Category: Society & Culture

Government assures even resort distribution following Haa Dhaalu petition

The Tourism Ministry has assured that the development of resorts will take place throughout the atolls following an online petition calling for tourism growth in Haa Dhaalu.

Placed on the Avaaz website last week, the petition calls upon the government of President Abdulla Yameen to alleviate the atoll’s economic and social problems by bringing resorts to the area.

“It has been over 40 years since the tourism industry flourished in Maldives. However, the atoll with approximately 20,000 people has not yet got the opportunity to enjoy the economic benefits of this sector,” read the petition.

Noting that Haa Dhaalu is the only atoll not to have any operational resorts, the petition argues that development of the region’s “pristine uninhabited islands” would halt the “mass migration” to the capital Malé, which was “tearing up the social fabric of our society”.

“We have waited long enough to enjoy the success and development that tourism industry has brought to other regions of the Maldives,” the petition argues.

“Hence, on behalf of all the people from Haa Dhaal Atoll, we humbly ask the government not to exclude us from this prosperous and growing industry.We urge the government to give the utmost importance to solve the issue of income disparity caused by uneven development of tourism industry in Maldivian atolls.”

The Maldivian economy is heavily dependent on tourism, accounting for an estimated 80 percent of GDP, generating 38 percent of government revenue in 2012. Tourists arrivals grew by 17 percent between 2012 and 2013.

In response to the petition, State Minister for Tourism Ahmed Musthafa Mohamed told Minivan News today that the government’s promises to develop ten resorts a year would include Haa Dhaalu.

“I can’t comment on previous governments but this government in their manifesto had mentioned that they are planning to develop ten new resorts each year – I’m sure sure that developments will be throughout the Maldives.”

Musthafa noted that a lot of issues affected the location of developments, with the issue of transportation in Haa Dhaalu – part of the country’s northernmost natural atoll, Thiladhunmathi – having been a longstanding one.

Thought the Maldives is now home to over one hundred island resorts spread across 26 natural atolls, the majority of resorts are clustered around the country’s capital Malé and the country’s main international airport.

Despite the opening of Hanimaadhoo International Airport in Haa Dhaalu atoll two years ago, the continued lack of economic activity has led to significant local support for a second regional airport in nearby Kulhudhuffushi.

While the new development threatens to destroy much of the island’s mangrove habitat, recently re-elected island MP Abdul Ghafoor Moosa has previously argued that his constituents’ economic concerns outweighed the environmental.

“Over fifty percent in the north are below the poverty level,” Ghafoor told Minivan News in January. “Still they need economic activity. If they don’t get it, it’s very difficult to survive.”

Haa Dhaalu “unnoticed or perhaps unheard”

The Avaaz petition – which has received over 460 signatures – argues that, despite its relatively high population of 20,000 people, the atoll had gone “unnoticed or perhaps unheard” by consecutive governments.

“The state of our local economy is a great concern for the people of Haa Dhaal Atoll. More importantly, the absence of tourism industry within this atoll has become a major barrier for economic and social development.”

The petition goes on to suggest that the limited local opportunities in the civil service, fisheries, and agriculture had failed to provide enough employment opportunities.

“We do understand that three of our islands have been given for resort development but it has been over 12 years without any of them being opened for tourists. This has cost 2,000 jobs that was promised for us with these resorts.”

The 2013 Tourism Yearbook produced by the Tourism Ministry shows that three resorts are currently under development in the atoll, although only one had been given an estimated opening date – for December this year.

Reasons for the failure to develop secondary tourism hubs in the north and south of the were addressed in the ministry’s ‘Fourth Tourism Master Plan – 2013-2017’.

The document explained that historical growth patterns in the tourism industry had centred on the Malé area after private investors sought greater economies of scale. The introduction of sea planes – expanding the area serviceable from Ibrahim Nasir International Airport – had further delayed regional expansion.

“If, as the last two masterplans strongly suggested, the suitable islands around the Malé’s hub are now more or less fully developed, the time has come to give priority to the secondary hubs,” read the document.

Source: Fourth Tourism Master Plan - 2013-2017
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Case of 25-year-old Russian woman smuggling cocaine sent to Prosecutor General

The case of the Russian woman – arrested after attempting to smuggle 2.5kgs of cocaine into the Maldives – has been sent to the Prosecutor General’s (PG) office.

