Environment Ministry signs MVR1 million waste management deal

The Ministry of Environment and Energy has today signed a MVR1 million deal to purchase waste management equipment, local media has reported.

The deal, made with Male’-based company Biz4Maldives, forms part of a collaboration with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to oversee environmental management projects in the country, according to the Sun Online news service.

The lifespan of the agreement will reportedly be two months from the date of the signing.

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President presents top prize during Baibalaa final

President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan yesterday attended the 2012 Baibalaa Tournament finals in Male’ to present the competition’s main prize.

Last night’s final saw B.G. Sports beat T.C. Sports to lift the President’s Trophy, which was presented by Dr Waheed.  Participants were also presented with the “champion cup” and prize money provided by the Baibalaa Association, according to the President’s Office website.

Individual accolades were presented to Abdulla Nishan of Lorenzo Sports and Ali Naeem of T. C. Sports, who took home the Mr Baibalaa award and Fair Play award respectively.

The President’s Office added that runner-up team, T.C. Sports, were presented with their prize by current Minister of Human Resources, Youth and Sports Mohamed Hussain Shareef.

According to local media reports, two people were arrested during the event for allegedly verbally abusing the president.

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Resumed party talks to target post-CNI consensus

The President’s Office has extended invitations to eight political parties to attend a meeting on Thursday (August 30) to discuss how to proceed following the release of the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) report.

The eight parties who have been invited are the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), Qaumee Party (DQP), Adhaalath Party (AP), People’s Alliance (PA), the Maldives Reform Movement (MRM) and Jumhooree Party (JP). President Waheed’s National Unity Party, along with other small parties were not included in the invitation.

The meeting is scheduled to be held on Thursday at the Bandos Island Resort and Spa. The CNI report is scheduled to be released to the public the same day.

President’s Office Media Secretary Masood Imad ahs told Minivan news that any party involved with the All Party Talks prior to their suspension back in June were included in this invitation. He also said that any party that has been excluded was made on the basis that the organisations lack leadership.  Speaking further, he said “President Waheed has always advised against street protests. Even though MDP has again started demonstrating, President Waheed is showing restraint and putting in a lot of effort to make sure the party talks are successful.”

DRP Leader Thasmeen Ali has previously stated that the party is open to discussions. However, he expressed concern that this week’s  statement from President Nasheed’s appointee to the CNI, Gahaa Ahmed Saeed, may cause complications at the all-party talks.

Chief Spokesperson of Jumhooree Party, Moosa Rameez told Minivan News today that the party always welcomes discussion and as such will be participating in the talks.  Regarding the MDP’s ongoing demonstrations, Rameez said “I don’t think anybody should be making an issue out of a group of people practicing a right guaranteed to them in the constitution. As long as the demonstrations are peaceful and fall within the laws of the country, I personally see no reason why this should at all have an effect on the discussions we are to have among political leaders.”

Speaking on behalf of MDP, former Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr Mariyam Zulfa told Minivan News today that since the President’s Office had sent the invitation for All Party Talks specifically to party Chairperson, Moosa ‘Reeko’ Manik.

Manik will himself be attending the talks for the MDP. Dr Zulfa added that she didn’t believe the recommencement of direct action would have an adverse effect on the all-party talks as the invitation letter did not specify any such requirements.

“The only legal remedy for an unlawful change of power is going for early elections. We hope that the discussions are open to this option,” she said.

PPM Interim Deputy Leader Umar Naseer and Parliamentary Group Leader Abdulla Yameen were not responding to calls to Minivan News at time of press.

DQP’s Parliament Member Riyaz Rasheed and General Secretary Abdulla Ameen were also not responding when contacted.

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Deputy Police Commissioner denies HRCM’s “emotionally charged” claims

Deputy Commissioner of Police Hussain Waheed has denied the claims of the Human Rights Commission (HRMC) that officers were “emotionally charged” on February 8.

The commission’s report described interviews with “senior officers” which suggested that “a large number of civilians were injured by police officers…because individual police officers were too emotionally charged at the time.”

