Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970 MUNUC 32 TABLE OF CONTENTS ______________________________________________________ Letter from the Chair………………………………………………………….. 4 Letter from the Crisis Director…………………………………………………6 Guide to Parliamentary Procedure…………………………………………7 Powers of Committee………………………………………………………….9 Statement on Sensitivity and Respect………………………………….…10 Letter from Qaboos bin Said……………………………………………………...12 Oman as a Sultanate…………………………………………………………13 Oman as a Portuguese Colony…………………………………………….14 Late History and Golden Age of the Omani Empire…………………….15 Split Empire: Oman as a Sultanate II……………………………………….16 The Al Said Dynasty…………………………………………………………..19 Rulers of the Al-Said Dynasty to 1970……………………………………...20 Geography of Oman…………………………………………………………22 State of Affairs: Socio-Economic…………………………………………...25 State of Affairs: Qaboos bin Said, Heir Apparent………………………..30 State of Affairs: Dhofar Rebellion…………………………………………...32 State of Affairs: The Persian Gulf, 1970…………………………………….33 State of Affairs: The World, 1970…………………………………………….45 Appendix………………………………………………………………………48 2 Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970| MUNUC 32 Character Biographies………………………………………………………49 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………...63 3 Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970| MUNUC 32 LETTER FROM THE CHAIR ______________________________________________________ Ahlan wa sahlan and welcome to the Sultanate of Oman, one of the few remaining absolute monarchies in the entire world! My name is Jordanna, and it is my absolute pleasure to be your chair. I am a third-year undergraduate studying Political Science and Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations. On campus, I am an Under-Secretary-General for ChoMUN, our collegiate Model UN conference, an Editor of the Chicago Journal of Foreign Policy, and a research assistant for one of UChicago’s professors. I spend the remainder of my time drinking Turkish coffee, daydreaming about traveling, and emphatically denying that I am from Long Island. At MUNUC, I will be chairing as Qaboos bin Said al Said, Crown Prince and eventual Sultan of Oman. Qaboos bin Said is one of the most influential leaders in modern Omani history. As you will learn, he orchestrated a bloodless coup against his own father, Sultan Said bin Taimur al Said. He was responsible for a series of broad-sweeping reforms which ultimately brought Oman into the 21st Century. Most notably, he has a genuinely impressive beard. As your chair, I hope to channel some of Sultan Qaboos’ incredible character –– with slightly less beard, of course. Because this committee is a bit different from others that MUNUC has run, I think it is important to discuss context and structure. In this committee, you will interact with other countries in the region and the world. Oman, as well as its neighbors in the Middle East and Persian Gulf, tend to be portrayed unfavorably by popular media, and often deservingly so. With that in mind, we ask that you neither endorse nor poke fun at certain issues, including but not limited to: religious militancy (terrorism), violations of human rights, unequal treatment of women, Zionism and/or anti-Zionism, etc. We chose to run this committee because we want to explore what it means to build a nation in such a geopolitically volatile region. As executives, we will respect delegates who share our vision and who demonstrate maturity in their notes, directives, and speeches. 4 Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970| MUNUC 32 As chair, I will look for spirited, high-level, and ultimately respectful debate. Speeches and directives should convey a strong understanding of the topic and should be creative and entertaining, when appropriate. The trajectory of this committee is heavily reliant on delegate action, so Josh and I are looking forward to seeing where you decide to take Omani history! With that out of the way, I wanted to reiterate how excited I am to be chairing this committee. Parts of this letter were heavy, but I promise that we are going to have an incredible weekend. Josh and I cannot wait to welcome you all to Oman, to MUNUC, and to Chicago! Sincerely, Jordanna Yochai 5 Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970| MUNUC 32 LETTER FROM THE CRISIS DIRECTOR ______________________________________________________ Hi, and welcome to Oman! We’re gonna have a blast this weekend and I’m excited to get started! I’m Josh, and I’ll be orchestrating the ridiculousness that happens in your notes as Crisis Director for Oman! I am a third-year undergraduate studying Economics and selling out my soul to Corporate America™. When I’m not doing that, I love to run MUNUC Committees and am on the Executive Board of the Chicago Debate Society. When I’m sadly not doing either of those things, I play the viola and obsess over the Star Wars Expanded Universe™. When MUNUC rolls around, my biggest job is to make whatever plans and ideas you bring to the table come to fruition. I turn your