Purtova Angelina – a 25-year-old Russian national – was arrested on January 27 this year when she arrived in the Maldives from Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Deputy Prosecutor General Hussein Shameem has confirmed with Minivan News that police have finished their investigation, and that the case was forwarded to the PG last Thursday (April 3). Shameem estimated that the court hearing will take place within the next week.

“We don’t know yet what the decision will be, we will have to wait until the court hearing next week.” Shameem told Minivan.

Purtova, a makeup artist, allegedly has a history of distributing cocaine to a number of countries and has associations with a large drug trafficking network in Europe, according to Haveeru.

According to the reports, Angelina had been reported missing by her family when she arrived in the Maldives. Family members and friends had used social media networks to try and find her.

On January 26 2014, the Criminal Court ruled that Philippines national Jenerosa Pancho Mapula was guilty of smuggling 3 kgs of cocaine into the Maldives, and fining her MVR100,000 (USD 6510) and sentencing her to life imprisonment.

The Criminal Court ruling stated that, on April 24, 2013, Jenerosa arrived in the Maldives at about 8:50am and that police searched her luggage after receiving intelligence reports that she was carrying illegal narcotics.

Jenerosa denied the charges, the court said, though according to witnesses produced in court the drugs were found inside her luggage. Jenerosa was ordered to pay the fine within one month.

The Law on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances stipulates that a foreign national charged with importing over 1 gram of narcotics will be sentenced to life imprisonment. There is also a possibility of received a minimum fine of MVR10,000 (US$651).

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Government warns of dengue and scrub typhus risk on World Health Day

Minister of Health and Gender Dr Mariyam Shakeela has noted an increase in the incidence of mosquito-borne dengue and mite-borne scrub typhus in the Maldives.

In a televised address to mark World Health Day, Shakeela said increased travel, trade, migration and climate change is leading to an increase in insect-borne diseases worldwide.

Dengue fever has become endemic in the Maldives since 2004, she said.

“I am deeply saddened to note that individual level action to control diseases spread by small insects is not being taken. The result is the increase in dangerous diseases such as dengue and scrub typhus and deaths,” said the minister.

There were 680 reported cases of dengue in the Maldives in 2013, a decline from 2006 peak of 2,788 cases, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) said.

The year 2011 also saw a relatively severe outbreak of dengue in the Maldives, with fatalities reaching a dozen – a record high in the country’s history. In 2012 there were a total of 1,083 dengue cases in the Maldives. Construction workers face an increased risk, the HPA has said.

Deaths have also been reported from scrub typhus due to failure to seek healthcare and improper diagnosis, epidemiologist at the HPA Dr Aishath Aroona told Minivan News.

The Health Ministry runs a yearly campaign called ‘Madhiri Rulhi Rulhi’ (‘Unfriendly to Mosquitoes’) to limit mosquito breeding during the rainy season.

Waste management and cleanliness are the most effective methods of controlling mosquito breeding grounds, Aroona said.

The Maldives eradicated malaria in 1984, making it the only country in the region to have done so. The last case of mosquito-borne filariasis was recorded in 2003, and the Health Ministry will complete a screening and surveillance project by October to determine the eradication of the filariasis vector, the ministry has said.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), mosquito-borne dengue has spread from nine to over a hundred countries, making it the most rapidly spreading vector-borne disease. Over 40 percent of the global population is at risk from dengue, the organisation said.

The WHO’s World Health Day campaign this year – ‘Small Bite, Big Threat’ – focuses on the risks of diseases spread by mosquitoes, flies, ticks, and freshwater snails.

The International Federation of Red Crescent and Red Cross Societies (IFRC) has called on governments for a shift in approach, from responding to isolated dengue outbreaks to investing in long-term programmes for behavioral change.

“This can be done by empowering communities with essential knowledge concerning hygiene and environmental sanitation, training and engaging community health volunteers to identify and refer suspected dengue cases and improving community-based disease surveillance,” the IFRC said in a recent report

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Teachers across Maldives take part in ‘black protest’

Teachers across the Maldives have today (April 6) taken part in a ‘black protest’ – wearing black clothes to school – to raise awareness of pay discrepancies and what they see as the state’s failure to improve the education sector.

“This is the first step, we want to draw attention to these issues. For the sake of our students we will go to work until we exhaust all other ways,” said Teachers Association Maldives (TAM) president Athif Abdul Hakeem.

One teacher told Minivan News that the move has come after repeated attempts to work through official channels.

