Times of Oman writer gets mad at local blogger



Covering note: I assure you that I am neither a Zionist zealot, termite or a virus seeking to corrode society within Oman - I intentionally avoid politics and religious issues on this blog as much as possible, but this latest missive from the Opinions Editor at ToO is really worth highlighting.


This morning I was amused to read this article from Times of Oman author, Debasish Mitra, which is aimed at fellow local blogger, Andy in Oman. Debasish's rather colourful article was in response to Andy's post here about the ToO's recent article, "World would be a better place without Israel".

Andy's post on the ToO article above was merely to state that it was not the first time that the Times of Oman had published articles which are about Israel, and in Andy's definition, anti-semitic.

For those of you not in the know, Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is prejudice, hatred of, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. A person who holds such views is called an "antisemite" (definition lifted from Wikipedia).

Andy's post on the matter pointed out that there was a clear hatred of Israel from the article on the ToO written by Mr Mitra, and then linked to the one other blog post he had written way back in 2010 relating to Antisemitism at ToO, and an article written by the Undercover Dragon on the very same subject at the ToO written in 2009. The reality is that Mr Mitra was Anti-Zionist in his latest piece aimed at Andy, and in the original article, he was indeed also Anti-Zionist. Although, in the first paragraph of his article (World would be a better place without Israel) he did write, "Hypocrisy thou art is a Jew" - basically saying all Jew's are hypocrites, which could be construed as antisemitism.

So this brings me onto the point of this blog post today.... Mr Mitra's response to Andy published today! Here's the link to the post: Mr Blogger, shed your biased mindset please! In the article, the clearly fired up Debasish writes,"They have been lurking in the shadows and their plan was to corrode society in Oman from within, like termites in wood works. They are the Zionist zealots who have been living like parasites in the Sultanate running blogs that, more than anything else, seek to justify the atrocities Israel has been perpetrating —sans remorse— against the humanity in general, and Palestinians in particular. These termites, nay Zionist virus, have recently been exposed, caught red-handed in their attempts to contaminate people's minds, polluting Oman's social mosaic. Their sinister design to malign Arabs and muffle voices that expose Israeli shenanigans now lie completely stripped of all camouflages".

How's that for an opening salvo?! Gee, I wish he told us how he really feels! I am quite shocked to learn that Andy, who runs the hugely popular Andy in Oman blog, has actually been making it his top priority to "seek to justify the atrocities Israel has been perpetrating...". Apparently 2 posts in 3 years relating to the Times of Oman's articles on this subject mean that's his top priority with his blog. We will just quickly jump over the 100's of posts Andy has made about life (and the fabulous quality of it) here in Oman that have been read over 1,000,000 times and counting - that means nothing, his main objective is clear. I wonder how many tourists to Oman have used his blog in some way or other?

Now I'm not going to comment upon the situation in Israel other than that it's a sorry mess and there is clearly injustice there, I'm glad that I'm not living in that region, and I wish that there could be a resolution found to the situation, because after-all - who doesn't like peace?

I think what Andy was trying to say was that should the nations oldest English language newspaper be carrying such opinion pieces? Living in an Arab country it is obvious what most peoples opinion of Israel is going to be, and of course it's really easy to get public opinion on your side by saying people are pro-Israel (Zionists), but the reality is this, these opinion pieces incite hatred towards a religion and insults an internationally recognized state.

Which, as it happens, breeches the 1984 Press & Publications law. Amongst many other things, the law states:

1. Newspapers are not to publish anything that is politically, culturally, or sexually offensive;
2. Newspapers are not to publish anything that ... creates hatred toward ... any ethnicity or religion;
3. Newspapers are not to publish anything that ... promotes religious extremism;
4. Newspapers are not to publish anything that ... insults other states.

Furthermore, these same requirements are stipulated in Omantels (at the behest of the TRA) terms of service which all businesses must sign and adhere to. Oops.

