(MENAFN- Alghad Newspaper)
He dedicated Himself to the transformation of Jordan, from merely conjunctive turf, linking Iraq to the Suez Canal, to a state of independent, inherent value.
For that, we should cherish Him; for His successful endeavour and dedication. For going against the Brits and their post-WWI plan to marginalise Jordan.
Instead, He turned Jordan into a standing country of regional important.
More or less, this is how Dr Adnan Abu Odeh, the Jordanian think, chose to close his speech at the launching ceremony of the King Hussein Bin Talal Chair for Research, at the University of Jordan's Centre for Strategic Studies, last Thursday.
The ceremony takes on academic, political, and symbolic dimensions, next to its exquisite scientific resemblance.
Accordingly, it was attended by the president of the University of Jordan, and a number of distinguished deans and politicians, such as former foreign ministers Kamel Abu Jaber and Abdul Elah Khatib, senior historians, like Dr Mohammad Adnan Bakhit and Dr Ali Mahafzah, and national figures, including Dawood Hanania, Marwan Pasha Amad, and others.
The ‘Chair', is supported by the Royal Court and the University of Jordan, and is dedicated to allocate funds other forms of support for scientific research programmes.
Notwithstanding other functions, its funds will be allocated for receiving visiting professors, holding conferences and symposia, or books and research on Jordan's internal and external policies during the King Hussein era.
More importantly, it is dedicated to exploring the late King Hussein's approach to policy-making and His exquisite art of governance.
Indeed, as Dr Abu Odeh put it, this comes a little too late by Jordanian institutions.
There should have preceded countless scientific and academic efforts, to study in depth the policies of His Majesty's period; almost half a century of the Kingdom's history.
In my opinion, the era of His Majesty King Hussein, underwent major existential struggles, in the fifties and sixties, given Jordan's engagement and overlapping involvement in the Palestinian case.
Second, His era featured massive leaps in construction and development, giving the public sector an integral and dynamic role.
Up until the beginning of the transition, in the nineties, the public sector and state institution expanded well enough to the point that it became characteristic of the Jordanian society; the bureaucrat.
Meanwhile, the nineties featured various changes on various levels.
Notably, a great deal of studies is required to comprehensively explore this long stage, which is essential to understanding Jordan's political history.
It does a great deal to learn from it for the next stage, in the face of difficult and pivotal challenges, upcoming in our historic journey through the next few years.
Likewise, it would help us understand and address underway and current changes in Jordan, as well as throughout the region over the recent years.
Unfortunately, to date, there have been great shortcomings in our historical efforts to document His Majesty's era, and on many levels.
Most of it was carried out on individual basis, isolated from the objective, institutional work of the academia.
For that particular reason, our narrative, both domestically and internationally, has been unsolid and frail.
This is why other, defaming, more documented narratives have found favour among many Jordanians and others alike.
There is an inexplicable scarcity in the Jordanian National Archives, an erosion of documentation and resources on that era.
Whatever documents we have are scattered among institutions which provide no guarantees on safekeeping or looking after them.
Other sources on the era, like oral testimonies, which should be documented and examined, are not being collected, save for some individual endeavours here and there.
More so, the lack of cooperation and integration between respective bodies has not helped the cause at all.
What is needed, as Dr Khatib said, is the allocation of collaborative and coordinated efforts of research and studies, to bring together the expertise available, and explore the aspects of His Majesty's era, objectively, academically, and scientifically.
There is so much to learn of the late King Hussein's wisdom in managing the Kingdom's public policies, foreign policy making, economy, and strategy.
Much remains confined to the unvoiced testimonies of key witnesses of the era too.
Such an initiative or endeavour is difficult to achieve, unless there is an encompassing collaboration and cooperation between institutions of the public sphere and the state.
However, before any of that, there needs to be conviction, in the public sphere and among officials, of the importance and value of scientific research.
Hence, the importance of the Royal Court's adoption and support of the Chair. Hoping the remainder of the public institution follows suit.
This article is an edited translation of the Arabic version, published by AlGhad.
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