“The reason we are doing this to express our grievances. Our discontentment with salary and allowances, lack of resources and and other issues we face in teaching,” stated Mausoom Saleem of Thaajuddheen School, Malé.

Athif had previously explained to Minivan News that teachers were working overtime without being paid for it.

“Independent institutions haven’t noticed this. If they don’t do this work it could be reflected in their appraisal, and they even fear termination. So they work. But without getting paid for the work,” he said.

Teachers’ overtime allowances have been reduced to just five percent of the basic salary, which on average amounts to less than MVR300 per month. But teachers have complained that school will not run without teachers doing overtime work.

In a letter sent out to schools prior to the protest, the Ministry of Education had said that pamphlets distributed by the TAM consist of false allegations that might create conflict and unrest, it has been reported.

The ministry also stated that since school premises are “dignified”, teachers must not do anything that may have a negative effect on students, reported local media Haveeru.

“Therefore, no one must participate in an an activity encouraged in the documents distributed under the name of Teachers’ Association on April 6. Please inform the teachers working in your institutions accordingly,” the letter was said to have read.

One ministry official with whom Minivan News spoke today denied there was any protest happening, and was unwilling to provide further comment.

Show of solidarity

Saleem – who has worked as a teacher for 10 years, with 8 of those at Thaajuddheen – explained that an estimated 60% of the teachers were taking part in the black protest.

“I don’t think wearing a specific colour to school will have any impact on the students. I believe they will understand that we are doing this for them. This is not just about teachers, this is about the education system.”

Parents, too, he noted were taking part in the protest by dropping off the children today wearing black.

“I think this was a display of solidarity. We are also seeing a lot of pictures [of people wearing black] on social media, with supportive comments.”

Teachers from Thaajuddheen School take part in the 'Black Protest'

Another teacher taking part in the protest– who wishes to stay anonymous – spoke with Minivan News today. The source stated that as well as marking, there are other demanding after school and weekend functions that teachers are expected to work without getting any overtime pay.

“I have never been paid any overtime,” stated the source, who has taught in the Maldives for three and a half years. They gave the example of working the Founder’s Day celebration which took place across many schools and organisations- “we had to work the function and we didn’t have a choice. This was 8 hours work during the day on our day off, with no payment and no choice.”

“I personally don’t have adequate time to plan, I have too many lessons after they recently changed my timetable.” In a previous school, the source stated they had taught for 18 periods per week – that has recently gone up to 31.

Free periods are often time that teachers will use for planning, marking, ensuring children get to their next lessons safely, or after school activites.

“I have 11 free periods, but we also do after-school clubs, I run an extra support class where I teach children for an extra hour after the lesson.”

“I may not be teaching, but these things are not taken into consideration,” the source stated.

TAM President Athif said  in February of this year that meetings with the Education Ministry had resulted only in the promise of more meetings.

“So in late January (2014) we requested to arrange a meeting but there was no response. So sent another letter this month. now we are waiting to discuss our issues. our next step will depend on how that goes,” Athif said.

According to TAM the organisation has 1,500 permanent member and an estimated 4,000 Maldivian teachers across the country who will participate. Recent Civil Service Commission data shows there to be 5,676 teachers in the Maldives – 4,855 of them are locals.

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The Maldives’ first 24 hour Hackathon promotes talented Maldivian developers

The Maldives’ first ever Hackathon, organised by local not for profit Kickstart, has concluded today in Malé City Hall.

A Hackathon is an event that brings together web developers from the local community to create new software or applications. The Hackathon hopes to inspire participants to develop products that could have a high social impact, or ‘kickstart’ a viable business.

The 24 hour event – which has attracted 40 local developers – started on April 4 2014 at 4pm and concluded today at 4pm. Software developers have come together at the event to work on a variety of interesting and inspiring projects – competing with each other to win a set of prizes sponsored by numerous partners.

Starting in the mid to late 2000s, Hackathons have become significantly more widespread worldwide, being held as a means to quickly develop new software technologies, promote local software developers and to locate new areas for innovation and funding.

According to the event website, the Hackathon enables people to “give back to the community, solve a problem, change lives, and contribute to the open-source world.”

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony on Friday, one of the organisers Ahmed Riyaz ‘Dadi’ Mohamed said that there is no industry for software and application development in the Maldives, but there are very talented Maldivians at it, reported local media Haveeru.

According to the rules, participants may work on any type of project and are free to use any tools, programming languages, architecture and hardware of their choice.