Waheed reportedly told Sun Online that he didn’t believe the police had “ever acted out in emotion”.

“We will never be emotional; it is not a word in our vocabulary,” he said.

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Human rights NGO calls for international observers in Male’ over fears of CNI-related violence

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) NGO has today called for the international community to send observers to Male’ in time for the release of the findings of the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI).

With the CNI expected to publicly release its findings on Thursday (August 30), FIDH said that it was “extremely concerned” about the potential for violence in the build up and aftermath of the report’s release.

“The CNI was established in May to determine the nature of the transition of power in February, which led to the so-called resignation of President Mohamed Nasheed,” the NGO stated.

“These events were followed by continuous unrest in the streets of Male’ and severe repression of demonstrations by state security forces. FIDH calls on the international community to immediately send observers to Male’ to prevent further deterioration of the human rights situation in the country.”

The NGO’s statement comes a day after the Maldives Police Service (MPS) launched an operation to introduce increased scrutiny of the Male’s streets and surrounding waters in order to try and control fears of a potential outbreak of unrest ahead of release of the CNI findings.

Maldives Police Service Assistant Commissioner Hussain Waheed today told reporters that authorities had decided to strengthen security across the capital and other islands, in order to “not give any opportunity to create unrest”.

However, Waheed claimed police would provide full support and security services to demonstrations held “peacefully and within the contours of laws”.

Media Freedom

Discussing the current political situation in the Maldives, FIDH president Souhayr Belhassen claimed the NGO was concerned with a number of cases of violence and a “deterioration” in media freedom since February’s controversial transfer of power.

“Since last February, we have witnessed fast-increasing political violence in the Maldives, as well as the multiplication of arbitrary arrests, sexual harassment of female protesters and legal and physical harassment of opposition leaders, including murder attempts,” she claimed. “In such a context, the wait-and-see approach adopted by the international community has become unsustainable and irresponsible.”

During a visit to Male’ by the NGO earlier this month, FIDH claimed it had witnessed an ongoing “deterioration” in press freedoms since February.

“The influence of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the extreme polarisation of the media have been a cause of concern throughout the [constutitional] reform process, and since last February, the authorities have been accused of harassing pro-opposition media,” the NGO said in its statement.

FIDH President Belhassen noted particular concern with the violent attack earlier this year of local blogger Hilath Rasheed, who was left in a critical condition after being stabbed in the neck near his home in Male’ last month.

FIDH alleged that the attack was conducted by religious extremists based on interviews conducted with Hilath after he had to fled the Maldives after partly recovering from his injuries. The government has denied there was proof of any religious motivation behind the attack, claiming it had been carried out by rival gang members.

“FIDH found that the general public has little trust in public institutions, and that these institutions are seen as ineffective in breaking impunity of perpetrators of human rights violations. Authorities also have failed to investigate police violence impartially,” Belhassen stated. “Moreover, despite all the evidence available, the investigation of the attempted murder of human rights defender Hilath Rasheed has not progressed.”

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CNI draft “embarrassing for the Commonwealth”: MDP spokesperson

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has hit out at the Commonwealth over the work of Singaporean Judge G.P. Selvam, whose initial draft report on the Committee of National Inquiry’s (CNI) findings was yesterday denounced by the opposition party.

The criticism, backed by an MDP resolution, was first raised by former President Nasheed’s representative on the CNI panel, Ahmed ‘Gahaa’ Saeed.

“I think it is embarrassing for the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG). This is a bad show – it is not worthy of such an institution,” said MDP MP and Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor.

After concerted pressure from the Commonwealth and the MDP to reform the CNI, Selvam – a retired Supreme Court Judge from Singapore – was installed as co-chair of the body charged with investigating the events surrounding former President Nasheed’s resignation on February 7.

The Commonwealth’s Special Envoy to the Maldives, Sir Donald McKinnon, released a statement today regarding the report’s scheduled publication on August 30.

“I look forward to the imminent completion of the work of the reconstituted Commission of National Inquiry and to its being able to agree on its report. As we approach the release of that report, I would encourage all stakeholders to respect the commission’s findings, and to take time to reflect carefully on how to act upon them in a manner that maintains harmony in Maldivian society and helps strengthen democratic practice and institutions in the country,” he said.

