A new year begins with jail for journalists who insulted Minister, and more oil money for all!

Well, Happy New Year readers! Let's get straight to the news.

Azzaman Journos sent to jail (again)
The 2 journalists from Omani newspaper Azzaman, who were found guilty of insulting the Minister of Justice last October, had their convictions and draconian 5 month jail sentences upheld by the Omani Court of Appeal a couple of days ago.

This should not have come as a surprise, as in a legal sense they were clearly guilty - the law is so broad and is very easy to breach - plus, lets face it, when taking on the Ministry of Justice on a matter of law the odds are pretty stacked against you!

Arabian Business.com, by Claire Ferris-Lay Monday, 2 January 2012 Oman daily vows to appeal journalists’ jail terms.

Omani newspaper Azzaman has pledged to appeal a five-month jail sentence given to two of its journalists for insulting the Gulf state’s justice minister, it was reported Monday.

The court of appeal on Saturday confirmed the jail terms given to journalists Yusef al-Haj and editor-in-chief Ibrahim al-Maamaria for an article published in May alleging corruption in the justice ministry, newswire AP said.

The court initially ordered the newspaper suspend its operations for a month but decided not to enforce the ruling. Another justice ministry employee was also given five months in prison for telling the journalists that a ministry employee had been denied his salary and benefits by the justice minister without valid cause.

Azzaman’s board of directors in a statement complained against the court’s failure to respect an agreement to acquit the pair in exchange for apologizing to the minister, the newswire said.

I expect a royal pardon soon to get past this trivial issue. Having this case drag on means we get named in the company of really nasty places like Iran and other Middle East countries who are really imprisoning journalists by the bus load.


High Oil prices support Oman Economic 'Growth'
Meanwhile, Oman's Government continues to pump the extra cash from the high oil prices into the economy, with massive fiscal injections - Government spending is up by almost 20% in the last 10 months of 2011.

[Oman Observer]....
Regarding the Public Finance, the State General Budget for the fiscal year 2011 was approved with a total expenditure amounting to RO 8,130 million and a deficit amounting to RO 850 million and was based on the assumption of the oil price at $58, note that the average price of the Oman oil in the year 2011 amounted to about $102.
During the year, additional financial allocations have been approved that amounted to RO 1.8 billion, most of which was concentrated on the current civil and security expenditures bringing the deficit of the budget to about RO 2.6 billion. However, and as a result of the stable global oil prices at a higher level, the actual budget is expected to achieve a financial surplus that may reach about RO 1 billion, where an amount of RO 700 million will be used as a part of the means of funding for covering the deficit of the budget of the year 2012, while the remaining surplus, if any, in light of the final closing for the accounts of the fiscal year will be used to strengthen the financial reserves of the State.

The windfall from high oil prices is helping Oman to protect the domestic economy from the ongoing crisis in the Global economy, and to pay for all those extra Government jobs needed to keep the peace in Sohar and Salalah following the protests. It doesn't do much to diversify the economy, but hey, it's better than nothing.






Oman is still totally dependent on oil and gas exports, directly as oil and LNG, and indirectly via exports of either refined gasoline or the highly subsidised energy heavy exports of aluminium & methanol. This is why the reports from the Ministries of 20% growth in 'non-oil exports' is very misleading.

The preliminary forecasts of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) suggest that the national economy in the year 2011 will achieve a growth of (7 per cent) exceeding the growth rate achieved in the previous year (2010) that amounted to (6 per cent). This growth in national economy is based on the added value of the non-oil activities that are projected to achieve a growth rate of (10 per cent) compared with (2 per cent) for the oil activities. This is also attributed to the increased domestic demand as well as the increased non-oil exports by (20 per cent) compared with the year 2010.

Oman still actually manufactures fuck all. Food imports are rising, and there is precious little to buy in the supermarkets that comes from within (as per the rest of the Middle East). Most non-Governmental services are provided by predominantly expat labour. Especially construction, which is perhaps the biggest real thing being made in Oman, GDP-wise.

