r/geography • u/Necessary_Wing799 Geography Enthusiast • 14d ago

Oman - a country rarely spoken about. What's happening there? Discussion

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Oman is located in a area we heat about a lot for an array of reasons - there are many famous and newsworthy spots close by from dubai to Doha to Iran and Yemen...... what goes on in Oman? Let us know how life is here and any relevant info on its current state....

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u/TundraForager 14d ago

From what my Omani friends have shown me, a more chill UAE/Saudi, pretty rich people, though they don’t really think it, less garish large developments like the Royal Opera house, beautiful place, lots of Subcontinental “migrant workers”. Omanis are pretty chill with life, pretty content with living in a non-representative monarchy 

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u/supapoopascoopa 14d ago

Absolute monarchy, sharia law, no free press or ability to criticize the government, torture, no due process rights

I give them credit for being peaceful but it only seems chill with respect to it’s neighbors.

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u/Physical-Arrival-868 14d ago

As a citizen of Oman Sharia law is not the absolute law of the land, it is seen as a guidance for our own laws. Also dynamics in Oman don't necessarily rely on free press, it's a paternalistic dynamic where we still have trust in our institutions to hold people accountable and resolve the concerns of the population, and until now, that's worked. People constantly criticize the government, you just can't criticize the sultan publicly, however it is common to find people trashing the ministry of education, the police, or the ministry of labour for policies they disagree with. Recently, media laws have relaxed in Oman, and we are having steady progress being made towards a freer press. Despite what democratic states may believe, In Oman as is the case with many non-democracies the people are not constantly in opposition with the state, and healthy communication between the two does exist.

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u/supapoopascoopa 14d ago

This is educational, thanks. I can see the appeal though it still seems very fragile as you depend on the good intentions of a single person.

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u/Physical-Arrival-868 14d ago

That's true, we had bad sultans in the past. I guess every system depends on the good will of people though, and Donald Trump doesn't seem to have any left 😅

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u/Just_RandomPerson 13d ago

Ok, but Americans only have themselves to blame, and it's only 4 years. Also, impeachment should be a thing... If you have a bad sultan, there's nothing you can do and it's not your fault.

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u/yousuckatlife90 13d ago

Yeah and it sucks that trump has everybody underneath him, totally willing to make america as bad off as possible again. People who are against a goverment agency are going to be in control of them. Like rfk jr. for example. Trump has 34 felony convictions against him. Found guilty on them all by a jury (some were even trump supporters supposedly) and the judge kept delaying his sentencing a few times and now its either totally dropped or delayed till after his presidency. He has total immunization from any wrongdoings according to the supreme court that also has mostly trump supporters. He has been caught on camer and microphones sayi g the worst things and straight up lying about everything. He is laughed at by the rest of the world and a good chuck of americans. Yet... here he is... about to have a dictatorship for 4 years unless he finda a way to change that law as well.

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u/SWGoH123 11d ago

Only 4 years.. LOL. Ahem; “You’ll never have to vote again”

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u/foggygoggleman 13d ago

The gnarliest part about this, is if let’s say you move towards that free press. When do you know it’s moved into propaganda press?