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Comment: A mutiny against democracy

When retired Colonel Mohamed Nazim addressed the press for the first time following his appointment as the country’s new Defence Minister, he strongly asserted that there was no pressure from the armed forces on President Nasheed to resign.

He further claimed in front of journalists that the armed personnel gave no indication either way even when the President had asked them for advice.

However, in a video broadcast afterwards on RaajjeTV, the retired colonel is seen addressing the mutinous security forces at the Republican square on the morning of seventh February. In the video, he is seen coming out of the MNDF barracks, and telling the assembled forces over a loud speaker that he has conveyed their demands, which included the President’s ‘unconditional resignation’.

Clearly, the new Defense Minister needs to rethink this statement, and be more forthcoming about the day’s events.

Furthermore, why the new Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz – who had been sacked earlier – was seen carrying the President’s resignation letter is another question worth asking.

How Nazim and the Abdulla Riyaz, both civilians at the time, were allowed to freely walk into the MNDF barracks and closely accompany the President remains a mystery.

What is clear is that when the President is forced by the armed forces to resign under the threat of violence, held in military detention, brutally beaten up on the streets along with his supporters by the police, has an arrest warrant against him within a day of his resignation, and all the appointments made by his successor are known allies and associates of the former dictatorship that have been hostile to his presidency, then it is time to acknowledge the incident for what it is – a coup d’etat.

A puppet government

To be absolutely clear, Dr Waheed is a admirable man. He is an articulate and accomplished person, with a ton of experience and is eminently worthy of handling the responsibilities of the Presidency – arguably much more so than any candidate the main opposition parties has to offer.

However, the circumstances leading to his acquisition of power are vague, and the little that is known is corrosive to the country’s democratic ambitions.

Noteworthy among them is that the main opposition parties had publicly called upon the armed forces and the police to plead allegiance to the Vice President a week before the police mutiny even happened.

In a democracy, the transfer of power has to absolutely remain the sole prerogative of the people, exercised through the ballot box. This is a sacred writ of democracy that cannot – and should not – ever change.

A few hundred policemen should not be able to forcibly execute a regime change.

There is an ongoing effort by the opposition parties to portray the coup d’etat as a ‘popular’ uprising. But thankfully, it is trivial to discredit this assertion.

While there were 20 days of sustained protests by several opposition parties in the days leading up to the coup d’etat, the sparse attendance at these rallies – considering the sheer number of political parties behind it – proves that it wasn’t representative of the general public will.

Furthermore, Dr Waheed’s appointment brings with it greater portents.

Dr Waheed has little political influence or grassroots support to implement any independent decision. His fledgling political party hasn’t a single elected member in either the Parliament or a local council.

He is, thus, in a poor position to enforce or carry out the mandate of the people. Without the backing of the MDP, it is likely that the only policies he can realistically achieve are opposition demands that, again, have no electoral mandate.

“Rule of law”

Dr Waheed has also failed to strongly condemn the excessive police brutality against civilians on February 8, the day President Nasheed was released.

Despite having repeatedly vowed to uphold the ‘rule of law’, people were beaten unconscious, the ousted President was roughed up, and at least one senior member of Parliament was beaten mercilessly by the police under his watch.

His failure to reassure the people might have very well contributed to the arson and violence in the southern atolls, as supporters of President Nasheed torched police buildings and courts in response to the heavy-handed police crackdown.

The silence of the new President was only matched by the apalling insensitivity of the newly appointed Commissioner of Police who, when asked to respond to the excessive use of force by the police, insisted that the police always used ‘minimum force’ – and that he would leave it to the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) and the Human Rights Commission HRCM) to judge if they had stepped out of line.

On the other hand, the armed forces forcibly took control the Maldives National Broadcasting Corporation State media, renamed the station to ‘TVM’, as it was known during the Gayoom dictatorship.

The station is now a police propaganda outlet, and refuses to cover massive MDP rallies around the country, or the police brutality that has attracted condemnation from Amnesty International and other bodies:

A photo circulating on Facebook apparently showing defected police and MNDF celebrating in the courtyard of the state broadcaster, after taking it over on Tuesday.

Unity government

Dr Waheed has also said that he’s looking forward to forming a “unity government” and find common ground.

However, his appointment of Dr Mohamed Jameel as his new Home Minister puts a dark cloud over the sincerity of this effort.