My thoughts on the matter are, why on earth are ToO publishing articles like this? There are literally SO many things one in such a privileged position as the Opinions Editor for the Times of Oman could write about and help spread awareness for, why stir people up with such articles? I'd like to read the OP-ED's thoughts on things that I care about, like things to do WITH OMAN, that are WITHIN OMAN and that directly AFFECT OMANIS and those living here.

Perhaps next week his opinion piece will be on the rising cost of bread in Costa Rica, or perhaps the recent snow-falls in the UK, or maybe the chronic chop-stick shortage in Gabon.

Lets keep a local papers opinions local eh?

le fin. 
Times of Oman writer gets mad at local blogger Times of Oman writer gets mad at local blogger Reviewed by Sythe on Sunday, April 07, 2013 Rating: 5

41 comments:

  1. Sorry- but the term 'anti-semitic' does not relate to Jewish people, it is a term which is based in Hebrew but is a broad defining word word that also includes Arabs.

    You can be anti-Israeli, but that would also include Christians and Arabs, or you can be anti-zionist but anti-semitic is an overly used and wholly misunderstood term.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semitic_people

    That said, the gist of the story remains the same. With the 'loss' of the Zadjali character and his colourful references to sharks trained by Jews to kill Egyptian holiday-makers (Oh yes!) someone is continuing his legacy.

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  2. I suspect that Mr Debasish Mitra has penned most the Editorial pieces under the name of the late owner of the Times of Oman. One can surmise therefore that anything which deviates from a tight appreciation of all things mainstream Indian or Arab is verboten, he also incidentally dislikes the Nehru dynasty with equal fervour.
    Mr Mitra, who originates from a community which is under considerable pressure to Omanise the establishments they work for, has by becoming an Omani himself has Omanised himself into a permanent position to continue his editorial approach.

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  3. http://www.timesofoman.com/Columns/Article-930.aspx

    well, check out the link above..seems he is not happy with the Brits either.

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  4. He says “we in the Middle East …..“ becoming now not just a mouthpiece for the Times of Oman reader but the man on the streets of Bagdad, Tel Aviv and Casablanca. His insight into British politics is not doubt as profound as into those of that man on the street in Bagdad, Tel Aviv and Casablanca.
    anon April 7, 2013 at 2:39 PM

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  5. Can I please have more on the 'Rising prices of Bread in Costa Rica'?. I see an opportunity.

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  6. Lol. Price of bread in the DRC would also be good....

    I think it's time somebody put Andy in his place - he tends to forget that we can't be so 'open' about our thoughts etc here in Oman. Yes, we all as expats are used to Freedom of Speech in our own countries - but, this is the Middle East, and we need to respect this country and its laws, whether we like it or not. The other day he had a go at somebody on their facebook page for making a general comment, his response was totally uncalled for. So again, not cool Andy. Be careful, or you and your family will be packing bags very soon! We wont like to see that happen!

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  7. There will always be fans of the conspiracy theory, but they should not be opinion makers. It is not just the journalist's fault, it is also the editor in chief's mistake to publish such a ridiculous piece. Such unfounded, aggressive and populist attack does more damage than he they possibly think of.
    Mr. journalist, try to make an effort on focusing on quality journalism, not hatred. You could very well fail, but at least you can be praised for trying. Try not to think of all the people who do not agree with your approach as enemies, or Zionists. There is such thing as reasoning, irrespective of ethnic religious or political identities, even if this time you seemed to fail identifying it.

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  8. Embarrassing for Times of Oman. After a couple of Al Zadjali's front-page columns a few years ago, I quit reading it. Hate speech is hate speech and in any 'normal' country, he would end up behind bars.

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  9. Sythe,
    Nice post!

    To "Omani Princess",
    Nice try in putting words in my mouth almost to the point of slander or instigation like the editor of the Times of Oman (which is why I never posted your future comments and removed link to your blog as well.) What a thing to write! You write my exact words are and quote something which I didn't say! Check carefully there! I added a link showing the history of the hatred of the Palestinian authority in making a false peace with Irael and that quote you call a direct quote from me is from this article: http://www.grantjeffrey.com/article/article4.htm Your attempts to make the issue worse are not appreciated but are to be expected as you insulted the fact that I'm Christian as well and said that therefore all my facts must be off. (nice!)
    By the way, Mr Mitra is quoted as saying that "the holocaust was fabricated" and when I asked him about it (read the comments on that post), he failed to answer this point. How is that for journalism when the opinion editor flat out denies the holocaust?

