The Omani Renaissance transformed more than the visible infrastructure of the Sultanate. It also had a deep impact on the law and on legal structures within the country. This is most apparent in what is called the Omani Constitutional Renaissance, which started in 1996, the middle of Sultan Qaboos’ reign. The Omani Constitution that developed is a combination and harmonization of Islamic Sharia as well as modern constitutionalism, based on various models and exisiting constitutions. Sharia (both Ibadi and non-Ibadi) and modern law shaped and inspired the making of the Oman’s Constitution during the reign of Sultan Qaboos.

Background to the Omani Constitutional Renaissance

Oman’s legal history before the accession of Sultan Qaboos illuminates some of the basic, internal sources of Oman’s current constitution. For over a millennium Oman was ruled by the Ibadi tradition. The Majlis al-Hall wa’l-‘Aqd (the Council to Dissolve and Convene), formulated by religious scholars and tribal leaders, was the primary legal body along with the Imam. Throughout most of Omani history, and with the exception of some of the Nabhani period (1154–1624 CE), this council, or some form of it, had the right to elect imams, the religious head of state, to limit their powers and even to remove them. This role changed after of the death of Imam Ahmad bin Said Al-Busaidi in 1783, the fourth son—Said—of the founder of the present ruling family of Oman, became the head of state despite questions as to his legitimacy. In 1792, he handed over the position as head of state, or Sultan, to his son Hamad, breaking the Ibadi ruling system. This marked the beginning of a period of political conflicts between the imams and the Al-Busaidi monarchs over who had the right to rule. In 1913, there was a revolution in Oman that sought to rebuild the Imamate system. However, as a result, two ruling systems emerged: the Sultan and the Sultanate controlled the ports and coastal areas; the Imam and the Imamate the more isolated interior of the country, especially the mountains. Both systems reached an agreement (Treaty of Seeb) on September 25, 1920 containing obligations for each party, but it did not include details with regard to their borders.