notes and directives into a cohesive, overarching story for the weekend that will either bring Oman to the glorious pinnacle it deserves or send it crashing into the Persian Gulf in sadness and despair. Your job is to bring fun, creative, and well thought out ideas for the growth or chaos your character will incite. Oman will be a fun setting for this. As you will read in the later chapters of this (very long) document, Oman has all sorts of unique twists and turns that will produce exciting crises and demand interesting solutions. Also, Qaboos has an amazing beard. We hope you will dive into the time and place and come away with a greater appreciation for a nation that doesn’t get much attention. Your notes are expected to be fun and interesting and creative. They will not be racist. They will not be based on stereotypes. They will not be outside the boundaries of reasonable discussion. For a more in-depth discussion on what I mean by this, please refer to the “Statement on Sensitivity & Respect.” With all that said, I hope reading this document both spurs excitement and ideas. I look forward to meeting you all when conference rolls around. Joshua Neudorf Crisis Director 6 Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970| MUNUC 32 GUIDE TO PARLIAMENTARY PROCDURE ______________________________________________________ This is a continuous crisis committee and will be structured accordingly. If we decide to modify parliamentary procedure, we will let you know in advance and provide time to ask questions. Here is an outline of the points, motions, and orders that we will be accepting, as well as their precedence. Everything is listed for you below, from most to least disruptive. While it is by no means necessary to memorize this, a good command of parliamentary procedure can help delegates pass motions and even speak more often in the front room. Motion to Modify Debate: Open, Adjourn, or Close Debate –– These are largely self-explanatory. Suspend the Rules –– These are appropriate to introduce before breaks between sessions but, outside of that, occur infrequently. Points: Of Order –– These are used when delegates believe there is an error in parliamentary procedure or a lapse in decorum. These should be raised immediately after the infraction and may interrupt speeches. Of Personal Privilege –– These are allowed to interrupt speeches. They are used for any non- committee-related personal discomforts. Typical requests include speaking volume, air conditioning, etc. Of Inquiry –– These should not interrupt a speech. They are used to ask questions about the committee rules or information relevant to the topic at hand. 7 Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970| MUNUC 32 Motion to Enter Voting Procedure: This is used to vote on a directive. Only introduced directive or amendments may be voted on. With Modifications –– This is used to vote on a directive or amendment with any additional aspect to the motion. Commonly, this includes for and against speakers and the Chair’s summary of each directive. Within such motions, more speakers and/or modifications are more disruptive. Without Modifications Motion to Extend the Previous Moderated Caucus: The committee may vote to extend the previous moderated caucus. The extension cannot be longer than the original moderated caucus, and the original speaking time must be kept. Motion to Introduce Directives: This is used when a delegate wants to introduce all of the directives on the floor with the requisite amount of signatories. Motion for an Unmoderated Caucus: This is a form of debate in which delegates may move around the room and speak freely about merging, directives, etc. A total time must be requested when the motion is made, but the topic is not formalized. Longer caucuses are more disruptive. Motion for a Moderated Caucus: This is a form of debate in which the duration, speaking time, and the topic of discussion must be established. These are generally 5-12 minutes long with a speaking time of 30, 45, or 60 seconds. The duration must be divisible by the speaking time. Round Robin –– A Round Robin begins with the motioning delegate and proceeds to their left or right. Delegates may “pass” and refuse their speech. These are more disruptive if they take more time or contain more speeches. 8 Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said of Oman, 1970| MUNUC 32 POWERS OF COMMITTEE ______________________________________________________ Please Note: This committee will begin on July 1, 1970 and simulate the Advisory Council to Qaboos bin Said al Said. After returning to Oman in 1966, Qaboos bin Said was placed under house-arrest or, more accurately, palace-arrest, forced to study Ibadi Islam and Omani history. Sultan Said bin Taimur, fearful of his son’s intelligence and worldliness, severely limited Qaboos bin Said’s personal interactions. Today, however, a council has been convened to address the Sultan’s abuses of power, confront the state’s many deficiencies, and chart a new course for the Sultanate of Oman.