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Chapter Three

                 company became less attractive lo the beduin population because
                 many of them gravitated towards Abu Dhabi town and al 'Ain to
                 start businesses of their own or lo take up employment with the
                 government, the Governor’s “job description” changed loo. From
                  being primarily concerned with the employment and working
                 conditions of the beduin, Shaikh Muhammad became eventually
                 responsible for many aspects of life of the beduin population in the
                 area. Me was responsible for the construction of the new town of
                  Bida' Zayid, between the LTwa and the coast, as a permanent home
                  for families from the LTwa and elsewhere in Dhafrah. The oil
                 company moved out of Tarif in 1972 and Shaikh Muhammad moved
                  lo Bida Zayid to supervise the allocation of houses, the provision of
                 water, the planting of desert vegetation and gardens, and generally to
                 lead the population of the area in striking a balance between the
                 traditional way of life and the new amenities which the government
                 could now offer. At the same time as his responsibilities were thus
                 enlarged to cover an increasing number of functions, the extent of his
                 authority loo, which originally included only the locations of oil
                 company activities, increased lo include all the western desert with
                 the exception of Jabal al Dhannah.

                 Jabal al Dhannah
                 During the height of the construction work on the oil terminal at
                 Jabal al Dhannah some 4,000 men of different nationalities were
                 based there. Most large projects were completed simultaneously with
                 the completion of a degassing station at Habshan, and the labour
                 force had to be drastically reduced in early 1964. The Ruler visited
                 Jabal al Dhannah to see for himself how many beduin who wanted lo
                 continue working were being laid off. He ordered that a committee
                 should be set up to investigate the employment of foreigners,
                 particularly by labour contractors who had brought large numbers of
                 workmen from the Indian subcontinent. The committee consisted of
                 Shaikh Sultan bin Shakhbul, Ahmad bin Hasan, and a Jordanian
                 from the Palace in Abu Dhabi. After the terminal was commissioned
                 some  construction work was from time to time resumed as the
                 facilities expanded; a steady number of beduin, mostly Manasir,
                 have been working in Jabal al Dhannah to man the mooring launches
                 used by the marine contractor to berth the tankers, and they also
                 work for other companies rendering other services around the
                 terminal. Al the height of construction in 1962 Jabal al Dhannah was

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