MUSCAT — A new library at the Oriental Studies Institute in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent will be built with funds provided by the government of Oman, according to an agreement signed between the two countries on Monday, the second and final day of an official visit here by Islam Karimov, the President of Uzbekistan.
The ‘Abu Alraihan Albairuni’ library will house more than 26,000 manuscripts, 85,000 historical messages, most of them in the Turkish, Uzbek and Farsi languages, as wells as 10,000 manuscripts in Arabic, currently in the possession of the institute.
Most of these rare documents date back to the 17th and 18th centuries. UNESCO has listed them in its World Heritage List as there are no similar copies anywhere else in the world.
The accord was signed by National Economy Minister of Oman Ahmed bin Abdulnabi Macki and Vladir Norov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of
Uzbekistan.
Several other deals were also concluded between the two countries including regularising air transportation and to promote cooperation
in tourism.
The two leaders, during the meetings, also exchanged views on the
latest developments at the regional and international levels, an official
statement said.
Source: Khaleej Times: Oman to Fund a New Library in Uzbekistan
Tuesday, 20 October 2009
Monday, 5 October 2009
Oman urged to preserve its crumbling old houses
SAMAIL, OMAN // Historians are urging Oman to include privately owned ruins, crumbling in rural areas, in the government’s preservation programme to stop the erosion of the country’s heritage.
The sultanate spends 25 million rials (Dh249.5m) a year renovating and maintaining such historical buildings as forts, mosques and watchtowers all over the country, but the programme does not include privately owned buildings in abandoned villages.
In towns like Tanuf, Bid Bid and Barakat Mawz in the Al-Dakhaliya region, as well as towns in Dhofar, some ruined buildings lie in isolation, abandoned by descendents now living in modern villas.
Most of them are severly damaged, and if they disappear, so will the last glimpse of Oman’s rich heritage.
Historians say some of the ruins are 700 years old and were occupied by noted Omanis who shaped the history of the country.
“These houses were occupied by dignitaries of the areas and preserving them will help make the residents proud of their heritages,” Mohammed al Siyabi, a historian based in Samail, a small town about 150km from Muscat, said.
“The government should not allow them to crumble just because they are owned by the descendants of the previous owners. If they go, then a large chunk of our heritage goes as well.”
By way of example, Mr al Siyabi cited the houses of Ahmed bin Majid and Ahmad bin Naaman that are now lost forever. Bin Majid was a sailor who helped Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese explorer, find his way from Africa to India in 1499.
Bin Naaman was the first Arab envoy sent on a goodwill journey to the United States, in 1833 by the sultan of Oman.
But government officials said the preservation programme managed by the ministry of national heritage and culture did not have the jurisdiction of renovating privately owned houses.
“We only manage the state-owned old buildings and we cannot interfere with private areas no matter how old they are unless the owners of these ruins are willing to hand over the ownership to the government.
“We cannot spend state money to renovate private houses,” Said al Farsi, the head of the ministry’s planning unit, said.
In Nizwa, just 400 metres from the foot of the massive citadel built in the 17th century by former rulers of Oman, are ruins that, according to one of the descendants of the houses, were inhabited by the town’s traders 500 years ago. They say the ruins are the reason the Al-Ya’arubi imams built the fort because of the thriving trade of the time.
“One of the ruins was a home of my family for six generations. The last of the inhabitants moved out just 30 years ago when it was too uneconomical to maintain the houses. That was the beginning of the decay and abandonment of the village,” Salim Yousuf, a 71-year-old silversmith in Nizwa, said.
Some observers are questioning how people like Mr Yousuf could afford to build modern two-storey villas just a kilometre away from the old ruins but do not have the money to repair the homes of their ancestors.
“The majority of these people are either well-to-do businessmen or well-paid civil servants who prefer to live in luxury rather than in cramped and ancient little houses.
“They can afford to repair their ancestral homes but want government grants to do it for them. They would rather watch local history crumbling down than spend their money,” said Khamis Fraish, a retired gatekeeper of the Bibi Maryam mausoleum at Qalhat, a town near Sur, in the Eastern region.
Some companies help the preservations of local ruins, such as the mausoleum, a site that does not fall under the government grant nor is claimed by any private owner.
“Out of a social responsibility programme, we donated money for the repair of this mausoleum because we produce gas from the town and we would like the locals to be proud of their heritage.
“But we don’t do the privately owned ruins for obvious reasons,” Nasser al Kindy, head of corporate communications of Qalhat LNG, said.
salshaibany@thenational.ae
Source: The National, Oman urged to preserve its crumbling old houses
The sultanate spends 25 million rials (Dh249.5m) a year renovating and maintaining such historical buildings as forts, mosques and watchtowers all over the country, but the programme does not include privately owned buildings in abandoned villages.
In towns like Tanuf, Bid Bid and Barakat Mawz in the Al-Dakhaliya region, as well as towns in Dhofar, some ruined buildings lie in isolation, abandoned by descendents now living in modern villas.