Thus, the money from the extractive energy sector continues to hide the underlying malaise in Oman's 'real' economy, and job growth remains a matter of increased Government sector spending, either hiring directly (more ROP officiers) or indirectly from employment related to infrastructure projects funded by the State.

Eventually the Piper will need to be paid.


In Other News
We arrested and will deport 1,243 illegal workers around Seeb and Muscat, all doing nasty manual labour jobs Omanis don't want.

... "We caught 174 [all but one Bangladeshis] illegal workers from a single farmhouse in Baushar during one such raid," he said, and added that the Mawaleh Fruits and Vegetable Market was also raided by the teams to root out illegal workers from the wholesale market.

Al Badi pointed out that among the arrested there are 417 absconding workers, 525 released workers and 162 infiltrators.

According to him, most of the apprehended workers were mostly engaged in farm work, construction industry and restaurant businesses.

Killing ourselves by driving on the roads continue to be a real growth industry, with official deaths up 25% in 2011.

Muscat : Traffic accidents continue to be a big worry for Oman, with almost a 25 per cent increase in deaths during 2011, according to Lieutenant General Hassan Bin Mohsin Al Shraiqi, Inspector-General of Police and Customs.

Presiding over the second meeting of the National Committee for Road Safety at the Police Headquarters in Qurum on Saturday, the top police officer in the country said: "The 1,051 fatalities and 11,322 injuries in road accidents [last year] in Oman is a worrying trend, even though the Sultanate is not considered among the countries with high rates of road crashes."

"...not considered among the countries with high rates of road crashes". LMFAO. This is such typical Omani Government bullshit. As I reported earlier, these ROP stats only count those adults that die at the scene of the accident - to get a more representative number you can double the official one to take account of children and later deaths in hospital. With over 2100 road deaths a year in a population of ~2.5 million, we are killing close to 1 in a thousand, every year. Local blogger Muscat Mutterer posted about the reasons in an excellent rant.


At least the ROP border guards at Al Wajaja had an awesome New Year's eve, taking delivery of oops, I mean confiscating 35,000 rials worth of demon drink from a particularly unlucky 'Arab national'. I'm sure it was all properly disposed of... hic ... just like all the rest of the booze taken at the Oman border!

Cheers to that.

So here's to a good 2012. Feel free to recommend a facebook 'like' of Muscat Confidential to your friends!

International NGO 'Committee to protect Journalists' writes formal letter to His Majesty over trial of Al Zaman journalists

Update on Omani journalists' trial for 'insulting' the Minister of Justice.

The trial of the 2 Al Zaman journalists over the alleged 'insult' to the Minister & Ministry of Justice will go to appeal this Saturday, 15th October.

You can find an Arabic summary of the case is here, and the original trial itself here.


The arrest and sentencing of the journalists to 5 months imprisonment has draw international attention, including the NGO 'Committee to Protect Journalists' [CPJ]. The NGO recently wrote a letter to His Majesty Sultan Qaboos (see below) to highlight their concerns over the treatment of the journos, their unfair trial, the new Publications Law amendment, and most interestingly, the reports of interference in the trial by the Attorney General.





The letter refers to reports that the Oman's Attorney General Al Hilali ordered the judge to pass a ruling condemning the newspaper and its editors. The journalists' lawyer, Ahmed al-Ajami, reportedly alleged that the Justice Minister called the Attorney General and told him to make clear to the judge what ruling should be made.

Oh dear, that doesn't sound very... just.


See CPJ concerned by politicized trial in Oman.

October 11, 2011

His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Sa'id
Sultan, Head of the Supreme Judicial Council, Prime Minister, and
Commander-in-Chief of the Omani Armed Forces
Office of the Sultan
The Royal Palace
PO Box 875
Muscat 113
Sultanate of Oman

Via facsimile: +968 24 735 375

Your Majesty Sultan Qaboos:

The Committee to Protect Journalists is writing to bring to your attention reports of an unfair trial of two Omani journalists and a civil servant sentenced to imprisonment on defamation charges. We ask you, in your capacity as head of the Supreme Judicial Council, to instruct the judicial authorities to respect the letter of the law and allow the defendants an opportunity to prove their innocence. This case will be appealed on October 15, and we hope the verdict against the newspaper and the three men will be reversed. We are also alarmed by the October 9 royal decree that amends an article in the Press and Publications Law, further tightening government control over the media, and urge you to consider the negative effect the amendment will have on independent media in Oman.

