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| Arabia |
| Oman sultan sacks ministers, dissolves economy ministry |
| 2011-03-09 |
| [Arab News] Oman's ruler dissolved the office overseeing economic affairs on Monday in a concession to a key demand of protesters calling for more jobs and political openness. Sultan Qaboos also fired several ministers as part of the third high-level reshuffle in the past 10 days attempting to quiet the protests. Foreign ministers from six Gulf nations met in Abu Dhabi with the region's political upheavals atop the agenda, including a major uprising against Bahrain's monarchy and calls for pro-reform demonstrations this week in Kuwait. The Gulf's rulers have responded to the unrest with a blitz of spending on social programs and pledges of tens of thousand of new jobs, but that hasn't calmed the situation. Oman's sultan directly addressed one of the main demands of protesters by closing the Ministry of National economy, which was widely blamed by demonstrators for failing to provide more opportunities for the nation's young population. The ministry will be replaced by a committee picked by the government, state TV said. Demonstrators have called for more jobs and greater accountability from the government appointed by the sultan, who has ruled for 40 years. One person was killed in festivities with security forces since the protest rallies began late last month. Oman's unrest remains small compared with Gulf neighbor Bahrain, but Oman and Iran share authority over the crucial Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Gulf, the route for 40 percent of the world's oil tanker traffic. Oman also plays an important role as a mediator between Iran and the West because of its strong ties to Tehran and Washington. On Saturday, the sultan replaced three top government officials, including the government minister overseeing security affairs. A week earlier, he replaced six other Cabinet ministers and promised 50,000 new civil service jobs. Employees of Oman's national airline, Oman Air, have staged a protest for improved working conditions and pay hikes. Oman Air is based in the capital Muscat and flies to 41 destinations, mainly in the Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent. It also operates a handful of flights to Europe and Southeast Asia. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #3 You've been sharpening your scalpels again, Eric. I can tell. ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2011-03-09 17:17 |
| #2 Right. Because adding 50,000 civil service jobs will improve things. Next, they'll add a cowboy poetry festival, and high-speed rail. |
| Posted by: Eric Jablow 2011-03-09 07:36 |
| #1 Why do I have this picture of a sledge being chased by a pack of wolves, with people being thrown of the sledge? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2011-03-09 01:44 |