Most of them are severly damaged, and if they disappear, so will the last glimpse of Oman’s rich heritage.
Historians say some of the ruins are 700 years old and were occupied by noted Omanis who shaped the history of the country.
“These houses were occupied by dignitaries of the areas and preserving them will help make the residents proud of their heritages,” Mohammed al Siyabi, a historian based in Samail, a small town about 150km from Muscat, said.
“The government should not allow them to crumble just because they are owned by the descendants of the previous owners. If they go, then a large chunk of our heritage goes as well.”
By way of example, Mr al Siyabi cited the houses of Ahmed bin Majid and Ahmad bin Naaman that are now lost forever. Bin Majid was a sailor who helped Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese explorer, find his way from Africa to India in 1499.
Bin Naaman was the first Arab envoy sent on a goodwill journey to the United States, in 1833 by the sultan of Oman.
But government officials said the preservation programme managed by the ministry of national heritage and culture did not have the jurisdiction of renovating privately owned houses.
“We only manage the state-owned old buildings and we cannot interfere with private areas no matter how old they are unless the owners of these ruins are willing to hand over the ownership to the government.
“We cannot spend state money to renovate private houses,” Said al Farsi, the head of the ministry’s planning unit, said.
In Nizwa, just 400 metres from the foot of the massive citadel built in the 17th century by former rulers of Oman, are ruins that, according to one of the descendants of the houses, were inhabited by the town’s traders 500 years ago. They say the ruins are the reason the Al-Ya’arubi imams built the fort because of the thriving trade of the time.
“One of the ruins was a home of my family for six generations. The last of the inhabitants moved out just 30 years ago when it was too uneconomical to maintain the houses. That was the beginning of the decay and abandonment of the village,” Salim Yousuf, a 71-year-old silversmith in Nizwa, said.
Some observers are questioning how people like Mr Yousuf could afford to build modern two-storey villas just a kilometre away from the old ruins but do not have the money to repair the homes of their ancestors.
“The majority of these people are either well-to-do businessmen or well-paid civil servants who prefer to live in luxury rather than in cramped and ancient little houses.
“They can afford to repair their ancestral homes but want government grants to do it for them. They would rather watch local history crumbling down than spend their money,” said Khamis Fraish, a retired gatekeeper of the Bibi Maryam mausoleum at Qalhat, a town near Sur, in the Eastern region.
Some companies help the preservations of local ruins, such as the mausoleum, a site that does not fall under the government grant nor is claimed by any private owner.
“Out of a social responsibility programme, we donated money for the repair of this mausoleum because we produce gas from the town and we would like the locals to be proud of their heritage.
“But we don’t do the privately owned ruins for obvious reasons,” Nasser al Kindy, head of corporate communications of Qalhat LNG, said.
salshaibany@thenational.ae
Source: The National, Oman urged to preserve its crumbling old houses
Friday, 2 October 2009
Love is the tender trap in Oman
MUSCAT // It should be the happiest day of their lives but for many young Omani couples the custom of paying exorbitant dowries is placing their marriages under huge financial strain and leading to a growing number of unmarried women.
Across the Gulf, bride’s families receive money from the groom’s family, but in Oman the dowry sums can be as high as 10,000 rials (Dh96,000) in cash. The brides also expect to receive expensive jewellery that costs thousands more and, in most instances, a lavish ceremony that lasts several days.
“It is not right. It is time we break this bad habit because it works out negatively in our society,” said Fatma Fallahy, a 74-year-old marriage counsellor. “It is just pure greed that has got nothing to do with our tradition or religion. It also ruins the prospective marriages of many young people.”
One Omani man said that it cost him nearly 20,000 rials to marry his college sweetheart, money that would have moved them out of a rented accommodation and helped pay for their own house.
“By the time I paid the dowry, the five-star hotel’s reception cost, traditional ceremonies and gifts, I ... used up almost all my savings,” said Rashid al Habsi, a computer software engineer. “The message from my father-in-law at the time was: ‘you want her, then you pay for her’, but the money ended our dreams of owning a house for many years to come.”
Some men take crippling loans from banks to finance marriages they cannot afford so they can be with the women they love. More well-off families tend to help the grooms with the payments. In extreme cases, such marriages end in matrimonial disaster.
“My brother’s marriage ended just a year and a half later from both the financial constraint of running a family and blaming his father-in-law for putting them in a dire condition,” Mr al Habsi added.
Matchmakers, who are still used by most Omanis, say some men avoid marrying their compatriots, preferring low-cost weddings with foreign women.
“It is getting popular and the number is growing,” said Rahila Saif, a Muscat-based matchmaker. “They get married to Indian, Pakistani, Filipino and European women, and who can blame them? They get a fair bargain while our women struggle with local suitors.”
