Throne, mosque and parliament battle for power: Jordan's king hopes the ballot box will thwart Islamic extremism, writes Sarah Helm

THE King Abdullah mosque in Amman dominates the squat parliament building beside it, commanding an impressive view over the city and of the Royal Palace in the distance. Yesterday MPs swept out from the parliament gates and passed the mosque for the last time for several months as Jordan begins to prepare for the most important elections in its history.

The result will say much about the shifting balance of power in Jordan. King Hussein has devised his own methods for curbing the influence of Islamic extremists, whose call is increasingly heeded in Jordan. Eschewing the repression employed by some Arab leaders, the King has gradually introduced democracy, offering the fundamentalists a platform and challenging them to test their strength at the ballot box.

Some call this appeasement. But the King, master of the art of tactical manoeuvring, would call it common sense. He has had some short-term success. The violent militancy of other countries is almost unknown, and the more extreme elements of Islam's social programme have so far been defeated in parliament. Most recently an attempt to segregate women from men in schools was lost.

But the Islamic movement has also made gains. Since it won 29 out of the 80 seats in the election of 1989, it has limited the rights of women by cutting their rights to inheritance, for example. Small but significant changes have been made to financial laws, and Muslim groups have called for a banning of bank interest deemed contrary to Islamic law. In the past week they have forced the government to introduce a bill banning alcohol. And the Islamic movement recently won 95 per cent of seats on the student council of Jordan University, where segregation could now easily be introduced.

Since the introduction of political parties, the latest of King Hussein's reforms, the Islamic groups have joined together as the Islamic Action Front, which opposes the Middle East peace process. While it has not challenged the regime on the issue, its opposition acts as a clear restraint on the pro-peace King.

The movement's leaders are content playing a long non-confrontational game, building on support among the needy and the disillusioned who flock to the mosques. One hundred new mosques are built in Jordan every year.

The movement is also well aware that it would be foolhardy to seek to undermine the almost universal popularity of the king. Since his revelation in October that he was suffering from cancer, open adoration for King Hussein has only increased. Reports that he is now fully cured have produced immense relief.

However, while the character of Jordan's Islamic movement presents a conciliatory face, its aims are the same as elsewhere: to take power. 'For them moderation is only a tactic not a strategy,' said Mustafa Hamarneh, director of Jordan's Centre for Strategic Studies.

The relationship between the Islamic movement and the nation's ruler has always been closer in Jordan than in some other Arab countries. The King is a direct descendant of the prophet Mohammed and nobody can therefore openly challenge his Islamic credentials. He takes his religion seriously and his speeches are full of Koranic references. But the true fundamentalists know he is not one of them. 'They know his playboy past. And would rather his wife wore black robes instead of skirts and jeans,' said a Western diplomat. A leading Palestinian activist said: 'They do not really believe he is a good Muslim. But he is a pious man and they never lose hope that he will eventually become one of them.'

Early in his reign, the King established a close relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood, using it as an ally against the Pan-Arabist secular Nasserist and Baathist parties. Now the King is trying to cut the movement he nurtured down to size.

In the past year he has made a series of statements designed to turn the tide of reactionary Islam. He has described Islam as a forward-looking not a backward-looking religion. He has warned fundamentalists against 'exploiting' politics. And four months after 400 alleged Islamic militants, many supporters of Hamas, were deported by Israel, the issue has dropped off Jordan's television screens, no doubt because Hamas was gaining too much stature.

The King also maintains a highly sophisticated security apparatus to watch for radicalism and has never allowed the mosques to dominate social welfare distribution as they have in some other countries.

But secular Jordanians in Amman believe the King needs help if he is to counter the influence of the extremists - primarily he needs the United States to ensure progress in the peace process. 'Israel is breeding fanaticism as long as it remains in the occupied territories. The West's help for Israel and denial of Palestinian rights only demonises all Western countries and serves the cause of Islamic extremism,' said Asad Abdul Rahman, a Palestinian professor of history and PLO central council member.

Ironically, the widespread support for the King has produced a dangerous complacency which could play into the hands of the Islamic Action Front at the election. There is a view that as long as the King is around everything will be all right. The Islamic groups, however, have more time on their side. For the King, however fit he is today, will not be around for ever.