    As to the anon who wrote about my family and I getting our bags packed, we are more than ready to head out next June, thanks very much! ;-) You may be a coward and keep your opinions to yourself but I have a right to speak the truth. If not, I am more than happy to move on.

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  10. [The term from Shakespeare would have said jew back then because the word jew referred to Zionism not Judaism in that time period]. Still, dude, why mess with Shakespeare?

    You're about 400 years out with that phrase. There wasn't a Zionist movement to speak of until the late 1800s.

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  11. And in case that anon April 7 7:30 pm responds anything else: I have no idea if the journalist Andy linked to has any idea about the useage of Jew during Shakespeare's time period, so it COULD be construed then as anti-Semitic I suppose as it was by many, as any good writer will know what the current word usage means. But practically speaking, it isn't on a legal or linguistic basis.

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  12. Princess,
    I think it's pretty clear that I was quoting when I wrote, "Author Grant Jeffrey’s wrote about this quite well some years ago:" Seems pretty clear to me, especially with the name of the author mentioned and the colon. Finally, finished with a link to the article.
    I think it's quite an accusatory thing for you to say that I've written something against another religion's prophet when you know that there are a small minority of people who would commit violence about anyone who would dare to do so. It seems to be a dangerous game you are up to and I do not appreciate it AT ALL (nor does my wife, thank you very much)!

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  13. Andy: If it has all be one big misunderstanding, I can remove my previous comments about being offended. I never did wish to put you any danger, insult your religion [you misunderstood me there: I was talking about the Islamic history the article you quoted refers to in harsh error], but I do ask that you remove from the quotation you used that sums everything up so "well", that says the Prophet Mohammed was a killer and a betrayer. It is easy to take as an offense for a Muslim, and once read, hard to read over a second time to make sure one read it correctly you know?

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  14. Dear anonymous: Actually, I am not. Ask any Cambridge history professor. Saying "jew" meant the aggressive... not merely a person of Judaic faith in Shakespeare's time period. The term Zionist did not exist then, obviously. I am glad for its existence now because the term Jew has come to mean someone of Judaic faith, whereas Zionist can be used to clarify between "aggressive" and simply Judaic. Words have meanings that change with time. Whereas once "gay" commonly meant merely "happy" for example.

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  15. Princess,
    Of course I can edit that part if it's offensive to anyone but the whole point was about the so-called journalist saying "Saladin shall rise again" and what he truly meant by it.

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  16. Andy: To many Saladin represents a strong but just Islamic leader. Not necessarily just warring and fighting. An unrealistic ideal of the man of course. Studying journalism won't make one a crusades scholar.

    But I get your point about the paper and article's author in general, even if I feel the article itself was not an example of anti-Semitism [of bias, yes]. I just thought it was YOUR commentary, which was why I was so shocked and hurt. And lashed out, sadly, which I regretted, like an hour later. But then felt justified when I did not see the insult removed. That is also the only reason I received the permission of the other OPNO girls to remove the link to your blog. As Muslims, such a thing we can't have a party to you understand? We have nothing against Christians and are happy Oman allows Christians to work, and pray in congregation here.

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  17. "They have been lurking in the shadows and their plan was to corrode society in Oman from within, like termites in wood works. They are the Zionist zealots who have been living like parasites in the Sultanate running blogs that..."
    The first para was enough to make me stop reading that pathetic article.

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  18. There are many sad things about this story, and it reveals a lot on still how much we should learn about accepting and living with the idea of diversity (which in all aspect of life is much more exciting than uniformity). One of the most annoying things I found is that fellow bloggers - people who probably have much more things in common than differences - are going out hard on each other on this controversy. I don't know any of you personally (Andy and OPNOs) but I do read both of your blogs for a while. Based on your views and style expressed there, I can hardly imagine that on the fundamental things of life you would have conflicting views or convictions. Family, love, friendship, nature, traditions, God, peace, happiness, etc... Aren't these really values for both of you? So why insult each other on secondary grounds? Sorry for my cheesy point but really guys, don't water the seed of hatred this article tried to plant in you.

