Page 84 - The Origins of the United Arab Emirates_Neat

()Q 7 he Origins of the United Arab Emirates

The Shilluh were primarily hill shepherds, but along the coast
there were a number engaged in fishing, boat-building and cultivating
dates.
With the permission of Sultan bin Salim, the Shihuh used the
village of Rams as the main port of entry for their imports
from Dubai. The inhabitants of Rams belonged to the Tanayj
tribe,15 whose headman, ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Salih, sometime in
1920 reached a secret agreement of friendship with the Shihuh.
This treaty was a direct threat to Sultan’s sovereignty, especially
as the Shihuh began to interfere in the local affairs of Rams.
Sultan first tried to solve the matter peacefully, and complained
to the Political Resident about the new alliance. The Resident
seems to have done little, however, for the hostility between Sultan
and ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Salih, the latter obviously strengthened
by the Shihuh, grew steadily and culminated in an armed clash
in June 1921. Soon after, Sa‘id bin Maktum of Dubai went to
Ras al-Khaimah in order to mediate, but met with little success.
His chief motivation for going was that the fighting was disrupting
the pearling season, Sultan bin Salim having recruited all the avail­
able divers into his forces.16 Sa‘id bin Maktum was not the only
person who stood to lose by the situation. The interests of the
Indian merchants were also at stake, since, if pearling did not
proceed as usual, they ran the risk of not having their debts honoured.
Because of the financial danger to the Indian community, the
Senior Naval Officer, Commander Brandon, sailed to Ras al-Khaimah
to seek a suitable settlement.
He arrived in HMS Cyclamen in late July, and found that the
Residency Agent had already arranged for a truce of four months,
but that in the meantime, on 16 July, ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Salih
had been murdered by his cousin ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Muhammad.17
Brandon knew that the situation was still far from being normal,
and began lengthy negotiations with all concerned until an agreement
was finally reached. This w'as written down, and was signed by
Sultan bin Salim and Muhammad bin Salih, the new' ivali of
Rams, brother of ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Salih. Under the terms
of the agreement, Sultan promised to recognise Muhammad bin
Salih as the wali of Rams, and to arrest the murderer of ‘Abd
al-Rahman; Muhammad bin Salih in turn undertook to obey the
ruler of Ras al-Khaimah and to gel clear of all obligations that
‘Abd al-Rahman might have had with the Shihuh.18 Three days
after the conclusion of the agreement, however, Muhammad and
his brother Salim refused to abide by its terms, saying that it
w'as not acceptable to either them or the Shihuh.
The Senior Naval Officer tried to find an alternative solution
to the dispute by sailing to Khasab, where he met with the President