The changes to the commission also included the addition of a Nasheed nominee Saeed, who yesterday revealed his deep dissatisfaction with Selvam’s initial draft of the body’s report.

“The report that Judge Selvam has drafted and brought is a draft that somewhat refutes or denies what we Maldivians saw and experienced – or a draft that somewhat confuses things, the way it is now,” Saeed told the press.

“While this is happening, for me to stay here, at Muleeage, would I believe be a betrayal of my country and the Maldivian people. I see the draft report as having been written without considering the witness testimony of many, many people to CNI as well as the many scenes we saw,” he added.

Ghafoor, who today described the situation as “unacceptable” and “embarrassing” for the Commonwealth, suggested that Sir Donald McKinnon ought to be asked “who the hell this guy [Selvam] is.”

“Mr Selvam’s integrity is at a critical level,” he claimed. “Yesterday he got caught out.”

McKinnon’s statement today acknowledged that many issues would undoubtedly arise after the report’s release.

“I encourage political leaders to increase their efforts towards engaging in genuine dialogue, in order that consensus may be achieved, in a constructive and peaceful manner, on the path forward,” said McKinnon.

Meanwhile, local television station Raajje TV – linked closely with the MDP – yesterday aired a video of Singaporean-born lawyer and long-time critic of Judge Selvam, Gopalan Nair, in which he describes Selvam as a man “totally devoid of integrity”.

Nair has been writing about Judge Selvam on his ‘Singapore Dissident’ blog since 2010.

Moreover, in January this year, Malaysian media reported that Judge Selvam was accused of lying by chairman of the Malaysian Democratic Action Party (DAP), Karpal Singh.

Singh accused the retired justice of “lying to clear the air on an alleged plagiarism case involving a Malaysian Court of Appeal judge.”

A letter from Selvam to the Malaysian Chief Justice, clarifying that there was no case for plagiarism against the court of appeal judge, reportedly contradicted a statement from Selvam published in the Singaporean Straits Time.

Selvam was quoted as saying that the Malaysian judge had obtained a copy of his judgement through a lawyer, and “copied chunks from me without acknowledging”.

Meanwhile, MDP MP Mohamed Shifaz was also reported in local media as labeling Selvam “Singapore’s Abdullah” in reference to Maldivian Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdullah Mohamed, whose controversial detention earlier this year by the military has been the subject of investigations by numerous independent institutions.

Abdullah was arrested in January, with the former Home Minister Hassan Afeef accusing the judge of having “taken the entire criminal justice system in his fist”.

The incident proved to be a major turning point in anti-government protests against the Nasheed administration, leading to sustained periods of unrest in the run up to the former President’s resignation on February 7.

However, President’s Office spokesman Masood Imad was dismissive of attacks on Selvam’s credibility.

“Selvam is a man of stature chosen by the Commonwealth,” said Masood, who also criticised Saeed’s outburst as “lacking professionalism”.

Masood noted that both Selvam and Saeed had been added to the commission at the MDP’s request.

The MDP’s National Council, yesterday evening, unanimously backed a resolution refusing to accept the report in its current format.

In the evening, the MDP recommenced its campaign of protests, which had been suspended for the final period of Ramazan in order to encourage political negotiations.

In response to questions over rising tension in the country, Ghafoor said that the party was not seeking confrontation.

“We are demanding two things – early elections and an agreement on a post-CNI scenario,” he said.

The MDP forwarded a list of suggested outcomes to the government earlier in the month to which the President’s Office responded that it would not discuss the findings until their official release on August 29.

Ghafoor accused President Waheed of “cunningly destabilising the country” by refusing to make arrangements for the report’s release.

He also said that the party remained hopeful that the commission’s final report would reflect its opinion that President Nasheed was removed in a coup.

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MDP MP calls for investigation into allocation of 50 Hulhumale’ flats to MNDF officers

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Ibrahim Rasheed has requested the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) and Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) investigate the proposed allocation of 50 flats in Hulhumale’ to military officers.

