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Oman
Oman Under Qaboos: From Coup to Constitution, 1970-1996, by Calvin H. Allen and W. Lynn Rigsbee, II. London: Frank Cass, 2000. xix + 227 pages. Appends. to p. 236. Bibl. to p. 244. Index to p. 251. $57.50,
Reviewed by J.E Peterson
The Sultanate of Oman has experienced an enormous amount of change over the past 30 years, perhaps the most ever compressed into such a short period in its long history. It has also been blessed with a relatively abundant literature, including a number of works about the country's accomplishments during the reign of Sultan Qabus b. Said (1970-present). Unfortunately, very few of the latter are likely to stand the test of time. Two of the most noteworthy, Ian Skeet's Oman: Politics and Development' and Calvin Allen's Oman: The Modernization of the Sultanate,2 are essentially introductory surveys best suited for readers unfamiliar with the Sultanate while a third, John Townsend's Oman: The Making of a Modern State 3 is now very dated. Thus, it might be said that Oman Under Qaboos is the first serious examination of the contemporary period.
The organization is comprehensive, and the bibliography refers to an impressive range of sources. The text is complemented by a number of charts and several appendices, the most useful being a listing of oil concessions although many of the others are already dated. An initial chapter on the rule of the present Sultan's father, Said b. Taymur (1932-70) is followed by discussions of the development of the political system, the military and security apparatus, planning and finance, natural resources and industry, infrastructure and human development, and foreign policy, while the concluding chapter summarizes the achievements of 1970-1996, Noting that, at present, the Sultan is the "codified source and sanction of all law," the authors introduce the idea of Rechtsstaat or "law-based state," and suggest that the introduction of the Basic Law in 1996-the Sultanate's equivalent of an initial constitution-raises the possibility that "the supreme political authority [may become] law based, as opposed to arbitrary in its rule" (p. 222).
Allen and Rigsbee have an exciting story to tell and, in the main, they tell it well. But, as their endnotes and bibliography indicate, they have followed a relatively well-trodden path. Although Calvin Allen...