitutional changes that curb his executive powers and to provide fair representation under a new electoral law.
Many also chanted calls to dissolve parliament, a rubber-stamp assembly that ensures a comfortable government majority to pass unpopular laws.
Opponents say the election law gives a bigger voice to less heavily populated tribal areas in the provinces that are considered the backbone of support for the monarchy, at the expense of urban areas where the opposition is stronger.
Islamist, leftist, liberal and even tribal figures have called for constitutional reforms that would curb the monarch's sweeping executive powers, demanding a government elected by a parliamentary majority rather than appointed by the king.
The Islamic Action Front -- the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm and Jordan's largest party -- said this week it would not join a 52-member government-appointed panel to discuss reform because its remit did not include constitutional changes to curb the monarch's powers.
The composition of the panel has dismayed many Jordanians already angered by last month's appointment of a government led by Marouf al-Bahkit, a former military intelligence general who oversaw elections in 2007 which were marred by allegations of vote-rigging.
(Writing by Suleiman al-Khalidi; Editing by Peter Graff)
* Islamists say protests to continue until demands met
By Suleiman al-Khalidi
AMMAN, March 18 (Reuters) - More than a thousand Jordanian activists staged street protests on Friday urging King Abdullah to accelerate the tempo of promised political reforms, saying procrastination would only fuel growing dissent.
The pro-democracy protestors who marched in downtown Amman, mainly supporters of the mainstream Islamist Muslim Brotherhood and leftist allies, said they would continue weeks of street protests inspired by uprisings elsewhere in the Arab world, until their demands are met.
"This is a continuation of the movement to demand reforms and to accelerate it, especially since the steps taken so far are worrying and do not inspire confidence," said Jamil Abu Bakr, a leading figure in the Muslim Brotherhood, told Reuters.
While the U.S. ally has faced nothing like the mass uprisings that toppled veteran authoritarian leaders in Egypt and Tunisia, dissent has built up and the opposition has become more vocal in its slogans and calls for change.
"We want to reform the regime," chanted the crowd, urging the monarch to introduce constitutional changes that curb his executive powers and to provide fair representation under a new electoral law.
Many also chanted calls to dissolve parliament, a rubber-stamp assembly that ensures a comfortable government majority to pass unpopular laws.
Opponents say the election law gives a bigger voice to less heavily populated tribal areas in the provinces that are considered the backbone of support for the monarchy, at the expense of urban areas where the opposition is stronger.
Islamist, leftist, liberal and even tribal figures have called for constitutional reforms that would curb the monarch's sweeping executive powers, demanding a government elected by a parliamentary majority rather than appointed by the king.
The Islamic Action Front -- the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm and Jordan's largest party -- said this week it would not join a 52-member government-appointed panel to discuss reform because its remit did not include constitutional changes to curb the monarch's powers.
The composition of the panel has dismayed many Jordanians already angered by last month's appointment of a government led by Marouf al-Bahkit, a former military intelligence general who oversaw elections in 2007 which were marred by allegations of vote-rigging.
(Writing by Suleiman al-Khalidi; Editing by Peter Graff)
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