How Oman will respond to pressures both external and internal in a nation Sultan Qaboos absolutely ruled for decades remains in question. Sultan Qaboos cut a fashionable figure in a region whose leaders are known for a more austere attire. Sultan Qaboos’ outward-looking worldview could not have contrasted more sharply than that of his father, Sultan Said bin Taimur, under whose rule the sultanate more resembled a medieval state. “They’re just everywhere.”Over time, Sultan Qaboos introduced what amounted to a written constitution, created a parliament and granted citizens limited political freedoms. “The Filipino people join the Omani people in mourning the death of Sultan Qaboos,” the DFA statement added.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer January 11, 2020 03:04 UTC