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  19. It's always funny when someone writes an article in a newspaper with his opinion and then gets mad that other people have something to say about it. Kinda out of touch with reality this Times of Oman guy :D

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  20. Honestly anon, it was an misunderstanding on my part (one of the OPNO girls). I did not see quotations and believed something another author wrote was Andy's commentary. That we agree to diagree on the subject of Israel/Palestine or the referenced article being anti-semitic wasn't really the issue for me so all is good now, I hope, though I don't know if Andy forgives me for getting so upset even though I admit I said some things that I don't mean.

    Obviously, this current article is ludricrous, and I was never debating that, except when is was under the wrong impression that Andy was writing insults against the Prophet Mohammed, which he wasn't.

    Again, I apologize for that.

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  21. I really appreciate the thoughts/comment from Anon (9:36am). The truth is that in this social networking world of quick clicks and commenting we all write stuff rashly and later come to regret it. We're only human. The question is whether we can later, in hindsight, try to reconcile and move on even with differences. Of course I understand the reaction of Princess only after she explained the misundertanding we had. (Nothing to forgive!) When someone refuses to repent of hateful words (such as the Opinion editor of ToO), there can be no reconciliation, forgiveness or understanding.

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  22. I also participated in the comments section of Andy's blog, only to have my comments blocked by him when he thought I was lying about my nationality - because an American could never support the Palestinan side so I must be an Arab lying about my nationality. This was completely ridiculous and I refuse to visit his blog anymore.

    Anyway, Andy's blog had a very limited scope. Nowhere in the writer's orginal article did it call for the destruction of Israel or to promote hatred against Jews. NOWHERE.

    Nonetheless, Andy is giving all the people who DO read his blog a certain impression that all of Oman is anti-semetic and that there is proof of it in this newspaper - which is not the case because AGAIN andy did not relay an accurate description of the original column.

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  23. More proof, as if we needed any, that the only thing religion does is divide using hate and dissent.

    Take away all these mythical deities and we can just get on with things.

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  24. Anne,
    You wrote, and I quote, "I am from planet America where..." and after a long winded explanation of the media in America (as if that's where you were writing from!), you went on to write, "I'm not one of the "many in this region" who..." implying that you're not in the region! One quick check of your ip address showed that you were being deceptive. Not only that, I don't appreciate longwinded comments which twist facts. For example, NOWHERE is there antisemitism in that original article?!?! Excuse me: Here's a list
    1) "An otherwise masterpiece, Merchant of Venice, perhaps suffers from one blemish. In Act one scene three Shakespeare should have added one line to Antonio's speech wherein he says about Shylock: "Mark you this, Bassanio, The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. An evil soul producing holy witness, Is like a villain with a smiling cheek, A goodly apple rotten at the heart. Oh, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!" Shakespeare should have added one more line here — Hypocrisy thou art is a Jew." The author equates Jews with the devil, using words like "devil", "evil", "rotten" and "hypocrisy"!
    2)He writes that Israel "used holocaust on the sly" and ends the article talking about "the fabrication of the holocaust"! The man is an OUTRIGHT HOLOCAUST DENIER. Maybe that's okay with you and others, Anne, but that's definitely wrong and antisemitic.

    And if you don't think he's hateful of Jews and Israel, please explain his bizarre 2nd article. If that's not hateful, I don't know what is. You can pretend not to see the hate for Jews/Israel in the first article, but there's no denying in his latest article. Hate speech, plain and simple.

    BTW, the writer is not even Omani so who is he to write for Oman anyway! He's not even Muslim! For me to question his article is no way calling all Omanis antisemetic. He is antisemetic which is clear from any articles he's written on these issues.

