SULTAN Qaboos bin Said Al Said, architect of modern and prosperous Oman, died on Saturday after prolonged illness and about five decades of memorable rule. He was a direct descendant of the founder of the Al Bu Saidi dynasty, which created the Sultanate in the 1600s after expelling the Portuguese from Muscat, now Oman’s capital. There is three-day official mourning and national flag would fly at half-mast for the next 40 days.
In the death of Sultan Qaboos, people of Oman have lost a leader who worked tirelessly to transform Oman into a model of development, left indelible marks on hearts and minds of his people through a sustained welfare process and enhanced stature of his otherwise small country in the comity of nations by pursuing a prudent foreign policy. It is widely acknowledged that when Sultan Qaboos seized power from his father in a bloodless coup in 1970, Oman was an isolated and impoverished state. Sultan Qaboos was really a nation-builder credited with using Oman’s oil wealth to transform the sparsely populated Gulf nation into a rich country with a vibrant tourism industry and high standards of living and his people-friendly policies made him an undisputed leader. It would not be an exaggeration to say that his policies turned Oman into an oasis of peace, security, progress and prosperity. There is consensus that Sultan Qaboos was an honest leader imbued with the spirit of serving his people selflessly and used the oil wealth of the country in a judicious manner to take Oman to zenith of progress and development. He also introduced a series of reforms aimed at ameliorating the lot of different segments of the people including women. Following the popular Arab Spring uprisings that swept the Middle East and North Africa beginning in January 2011, Sultan Qaboos embarked on a wide-ranging process of economic and political reforms. He granted Oman’s bicameral legislative body more power and authorized direct elections for its lower house, which took place in November 2011. Additionally, unemployment benefits in the Sultanate were increased. In August 2012, a royal directive was issued mandating the speedy implementation of a national job creation plan for thousands of public and private sector Omani jobs.
As part of his government’s efforts to decentralize authority and allow greater citizen participation in local governance, Oman successfully conducted its first Municipal Council elections in December 2012. He was able to modernize his country while preserving its rich culture. Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, since his accession, adopted economic policies aimed at the diversification of the economy to spread and increase sources of the national income and, in concert with this, the strong encouragement of the private sector to shake off its reliance upon its oil-rich heritage, which reflected his futuristic approach to preserve long-term interests of his country. In addition to his domestic policy achievements, Sultan Qaboos has also been credited with high profile diplomacy and deal-making that transformed Oman into a regional player capable of bridging diplomatic divides, as highlighted by its role as mediator in nuclear talks between Iran and the United States in recent years. Throughout 2012 and 2013, Sultan Qaboos mediated secret talks between US and Iranian officials, culminating in the interim nuclear deal of November 2013, reached in Geneva between Iran and the so-called “P5+1” powers, which consist of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany. Under Sultan Qaboos’s leadership, Oman also mediated and oversaw talks between the warring sides of Yemen’s ongoing war. In November 2019, Saudi Arabia and Houthi rebels held indirect, behind-the-scene talks in a bid to end the devastating five-year war in Yemen. Sultan Qaboos was a great friend of people of Pakistan and on a number of occasions demonstrated gesture of goodwill for their progress and welfare. His government offered a handsome package for development of Gwadar years back but unfortunately Pakistan could not take advantage of that due to internal political wrangling and short-sightedness. He opened doors for Pakistani manpower and today more than 250,000 Pakistanis are contributing to socio-economic development of Oman besides being a significant source of foreign exchange for the country. We join people of Oman in mourning the death of their legendary leader and hope that his successor would be able to maintain the highest standard of governance that Qaboos set during his shining tenure.