Projects so far range from an app to facilitate traffic police and immigration authority work, to an app for checking hospital and clinic queue numbers and announcements

Vnews’ creative editor Mohamed Afzal is developing an app to facilitate the transport system. Afzal said that ferry schedules will be made available with the app.

“When guesthouse businesses are expanding at such a fast rate, such an app would really help the many tourists that come to the Maldives. With this app they will not have to roam around lost and aimless,” he explained to Haveeru.

Any software and systems developed at the hackathon will remain the property of the respective developer. Developers may choose to release their project as open-source software with a license of their liking, or keep their project private or may offer it for sale.

The winners of first and second  and third prize will be awarded MVR15,000, MVR10,000 and MVR 5,000, respectively. The National Centre for Information Technology has decided to award two special prizes of MVR8,000 to a participant below the age of 21 and to a female developer.

Winners will be selected through peer voting after the presentations at the end of the event.

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High Commission in Dhaka closes due to “unprecedented fiscal problems”

The Maldives High Commission in Bangladesh has closed its operations, with acting high commissioner Ahmed Adil reportedly citing “unprecedented fiscal problems”.

“Even the foreign ministry’s budget has been slashed by 40 percent,” he told the Bangladeshi media. “It’s a very big cut.”

Adil stated that despite the closure, the excellent bilateral relations Maldives and Bangladesh would continue, and that an alternative arrangement would be sought to bridge the absence of a mission in Dhaka.

An unnamed source from the commission also told the Dhaka Tribune that severe budgetary constraints had prompted the shutdown, suggesting that diplomatic services would continue to be provided from New Delhi.

In a comment piece produced earlier this week, former Bangladeshi High Commissioner to the Maldives Professor Selina Mohsin described the decision as a “wrong move”.

“Diplomatic continuity is a necessity and reciprocity is essential to foster good relations with a friendly Saarc state. But countries are not always ruled by rational consideration of advantages, but often by unthinking foolhardiness.

High Commissioner between 2008 and 2010, Mohsin argued that the Dhaka mission played an important role in strengthening the bond between the island nation and Bangladesh.

“Bangladesh has over 70,000 migrant workers in the Maldives – more than from India or Sri Lanka. They face dubious recruitment procedures, their passports are seized by unscrupulous brokers on arrival, and often wages are withheld,” she argued.

Minivan News was awaiting a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which failed to be published at the time of press.

A World Bank report produced late last year suggested that excessive state expenditure risked derailing the economy. Over seventy percent of the current budget is allocated for recurrent expenditure.

Similarly, the departing MMA governor urged the government to reduce expenditure. After proposing a record MVR17.95 billion budget in December last year – later passed – the MMA’s published response called for cuts that included a reduction in state apparatus to reflect the country’s size and income.

The Bangladeshi High Commission, opened in 2008, was one of the Maldives’ 13 overseas diplomatic missions. The country currently has embassies in China, Saudi Arabia, and Japan, with high commissions in Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Singapore, and the United Kingdom.

The country also has permanent missions representing the country in Brussels, Geneva, and New York.

Estimates of migrant workers currently in the Maldives range from 70,000 to as high as 110,000 with undocumented workers estimated to be as high as 44,000.

Employment trafficking scams and fraudulent recruitment it is nearly impossible to reach a conclusive number.

The Department of Immigration and Emigration recently revealed that, in an effort to curb the numbers of illegal workers, it is strengthening action taken against those who employ or provide housing for undocumented migrant individuals.

It was also revealed that a voluntary repatriation scheme for undocumented workers had seen 4,400 workers out of 5,134 that registered for the programme leaving the Maldives since December.

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HRCM members summoned to Juvenile Court again over confidential report

With additional reporting by Ahmed Nazeer

Members of the Maldives Human Rights Commission (HRCM) refused to attend a Juvenile Court meeting yesterday (April 1), after having asked the Supreme Court to rule on the legitimacy of the court’s actions.

The commission has contended that the Juvenile Court is in violation of “the legal principles and procedures followed in contempt of court cases.”

A press statement from HRCM released yesterday evening noted that the Prosecutor General’s Office had not charged the commission with contempt of court because only the Supreme Court could initiate such cases of its own accord.

Deputy Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem has told Haveeru that the court does not have the authority to summon HRCM members over contempt of court charges.