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  25. anne is back!
    Your comment was blocked because you were deceptive. You wrote, "I'm from the planet of America"...and then after a long rant went on to say, "I am not those of these region who". This plus the fact that you went on about media in the states, you were obviously trying to make the point as if you were in America when a quick ip address check showed that you were writing from Oman. Another reason I blocked your comment (and more importantly!) is that I don't like long-winded commments from people who twists truths. (It's called discernment, dear.) Like here on this blog, you insist in capital letters that NOWHERE was the author promoting hatred against Jews. Others have said the same balony and suggesting again and again that I didn't read the whole article. Let's me walk you through it in case you're not sharp enough to read:
    1) At the beginning, this is what he writes, "An otherwise masterpiece, Merchant of Venice, perhaps suffers from one blemish. In Act one scene three Shakespeare should have added one line to Antonio's speech wherein he says about Shylock: "Mark you this, Bassanio, The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. An evil soul producing holy witness, Is like a villain with a smiling cheek, A goodly apple rotten at the heart. Oh, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!" Shakespeare should have added one more line here — Hypocrisy thosu art is a Jew." He connects Jew together with the devil and uses the words "rotten" and "evil" to describe them and even says that ALL Jews are hypocrites. If that's not promoting hated, anne, please tell me what it is promoting?!
    2) He writes that Israel has "used holocaust on the sly" and later mentions the "fabrication of the holocaust". HELLO! He is a HOLOCAUST DENIER! When I asked him to clarify this in the comments section, he did not bother to answer the fact that he denies the holocaust. If you, anne, think that's not antisemitic, I can only assume that you are also a holocaust denier and antisemetic as well.

    BTW, even if you are dense enough to say his first article is not hateful, his true intentions and thoughts towards Jews comes out loud and clear in the 2nd article. Wake up and smell the coffee!

    BTW, nice try to state that I'm somehow "anti-Omani"! The writer is not Omani, nor is he a Muslim. So how does calling him out for what he is, somehow "leave a certain impression that all of Oman is anti-semetic"? I have better things to do than answer to the likes of the "annes" out there with their heads in the sand.

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  26. You asked which planet I was FROM and I told you that I am from AMERICA. Do American expats not live in Oman? Do you think I am sitting in America and just so interested in your blog about a country I have no relation to, Andy?

    How is bringing up the American media trying to deceive you in to thinking I am still in the states. Don't all people have access to American news? As an American expat, is it crazy for me to keep up with the American news back home? Since I have only been living abroad for two years, I think I have a pretty good grasp on American media and have the ability to vocalize opinions on the subject.

    You're making a point that the ToO or some of the writers, or so many publications in the middle east are biased. I was making the point that western media has their own set of biases as well.

    I don't remember exactly what you are talking about when you say that I said "I'm not one of those of the region who.." because you deleted the post.

    And wow, I must apologize for commenting on a blog you wrote. If you don't want to hear "long rants" or things that don't appeal to you then maybe you should disable the comments so you don't have to be bothered by opposing viewpoints.

    You are awfully defensive when people don't agree with you. Also very good at alienating people who read your blog who don't support you and tell you how great you are, huh?

    Then, I didn't say you were anti-Omani. I said you give the impression that Oman via the times Oman is complacent with promoting anti-semetism or hatred of Jewish people by allowing such things to be published in the national paper. Better luck with reading comprehension next time. So much for being against twisting truths, right?

    Lastly, I stick to my points about this issue overall. I do think that this column that ran today is totally out of line, unprofessional and border line crazy. I guess I am not so dense or one sided or or or whatever else you accused me of being after all, right?

    Nowhere in any of the TWO comments I wrote to your blog did I insult you or your opinions. It's too bad you haven't learned to show other people the same respect when you disagree with them.

    You seem to be such a know it all and even know so much about me and what I lie about and my intelligence so there's no point in continuing to argue with you over this issue that you brought to light.

    Good luck with your blog. I'll continue to view MM and other local blogs in place of yours.

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  27. And that, boys and girls, is why I don't moderate comments. Only spam or very, very rare occasions when I think I will get into legal trouble will I remove a comment.