MP Rasheed made the request in a letter forwarded to both commissions, according to an MDP statement.  The request, sent to the two commissions, claims that the allocation of 50 flats to officers in the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) is a “clear violation of the people’s rights.”  The allocation is to be taken from 1000 residential properties currently being constructed in Hulhumale’.

Rasheed claimed in his statement that the government has already decided to built flats in certain areas to provide housing for military officers, and therefore “taking away 50 flats belonging to the people” paves way for corruption.

If the government decides to give flats to MNDF today, he warned in future that more flats would have to be awarded to police and customs officers, as well as other independent institutions.

Meanwhile, the statement says that MP Rasheed had described the allocation of the flats as an example of the current government’s use of “undue power and influence” to attack people’s constitutional rights, asking the two commissions to investigate such actions.

He has there requested both commissions to block the allocation of the 50 flats to military officers and return the residences to the people.

Earlier this month, Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim announced that 50 flats on the island of Hulhumale’ will be awarded to military officers alongside financial assistance to help them keep up with payments.

He said that a committee headed by Brigadier General Abdulla Shamal will oversee the awarding of the properties to candidates from a “pre-set criteria” and officers from all ranks are expected to be included in the scheme.  The MNDF has announced it will also provide assistance to officers facing difficulties in meeting the required payments on schedule.

ACC Deputy Chair Muaviz Rasheed today said that he could not confirm if the commission has received the case concerning the military flats, or if an official investigation had started as he was currently on leave.

Rasheed did note that another investigation into the development of a military training facility on Thanburudoo island as a surf resort was currently underway.  He said no decision has yet been taken on the case.

Prior to the announcement on awarding flats to military officers, the news broke about the development of a tourist surf resort on the island of Thanburudoo under the newly established MNDF Welfare Company.

The decision attracted heavy criticisms from the local surf community after the MNDF confirmed that the island was to be awarded to a third party, identified as Singapore-based group Telos Investment, without an open bidding process.

The Maldives Surfing Association (MSA) hit out at the proposed resort development on Thanburudoo – known to be a popular surfing spot – claiming it will substantially reduce local access to an already limited number of high-profile waves in the country.

However, Telos Investment President Dr Gunnar Lee-Miller told Minivan News at the time that it would be issuing a statement soon regarding the project and the potential impacts on national surf development.

“To be sure, there is a robust surf development plan for local surfers and fruitful discussions with Maldivian Surf Association Leaders have already commenced,” Dr Lee-Miller responded by SMS earlier this month. “We care greatly about the development of Maldivian surfers both in Male’ and the outer atolls.”

Minivan News had not yet received a full statement from Telos Investment about their plans.

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PPM to propose removing Nasheed nominee from CNI

Former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) has said that it will propose removing Ahmed ‘Gahaa’ Saeed from the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) after the nominee of former President Mohamed Nasheed publicly criticised the commission’s draft report yesterday.

Speaking at press conference today, Fonadhoo MP and PPM interim council member, Abdul Raheem Abdulla, condemned Saeed’s remarks as “a serious betrayal of the people and the government” and said that the party planned to send a letter to President Mohamed Waheed requesting his “immediate removal”.

“We believe that it is completely unacceptable for a person on such a commission to give interviews publicly about the report before the final outcome or report is released,” he said.

In a brief statement to media outside Muleeage yesterday, Saeed said that the draft report presented to the commission by co-chair G P Selvam, a retired Singaporean judge, “somewhat refutes or denies what we Maldivians saw and experienced” on February 7, when former President Nasheed resigned after elements of the police and army assaulted civilians, ransacked MDP Haruge (meeting hall) and mutinied at the Republic Square.

“February 7, 2012 was a day that shocked Maldivians – a day when the Maldivian government was changed in a sudden confusion. Now, however, the report that Judge Selvam has written and brought is a draft that somewhat refutes or denies what we Maldivians saw and experienced – or a draft that somewhat confuses things, the way it is now,” Saeed explained.