On September 21, an Omani court sentenced Editor-in-Chief Ibrahim al-Ma'mari and editor Youssef al-Haj of independent newspaper Al-Zaman, and longtime civil servant Haroun al-Mukeebli, to five months' imprisonment on charges of "defaming" and "insulting the dignity" of the minister of justice and his deputy. The court also ordered Al-Zaman to shut down for one month. The defamation charges stem from a May 14 article written by al-Haj in Al-Zaman alleging that the justice minister and his deputy refused to grant a salary and grade increase to al-Mukeebli. Al-Zaman has been allowed to operate until the appeals court rules on the case, and the defendants have been free on bail.

We are also concerned by highly credible reports that Attorney General Hussein al-Hilali ordered the judge to pass a ruling condemning the newspaper and its editors. One of the sources cited in these stories is the journalists' lawyer, Ahmed al-Ajami, who also alleged that the justice minister called al-Hilali and told him to make clear to the judge what ruling should be made. Al-Ajami told Al-Zaman that the journalists had not been given a fair trial and said that the prosecutor did not submit a written or oral statement, which is inconsistent with Omani law and internationally recognized fair trial standards.

Oman's Minister of Justice, a political appointee, also holds the post of deputy head of the Supreme Judicial Council, so it is vital to ensure that this trial be carried out in a transparent and fair manner. The credibility and independence of Oman's judiciary depend on it.

The October 9 royal decree amending Article 26 of the Press and Publications Law prohibits publishing "anything which may prejudice the safety of the state or its security, all that is related to their bylaws and internal regulations, any information or news or official secret communications, whether the publication was through visual, audio, or print or through the Internet, unless permission is obtained from the respective authority. It is also banned to publish the wordings of agreements and treaties concluded by the government before they are published in the official gazette." The failure here to unambiguously define "prejudicing the safety of the state" invites maximalist interpretations of the law and allows overzealous prosecutors to abuse it. In addition, the sweeping nature of the amendment and the ambiguity of its meaning create significant concerns about the fairness of future legal proceedings.

We urge your majesty, as the head of the Supreme Judicial Council, to condemn the botched trial of these journalists and ensure they are given an opportunity to prove their innocence. We also urge your majesty to consider the effect the amendment will have on independent media in Oman. Your actions could affirm Oman's commitment to press freedom and the rule of law.

Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. We look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

Joel Simon
Executive Director

Let's see what happens on Saturday.

'Just in time' change in Oman's Publication Law? Another botched job.

Oman often has a very ad-hoc way of developing legislation. A couple of days ago, HM's Government issued an update to Article 26 of the Publishing law. It seems more than co-incidental that on the 15th October the Appeal case will be held for the local journalists sentenced to 6 months in prison (they're out on bail right now) for 'insulting'* the Minister & Ministry of Justice (yes, really. That's a criminal offense in Oman). I would expect this new law should not apply to their Appeal (ex-post facto / retrospective legislation anyone?), but I guess it does send a message to the Judges!

* Note, independent newspaper Al-Zaman was ordered shut-down for 1 month for publishing an article alleging corruption in the Ministry of Justice on 15 August 2011. The article's author, prominent Omani journalist and film maker Youssef al-Haj, and his Editor and source in the Ministry were arrested, interrogated, and sentenced to 6 months in prison.

This new law is lazy, even by Oman's typically vague and broad legislative standards. Hell, it makes it illegal to publish (quote) "anything" which "may" bear on internal or external security. Reading the law in translation, it appears to make saying essentially anything at all even remotely to do with Omani Government arguably illegal. This is sloppy, lazy law making. No definition of terms, no exclusions, and creating a broad crime whose very definition is subject to the opinion of someone in the Government.

