Gaps

Posted on January 8, 2012 by jolnyusa

A Russian chemist, Dimitri Mendeleev, divined the Periodic Table in 1869. He anchored his table with known elements; however, he had a notion that there were many more elements that were yet to be “discovered”. He left spaces — gaps if you will — for those elements that would declare themselves. In fact, the spaces for the yet to be revealed elements outnumbered the existing ones.

When we visited the Sultan Qaboos Islamic Studies Center today, we noted room after room of remarkable display cases wrought of exotic woods and enshrined in polished stone. The cases were, however, empty.The impression I got was that there is a quiet certitude in Oman that there are “elements” that will be revealed all in the fulness of time. Oman has has what Charles Dickens would refer to as ”Great Expectations.”

Richard Cattabiani

Director: International Programs SUNY Ulster

Abaya

Posted on January 8, 2012 by jolnyusa

Abaya – the word flows with the same beauty as the garment it describes. Although Oman has its share of progressive women who wear westernized clothing, a significant number wear the flowing black floor length gown and headscarf traditional to this land. I was expecting a sea of black, or what one of my students described as “a bunch of women in black bags.” Not even close. Even after an exhausting 24 hour journey to Oman, I was captivated, at the airport, by the beauty and individuality of these elegant garments. The abaya is every womans’s dream of a figure flattering design. The Omani women, most of whom are slender, exhibit flawless posture and a measured grace of movement. My subconcious pre conception of an army of black, shapeless uniforms was blown away by the elegance and variety of design. One particularly beautiful abaya was decorated with subtle, alternating rays of satinn and silk radiating from the neck to the floor. Another was trimmed with embroidered gold coins. Yet another had a subtle leopard print trimming the edge of both gown and scarf. An endless variety of style and decoration made each garment unique. But the most stunning impression, was the focus on each lovely face. Rather than creating a uniform anonymity among these women, their abayas served as backgrounds that highlighted the beauty and individuality of each face. As Phil Collins would say, it let’s their true colors shine through.

Stephanie Roberg-Lopez

Dutchess Community College

Impressions of Oman

Posted on January 8, 2012 by jolnyusa

Before we came to Oman, we read that the people were very warm and the country quite relaxed. That has certainly proven to be the case. Walking the streets, wandering in the Souk, or driving on the roads, one senses a kind of calm. People are open, welcoming, easy to talk to. English is spoken quite widely, so it is possible to converse with those whom one meets. On the streets, you rarely hear a car horn, and, when you do, it is short or it may be a cab asking if you want a ride.

Interactions among people I have watched are likewise relaxed. Parents with their children, men or women conversing, I have yet to witness either anger or tension. Indicative of this is an experience I had the other day. I was out walking and saw a minor collision. One car stopped short and the one behind ran into him. It was a minor accident, but there was damage to both cars. There was a moment which passed and then both drivers got out of their cars walked up and shook hands. They then talked quietly for a few moments, pulled their cars off the street into a lot and had a conversation. I see this as emblematic of the general mood of calm I referred to earlier. Oman has proven to be a very comfortable place to visit, just as advertised.

Lewis Brownstein
Professor of Political Science and International Relations
SUNY–New Paltz

Visit to Oman

Posted on January 7, 2012 by jolnyusa

Our group of ten academics travels throughout Oman in a small fleet of vehicles with the official plates of the Sultanate: we’re in Volvos, Mercedes, even a Cadillac. The Sultan spares no expense, and has fine taste in wheels. We intrepid ten here in the Gulf are chauffeured by traditional garbed men, many ex-military, now in the service of the government. Whether being ferried through the streets around the capital Muscat, or from Muscat to the desert, we invariably move at breakneck speed. I’m talking fast.

Why Not? We are not bound by traffic laws, and speed, after all, connotes power. (Are you listening Danica Patrick)? Our haste seems a conspicuous example of the influence of an absolute monarch, which Sultan Qaboos of Oman obviously is. Once other drivers get a good look at our green and red official plates–the colors of the national flag–they clear out of the lane pretty quickly. (Either that or self-interest at protecting their vehicle shunts them aside). It’s a fun way to travel that none of us are used to, and has the advantage of allowing us to sit, take a good look around this fascinating Middle Eastern nation, and compare notes as we rocket along. More on what we’re seeing and feeling later.

Paul Basinski

SUNY Orange

Wahiba Sands

Posted on January 7, 2012 by jolnyusa

By S. Ilgu Ozler, Associate Professor

SUNY New Paltz Department of Political Science

On the second day of our visit to Oman, we have driven through the perfectly manicured and extremely clean streets of Muscat to make our way out of town towards the Wahiba Sands. As we drove 160 km ( 100 miles) per hour on the 10 lane highway out of Muscat, I realized that we had not hit a pot hole since arriving in the country 48 hours ago. Growing up in Ankara, Turkey and now living in New York, avoiding pot holes is a regular part driving. Not in Oman!