The number of unmarried women in Oman is growing. Although the government does not keep statistics, thirty years ago the age of marriage for women was between 18 and 22. Now, Mrs Saif said, women in their mid thirties are still looking for husbands.
The potential bride’s father usually sets the dowry fee when he wants to finance an expensive purchase or simply boost his bank balance, turning daughters into costly commodities. In villages, the most common purchase with dowry money is a farm, and in cities a property that can provide an income from rent.
“In some cases I know, fathers of the brides even buy bonds or invest the money in shares, things as ridiculous as that,” said Nasser al Khaboori, a Muscat-based investment banker. “They don’t really care that while they enrich themselves, they give their daughters and sons-in-laws a bad start to their marriage by cutting down their financial resources.”
Some women know nothing about their future husbands and are forced to marry by fathers eager to cash in.
Such marriages, which are usually practised in villages, involve much older men giving marriage proposals to the father, who chooses a groom for his daughter from the highest bidder.
“[It is] just like a goat auction. These men treat their daughters as livestock rather than humans,” Mr Khaboori said.
Fathers who demand huge dowries defend themselves by claiming the payment is their right.
“I have spent thousands for the upkeep of my children and I need a little compensation.” said Hamdani al Mansoori, a 66-year-old retired civil servant who married off three daughters at an average dowry of 4,500 rials each. “Besides, who says marriages are cheap? A man looking for a wife needs to prove his financial standing before making a proposal,” he said.
Mr Mansoori, who lives in Muscat, said he used the money to help buy a property from which the rent augments his pension.
sshaibany@thenational.ae
Source: The National, Love is the tender trap in Oman
Across the Gulf, bride’s families receive money from the groom’s family, but in Oman the dowry sums can be as high as 10,000 rials (Dh96,000) in cash. The brides also expect to receive expensive jewellery that costs thousands more and, in most instances, a lavish ceremony that lasts several days.
“It is not right. It is time we break this bad habit because it works out negatively in our society,” said Fatma Fallahy, a 74-year-old marriage counsellor. “It is just pure greed that has got nothing to do with our tradition or religion. It also ruins the prospective marriages of many young people.”
One Omani man said that it cost him nearly 20,000 rials to marry his college sweetheart, money that would have moved them out of a rented accommodation and helped pay for their own house.
“By the time I paid the dowry, the five-star hotel’s reception cost, traditional ceremonies and gifts, I ... used up almost all my savings,” said Rashid al Habsi, a computer software engineer. “The message from my father-in-law at the time was: ‘you want her, then you pay for her’, but the money ended our dreams of owning a house for many years to come.”
Some men take crippling loans from banks to finance marriages they cannot afford so they can be with the women they love. More well-off families tend to help the grooms with the payments. In extreme cases, such marriages end in matrimonial disaster.
“My brother’s marriage ended just a year and a half later from both the financial constraint of running a family and blaming his father-in-law for putting them in a dire condition,” Mr al Habsi added.
Matchmakers, who are still used by most Omanis, say some men avoid marrying their compatriots, preferring low-cost weddings with foreign women.
“It is getting popular and the number is growing,” said Rahila Saif, a Muscat-based matchmaker. “They get married to Indian, Pakistani, Filipino and European women, and who can blame them? They get a fair bargain while our women struggle with local suitors.”
The number of unmarried women in Oman is growing. Although the government does not keep statistics, thirty years ago the age of marriage for women was between 18 and 22. Now, Mrs Saif said, women in their mid thirties are still looking for husbands.
The potential bride’s father usually sets the dowry fee when he wants to finance an expensive purchase or simply boost his bank balance, turning daughters into costly commodities. In villages, the most common purchase with dowry money is a farm, and in cities a property that can provide an income from rent.
“In some cases I know, fathers of the brides even buy bonds or invest the money in shares, things as ridiculous as that,” said Nasser al Khaboori, a Muscat-based investment banker. “They don’t really care that while they enrich themselves, they give their daughters and sons-in-laws a bad start to their marriage by cutting down their financial resources.”
Some women know nothing about their future husbands and are forced to marry by fathers eager to cash in.
Such marriages, which are usually practised in villages, involve much older men giving marriage proposals to the father, who chooses a groom for his daughter from the highest bidder.
“[It is] just like a goat auction. These men treat their daughters as livestock rather than humans,” Mr Khaboori said.
Fathers who demand huge dowries defend themselves by claiming the payment is their right.
“I have spent thousands for the upkeep of my children and I need a little compensation.” said Hamdani al Mansoori, a 66-year-old retired civil servant who married off three daughters at an average dowry of 4,500 rials each. “Besides, who says marriages are cheap? A man looking for a wife needs to prove his financial standing before making a proposal,” he said.
Mr Mansoori, who lives in Muscat, said he used the money to help buy a property from which the rent augments his pension.
sshaibany@thenational.ae
Source: The National, Love is the tender trap in Oman
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