“While this is happening, for me to stay here, at Muleeage, would I believe be a betrayal of my country and the Maldivian people. I see the draft report as having been written without considering the witness testimony of many, many people to CNI as well as the many scenes we saw.”

Saeed added that he would continue efforts to “include my concerns” in the final report.

In the wake of Saeed’s media statement, government spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza argued in local media that Saeed had violated the agreement with the Commonwealth concerning the reconstituted CNI.

“The Commonwealth agreement Nasheed signed states that a Singaporean Judge will reside in CNI. No one must interfere with the work of the commission and also states that everyone must accept the findings of the commission. But the representative from Nasheed sharing the draft report with the public is an indication that Nasheed does not respect any agreement,” Abbas was quoted as saying in newspaper Haveeru.

Meanwhile, speaking at a PPM rally Saturday night, former President Gayoom assured supporters that there was “no cause for concern” over the CNI outcome.

CNI members were “reputable people with high integrity,” Gayoom said, adding that the report would not contain “anything but the truth.”

However, immediately after giving a statement to CNI on July 30, Gayoom had said he would not accept that Nasheed’s government was toppled in a coup d’etat even if the commission came to that conclusion.

Reconstituted CNI

The first three-member CNI panel was appointed by President Mohamed Waheed to investigate the circumstances that brought him to office with former President Gayoom’s one-time Defence Minister, Ismail Shafeeu, serving as chair.

Facing pressure from the Commonwealth and civil society NGOs regarding the commission’s lack of independence and impartiality, the government eventually agreed to reform the CNI to include a retired Singaporean judge and a nominee from Nasheed.

Nasheed’s representative, Saeed, who was formerly both Principal of ‘Ahmadiyya School’ and Deputy Principal of the British College of Sri Lanka was finally accepted after the government of President Waheed rejected almost 11 names Nasheed proposed to the commission.

In a statement welcoming the government’s acceptance of Nasheed’s nomination of Saeed, Commonwealth Special Envoy to Maldives Sir Donald McKinnon expressed satisfaction with “the resolution on the issue of Mr Nasheed’s nominee.”

“Now that we have agreement on the reconstituted Commission, I look forward to it starting its work and carrying out its important mandate. I hope also that with its enhanced terms of reference and revised composition, the Commission will be a more broadly acceptable mechanism and will allow the country to move forward,” the statement read.

Following Saeed’s criticism of the draft report, the formerly ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) convened an emergency meeting of the party’s National Council and passed a resolution expressing concern in line with Saeed’s reservations.

The resolution stated that the CNI report must be compiled in accordance with the agreement signed between the government and the Commonwealth, which stipulated that instead of relying solely on witness statements, the commission would also accept photos, videos, audios, personal bank statements and phone recordings as evidence.

However, at a press conference on August 2, commission members revealed “difficulties in getting the phone recordings” from the Telecommunications Authority of Maldives (TAM).

Meanwhile, according to local media reports, retired Brigadier General Ibrahim Mohamed Didi attended the commission at 4:30pm yesterday to provide his statement on February 7, two days before the final report is due to be shared with the authorities.

Didi, who resigned in July, was the Male’ Area Commander of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) at the time of President Nasheed’s resignation.

Prior to attending the commission, Didi told private broadcaster Raajje TV that he had been awaiting an invitation to testify before CNI.

While he did not wish to discuss the events leading up to President Nasheed’s resignation, Didi said “I know how it happened very well. I don’t think there would be any other officer who would know what happened in Male’ on the 6th and 7th [of February] better than I. But I am not ready to share it with the media.”

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Centre Enterprises ordered to pay MVR8.3million to customs

The Civil Court has ruled that Centre Enterprises pay a fine of MVR8.3million (US$538,000) to the Maldives Customs Services for fraudulent activities when importing a crane to the country in 2009, Sun Online has reported.

The fine was levied after forged documents altered the price of the crane when being imported.

The court found that the company had failed to pay the fine, despite being reminded on three separate occasions.

Former principal collector of customs and former Chief Spokesperson of the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), Ibrahim Shafiu, was arrested in relation to these charges upon his return to the country in April

It ruled that the payment should now be made within one month.

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