As we left the cool breeze, the palm trees and beautiful beaches of Gulf of Oman on the edge of the Indian Ocean behind us, we started to drive through a stunning terrain of rocky mountains. These low laying mountains sat perfectly together creating a magical feeling. We were on our way to the desert which is the stereotypical image of the Arabian Peninsula that the West has. Not the beautiful beaches that we were driving away from.

The desert of Wahiba Sands was more beautiful than I could imagine. During the sunset, the shadows on the red and brick colored sand made mysterious shapes. I could imagine a truly peaceful existence there at that moment. Yet, the terrain that is all sand and very little vegetation was also telling my rational self that this place is lonely and tough for people to survive. In an hours’ drive into the sand, all we saw was a few tents surrounded by goats and camels and a lone reception tower for telephones.

On the other hand, the place that we stayed at night “1000 Nights” was all too civilized beyond my expectations. I had a full bath with running water attached to my Bedouin tent. The food was dominated by delicious salads and spicy vegetarian dishes with some barbecue on the side. Our hosts- including the men and women who played music, singing and dancing to traditional songs after the wonderful dinner that we had- were Bedouins. Our driver came from a Bedu herder family. He spent the summers in Biddiyah (the nearest town). During the winters, he is in the desert staying with his family carry their camp into different places with their herd of 140 goats and sheep and 10 camels. The Bedouins are nomadic desert people who speak a different dialect than those from Muscat. The Omani tourist guides from Muscat could not translate for us the songs that our Bedouin hosts were singing as they spoke differently here. It is amazing that in such small country and in such a short time we have observed so much geographic as well as social diversity.

What lies ahead?

Posted on January 7, 2012 by jolnyusa

When we look to the future, we steer by stars that are still in motion. Clearly, the Sultan is a beloved captain of the Omani Ship of State.That being said, I asked the Secretary General of the Qaboos Center for Islamic Culture what challenges the sultanate faces. He was candid and forthright by telling us that his personal concern was who would take the helm when the Sultan “shuffles off this mortal coil.” At

71 years old, [the Sultan has no children] will Omani’s next leader have the vision and charisma to continue the extraordinary progress Omani has seen in the last 40 years? Will the next generation be as appreciative as those who sing his praises are now?

To be honest, only time will tell.

Richard Cattabiani

SUNY Ulster

Politics in Oman

Posted on January 7, 2012 by jolnyusa

Oman’s politics reminds me of Aristotle’s belief: everything in moderation opined the Greek philosopher. Many in the West today make an automatic, if unfortunate, connection with Islam and extremism: sectarian, political, social. Nothing could be further from the truth in Oman. Since the current ruler Sultan Qaboos came to power in a bloodless coup in 1970, he’s steered a middle path politically between the Western nations and the Middle East. For example, Oman has fairly stable diplomatic relations with both the United States and Iran, two countries otherwise not likely to be mentioned together in the same breath. While Oman supports the cause of Palestinian statehood, they supported the Camp David accords, and did not then or later act antagonistically toward Israel.

Some of this is merely pragmatic. The Sultan’s kingdom is a small nation with a small military. This has meant choosing a middle path in foreign policy, rather than trying to direct or guide politics regionally. Though it is not wholly accurate in capturing its foreign policy, the word neutrality comes to mind. Certainly in a region ravaged by conflict in the post World War Two era, Oman has not really come close to being swept up by these regional conflicts. More moderation, since war is a powerful force that might lead a more intemperate or unskilled nation into its maw.

The benefits of such a policy are obvious to us here. Spending less on defense and avoiding conflict means that oil revenues which might be gobbled up by a large military or corrupt plutocratic regime, are spread around the country fairly evenly. (Are you listening Egypt)? Infrastructure is great here (roads and bridges rival the best in the U.S. or Europe); Oman has an excellent system of public education; and a rising living standard of living has created per capita wealth in excess of $25,000. Though as in the United States, it’s not all equally distributed.

Makes you believe that moderation has its benefits!

Paul Basinski

SUNY Orange

Turkey’s “zero problems” foreign policy

Posted on May 1, 2011 by Andrew

Turkey’s “zero problems” foreign policy

Whereas the U.S. has a common border with only Mexico and Canada, with whom it has good relations, Turkey is located at the crossroads of the volatile Balkans, the Middle East and the Caucasus. It shares a common border with Greece, Armenia, Iraq, Iran, and Syria, and looks across the Black Sea to Russia and the Mediterranean to Cyprus. At various times in recent history, Turkey has had conflicts with all of them.

