حقوق النشر محفوظة Copyrights جامعة السلطان قابوس Sultan Qaboos University مركز تقنيات التعليم Center for Educational Technology
The video presents a lecture on intellectual security and its contemporary challenges in Omani society. The speaker addresses students, emphasizing the importance of preserving intellectual foundations that define the identity and culture of Oman.
"Security and stability are a great blessing from God Almighty... under its protection, the nation can dedicate itself to building and development."
"Preserving achievements is essential for Oman to attain its prestigious position."
The lecture effectively highlights the significance of intellectual security in Oman, emphasizing its role as a state project designed to protect cultural identity and societal values. It addresses contemporary challenges posed by globalization and the need for an educated, morally grounded populace to navigate these complexities. The emphasis on balance between freedom of expression and national integrity illustrates a nuanced approach to governance and societal development.
Peace, mercy, and blessings of God be upon you, dear students. We welcome you to the course "Oman: State and People," Chapter Five, entitled " Intellectual Security and Contemporary Challenges." Dear students, in this chapter, we will discuss an important topic of concern to Omani society: intellectual security. We will explore the concept of intellectual security and the challenges it faces. Societies are built upon intellectual foundations, principles, and values, including morality, social bonds, religious beliefs, social traditions, inherited customs, cultural foundations, and feelings of loyalty and belonging. These bonds shape their identities and cultures, and therefore, preserving them is a pressing necessity in this society and in this era. Today, we live in an age where cultures, ideas, affiliations, and beliefs intertwine, and conflicts and disputes abound. Countries strive to protect their citizens from harmful intellectual influences that undermine their values, weaken their bonds, and destabilize the intellectual security of their citizens. Dear citizens, security and stability are a great blessing from God Almighty. And it is above all nations and peoples, for under its protection, the nation can dedicate itself to building and development in all aspects of life. You saw, dear students, in the video how the Sultanate has given great attention to protecting intellectual security in Omani society. The Sultanate always strives to preserve ideas and culture, and this was emphasized by the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said, may God have mercy on him, on the 22nd National Day, when he said that every citizen must be a faithful guardian of the nation's gains and achievements, which, as we all know, were only realized through the blood of martyrs and the efforts of loyal workers. He said that he would not allow foreign ideas, which hide behind many glittering slogans, to threaten his country's security and stability, and that he must be wary, very wary, of these ideas that aim to destabilize the nation. He must adhere to the core principles of his true religion and its tolerant Sharia, which urge him to commit to the spirit of tolerance, harmony, and love. Security, dear students, means reassurance, trust, safety, and protection from evil. As for thought... Intellectual security, therefore, means contemplation, reflection, and rational consideration of matters, employing reason in understanding something known to comprehend something unknown. Here, intellectual security means achieving reassurance and safety for the individual and society, and warding off intellectual, social, and political disturbances by adopting wise policies and taking sound stances after careful consideration and rational thought before making decisions and adopting policies. One can approach the intellectual security of society as a moral umbrella covering the nation to protect it from projects that threaten its national principles, the beliefs of its people, its security, or cause discord and division among its components. The purpose of this umbrella is to counter intellectual infiltrations that affect the cohesion, unity, and harmony of society and its components and individuals. It is not intended to impose tyranny, guardianship over people, confiscate freedoms, or combat thought. The video you saw confirms that His Majesty the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said, may God have mercy on him, in his speech delivered at Sultan Qaboos University in 2000, emphasized the importance of thought, reflection, and independent reasoning. The greatest of sins, and we will never allow anyone to confiscate thought, is the suppression of intellectual freedom. Intellectual security is a project undertaken and sponsored by the state to protect the homeland and its higher interests, and to ward off dangers before they occur. Its aim is to preserve society, its values, and its intellectual, political, and social systems, and to repel intellectual currents that may target it. Intellectual security is not isolationism or a withdrawal from the present to the past, but rather an understanding of the present and an aspiration for the future without detachment from or denial of one's identity. Now, dear students, let us stand together to discuss this question: Why is intellectual security a state project? Extremism, whatever its names, fanaticism, whatever its forms, and partisanship, whatever its motives and origins, are noxious and poisonous plants rejected by