EVERYONE KNOWS about the war in Ireland. But few people know much about Britain's other colonial war. in Dhofar, the southem province of the Sultanate of British Governments - Labour and Conservative alike- have carefully tried to conceal their military activities in the Sultanate, putting out false and misleading stories about the role and status of the large number of British military personnel active in Oman, In this they have had un effective ally in the British press British troops occupied Oman during the second half of the 19th century because of its important strategic position in relation to India. Ever since then Oman has been a de facto British colony.
The British Government has never admitted this, claiming that Oman is an independent country which enjoys special relations with Britain. But facts speak for themselves. The despotie rulers of Oman have only been able to sus tain their rule because of British military and financial support. Their repressive state apparatus is run by British "advisors', and their anny of mercenaries is controlled by British officers. In addition the RAF maintains two bases, at Salala and on the island of Masirah.
A century of imperialist domination has reduced conditions in the Sultanate, once an important and fourshing commercial centre, to those of a medieval country almost totally solated from the rest of the world, The Omani masses live in extreme poverty.
During the 1950'%, when oil exploration began in the Omani interior, opposition to the regime and British imperialism developed in the form of several revolts. But this opposition never developed beyond local tribal uprisings, and was quickly smashed by British forces.
J. Hassan
On 9 June 1965, a very different and much more serious armed strug gle was initiated by the Dhofar Libcration Front in the province of Dhofar.
The September 1968 congress of the Front marked an important tuming point for the movement. The tribal dominated leadership was replaced by left wing and Marxist elements The policy of Dhofari separatism was extended to incorporato a perspective of social rerolution in the whole of the Gulf region.
This change was reflected in the new name adopted -the Popular Front for the Liberation of the Occupied Arab Gulf (PFLOAG). Most important of all, the Front began to implement a programme of radical social reforts in she ubcruted areas with the aim of eradicating exploitative and oppressive social relations and improving the it began to establish links with other revolutionary movements in the Gulf.
the Popular Front rapidly gained wide support among the Dhofari masses, grew in strengtit, and with inhabited regions of Dhofar with plain around the capital. Salala. Sultan Cabus reviews his British-backed army Living conditions of the masses, and As the result of these changes.
in a few yes had liberated all the the exception of the narrow coastal The reaction of British imperialism to the movement was from the fint a violent one. The Labour Govemment then in office tried to crust ation, bombing villages and destroyto defeat the movement or demoralSo British Imperialism decided to try another trick Whitehall decided ed Sultan Said was ousted in a BritThe whoic aftair was presented STATES •SAUDI of a few schools and hospitals, were PIPESTE ises were made. The aim was to con IDEN REP The growing econontic and pol TaT.
Iranian military involvement beg The Shah has been making arrog ment of Dhofar, because he cannot toler ate "subversion' anywhere in the Gulf. But is soldiers have not been doing as well as he claims. Their morale is reported to be very low -not perhaps surprising when, according to Jim Hoagland in the Washington Posr. "they spend most of their lime blazing away at their own positions - and the Government has had to try and make up for this by giving them large bonIn Iran, in spite of the brutal Gulf. epression, there has been some org ansed opposition to the war as uman ersn soldiers on the warpat!
Were Want Aralian Saa shown hy the recent dentonstration staged by relatives of dead soldiers in front of the war ministry in TehLast October the Omani Government claimed trat the Iranian forces were being withdrawn, but in Januity it was revealed that Iranian and British lod mercenaries of the Sultan had launched the heaviest attack ever on the liberated regions in late December. This atrack was repelled hy the revolutionary forees who inflicted heary casualties on the enemy.
More recontly, an even heavier attack bas been launched with the aut of cutting off the revolutionaries" supply line from South Yemen before the monsoon scason begins. In addition the liberated areas are being constantly bombed from the air and shelled by pun-boats of the British commended Omani navy. This attack represents the biggest taroat yet to the liberation moveOIL INTERESTS The viciousness of imperialism's reaction to the movement in Dhofar can only be understood in the con text of the important threat that it poses to the vital interests of imper ialism in the Gulf.
Sixly per cent of the world's known oil reserves are in the Gulf region, and the cconomics of the imperialist countries in Western Europe and Japan are totally dep endent on imports of oil from the In addition the giant oll monop olies draw huge profits from their operations in the Gulf. So a revol utionary movement like that in Dhofar, which contantly threatens to spread to the other Gulf states, is a very direct threat to imperialist interests.
That is why imperialism is bent on crushing this movement by any means possible. The US, which bus been openly stating recently that it will not hesitate to occupy the oil fields if its vital interests in the Gulf are threatened, may also soon become involved in the Dholas war. Already it has been agreed with Sutan Qabus Chal American military aircraft will be allowed to use the facilities at the RAF base on the island of Masirah The Labour Government has proved to be a more than willing accomplice in these developments. Oman was significuntly almost the only area of British military operations to escape the cuts in future expendicure announced in the recent Delence Review, And only a fortnight ago David Ennals, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, arrived in Muscar to express his hope that the PFLO rebels would be finally crushed by the end of the year So much for the Labour Govern ment 3 commitment to socialism, a cause which the PFLO openly esp ouses against the reactionary stooge of imperialism, Sultan Qabus. But the working class organisations on which the Labour Government relies for its support have the power to change this situation by demanding the immediate withdrawal of all British forces from Oman. The demunistrution called for Sunday 9 March by the Gull Committee, the Iranian Student Society in GB, and the Palestine-Gulf-Yemen Solidarity Committee —assemble 2.00pm in Horse Guards Avenue, near White hal will be a first important step