Unemployment, poor living conditions, inflation and lack of political freedom spurred the protests against the government in Tunisia . We in India have seen similar scenes quite often in India but then it have never been culminated to such a extent that the government collapses and the country is in disarray . The catalyst to this movement in Tunisia was due to a self immolation by one person in December 2010 and in January 2011 within a span of less than a month the president of the country Ben Ali who held on to his power for over 20 years had to flee to Saudi Arabia leading to a regime change there.
Within another 30 days another massive anti government protests in Egypt which started as a peaceful demonstration at Tahrir Square, Cairo and other parts of Egypt took an ugly turn when pro Mubarak supporters clashed with the protesters and in the end jolted the rule of Hosini Mubarak which he held for over 3 decades leading to a regime change.
Libya also witnessed anti government protests from the mid February onwards and is now blown to a fully fledged civil war between the government forces and rebels looking for a change of regime . Libyan episode has till date seen over 7000 deaths and is still going on with armed fights between pro and anti government forces. Migrant labor from most Arab world and third world countries are fleeing the country through the Tunisian border and through sea and air helped by their respective governments.
Meanwhile in other parts of the gulf such as Bahrain, Jordan, Iran, Iraq, Oman, Algeria, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia inspired by the happening in the Tunisia , Egypt and Libya also had protests against the government in various magnitudes and the “ Arab leaders started shaking in their boots “ as stated by the famous Middle East foreign correspondent Robert Fisk . Some of the gulf countries ( Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait) immediately channeled lots of funds to be distributed among its population to appease the protestors so as to avoid any violent incidents and also have stated that necessary reforms will be in place to address the issues raised by the
In Oman the violent incidents that happened in Sohar (looting and burning down of a super market by the protestors) was orchestrated by outside parties as per the authorities but then even this day there are still over 1000 protestors camped in the square and we as expats are not able to comprehend what is going to happen. Similarly at Salalah, the southern city of Oman people have put up tents and are camping in front of Wali’s office from last Friday awaiting for their demands to be met by tomorrow as informed by some local Omanis, in spite of the benefits been announced by the Sultan immediately after the Sohar incident. Army has been deployed along the border to UAE and in Sohar too. The latest news from Salalah is that people have noticed movement of Army to the region too. . An uneasy calm is prevailing in the region and it is wait and watch time before it turns to a full blown confrontation.
A sea of change is happening in the Middle East and the whole world is watching with bated breath the future of the region and its impact to the global economy. The media which has played a major role during the protests termed the protests as Jasmine Revolution… may be an analogy to waft of smell from the Jasmine flower spreading around similar to the protests that is spreading country to country in the region !!!
Last year was termed as the Year of Calamities , I only hope that 2011 is not termed as the Year of the Protests as similar incidents are happening in China as well and in other regions of the world. Looking forward to a peaceful end to all these protests since it is the ordinary people like you and me who have to suffer and put up with hardship in the event the protests turns violent.
As per a fellow blogger Dhofari Gucci the people are still camped in front of Wali's office and the car park there is now named as freedom square. The crowd in this square has swelled to over seven thousand people and as of now is quite peaceful !!! Hope it is like that and everyone goes back home safely !!!
ReplyDeleteFollowing are the demands by the protesters in Oman translated from Arabic
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The demands of reform and change in Oman
Date: March 4, 2011
First : the formal and explicit apology from the Omani government in various media, to the families of martyrs, injured, and detainees, and just compensation.
II : removal of the Inspector General of Police and Customs for failing to failure in crisis management, and is caused by the shedding of blood in the Omani-Taher.
III : removal of the current Attorney General, and the appointment of a new attorney general of the judges.
IV : the appointment of a group of judges of the Supreme Court to oversee the Commission on the Truth The current problem of the public prosecutor on the events of Sohar, with an emphasis on the Committee's deliberations to be open and published in the media first hand.
V. : dismissal of cabinet ministers who said the people by refusing to, and not assigned to any position, official or ceremonial;: Ali bin Majid Al Ma'amari, Ahmed bin Abdul Nabi Macki, Maqbool bin Ali bin Sultan, Khamis bin Mubarak Al Alawi, Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Rashidi, and Chancellor Abdul Aziz Bin Mohammed Al Rawas .
VI : the formation of the Government of competencies and a national at the earliest opportunity, under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister appointed by the Sultan for a period of two years, so that you are the government - in addition to her duties - reviewed all of the popular demands that emerged from the demonstrations and sit-ins in various regions of the Sultanate, carried out the following priorities:
1 - the formation of economic committee composed of experts Omani economists the task of putting packs economic urgency, to address the claims of economic made by the protesters, with a focus on the problems of unemployed workers and the poor classes in society, and the low salaries of public and private sectors, military, retirees, and to develop radical solutions to the national economy, particularly acquisitions and the crisis of economic monopoly.
2 - to form a committee of experts from the field of education to review the various stages of the educational system, including higher education and its institutions.
VII : the formation of an independent judicial commission to investigate cases of corruption and financial security and administrative support.
VIII : the establishment of a National Council for the drafting of the Constitution of Oman, that the ends of his works, to present the draft constitution to a popular referendum in a maximum period of two years from the date of the establishment of the Council.
IX : the establishment of a constitutional court separate and apart from the Supreme Court.
X. : extending the powers of the Shura Council to be legislative and regulatory council, the Council of Ministers to be held accountable until the adoption of the Constitution of Oman.
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Sultan has already issued few decrees this evening to placate the people by dismissing couple of ministers and is expected to address the population this evening . I am sure that peace would prevail in Oman since all steps are being taken by Sultan to ensure the demands of the people are taken care in all possible ways.
A sigh of relief for all expatriates as we did not know what to expect of these protests.