the good Omani soil, which only grows good and never accepts the sowing of seeds of division and discord. Dear students, through the question we previously posed to you, why is intellectual security a state project? Because it is a kind of self-immunity with which to resist waves of intellectual, political, and ideological infiltration from abroad. It can be described as an unwritten harmony and agreement between the state and Citizens are bound by national principles and shared values that underpin the culture and civilization of society. It is in everyone's interest to safeguard the intellectual security of society by adopting a policy of disciplined intellectual openness, governed by law and order. In some countries that embrace intellectual repression, people are prevented from expressing their opinions and ideas. However, the Omani experience has adopted a middle path, allowing for thoughtful and purposeful freedom of expression, without imposing limits. Here, we must emphasize the word " except," as this indicates that when discussing and presenting these matters, we must understand where our freedom begins and ends, and where the freedom of others begins, except for what harms individuals or entities, creates discord, or damages the national interest. The challenges of the future are numerous and significant, and enlightened thought, conscious culture, and advanced technical skills are the effective tools with which these challenges can be confronted and overcome. Therefore, the education system must strive to provide these tools in a timely manner. Secondly, the foundations for achieving intellectual security. Dear students, we must have the foundations through which we achieve intellectual security. The most important of these is education; secondly, respect for and upholding of morals; thirdly, preserving customs and traditions; fourthly, we must be open to science and knowledge, allowing ourselves to think and reflect on these matters; and also, there must be a media discourse that unifies all these differences and visions. The people of Oman are a source of strength. Crises, challenges, and difficulties present an opportunity for nations to test their readiness and enhance their capabilities. The current crisis has opened the door for national talents to contribute to providing solutions based on creativity and innovation. Thirdly, among the most prominent intellectual challenges in contemporary societies, as you saw in the previous video of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq's speech on the occasion of National Day, etc., he indicated that the challenges facing societies change with time and place. However, the fundamental point is that we must always be prepared to face these challenges and benefit from them. The most prominent challenge facing contemporary societies is the diversity of discourses within a single society. The great challenge is to establish coordination or an agreed-upon mechanism that takes into account the fundamental principles of intellectual security and the supreme interests of the nation. Today, we witness With the expansion of communication and modern technology, opinions and ideas are exchanged among groups of people. Sometimes, these exchanges deviate from the norm and contradict the values, customs, and cultures of societies. Communication is one of the challenges we face today. The world has become a global village, with cultures intertwined. Globalization presents these challenges. Confronting these challenges always comes through intellectual renewal and positive cultural openness, comprehensive cultural and intellectual development capable of developing society, elevating its thought and awareness, changing rigid cultural and intellectual patterns, correcting intellectual, cultural, and social concepts and perceptions, and building them in accordance with the highest national interests and the spirit of the age and its requirements. Now, we pose an open question to you, dear students, and we hope that you will seek the answer to this question through what has been explained to you, through the book "Oman: The Land and Its People," and also through available sources that discuss Oman, its achievements, heritage, and civilization, in order to understand the Omani experience in protecting intellectual security. Security is a fundamental factor. The one who preserves human existence and grants it its rightful place in life with dignity. Therefore, the vision of a tranquil and secure life has accompanied all eras and times, in accordance with the innate nature with which humanity is created: the instinct for survival, the instinct to defend life, the safety of the body, and the preservation of dignity. We conclude with the words of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, may God protect and preserve him, on the importance of preserving achievements so that Oman may attain its prestigious position. Peace, mercy, and blessings of God be upon you, loyal sons of Oman. On the fifth anniversary of the modern Omani renaissance, we extend to you all our thanks and praise for your efforts in the fields of work and construction, for what you are doing to preserve the gains achieved in our beloved country over the past 50 years. We also extend our thanks and appreciation to all members of our valiant armed forces and security services in their various branches and formations, appreciating your efforts in preserving the sovereignty of the homeland, the safety of its lands, and defending its pure soil in every inch of it. We affirm our constant care and support for you.