By all measures, Jameel is a hawk. He led a strong, high rhetoric Islamist charge against the government when he was in opposition. His responses during his initial press conference were politically charged and combative, instead of the conciliatory tone Dr Waheed promised his government would have.

Jameel has vowed to raise terrorism charges against “those involved” – including President Nasheed. To his credit, Dr Waheed has called the comments “unwelcome”. However, if he is sincere about building peace, perhaps he needs to rethink his cabinet appointments.

The string of appointments of Gayoom regime loyalists and apologists to the cabinet and as heads of armed forces does nothing to quell the charges of political conspiracy.

When the legitimacy of the government is in doubt, and its willingness and capacity to deliver on the people’s electoral verdict is in doubt, and when these factors have created an atmosphere of extreme volatility, then the solution seems to be rather obvious.

An immediate election would restore the mandate of the people, and grant legitimacy and authority to an elected party, which would bring back some much needed order.

However, key foreign governments like India and the United States have failed to advocate this position, choosing instead to recognise the legitimacy of the newly installed government, backed by Gayoom regime forces, tainted business interests, and Islamists.

This decision has the potential to permanently reverse the democratic gains made by the country since the democratic uprising.

Dr Waheed himself argues that the political climate of the country is not conducive to elections – whatever that means.

Perhaps more likely is the contrary view that the conditions in the country are not suitable for the present government to continue, nor is it advisable for another – much larger – reason.

Setting a precedent

Other countries in the region, such as Pakistan, have experimented with letting the armed forces dictate the rulers of the country. And in the bargain, Pakistan has become a failed democracy mired in chaos and conflict.

It is therefore tragic that the Maldives is all set to follow in Pakistan’s footsteps, without even having experienced two election cycles.

Could future political parties in the Maldives come to power simply by winning influence in the police and armed forces? Will the demands of a few hundred uniformed personnel strip 300,000 people of their democratic verdict?

If the currently installed government is granted legitimacy, what would stop the country’s defense forces from pointing a gun at future elected governments?

The Maldivian constitution says that the ultimate power rests with the people, and the people alone. This is the central tenet of the constitution – the one line that decides that we the people are in charge of our democracy.

However, if this coup – this travesty – is allowed to take place unopposed, then we would have set the unwelcome precedent that a few men with guns can override the mandate of the people.

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]

Inside the MNDF base during Nasheed’s last moments in power:

Translation (provided by the MDP, Minivan News is currently verifying accuracy).

0:00-00:07 Moosa Jaleel: avahah, avahah, avahah {fast, fast,fast}

President Nasheed: Nikumey, nikumey, nikumey {Go out, Go out, Go out}

00:10 – 00:13 Nasheed: Anekahves…..alhe mee {Not again……..then this}

00:14-00:17 Nasheed: Nikan Kameh kobbala, Nikah kameh kohbala ,kaleymen {Please do something, please do something, you guys}

00:29-00:42 Nasheed: Nilaam, Nilaam ………gossa nikumey…. mulhi rajje halaaku kuranee kaleymen thibegen….Nukunashey. {Nilaam,Nilaam…..get out there…the whole of Maldives is being destroyed, by your inaction}

Unkown: Nukumeveytha? {Is it possible to get out?}

01:00-1:03 Unknown: Mariyamen rulhi aiss gen Male thalhaalanee. {Mariya and them has gotten angry and destroying Male.’}

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Loss for Maldives as ‘Asia’s Mandela’ is deposed: Business Day

The Maldives used to be a paradise for tourists but not its inhabitants. Honeymooners went there to explore each other, not the country,” writes Moorcraft for South Africa’s Business Day.

“Until 2008, it was the longest-lasting dictatorship in Asia. Then a diminutive but charismatic human rights activist, Mohamed Nasheed (known to everyone as “Anni”), defeated the old dictator, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, in the country’s first free elections.

Just 41, the young president was compared with Nelson Mandela and Barack Obama, though he told me of his respect for Mahatma Gandhi. I got to know “Anni” when he was an opposition leader who had been imprisoned 23 times, sometimes in solitary confinement, and tortured by the Gayoom regime. I made TV documentaries about him and his beautiful country, an archipelago of more than 1200 islands.

“Anni” had promised he would give me the first TV interview on his first day in power. He kept his word as we chatted in his office, with furious ambassadors from major states pacing outside his office. The islands are strategically placed amid major (oil) shipping lanes, of interest particularly to India and China.

