November 4, 2002	Monday	Sha’aban 28,1423

AMMAN, Nov 3: The government has amended the Jordanian legislation to give women “equal rights” in keeping with the kingdom’s constitution, Queen Rania announced on Sunday.

The queen made the announcement on the opening day in Amman of a two-day summit of Arab first ladies, dedicated to improving the conditions of women in the male-dominated Arab world.

“I am pleased to announce that the council of ministers has adopted amendments on the laws concerning passports, nationality and retirement,” a beaming Queen Rania told the Arab Women’s Summit.

These amendments “will give the Jordanian woman equal rights as granted by the constitution,” she added, without spelling out the changes or specifying when they go into effect.

A Jordanian official source told AFP that the amendments grant Jordanian women married to foreign nationals the right to pass on Jordanian citizenship to their children. So far Jordanian women were prevented from passing on their nationality to children born from a marriage with a non-Jordanian, while Jordanian men could give their nationality to non-Jordanian wives and their children.

The amendments also authorise women to apply for a passport without the permission of her husband, as was the case.

Women who reach retirement age will likewise be able to obtain their pension in addition to their husband’s pension in case the latter is deceased. In the past, working widows who reached retirement age had to choose between their pension or the husband’s and obtained only the highest one.—AFP