This is unfortunately fully consistent with the Basic Law of Oman, namely:

Article 29 [Expression]
Freedom of opinion and expression, whether spoken, written or in other forms, is guaranteed within the limits of the Law. [my emphasis]

IE, Omanis quite legally have no freedom of expression, because so many laws make almost any public expression not just illegal but criminal. Those arrested Al-Zaman journalists are about to find out how the lottery of Omani publication law works. (see earlier post here). I suppose if they are found guilty they will be beholding to an appeal for clemency from HM. This is not the way to run a legal system.





This was an opportunity wasted; a chance to update the laws involved with publishing - press, TV, radio, internet - in a systematic, competent, comprehensive way. Preferably involving independent review (eg, the Majlis Al Shura) and public comment.

Instead we get another of these vague & ill defined statements of good intent that will in reality be used as further restraints on constructive public dialogue of real issues. Another law that Government functionaries can hide behind and avoid scrutiny.

It will be very interesting to see what happens at the Appeal.


ONA issued the new law.

Decree amends publication law.
His Majesty Sultan Qaboos has issued Royal Decree No 95/2011 amending some provisions of the Law of Publications and Publishing. Article 1 stipulates that Article 26 of the said Publications and Publishing Law shall be replaced with the following text: “Article 26: It is prohibited to publish anything which may prejudice the safety of the state or its internal or external security or all that relates to military and security apparatuses, their bylaws and internal regulations, any documents or information or news or official secret communications, either by publication through visual, audio or print media or through the Internet or any means of the information technology unless a permission is obtained from the competent authority.

It is also prohibited to publish the wordings of the agreements and treaties concluded by the government before they are published in the official gazette.

...

Presto!

Actual Local Investigative Journalism - Legal limits on Car loans avoided.

I stumbled across this rather hidden actual Omani Media Investigative Journalism piece in.... Times of Oman. Yes. A story on car loans.





Read between the lines, and the story is that while the Central Bank have decreed that all car loans are to be for a maximum of 80% of the car value and the remaining 20% paid by the customer, dealers are getting around it by simply 'over invoicing' on the value of the car, enabling customers to effectively borrow 90% or more from their banks and flaunt the intent of the CBO's law.

Loopholes are a common problem in Omani law, especially as the lack of either personal income tax or VAT means a lot of the economy is uncontrolled and not easy to police. But it isn't hard to make this sort of transaction even more legal.

For example, I could actually charge you full price, but then offer an instant cash rebate, free gifts (that can be exchanged for cash), and include insurance, 'free' servicing, etc.

It is an example of how these simple 'micro-managing type' laws are often by-passed almost immediately. People are just too damn clever to easily be made to do something they don't want to do, especially when there's a buck in it.

Excellent work, Aftab H. Kola. This is good to see. More please!!!!!! [Essa, Bonus?]

Is CBO regulation putting a spoke in car sales through finance?

Aftab H. Kola
Times of Oman, Wednesday, December 03, 2008

MUSCAT — One of the key sectors in Oman — the auto finance industry — faced fluctuations in fortune this year following a new regulation from the Central Bank of Oman (CBO).

It may be recalled that the CBO in the beginning of the year had issued circulars to all financial companies that a borrower who wants to buy a car through loans should pay a minimum of 20 per cent down payment of the cost of the vehicle.

CBO instructed that personal loans for purchasing of vehicles have been mounting significantly and with a view to improve prudence and moderation the step was necessitated.

Cars in Oman have been within the close reach of consumers due to easy instalment schemes offered by auto finance companies. In fact, industry sources attribute this success of auto companies to the effectiveness of their alliances with financing institutions. The increased preference for financing car purchases through loans, thus, seemed justified.

According to reliable industry sources, out of 30,000-odd cars sold in Oman every year, 65 per cent are through finance. Says Aftab Patel, CEO, Al Omaniya Financial Services, “The down payment rule is applicable to individuals and not for corporate or business buying. There has not been a significant demand reduction in car sales through finance as the consumers have taken it in a positive spirit. If you look at the other way, instalments will come down.”

Another official from a car finance company said: “Smart money managers who make a 20 per cent down payment have more freedom to make a change in the car they drive. During the second year, when the car depreciates at a much slower rate, they would begin to build equity in their car. During a trade-in, they would actually get a positive credit towards the new car.”

