Saturday, November 17, 2012

Why social media - not violence - could bring change to Oman

An interesting piece from the BBC by Matthew Teller "Why social media - not violence - could bring change to Oman". I'm sorry I missed his visit to Salalah last month. What are your thoughts on his piece?
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14 comments:

  1. محفيفNovember 17, 2012 at 6:34 PM

    " as a local journalist explained, the authorities will generally let whatever is said in English pass. But they care deeply about what is said in Arabic - to the point of jailing dissenters"
    I agree :)

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  2. Omani Princess (not Omani...yet)November 18, 2012 at 9:31 AM

    I disagree with that;). Though usually you say something too bad in English you find yourself moved to another country for work or whatever;).

    Not a very in depth discussion on the subject, but true that opinions about His Majesty vary among the age-lines of the population.

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  3. AnonymousNovember 18, 2012 at 10:01 AM

    Quote "What are your thoughts on his piece?" Unquote DG.

    Nothing new really. Same stuff I have been reading here and there by different journalists doing their piece. But, I wonder why, Matthew chose Dhofar over Muscat in conducting his research?

    Mti


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  4. AnonymousNovember 18, 2012 at 10:13 AM

    I don't think that photo was taken in Oman. Seems a little too dramatic. I may be wrong.

    Sarah

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  5. Al RawasNovember 18, 2012 at 10:13 AM

    Objective piece. Nothing in depth,

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  6. AnonymousNovember 18, 2012 at 2:27 PM

    You guys need to work on making British and European tourists, ex-pats and companies realise how oppressive the Omani government can be!

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  7. AnonymousNovember 18, 2012 at 5:22 PM

    Exactly why are you always trying to provoke your readers' opinions? (Not to mention idle gossip.) If it really so safe to express opinions when using English as the medium, why do you not give us yours? That is what a blog is for

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  8. AnonymousNovember 18, 2012 at 5:27 PM

    Are Al Maashanis Bedouin? Are Jebelis Bedouin? Facts are important. And please tell the BBC that, who were so unfortunate to miss meeting you

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  9. The Linoleum SurferNovember 18, 2012 at 7:54 PM

    Meaningful political participation and education are what bring about change. Online insults, rumour-mongering and aimless talk of rights with no accompanying responsibilities, only lead to disorder and backwardness.

    The point about English versus Arabic is simply untrue. With respect to Riyadh al Balushi, as a lawyer he should be the first to point out that libel and slander are criminal, rather than civil issues, in Oman. Although his point about excessive self-censorship is right, the fact is that most prosecutions related to "freedom of speech", have been based on violations of this law. Every country has libel laws, it's just that in most, the victim has to sue for money, rather then here, where the criminal justice system prosecutes on the principle. That's the way it is, and it seems that more of it occurs in Arabic than English - a simple matter of demographics, one would imagine.

    If you want to change the law, stand for the Shura, campaign for your issue, and put forward your new legislation. If you don't, or don't vote, or don't ask your candidate what they stand for, and instead expect to bring about your "change" by ugly gossip and innuendo on an internet forum, then you've only yourself to blame.

    This isn't a bad article - I'm glad someone took the trouble to write it. There are also some very important points on demographics and economics. But unfortunately it's a few hundred words of generalisms, and titled for a fashionable subject angle, rather than for the serious elements it actually contains.

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  10. MimiNovember 19, 2012 at 4:12 AM

    " as a local journalist explained, the authorities will generally let whatever is said in English pass. But they care deeply about what is said in Arabic - to the point of jailing dissenters"

    I didn't read the article but I agree with this.

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  11. AnonymousNovember 19, 2012 at 9:32 AM

    Quote "This isn't a bad article - I'm glad someone took the trouble to write it. There are also some very important points on demographics and economics. But unfortunately it's a few hundred words of generalisms, and titled for a fashionable subject angle, rather than for the serious elements it actually contains." Unquote TLS.

    Well said. I wish we had more Omanis like you, With ability to analyze write-ups thru an impartial mind. Who are capable of critical thinking and summarizing it all with a scholarly touch.

    Mti

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  12. AnonymousNovember 19, 2012 at 1:39 PM

    For a BBC article it's a decent piece. You have to keep your audience in mind after all.

    I stumbled across this article yesterday: http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/8430/%E2%80%9Cqaboos-can-make-mistakes-like-anybody-else_-the-s
    I don't know if it's accessable in Oman.
    Taking into account other pieces by this author (e.g. http://mepc.org/create-content/book-review/oman-politics-and-society-qaboos-state) and the timing of this article, I'd say he has some personal little vendetta.
    In my opinion he has a rather single minded view on politics in Oman for a scholar.

    Kind regards,
    JB

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  13. Oman ThinkerNovember 21, 2012 at 11:20 AM

    I totally don't agree with the saying "the authorities will generally let whatever is said in English pass."

    What is offensive is always bad. And when there is a person to claim his right when abused the justice is here in Oman. Whatever language used, the facts are same. I agree that what is written in English is much less that Arabic and I rarely came across such writings that are very negative in English. If there is please give examples.




    I was also shocked to read this:
    "You guys need to work on making British and European tourists, ex-pats and companies realise how oppressive the Omani government can be!"

    If you monitor the oppression in those countries you will understand how Oman is really peaceful and positive. Thanx to His Majesty the Sultan and the Omanis.

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  14. AnonymousNovember 24, 2012 at 2:22 PM

    Sounded more like a narrative to me than anything that can be taken seriously on a political scale.
    Opinions may vary as to the points mentioned but as mentioned by other posters, its a very general article which doesn’t hinder any specifics on the topic.

    Warda

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