Constitutional Provisions
The 1996 Constitution of Oman (as amended) does not explicitly protect the right to life. Article 20 of the Constitution prohibits torture:
No person shall be subjected to physical or psychological torture, inducement or demeaning treatment. The Law stipulates punishment of whomever commits such acts.
According to Article 32, "The Citizens have the right to assemble within the limits of the Law."
With respect to the police and other law enforcement agencies, Article 14 stipulates that:
Only the State establishes the armed forces, public security authorities and any other forces. All these forces belong to the Nation and their mission is to protect the State, ensure the safety of its territories, and guarantee the security and tranquillity of the Citizens. It is not permissible for any authority or group to establish military or paramilitary formations. The Law shall regulate the military service, general or partial mobilization, and the rights, duties, and rules of discipline of the armed forces, public security authorities, and any other forces the State decides to establish.
Treaty Adherence
Global Treaties
| 1966 Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) | Not party |
| ICCPR Optional Protocol 1 | N/A |
| 1984 Convention against Torture (CAT) | State party |
| Competence of CAT Committee to receive individual complaints | No |
| CAT Optional Protocol 1 | No |
| 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court | Signatory |
Regional Treaties
| 2004 Arab Charter of Human Rights | Not party |
National Legislation
Police Use of Force
Law enforcement in Oman is conducted primarily by the Royal Oman Police. A Police Law was issued by Royal Decree 35/90.
Article 51 stipulates that: "Without prejudice to the provisions of the Omani Penal Code or any other law, a police officer may resort to the use of force — without using weapons or opening fire — to the extent necessary to perform his duty, provided that the use of force is the only available means."
The use of weapons is limited to the following cases:
First: when arresting:
- A person convicted of a terrorist offense or sentenced to imprisonment not exceeding three months, if he resists or attempts to escape.
- A person accused of a felony or a flagrant misdemeanour punishable by not less than six months, if he resists or attempts to escape.
- Any accused person for whom an arrest warrant has been issued, if he resists or attempts to escape.Second: while guarding a prisoner, if the prisoner resists or attempts to escape.
Third: to disperse a gathering, demonstration, or meeting of ten or more persons that endangers public security.
The law defines the use of force as: “the use of physical energy, or the use of batons, clubs, tear gas, or any other means that does not usually cause death.”
The Royal Oman Police was heavily criticised for its role in the 2011 Omani protests. On 28 February 2011, in Sohar, 250 kilometres north of Muscat, the police were said to have opened fire on protesters. Under international law, police use of firearms is only lawful where it is necessary to counter an imminent threat to life or of serious injury or a proximate and grave threat to life.
The 1999 Code of Criminal Procedure of Oman allows all necessary force to effect an arrest.Art. 44, 1999 Code of Criminal Procedure of Oman.The Code further specifies that an arrested person "shall be treated in a manner that preserves his honour". There is no prohibition on the use of disproportionate force.
Oman's Penal Code was updated in 2018.
In 2025, Oman reported to the Committee against Torture that:
As per Article 60 of the Police Law, a policeman is held accountable for violations that he committed. However, if the act is a criminal offence, the disciplinary action shall not be abated unless the criminal action is discontinued. This period shall be interrupted by any procedure of investigation, indictment or trial.
Police Oversight
There is no independent civilian police oversight body in Oman.
Caselaw
Global
Oman is not a state party to the ICCPR but has recently acceded to CAT. In 2015, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Maina Kiai, reported claims of restrictions on assembly, excessive use of force by the police, threats, arbitrary arrests, abductions, detentions in secret locations and torture at the hands of the authorities.
His concerns were heightened by reports from non-governmental organizations and the media about an unprecedented use of force and mass arrests of peaceful protestors who had gathered in Muscat and Sohar in January and February 2011 to demand, inter alia, better working conditions, higher standards of education, the end of corruption, and economic and political reforms. Furthermore, reports indicated that a massive peaceful protest had been violently dispersed by the police in Sohar in April 2011.
Regional
There is no regional human rights body with jurisdiction to hear complaints about the police in Oman.