    I'm surprised by the amount of comments on this issue, and thank you everyone for your thoughts on the issue so far.

    o3mer - lets hope the ToO opinions editor picks up on your interest on the topic of rising bread costs in Costa Rica, perhaps he'll weigh in on the matter!

    Thanks again everyone for taking the time to comment!

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  28. Thinking about re-opening my blog today....tum tee tum....

    Muscat Jet Driver

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  29. Be careful what you wish for, Princess! :)

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  30. Very interesting dialogue happening here...sometimes it's difficult to ask hard questions and even harder to find answers to those questions...ToO asked a hard question and for some of our expat friends it was hard to even digest that anyone could dare to ask such a question...as in their home countries it's against the law to ask such questions...one can even insult your heads of state and prominent politicians ... But to insult anything related to Israel it's a crime...just think about it...

    A little knowledge is a very dangerous thing...specially when it comes to sensitive matters...asking a question if the world would be a better place without Israel is not anti-Semitic ... It's anti Israel and probably anti Zionist...it's a fair question to ask considering post ww ii history...

    Times of Oman is a unique publication and we in Oman are proud of it...you being an expat are invited to come and live and work here in peace and provide for your family...it is therefore your obligation to respect this country and it's people, customs, traditions and opinions...Oman is the most peaceful country on this planet...I challenge anyone to prove this wrong...if you don't like that ToO asked this question ...you are welcome to leave our country, you are not compelled to stay here...

    Our great leader who is respected globally for his foresight, for his wisdom, for his unselfish strife for peace...we normal people do not know how much he does for peace behind the scene with no desire for any self benefit or accolades...this is what we believe is needed in this world...and this is what Oman stands for...pls don't try to spoil this...

    I have lived and worked in many western parts of the world...some of the best people I have met were Jews...but they unanimously denounce what Israel and Zionism stands for...

    By the way sultan salahaddin was equally respected by muslims Christians and Jews .. Watch the movie kingdom of heaven ... If you are too lazy to read history...

    America was born out of suppression and a bitter civil war...it was built by great men like Washington, Lincoln, and in the late 19th century by great minds such as Rockefeller, Carnegie, among others...when a forest is destroyed by fire...from the ashes sprouts new hope and a stronger society...this is the law of nature...there are fires in north Africa, in Syria, in Iraq, in Afghanistan and pakistan...out of these ashes new leaders and societies will sprout and unite...it's just a matter of time...read history...don't believe me...and stop arguing mindlessly...and finally to Andy and his supporters I would say one thing...don't put holes in the plate you eat from or the glass you drink from :-)

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  31. To the offended Omani Anonymous who is boasting of Oman being this n that. Stop fooling urself n people. Go see the labor camps n the filthy conditions provided by Omanis n their companies after having cheated most of those people by promising higher salaries n perks that their home countries n on landing in Oman are robbed off those few rials so Locals like u can eat 2 extra burgers n grow fatter from the loot. People come to Oman coz u need them n u offer them more money. Stop talking hole making. U bring in people with promises n then make holes in their lives...n their bodies... majority of those people want to go back home but u wouldnt give them passports which u illegally keep.

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  32. Interesting article and interesting responses.

    I have lived in Oman from 1983-2011 and had all along observed the Oman is definitely anti-Jew and anti-Israel like the rest of all Arab and muslim countries in general. If you wish to business in imports/exports, you have to get a clearance from the "Israeli boycott committee"

    To an extent, Qatar and Oman were the last countries in the Arabian peninsula to close down the Israeli embassy/consulate.

    All newspaper and media are instructed to be pro-Palestine, anti-Israel in their write-ups wherever possible. Freedom of speech and expression is very restricted here.

    I had a good family friend who worked in the Israeli embassy/consulate in AlKhuwair/Madinat Qaboos area who lost his job because this embassy was asked to close down. The embassy gave him a Release letter (NOC) to re-apply for jobs in Oman and yet he was asked to leave the country by the Labour and Immigration ministries as he had worked in the Israeli embassy here. Was this his fault? When his plight was found out, Israel gave him a job in Israel.

