Omani detained over royal decree rumour

Muscat: An Omani was detained for spreading a rumour about the issuance of a royal decree relating to a cabinet reshuffle in November.

The rumour was circulated through social networking sites and smart phone applications, a statement from Royal Oman Police said.

The citizen was referred to the competent authorities to decide on his case in accordance with local laws.

The police statement added that such procedure is part of the government’s efforts to check the spread of rumours and any attempt to smear state institutions or to exploit social media to broadcast messages that undermine social values or public order.

An official source affirmed that authorities will not hesitate to deal firmly with people indulging in irresponsible behaviour and urged everyone to establish the veracity of facts before publishing or circulating any data or messages via social media or smartphone applications considering the negative impact of rumours and incorrect news on society.

In June, the public prosecution vowed a crackdown on anyone using social media platforms to spread rumours that impact national security. In a statement published by Oman News Agency, it said that there were “growing participations and negative writings on discussion forums, social networking websites and mobile applications”.

“These writings include libels, the spreading of rumours, and provocative sit-ins and strikes,” said the statement.

The statement added that a number of violators had been arrested and referred to courts for trial.

In December, 2014, a hashtag under the title ‘report to the General Sultan Al Naamani’ began trending in Oman after businessman Mudahir Al Tajir launched a series of tweets allegedly exposing senior officials in corruption cases.

Mudahir Al Tajir, who is believed to be outside the country, published photos of himself posing with senior officials in the country. Al Tajir in his tweets appealed to General Sultan Al Naamani, minister of the Royal Court, to stand by him to undo the alleged “injustice” done to him and to expose officials involved in corruption cases.

More than 40,000 people followed Al Tajir on Twitter in two days.

The Public Prosecution later sentenced Al Tajir to one year in prison for breaching the privacy law.

He was found to be in violation of Article 16 of the Cyber Law, which stipulates that any person using the internet or cellphones with cameras for publishing news or trespassing into the private life of anybody could be sent to jail for up to three years and fined between 1,000 rials to 5,000 rials.

Sultan Qaboos University recently conducted a study entitled ‘the new social media and its relation to the spreading of rumours’, which affirmed that social media platforms have a significant impact on spreading rumours in the country. Most of the rumours related to salary hikes, food price increases, road accidents and weather forecasts.

Article 1823 of the Omani Penal Law stipulates that anyone found guilty of spreading rumours will be jailed between ten days to three years and slapped with a fine ranging from 10 rials to 500 rials.