“Not many Islamic countries have had free and fair elections to form a multiparty democracy,” he said. Despite his own mistreatment, he preached forgiveness to the old regime, because it was an Islamic principle and practical politics. He said Mandela and SA’s truth and reconciliation process were his inspiration.

The previous regime had emptied the treasury. “Our finances are in bad shape,” he admitted. “We can’t consolidate democracy if we can’t pay wages.”

He was always a man of his word, but he faced a huge task of rebuilding his country. Nasheed became a green icon worldwide, not least because he held one of his cabinet meetings underwater, with his ministers wearing scuba gear, to publicise the dangers of global warming. He talked to me about eventually relocating his 350000 citizens to Sri Lanka, India or even Australia — as his country sank beneath the waves.

His victory was a beacon to the Islamic world. Free elections and multiparty democracy without a drop of blood spilled and not a single western soldier present.

So why was such an inspirational leader deposed this week? His supporters claim he was ousted in a military and police coup-cum-mutiny, although it was not that simple. The main issue was that he won the presidency but his reformist party was in a minority in parliament — Gayoom’s supporters were in the majority. Cohabitation was difficult. Also the judiciary, largely composed of ill-educated placemen appointed by the old dictator, was often at loggerheads with the new president. Tensions came to a head in the past month, when the army detained a senior criminal court judge.

Economic factors were also in play — like Obama, the new president created a crisis of expectations. Job prospects, especially for the young, did not suddenly improve when he took over. Even some reformers felt that the human rights activist of old was being heavy-handed with his political (or family/clan) opponents. And, crucially, he was attacked by the Islamist right wing, which argued he was too secular. The Islamist parties had never achieved much in electoral terms, but they were influential — as the increasing use of the veil indicated. And even foreign intelligence agencies fretted about Jihadist growth in some of the outlying islands.

Street protests in the past few weeks were met by police crackdowns, and then old-regime elements of the police joined the protesters. Nasheed explained that his only recourse to this was to call in the small and divided army, or resign. It was a bloodless coup.

Nasheed may decide to contest the forthcoming election or not, but the forces of the old regime led by Gayoom, an Egyptian-trained cleric, in alliance with the fundamentalists, could defeat the more secular reformists.

The deposed leader is, in effect, under house arrest, enjoying the “protection” of the army.

Nasheed became a world icon not least for the environmentalists. A stirring movie about his achievements, The Island President, has recently won awards at the Sundance and Toronto film festivals. Perhaps the visionary leader became more popular abroad than at home; a sad comment on a man who promised so much.

As in SA, lesser men are likely to replace the icon.

Moorcraft is a visiting professor at Cardiff University’s School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies.

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Dr Waheed “open” to independent inquiry into change of government

President Dr Mohamed Waheed has said he would be open to an independent inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the rapid change of government on Tuesday.

The UK this morning joined Germany in calling for Dr Waheed’s government to “consolidate its legitimacy” with an “independent inquiry” into what former President Mohamed Nasheed and his party contends was a coup d’état.

“I have heard calls for an independent inquiry into the events that preceded my assumption of the presidency. I am open to those suggests – there is no problem with it. I will be completely impartial in any independent investigation,” Dr Waheed said.

“I don’t know the details, or how it can or should be done. I will consult legal advice as soon as we have an attorney general in place. I am sure we will be able to satisfy the call from Britain and Germany.”

Regarding the safety of foreign investments in the Maldives in the wake of political instability, Dr Waheed condemned the destruction of police and public property.

“I believe we have to all work together to ensure this. If you have some parties going around torching and destroying places, it is not going to happen. I call for those kind of activities to cease,” he said.

“I can guarantee that foreign investment in the Maldives is safe. We will not target anybody for political reasons. If there are any reasons for concern over investment, of course any steps that need to be taken will be taken.”

Dr Waheed said he would not approached the US$400 million airport investment by Indian Infrastructure giant GMR “from a political perspective.”

“It is not our intention to harm GMR. Our objective will be to resolve concerns of the public [regarding the company],” he said.

During the press conference Dr Waheed also vowed that the previous government’s social protection programs, including the Aasandha universal health insurance, allowances for single mothers, pensions and other programmes will continue.

Dr Waheed said the new government would also hand out subsidies to fishermen and agricultural workers “to the best of our financial capacity.”

“I have previously commented on the issue of civil servant’s salaries. I will, with the counsel of my government, make it a priority to reinstate them,” Dr Waheed said.

Dr Waheed also spoke about reforming cabinet and said he wanted it to “represent all major political parties.”