In 2002 the Justice and Development [“AK”] Party, took power in Turkey. Since then, Turkey has embarked on a foreign policy called “zero problems policy with neighbors.” Its purpose is to develop friendly relations with all of them and, by doing so, not only eliminate old sources of friction and distrust between them but also position Turkey to serve as an intermediary to help settle regional problems and internal disputes that have bedeviled such countries as Bosnia, Iraq, and Israel/Palestine.

Five operational principles have guided Turkey’s foreign policy-making process. The first is domestic, since a country’s strength abroad ultimately rests on its strength at home. It tries to balance security and democracy. Turkey has a large Kurdish minority that has demanded greater freedom to use its language and participate in politics. Earlier refusal to permit this led to a multi-year “war on terror” that pitted the Turkish Army against Kurdish PKK rebels. This has ended. Now Turkey is trying to incorporate the Kurds into the political process.

Second, Turkey has moved to improve relations with Greece, Syria, Iraq, and Iran and to open talks with neighboring Armenia. It has developed warm relations with age-old enemy Russia. As relations have improved, trade has blossomed. Turkish companies are involved in major construction projects throughout the region, and Turkish products are much in demand.

Third, Turkey engages in pre-emptive peace diplomacy, by which it aims to avert crises before they escalate to a critical level. It mediated between Syria and Israel and tried to bring about Sunni-Shiite reconciliation in Iraq and between Lebanese and Palestinian factions. Along with Brazil, it offered its good offices to reprocess Iran’s nuclear fuel, thereby reducing the danger that Iran would use it for producing nuclear weapons. While not all of these efforts succeeded, they demonstrate Turkey’s growing regional influence and its acceptability as a trusted mediator.

Fourth, Turkey views its foreign policy as multi-dimensional, not as a “zero-sum” game. Thus, it maintains a strategic relationship with the U.S. through bilateral ties and as a member of NATO, while simultaneously pressing for admission to membership in the European Union and for stronger relations with Russia. Turkey regards these policies not as contradictory but as complementary: Turkey as “bridge”.

Finally, it aspires to a more active role in international organizations and on issues of global importance. It was a non-permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, chaired a forum for dialogue among Balkan states, and participates in the G-20 economic forum and the Arab League. In the ongoing Libyan conflict, it has played a prominent role in evacuating civilians and providing medical care.

While its “zero problems” foreign policy has not achieved universal success – Cyprus, Armenia, and, recently, Israel are exceptions- it has raised the respect with which Turkey is held and provided a platform for expanding its reputation worldwide. In coming years, we can anticipate a growing role for Turkey on the world stage.

Martin Charwat

Martin Charwat is a Past-President of the World Affairs Council of the Mid-Hudson Valley and has visited Turkey twice in recent years.

Turkey Study Tour July 2008 By Sarah H. M. Stern

Posted on July 29, 2008 by Andrew

On the Morning of July 19th, I woke up to the sounds of waves crashing against the shore and the cool, sweet smell of sea air. I ran out onto the balcony of my hotel room and stared out at the Aegean, watching as the purples, yellows and pinks of the sunrise collided with the dense blue of the sea. I could not help imagining all the people who had traveled those waters from ancient times until the present and what sort of history must lie at the bottom of the sea. It was breathtaking and once again I was reminded of how complex and astounding Turkey is. From its diverse peoples and cultures to its geography, its varied history and its delicately balanced domestic and international politics: Turkey is full of surprises. That is likely the reason why so many of the trip’s participants, myself included, fell back on words like “incredible,” “magnificent” and “awesome” when asked to describe our experiences in Turkey. A more nuanced vocabulary would run the risk of leaving out some crucial aspect of Turkey.

It seemed almost cruel that after only 11 hours we departed from the Aegean. We were pacified by promises that more wonders lay ahead. During the first days of the journey, I could not believe that every new day would bring something more awe-inspiring than what we had witnessed the previous day. I soon learned that in Turkey, there is always something equally if not more fantastic to do or see. There are always more ancient ruins, more natural wonders, more art, more music, more delicacies, and more people to experience. In the end, we were all forced to throw up our hands and admit that Turkey in 10 days was impossible. This trip was nothing more than an amuse bouche, just enough to wet our appetites. As we hugged goodbye at the airport in Istanbul, every one of us vowed to return to Turkey to finish the journey we had just begun, knowing of course, that it is impossible to “finish” exploring Turkey.

I am so grateful to the Turkish Cultural Institute for dreaming up and funding such a creative itinerary, filled to the brim with as many Turkish experiences as possible. I am also indebted to the World Affairs Council, particularly the Mid-Hudson branch, which made this experience possible for me. Our orientation session was so informative and provoked such lively discussions that I could hardly wait to board the plane to Turkey. Arriving in Turkey, I realized everyday how important the history and cultural lessons learned during the orientation enhanced my understanding of Turkey and allowed me to experience the country on a more profound level. I look forward to doing my best to repay their generosity by instilling in my students the same appreciation, admiration and affinity for Turkey that I carried home with me.