Qaboos of Oman
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| 'Sayyed Qaboos bin Sa’id Al ‘Bu Sa’id Sultan of Oman قابوس بن سعيد آل سعيد |
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| Sultan of Oman | ||
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| Reign | July 23, 1970 - Present | |
| Born | November 18, 1940 | |
| Salalah, Dhofar, Oman | ||
| Predecessor | Said bin Taimur | |
| Successor | Incumbent | |
| Consort | none | |
| Royal House | Sa'id | |
| Father | Said bin Taimur | |
| Mother | Mazwon bint Ahamed- مزون بنت أحمد | |
Sayyed Qaboos bin Sa’id Al ‘Bu Sa’id (Arabic: قابوس بن سعيد آل سعيد born November 18, 1940 in Salalah) is the current Sultan of Oman. He rose to power after overthrowing his father, Sa’id ibn Taimur, in 1970. He is the 14th descendant of the Al Bu Sa'id Dynasty.[1]
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[edit] Early life
Sultan Qaboos bin Said was born in Salalah in Dhofar on 18 November, 1940. He is the only son of Sultan Said bin Taimur (dec'd) and is of the 8th generation of the Al Busaidi dynasty. He received his primary and secondary education in Salalah, and at 16, was sent to a private educational establishment in England. At the age of 20, he entered the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. After passing out of Sandhurst, he joined a British Infantry battalion (1st Bn The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)) on operations in Germany for one year and also held a staff appointment with the British Army.
After his military service, Sultan Qaboos studied local government subjects in England and, after a world tour, returned home to Salalah where he studied Islam and the history of his country.
[edit] Rise to power
For six years prior to Sa’id ibn Taimur's overthrow, Qaboos was under virtual house arrest in the royal palace of Salalah. In July of 1970, soldiers supporting Qaboos clashed with forces loyal to Sa'id ibn Taimur, and deposed him.[1] Qaboos maintains that his father abdicated the throne.[2] The British government helped to consolidate Qaboos' power. Qaboos acceded to the throne on 23 July 1970, moving to Muscat. There he declared that the country would no longer be known as Muscat and Oman, but would change its name to "the Sultanate of Oman" in order to better reflect its political unity.
The first pressing problem that Qaboos faced as Sultan was an armed Communist insurgency from South Yemen, the Dhofar War (1965-1975). The Sultan quickly defeated the incursion with help from the Iranian Army and the British Royal Air Force.
[edit] Reign as Sultan
The political system which Qaboos established is that of an absolute monarchy. Unlike the situation in neighboring Saudi Arabia, Qaboos' decisions are not subject to modification by other members of Oman's sultanic family.
Government decisions are said to be made through a process of decision-making by "consensus" with federal, provincial, local and tribal representatives. Critics allege that Qaboos exercises de facto control of this process. Qaboos also regularly engages in tours of his realm, in which any citizen with a grievance or request is (at least in theory) allowed to appeal to the sultan in person. Critics claim these meetings to be scripted as well.
More recently Qaboos has allowed parliamentary elections (in which women have voted and stood as candidates), and pledged greater openness and participation in government. As yet, however, this parliament lacks substantial political power.
Qaboos's supporters point to his relative success in governing the country. By Gulf standards, Oman boasts good public order (it is basically a safe country, even for foreigners), middling prosperity (given its level of oil revenues) and a relatively permissive society. Since Qaboos acceded to the throne, Oman has broadened international relations, allowed newspapers, established high schools, built highways, opened hotels and shopping malls, and spends a substantial portion of its dwindling oil revenues on health care and education.[2] Full democracy, they say, might threaten these accomplishments.
Unlike the heads of other Gulf states, Qaboos has not publicly named an heir. Article 6 of the constitution actually provides that the Ruling Family Council chooses the successor after the throne becomes vacant, and that the sultan's preference, to be expressed in an official letter (which Qaboos maintains has already been sealed and delivered to the defense minister), is only resorted to in the event of lack of familial consensus. Critics fear, however, that the resulting uncertainty could inspire a power struggle among members of the dynasty and/or the military. A power vacuum could thus coincide with the expected depletion of Oman's oil supplies, threatening the nation's continued peace and prosperity.
In 1998, Qaboos was presented with the International Peace Award by the National Council on US-Arab relations. He also forges and maintains good relations with other Arab States and partners in the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (AGCC).
Each year, Oman celebrates the reign of Sultan Qaboos on National Day, 18th November. Festivities take place all over the country and are lavish displays in the Sultan's honour. Year 2000, 30th National Day celebrations will be based in Muscat.
[edit] Messages to his people
"I promise you to proceed forthwith in the process of creating a modern government. My first act will be the immediate abolition of all the unnecessary restrictions on your lives and activities.
"My people, I will proceed as quickly as possible to transform your life into a prosperous one with a bright future. Every one of you must play his part towards this goal. Our country in the past was famous and strong. If we work in unity and cooperation we will regenerate that glorious past and we will take a respectable place in the world.
"I call upon you to continue living as usual. I will be arriving in Muscat in the coming days and then I will let you know of my future plans.
"My people, I and my new government will work to achieve our general objective.
"My people, my brothers, yesterday it was complete darkness and with the help of God, tomorrow will be a new dawn on Muscat, Oman and its people.
"God bless us all and may He grant our efforts success."
[edit] Personal
Sultan Qaboos is a Muslim of the Ibadhi sect, which has traditionally ruled Oman. (It is a point of political dispute whether Ibadhis or Sunnis constitute a majority of Oman's population.) A religious liberal, he has financed the construction or maintenance of a number of mosques, as well as the holy places of other religions.
Qaboos was married in 1976 to his cousin, Kamila, née Sayyida Nawwal bint Tariq (born 1951), daughter of HH Sayyed Tariq bin Taimur al-Said,[3] but the marriage soon ended in divorce. He has no children. Within Oman, the rumor that Qaboos has lived a homosexual lifestyle may, to an unknown degree, have diminished respect for him, both as an observant Muslim, and as a monarch perceived as not taking adequate measures to groom a dynastic successor.[4]
He is an avid listener to and promoter of classical music. His 120 member orchestra has a high reputation in the Middle East. Although initially trained by British professionals (who were paid much more than Omanis, but no more than was standard for London, whence most were recruited), the orchestra consists entirely of young Omanis who, since 1986, audition as children and grow up as members of the symphonic ensemble. They play locally and travel abroad with the sultan (although not to Salafi Saudi Arabia, because the orchestra mixes male and female musicians).[2] Lalo Schifrin was commissioned to compose a work entitled Symphonic Impressions of Oman[2] and is particularly enthusiastic about the pipe organ.[3] Such cultural innovations by the sultan have, however, been criticised as "just wasted money" because, as an Omani professional observed in 2001, "music diverts us from being serious about religion."[2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Qaboos bin Said". Webster's Concise Encyclopedia 1: 520. (1998). New York: Gramercy Books.
- ^ a b c d Trofimov, Yaroslav (2001-12-14). "Oman has oil, but it had no orchestra". Wall Street Journal: p. A6.
- ^ Royal Ark. Oman: The Al-Busaid Dynasty Genealogy. Christopher Buyers. Retrieved on 2007 01 10.
- ^ Katz, Mark, "Assessing the Political Stability of Oman", Middle East Review of International Affairs, Volume 8, No. 3 - September 2004.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Said Bin Taimur |
Sultan of Oman July 23, 1970 – present |
Incumbent |
