Two men were arrested for their online activities in Oman, and only one has been freed, say the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) and the Omani Association for Human Rights (OAHR), who call for his release and an end to arrests of those who express themselves online peacefully. On 09 August 2022, businessman and Internet activist Hani Al-Sarhani was ...

The International Federation of Journalist (IFJ), based in Belgium, will hold its 31st Congress in Muscat between 31 May and 03 June 2022. The Omani Journalists Association (OJA) will represent Oman in hosting this event. The Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) and the Omani Association for Human Rights (OAHR) take this opportunity to call on both IFJ and OJA, ...

In an arbitrary measure that greatly endangers freedom of expression, the Ministry of Information decided on 01 December 2021 to prevent the broadcast of the “All Questions” program, presented by the prominent broadcaster, Kholoud Al-Alawi, on Hala FM radio. The “All Questions” program enjoys a wide following amongst the citizens of Oman due to the important and pertinent topics it ...

home in Sohar. Reliable local reports confirmed that he is still being held by the North Al-Batinah Governorate Police Command in Sohar, which is the regional centre of the governorate. Al-Shibli has a Twitter account with more than 7,000 followers, which he uses to peacefully express his views. He also uses the hashtag (#Ghaith_spaces) to organise dialogues on various topics ...

The Omani authorities have recently released five peaceful protesters after detaining them for several weeks. All of them were charged with participating in a gathering of more than ten people without a permit, and violating the instructions of the higher committee in charge of examining the mechanism for dealing with developments in the spread of Covid-19 related to precautionary measures. ...

Popular protests have receded in Oman, after they started in the province of Sohar on 23 May 2021, and spread to the provinces of Salalah, Ibri, Sur, Ibra and Rustaq. The Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) and the Omani Association for Human Rights (OAHR) have documented violations related to the rights to freedom of assembly and expression. The protesters, ...

On 11 April 2021, more than 400 workers, who were temporarily dismissed in March 2020 by BGP Oil and Gas Services, began a peaceful gathering in the green area in front of the Royal Palace in the Governorate of Seeb in Oman. The company claimed they were fired due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the effects of low oil prices, ...

Freedom of expression remains at risk in Oman, where Internet activists and journalists are routinely arrested on charges related to “misuse of social media”. The Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) and the Omani Association for Human Rights (OAHR) call for an end to the censorship of online human rights activities. On the evening of 03 June 2020, Internet activist ...