JORDAN TIMES 24 May ’04:"Leaders adopt reform plan" By Alia Shukri Hamzeh
TUNIS - Arab leaders on Sunday concluded their 16th summit after endorsing a widely debated blueprint for ... reforms in the region. The 13-point document... is part of Arab government’s efforts to push off Washington’s controversial "Greater Middle East Initiative," expected to be presented to the G-8 summit in June. Arab diplomats emphasised the significance of adopting their own reform document in order to present it to the industrialised group and avoid imposition of the US initiative, which presses for political reforms in the region under claims it was a fertile ground for terrorism. The ...blueprint of agreed on principles calls for greater political freedom, good governance and transparency, advanced civil liberties and human rights, women’s rights and judicial reforms. The fight against terrorism was included in the document, which also highlights the need to solve ...the Arab-Israeli conflict in order to allow for development and political reform.
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