Job Discussion Forums

[WHIRLPOOL]

As I might be offered a job in Oman I am trying to get a handle on the country....

Oman is the Middle East's Switzerland/Norway re: Neutrality and Diplomacy- would you agree or disagree?

[MuscatGary]

[WHIRLPOOL]

"Small" MG- you mean assets wise or geographic size...compared to Bahrain/Kuwait/Qatar and the UAE?

[omanoman]

"spin"is a more derogatory term than I think is appropriate. Sultan Qaboos is highly regarded in the region and elsewhere as having steered an important path between countries and conflicts with a neutral stance and mediation approach as well as promoting non-interference.

[veiledsentiments]

[balqis]

Spin is the right word. Many of the images are being imposed on Omanis, the Omanis themselves having no idea that their country has been marketed and made public in such manner.
In the provinces of Oman it is a deeply illusory image. You realize it, once you get to the remote areas and if you know a little Arabic. The so cold antiquities there, done up by the Ministry of Tourism to attract the Western pleasure-seekers, are strewn with graffiti inscritpions from Quran, and they mainly remind one of the Islamic eschataology. These inscriptions are made by the local Omanis, a message to the pleasure-seekers flocking the antiquities, and probably addressing the Muscat port-culture [pop-culture?] too.
If you know the story of the last Imam of the provinces, who expired in exile in KSA not long ago, then again you know this is all noisy spin.


''Spin'' is the right word, if one has eyes and reason behind one's eyes.

balqis

[madrileno]

I was having a conversation with coworkers earlier this week about the escalating conflict in Yemen, and someone said the exact words "Switzerland of the Gulf" to describe Oman.

I would agree with this. Oman has acted as mediator in conflicts between the Sunni states and Iran, as well as between the US and Iran. Also, the fact the majority of Oman's population is Ibadhi, and not Sunni or Shia means they usually don't get involved in the sectarian struggles going on throughout the Muslim world.

[Whatever will be]

@ Whirlpool

If you're trying to get a handle on Oman, perhaps looking into the stability of the country and your short to medium (job) security, i.e. the approaching demise of the ruler, the nation's substantial deficit, the rapidly rising unemployment of the local youth and the growth in fundamentalist notions (planned ban of alcohol, life music, abayas for ex-pat females in colleges...) which combined make a dangerous undercurrent in an otherwise peaceful looking country.

Re-locating to a backwater town of Oman just because your current place doesn't have a night life is going from bad to worse.

You'll end up driving 2 hours to Muscat on a Thursday night to catch a red eye to Dubai to spend every biaza of your hard earned salary on airplane ticket, airport tax, transportation, hotel and entertainment just to keep your sanity. Do this every weekend and you'll need to bring money.

Once every 4 to 6 weeks like a rest of us may not be enough for you.

Beware before you regret!

[MuscatGary]

[omanoman]

Hey, I'm willing to be as objective as possible and also willing to admit that I may have a more optimistic view of this country than some. But, in response to the last few posts, I would say also beware of the bitter long-term expats who have nothing left in their tanks except complaints and negative suppositions about the people and places here.

Qaboos shot his father?? That is news to me and anyone else who has any idea about the history here. Flat out wrong and I would add dangerously slanderous as well.

[balqis]

Ask for example your students in the rural colleges to write essays about the Opera House in Muscat, or beaches for foreigners with women half-naked....

balqis

[Whatever will be]

MuscatGarry:

http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20075787,00.html

After seven years of imprisonment in the small mud palace of Salalah, deprived of companions and books (except those smuggled to him by his mother), Qaboos conspired with local officials and his father's British advisers to overthrow the reactionary and paranoid despot. The coup was bloodless—except for a minor wound inflicted when the old Sultan grabbed a gun and accidentally shot himself in the foot. Packed off to Claridge's Hotel in London, the deposed monarch died in exile two years later.

Omanoman:

I am not a bitter long-term expat. Only here for a short time and under false promises (salary, benefits, support), waiting for enough savings to leave.

Anybody going to a new country needs to be aware of potential uprisings (i.e. Arab spring, civil/ war) and other factors that might impinge upon their personal safety.

The OP has asked along those lines. Sure, s/he could do a bit of a google search and come up with the same conclusion but choose this short cut.

Tip: Subscribe to travel warning of your respective government and you'll get warned of the dangers of a particular country, which is a good first indication.

[MuscatGary]

[omanoman]

I was in a taxi last year in a western country and discussed the danger of immigration and racial demographics, not to mention the corrupt and scandalous political scene, horror stories of graft, sexual misconduct, financial fraud and bribery.

Based on that sampling, I would strongly advise against travel or work there as it is clear that the place is rife with crime, corrupt and out of touch leadership, danger lurks around any corner and the coming demographic apocalypse will surely result in some form of class and / or racial war.

You have been warned!

[Whatever will be]

@ MuscatGary

Are you referring to this? Not sure sine you didn't include a URL.

http://theweek.com/speedreads/542562/ben-carson-says-regrets-hurtful-divisive-comments-homosexuality

Yes, the Opera House is not popular with many Omanis. I heard "It's only for tourists." There are also plans to turn it into a University for Islamic Studies, once the Sultan has died.