    If you go through the archives of all newspapers in Oman specially of Times of Oman, you will see also how negativistic Oman is to all issues to Palestine and anything concerning islamic terrorist/attacks, etc. The chief editor Zedjali even writes a reqular column and it reeks of anti-Israel, anti-US sentiments and yet he and sons visit USA regularly and even has a house there. He even got his liver or some major operation done there due to his swimming blunder at ShangriLa hotel. He also got his eye surgery done there. Yet he continues with his hate speech. He was even the consul-general for the Philippine embassy till they brought in their own Ambassador by the early 90s!!

    Oman is not a tolerant country to Christianity or non-muslim religions as "claimed". Christians are restricted to have their activities in the designated church areas in Ruwi, Ghala, Sohar and Salalah. And their buildings should look Islamic in architecture. Nothing should be highlighted to look like a Christian place!! Christians cannot hold a public meeting in a major hotel or stadium or even hold a rally in public!!

    Everything has to be so hush-hush there. You can get arrested and even imprisoned and repatriated for holding a Christian activity in public however low-key it is!! Try plastering your vehicles with non-muslim religious materials and see how fast you will get arrested!!

    Non-muslims are forced to follow their Ramadan timings and even forced to go to Church on Fridays instead of Sundays!! Is this a sign of religious tolerance?

    All negativistic news of Oman are edited or covered up as much as possible. Only some issues come up because they are gone public already. Crime rates are shamefully higher than expected.



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  33. Just pass by the embassies of India, SriLanka and Philippines to see their cases of rape and physical torture inflicted on their housemaids by Omanis/Arabs!!

    Till the early 80s Oman was in par with the neighbouring countries in development but they literally messed it all up with their "desperate" Omanisation attempts which still “back-fires” because they just won’t work as a TEAM. Every Omani knows that companies have an Omanisation target to up-keep if they want to employ expats!! So why should they work sincerely? If one is removed for lack of work performance, they have to be replaced with another Omani who will mostly turn out to be worse!!

    No amount of foreign education/training will make these Omanis work “from their heart” like the expats do. Thousands of expats left Oman and re-located to the neighbouring countries and ended up being businessmen and become richer than they ever thought. We know a whole lot of ex-Oman employed expats working all over Arabia and those who migrated and living in USA, UK, Ireland, Europe, Australia and New Zealand and hundreds more who are back in India, SriLanka and Philippines. Not one of us left because we were terminated from service!! We all left - one way or other - because of the “frustration” of working with Omanis. They are paid more than us and they won’t even work 1/5th of what we can.

    No Arab/muslim can claim to be ‘patriotic’ without showing anti-Israel, anti-American or anti-Christian sentiments - in various degrees!! The same way, no Chritsian cant talk completely against Israel because our Christian heritage and archaeological evidences are all in Israel and we need to defend that even if not all of us like to support Israel – unconditionally.

    So what happens all over the Muslim and Christian world is that we end up with double-talk. We are forced to show pro-Palestinian and anti-Israeli sentiments while working in an Arab country and they also show “neutrality” to anti-American, anti-Israeli and anti-Christian issues when they visit/study/live in non-muslim countries!!

    Do you think the Omanis were not thrilled and joyous when the 9/11 attacks happened? Do you think they were so joyous when Osama was finally killed by the US forces? Oman has to show anti-Israeli cartons in their newspapers and magazines!!

    Like all muslims, Oman also disbelieves the 9/11 attacks, the holocaust of the Jews, the moon-landing, that Israel should not exist, etc, when World history proves otherwise.

    Can any Omani show me one positive thing Oman has written in appreciation of the Israeli contribution to science and technology? They all drink Pepsi, Coke, and use many products originally discovered and marketed by Israeli businessmen with International passports. Where is their ‘boycott’ against Israeli products?

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  34. Mr Mitra has the habit of pouring his rather one-sided vitriol on any subject he does not agree with and right now his pet peeve is against the newly elected PM of India. If one reads his articles one would think that the 700 million people who elected him to office are fools. The sad thing is TOO continues to publish his rants on a weekly basis. Is'nt the purpose of a newspaper to show both sides of any debate ? Shame

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