Current cabinet positions allocated include Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel – the former Justice Minister under Gayoom – and Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim, a former army colonel. Dr Waheed also appointed former Abdulla Riyaz Police Commissioner, who was previously dismissed from the position of Assistant Police Commissioner under Nasheed’s government.

“It’s going swiftly. Day after tomorrow, I will announce cabinet positions,” Dr Waheed said. “I hope MDP will also be part of my cabinet, and I will keep posts vacant for them. I don’t intend to give a cabinet post to anyone in my party.”

He said he had asked political parties not to talk to him about the appointment of a vice president.

“I don’t want the post to be politicised. I want the person to be respected by the public and experienced, and to be able to lend meaningful assistance to me in conducting my work. I implore all of you not to pressure me on the appointment,” he said.

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“We call on the police and the army to pledge allegiance to the Vice President”: Umar Naseer, Jan 31

Former President Mohamed Nasheed’s Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has circulated a video of an opposition press conference held early on January 31, following an early morning meeting between former Vice President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan and opposition leaders.

The meeting with Dr Waheed included President of the Adhaalath Party Sheikh Imran, Vice President of former President Gayoom’s Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Umar Naseer, and Vice President of the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party, Ibrahim ‘Mavota’ Shareef.

Nasheed and the MDP contend that his resignation following an attack by opposition protesters on the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) headquarters on Tuesday February 7 – in which element of the police and a smaller number of MNDF officers participated – was made under duress.

Dr Waheed’s government has maintained that the events of the day, including the takeover and rebranding of the state broadcaster, were spontaneous, and has praised the “sacrifices” of the security forces who participated.

“What happened (on Tuesday) was the culmination of a long process of political conflict and undermining of the judiciary,” President Waheed told foreign media during a press conference the morning after the alleged coup, which followed three weeks of 200-400 people protesting over the detention of Chief Judge of the Criminal Court, Abdulla Mohamed.

“I think it is unfair for anyone to accuse me of joining the opposition. I will continue this government in the spirit of coalition,” Dr Waheed said.

In the video of the opposition press conference eight days earlier, Umar Naseer claimed that President Nasheed had pledged “not to hold elections in 2013”.

“Hence, the December 23rd Coalition, all the different stakeholders of the coalition and all the opposition political parties are calling out to the police and the army to come out and pledge allegiance to Vice President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik, and not to implement any order given by Mohmed Nasheed,” Naseer said.

The coalition of opposition parties was formed following a well-attended ‘Defend Islam’ rally on December 23. Opposition leaders at the protest had criticised Nasheed’s Islamic credentials, accusing him of “building churches”, defending the Addu City ‘idols’ (SAARC monuments) and failing to condemn United Nations Human Rights Chief Navi Pillay for her suggestion that flogging be abolished as a punishment for extra-marital sex.

“We the Coalition of 23rd December has decided that from right this moment onwards, to step up the work we have been doing until today, to move things into the second phase,” said Sheikh Imran Abdulla, President of the religiously conservative Adhaalath Party, at the meeting on January 31.

“All of us in the Coalition have decided to pledge allegiance to Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik,” Naseer said.

At the press conference, DRP Vice Presdient Shareef said President Nasheed was a “huge threat to Maldivians”, and had “to be stopped immediately.”

“We believe Mohamed Nasheed has no legal standing to be the President of the Maldives. He has undermined the power of the courts, and completely abolished law and order in Maldives.

“He has tarnished the sanctity of the Supreme Court of the Maldives, and by giving illegal orders to the security forces, started injuring citizens.

“So before we go to a scarier, more dangerous blood shed, we have asked the Vice President to save this nation. I would like to call upon the security forces [to accept that] since the Vice President is a person elected by Maldivians, and should the President be incapacitated to perform his legal duties, the Vice President must assume the duties of the President.”

Recording of the January 31 press conference:

Transcript

Sheikh Imran, President of the Adhaalath Party:

In the name of Allah, the most merciful, the most beneficent.

We had to meet at this late hour because the Government is acting out
of the boundaries of the constitution to destroy the judiciary and disenfranchise the citizens of the country, and because President Nasheed has indicated to us, clearly, that the 2013 elections will not be held.

(And so) we the Coalition of 23rd December has decided that from right this moment onwards, to step up the work we have been doing until today, to move things into the second phase.

The steering committee of the 23rd December Coalition has met and decided, unanimously, that we have to take things to the second phase.

