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Sunday, October 10, 2010

What is Going on in Oman?

There have been a few developments of the past few weeks here in Oman. I wonder what other expats think of them, and what it says about the direction of this country...

1. Students are no longer allowed to wear jeans for fear of "errosion of national identity".

2. All Ministry of Education foreign teachers will be terminated after 6 years.

3. Fitness centers (like my Horizon Gym) no longer allow men and women to work-out at the same time...

4. You can no longer eat rice outdoors if there is smoking of any kind in the vicinity. (note that Omanis always eat rice...so this actually presents a big dilemma for would be al fresco diners in this country...)

What are your thoughts?

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Terminating (!) teachers after six years seems a bit extreme, although I guess it saves having to pay a pension.

'I'll be back'

Unknown said...

after 6 years starting from this year??

Sub Par said...

The jeans thing doesn't seem to be everywhere. I work at a private university in Muscat and we have a small number of male students who wear jeans much more regularly than they wear dishdashas. Is this for public schools?

Also...I don't get the rice and smoking thing...

Anonymous said...

I wish more sanity prevails. Though I am of opinion that it is the economic inability to keep funding non productive youth, that initiates steps in this direction as vacuum gets generated. Funding non productivity by system of Wasta/Omanisation is the root cause. Wasta/Pseudo National pride sidelines merit and hence demotivates productive people who can expand economy and enrich country. Hoards of good doctors have left MOHealth for this reason.

Unknown said...

No rice and smoking? Maybe they meant you cant smoke the rice outside :)

Kerfluffy! said...

Rice and smoking? But isn't smoking already a no-no in public places?

Susan said...

Can you elaborate more on the rice thing?

Jack said...

i dont think these things going to take place seriously...

well what i understand from the rice thing that you can not cook outside....becasue thats make big smoke...hahah right?
well cooking meat make big smoke as well...do you think they can stop people from doing this?
i dont think so..

Jack said...

There are many things announced not to be done but some people did it and still doing it. as an example, local people not allowed to get married from foreigners. No body can blame those people and nobody can force them not to do it…WHY?
Because, first, there are some rules which are fragile (I can say). I don’t blame this man when he decides to get married from foreigners since the marriage here is soo expansive according to culture here.
Second, there is no hard punishment for the people who don’t follow these rules.
Third, these rules only focus on not to do..keeping people same as before without solving their problems with alternatives and with what the country need in the way of developments.
So I can say these are not serious rules…you will see some people doing it without caring unless the three points I mentioned above solved.

Zella said...

Hello; would be nice to hear an update from you, I've been waiting to read more about your life in Muscat -- hope all is well with you.