FALLING SHORT? Oman protests suggest jobs and reform pledges are not enough

FALLING SHORT? Oman protests suggest jobs and reform pledges are not enough

An official in the Oman Employment Committee, part of the Ministry of Manpower, said the government created 50,000 jobs but still sporadic protests have taken place since last year's unrest.

July 5, 2012 5:28 by Reuters

The ministry official called the protests “isolated cases”.

“The present protesters are job quitters who want to work only on unrealistic salaries, are lazy or just troublemakers,” the official told Reuters, and asked not to be named.

“We are not worried by protests because they are isolated cases of job quitters who need to know to accept jobs at reasonable salaries.”

The Ministry of Information referred questions to the Ministry of Manpower.

OIL SECTOR STRIKES

The strikes in the critical oil industry occurred in May, when hundreds contracted to firms working with the main state oil company downed tools to demand wage hikes. The company, Petrol Development Oman, said the dispute was largely finished by June 2 and most of the strikers returned to work.

Three activists, including at least one lawyer, visited the installation to monitor developments and were arrested, though two have since been released.

The arrests sparked a wave of criticism on social media, to which the government responded with further arrests of at least six bloggers at their homes between June 1 and 10.

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