The court has been requesting the meetings in order to question HRCM members about a confidential report concerning the sentencing of a 15 year old rape victim to flogging and house arrest in 2012.

”We are trying to summon the HRCM members regarding a report they sent to the Juvenile Court on 5 December 2013, in which the HRCM has included false information about the Juvenile Court and it also contained things that could be considered as an attempt to influence the court’s work,” Juvenile Court Spokesperson Zaima Nasheed told Minivan News today.

Zaima has argued previously that the constitution states no public officials can “interfere with and influence the functions of the courts”, instead they must “assist and protect the courts to ensure the independence, eminence, dignity, impartiality, accessibility and effectiveness of the courts.”

The HRCM press release added that the report referred to in the media was a confidential document, which had only been shared with relevant authorities or state institutions.

“We assure that the report does not include any false statements that hold the Juvenile Court in contempt,” the press release stated.

Previous meetings

After refusing to attend the meeting yesterday, the Juvenile Court sent an official court summons  for today (April 2) to each individual commission member, according to local media.

Following the official court summons, the HRCM members appeared before the court this morning at 10am and were told to respond in writing before 3pm.

The HRCM was first summoned to the Juvenile Court on March 12, with a further request to meet made on March 17 after members failed to accede to the previous requests – all five members of the HRCM subsequently attended on March 17.

The HRCM is reported to have agreed to cooperate at this meeting, on the condition that it was given a period of ten days after the parliamentary elections scheduled for March 22 before the first questioning session.

The 15-year-old rape victim from the island of Feydhoo in Shaviyani Atoll was convicted of premarital sex at the Juvenile Court and sentenced to 100 lashes and eight months of house arrest.

In June 2012, the girl gave birth to a baby that was discovered buried in the outdoor shower area of her home. Her stepfather was later charged with child sexual abuse, possession of pornographic materials and committing premeditated murder.

An official from the Prosecutor General’s Office told Minivan News in January last year that the fornication charges against the minor were related to a separate offence of premarital sex that emerged during the police investigation. The charges were filed on November 25, 2012.

In its verdict, the Juvenile Court ordered the state to transfer the girl to the Children’s Home in Villingili to enforce the sentence of eight months house arrest, according to local media reports.

Following the 15 year-old’s conviction, local NGO Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) called on the Maldivian government to pass legislation concerning the treatment of sexual abuse victims.

ARC also previously called for reforms of the juvenile justice system and reform of the current protection mechanisms provided to minors who are kept in state run institutions, such as homes and foster programs.

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Comment: Juvenile crime – the consequences are anything but minor

This article was first published in the Police Life. Republished with permission.

Anyone below the legal age of 18 is seen as a minor in the eyes of the law in the Maldives. As such, their parents are their guardians and it is believed that they have certain leniencies afforded to them.

This is reflected in the increasing trend of juvenile crime in the Maldives. The underlying logic behind this trend seems to be that minors cannot be persecuted by the law and they would somehow avoid harmful consequences.

But this is a total misconception – while there are leniencies, they are not without limits, and are intended to offer a chance for the youth to redeem themselves or to turn their lives around at an early stage.

According to Maldivian law, any juvenile offender will only receive one third of the sentence – for example, a sentence of 15 years in prison maybe reduced to 5 years instead. Though this leniency exists, it is by no means a way to walk away without consequences. The individual will be monitored for a long period of time.

Another misunderstood leniency is one that is offered only to individuals committing their first offense. Depending on the nature of the crime, there is a delaying of carrying out the sentence for a set period of time. This is done to give the first offender a chance of redemption. But this leniency comes with certain terms and conditions.

One of the conditions is that if any additional crimes are committed during the set duration the sentence is delayed, the sentences for both crimes would be carried out together – for example, if a 5 year sentence for a crime was delayed from passing and the individual committed another crime that resulted in a 5 year sentence, they would get a 10 year sentence.

If the set duration passes without any criminal activity, the first offender is pardoned. But this is a leniency offered once and only once. Any further criminal activity from the same individual will not be afforded any such leniency.

Another thing to consider is that even if it is a first offense, the type of crime committed is also an important deciding factor. If it is a serious crime such as murder, the aforementioned leniency will not be afforded.

When talking about juvenile offenders, it is also important to shed some light on what is known as the “community conference”. It is a group of professionals and related individuals who come together to assess the progress of the minor to deem whether they are fit to continue being part of the society.

