Wednesday, March 02, 2011
By Mohammad Bellouchi
Agence France Presse

SOHAR, Oman: Tanks dispersed demonstrators blocking the port in the industrial city of Sohar and the coast road to Muscat Tuesday as protests were also reported elsewhere in Oman, journalists and witnesses said.

The operation went peacefully and Omani forces drove away protesters who had been keeping vigil at the Earth Roundabout, a landmark intersection where at least one protester was killed in clashes Sunday.
Security forces initially cleared protesters from the main coastal highway linking Muscat to Sohar, but protesters continued to deploy trucks blocking access from Sohar port, Oman’s second largest, to nearby aluminum and petrochemical factories.

Armored vehicles deployed at the Earth Roundabout, where protesters had kept vigil for a third consecutive night. Protests were also reported Tuesday in the southern port of Salalah and the northwestern region of Buraimi.
In Salalah around 200 people demonstrated outside the office of the governor of Dhofar Province, demanding an increase in wages and benefits, and dozens of protesters staged a similar rally in Buraimi.

Some 300 Omani protesters also staged a sit-in outside the sultanate’s consultative council in Muscat, demanding an end to corruption. The demonstration, which was organized by intellectuals and nongovernmental associations, came shortly after thousands marched in the capital vowing support for Sultan Qaboos.

“No to wasting public money” and “Government corruption should be fought,” said banners carried by protesters.
The Omani protesters insist they are not challenging the rule of Sultan Qaboos, who has been in power since 1970, but are merely calling for reform.

The violence prompted U.S. State Department spokesman Philip Crowley to say Monday, “We … encouraged restraint and to resolve differences through dialogue,” in what was Washington’s first reaction to the unrest.
Also Monday, Amnesty urged Oman, which it said has “used excessive force,” to rein in its security forces and order “an immediate independent investigation.”
In a move aimed at appeasing the protesters, Qaboos has announced the creation of 50,000 new jobs and a monthly allowance of $390 for registered job seekers.

He also ordered the formation of a ministerial committee to put together proposals to meet calls for more powers for Oman’s elected consultative council.
Oman guards the strategic Strait of Hormuz through which 40 percent of the world’s oil supply passes and Muscat is a key Western ally in the region. Iran borders the waterway’s northern flank.