Major players in retail car financing refused to comment on how the CBO rule has affected the car finance market. However, Mohammed Nazim, deputy general manager credit and collection, Suhail Bahwan Automobiles is candid: “The down payment rule has affected the car market marginally, but people are just crazy about cars here.”

Another official from one of the leading finance companies frankly admits that the car sales have been affected to a fairly good extent. He observed: “It is extremely difficult for new employees to pay 20 per cent down payment.”

But reports suggest that some car dealers who have in-house finance schemes are offering car loans without sticking to 20 per cent down payment. They charge less than 10 per cent down payment.

Consumers like Mohammed Hisham, a government employee find it extremely difficult to shell out a big initial amount to buy a car on finance.

He says: “The down payment component is important to a low-salaried man like me. I just got a licence and I’m keen to buy a car. But I don’t think I can buy one if they insist on 20 per cent.”

There are many like Hisham who echoed similar views. Then there are some smart agencies who know how not to send away a potential buyer either by ‘over-invoicing’ or ‘trade-in’ tricks. Industry experts now feel that the future of the automobile sector is now directly linked to the ever-increasing youth population, which is the prime target segment for most of the dealers.

And so they are devising some new schemes so that down payment does not deter them from buying cars.

Naughty naughty...

His Majesty points out how crap Omani Journalists are

Spooky. Who would have thought?

HM issued an instruction earlier this week that all Omani new reporters and journalists are to be given extensive training to get them up to commonly accepted international standards. It’ll be interesting to see how that works, with the pervasive and restrictive self-censorship that occurs in the local rags apparently caused more at the editorial level than by the chaps in the engine room.

So, its HM mandated training for the boys and girls of Oman’s glorious 4th Estate. (I suspect the Pulitzer Prize is pretty safe in US hands for a while yet!) The program will be run by the Ministry of Information, an oxymoron if ever there was one for a Ministerial title.

I wonder if Essa will sign up too?

The only slightly ominous part is the little bit in the story that "The Ministry of Information began to enumerate and classify local press personnel towards the development of a database of their qualifications, current experience." [that's their sentence structure BTW, not mine. Perhaps some English grammar training as well...].

And they will all be interviewed by the MOI too. Hmmm. I bet that will be fun. No wonder (according to the Ministry of Information) "The journalists and media persons valued the Royal gesture." I'm surprised they didn't say "greeted with delight..."


Royal orders to conduct training for Omani journalists, media personnel

MUSCAT — His Majesty Sultan Qaboos has issued orders to conduct training courses and programmes for all Omani journalists and media personnel. Hamad bin Mohammed al Rashdi, Minister of Information, said that the Royal directives are aimed to upgrade the skills of Omani journalists and media personnel to a professional level that reflects the development witnessed by the world media and the progress achieved by the Sultanate in various spheres. During his visit to the Oman Establishment for Press, Publication and Advertising (OEPPA) yesterday, the minister stressed that the training programmes will be available to all Omani journalists and media personnel in government and private establishments.

The courses will be conducted in stages starting locally and culminating at leading Arab and international journalism and media organisations. Al Rashdi added that the programmes will also cover technical staff whose work is directly related to the press. The Ministry of Information began to enumerate and classify local press personnel towards the development of a database of their qualifications, current experience. Accordingly, training requirements will be decided in tandem with the duties and responsibilities of the journalists/media personnel, he said. The journalists and media persons valued the Royal gesture which, they said, comes within the context of His Majesty’s keenness on promoting the capabilities of Omanis in all nation-building fields.

They noted that the Royal gesture is a strong evidence of the important role the Omani media play in promoting the Omani society"s culture towards further higher grades of progress. In its preparatory stage, the ministry has started registering all Omani journalists from the media for further training in their respective fields of specialisation in the very near future. In its preparatory stage, entrants will attend interviews supervised by the ministry. The courses will be conducted by prominent journalists and academicians in this respective field from within the country and abroad. Qualifying entrants will further train at prestigious media institutions overseas.