The conference contains the juvenile offender themselves, their parent/s, a judge, a prosecutor from the Prosecutor General’s Office, a representative of the FCPD (Family and Child Protection Department) of the Maldives Police Service and a representative from the Juvenile Justice Unit.

They come together to discuss the progress of the youth in terms of rehabilitation, trends in behaviour, risk factors and also to assist the youth in their re-entry and reintegration into society.

The ongoing misconception that because the youth of the nation are a protected and cherished group, they are exempt from consequences is a very harmful one. It results in many “at-risk” youth opting to delve into criminal behaviour and because it allows other, older individuals who are involved in criminal behaviour to exploit these minors for various criminal endeavors.

But the sad truth is that such thinking often results in many youth with untapped potential getting caught up in criminal or anti-social behaviour and paying a hefty price for it.

While there are leniencies to protect our youth, they are there to afford them chances of redemption and to give them the opportunity to better themselves while they still have time. Said leniencies are also not limitless and come with various terms and conditions that must be met. The goal is rehabilitation and crime prevention rather than simply punishment.

So it is important to always remember that even juvenile crime is not without consequence.

All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]

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President Yameen grants clemency to 169 convicts

President Abdulla Yameen has granted clemency yesterday to 169 convicts serving banishment, house arrest, or jail sentences.

According to the President’s Office, Yameen granted pardons or commuted sentences in accordance with Article 29 of the Clemency Act.

Some 116 individuals were released on parole with conditions following consideration of “age, health, type of medical treatment, time and circumstance, compassion, and behaviour,” the President’s Office revealed in a statement.

Convicts sentenced for drug abuse would be required to complete rehabilitation programmes, the statement noted.

Moreover, released inmates would be returned to jail to serve out the remainder of their sentences if they violate parole or commit a crime.

Persons convicted of murder, a crime with a punishment (hadd) prescribed in Islamic Shariah, terrorism, child sexual abuse, sexual assault or rape, and homosexuality were not among the 169 released convicts, the President’s Office said.

“In addition to the above-mentioned [exceptions], sentences were commuted based on records from the Maldives Police Service without including persons who could pose a threat to society’s safety and security,” the statement read.

It added that President Yameen had announced his intention to release prisoners at a campaign rally in Fuvahmulah last month.

Home Minister Umar Naseer told Minivan News in the wake of President Yameen’s announcement that the release of inmates would not present any difficulties to ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking.

“It will not be a hindrance because the present Clemency Act prevents serious offenders from being released. Furthermore, this process will be monitored by the Home Ministry,” he said.

President Yameen also commuted the sentences of 24 inmates in January while his predecessor Dr Mohamed Waheed released 39 convicts during his last days in office.

Article 115 of the constitution states that the president has the authority “to grant pardons or reductions of sentence as provided by law, to persons convicted of a criminal offence who have no further right of appeal.”

On January 9, police cleared or expunged criminal records of 1,023 young persons who were arrested for various criminal offences, as part of the government’s pledge to facilitate youth employment.

“Political stunt”

Following President Yameen’s announcement last month, opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Spokesperson Imthiyaz Fahmy described the move as “a very irresponsible political stunt”.

“This is a stunt they are pulling off as elections approach – an act without any form or structure. This is a stunt like they used to pull during the Gayoom administration – as every election nears, they’ll let out numerous prisoners and the streets will be teeming with drug abusers,” the Maafanu North MP said.

Fahmy also defended the release of convicts under the MDP government’s ‘Second Chance Programme,’ which he stressed was “a structured effort, under which applicable prisoners were released under parole to be under the guardianship of a family member.”

“They were given training in various skills and were provided with employment opportunities. They were monitored constantly and were taken back in when there is a risk of re-offending crimes.”

“Yameen and the people around him were those who most criticised our ‘Second Chance Programme’. And now look at what they are attempting to do. This clemency plan has no structure and will prove detrimental to the society,” he said.

Vice President Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed – who served as Home Minister during the Waheed administration – shut down the ‘Second Chance Programme’ in March 2012, alleging that the MDP government had used it to “release unqualified criminals under political influence and without any clear procedure”.

In July 2012, Jameel blamed a “surge in crime” partly on the ‘Second Chance Programme’, claiming that over 200 convicted criminals released under the scheme had been returned to prison for re-offending.

Jameel also published a comment piece in newspaper Haveeru in September 2011 criticising the programme and emphasising the importance of granting clemency in accordance with the Clemency Act.

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