(And so) we went to meet the Vice President, and having met him, we wanted to convey our decisions to the beloved citizens of the Republic of Maldives.

Hence we are meeting at this late hour. Umar will convey what we desire and the decisions we have taken.

Umar Naseer Vice President, Progressive Party of the Maldives:

Thank you very much. As you would know President Nasheed has, beyond doubt, contradicted the Constitution, and he himself has said that, he has stepped out of the chart.

And that he will not hold presidential elections in 2013.

Hence, the December 23rd Coalition, all the different stakeholders of the coalition and all the opposition political parties are calling out to the police and the army to come out and pledge allegiance to Vice President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik and not to implement any order given by Mohmed Nasheed.

And all of us in the Coalition have decided to pledge allegiance to Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik.

So on behalf of this coalition we are calling on the security forces, to immediately pledge their allegiance to Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik.

As you know Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik was elected by a direct vote of Maldivians, and has not acted contrary to the Constitution.

But Mohamed Nasheed has contradicted the constitution, gone outside the chart and has said he will not hold elections in 2013.

Hence we cannot say that Mohamed Nasheed is the legal ruler of Maldives.

This is the decision of the Coalition.

Mohamed ‘Mavota’ Shareef, Vice President, Dhivehi Rayithunge Party:

In the name of Allah, the most beneficent, the most merciful.

We had met tonight with the Vice President on behalf of the Coalition to let him know what we think.

We have let the Vice President know what our parties had decided.

As you might know President Nasheed is a huge threat to Maldivians.

If what President Nasheed is doing is not stopped immediately, like what has happened in other countries, we fear that this country might plunge into a civil conflict.

So we requested the Vice President to take over the government, and we call upon the security forces to immediately start obeying the orders of the Vice President

That is because President Nasheed is not the President of the Maldives anymore.

He could have only stayed on as President, as long as he had not contradicted the constitution and does not contradict the law. He is trying to sideline the constitution.

He is contradicting the constitution knowingly, and on purpose.

Hence, as Umar and our Sheikh Imran has already stated, and as we have repeatedly stated, Nasheed who was holding the post of President, is not the President of this country anymore.

We believe Kenereege Mohamed Nasheed has no legal standing to be the president of the Maldives.

He has undermined the power of the courts, and completely abolished law and order in Maldives.

He has tarnished the sanctity of the supreme court of the Maldives, and by giving illegal orders to the security forces, started injuring citizens.

So before we go to a scarier, more dangerous blood shed, we have asked the Vice President to save this nation.

In conclusion, I would like to call upon the security forces, (to accept that) since the Vice President is a person elected by Maldivians, and should the president be incapacitated to perform his legal duties, the Vice President must assume the duties of the President. (And so) we have decided that he has to start performing these duties.

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Germany calls for Dr Waheed’s govt to “consolidate legitimacy” with “independent inquiry”

Germany has called for Dr Waheed’s government to “consolidate its national and international legitimacy” by holding an “independent inquiry” into the circumstances around Nasheed’s resignation this week.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle expressed “deep concern about recent developments in the Maldives, particularly the violent attacks against elected officials and supporters of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).”

Germany has taken note of President Waheed’s intention to form a government of “national unity”.

“The participation of all major parties represented in Parliament will be a decisive precondition to its political authority,” Westerwelle said, calling on the new leadership “to uphold the principles and norms of democracy and the rule of law and guarantee the right to peaceful demonstrations.”

Former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who ruled the Maldives for 30 years prior to Mohamed Nasheed’s victory in the country’s first democratic election in 2008, meanwhile hit out at international media in an interview with AFP, calling them “biased for depicting this as a coup or something illegal”.

“Mr Waheed is the democratically elected president of the Maldives, according to our constitution. I called him and congratulated him,” Gayoom told AFP over the phone from Malaysia.

He denied personal involvement in what Nasheed’s side has termed a coup d’état after “200 police officers and 80 Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) officers” sided with opposition protesters on Tuesday.

“No, I had no involvement at all. I had no personal involvement in anything like a coup organised by myself,” AFP reported Gayoom as saying. “He (Nasheed) resigned on his own.”

Gayoom said he would return home “within days”, and did not rule out a bid to reclaim the presidency.

“I haven’t decided yet. You can say I am keeping my options open. I don’t think I will but I cannot rule it out. It depends on the circumstances,” he told AFP.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is meanwhile sending his special envoy M Ganapathi to assess the situation in the Maldives. High level delegations from the UN and Commonwealth are active in the capital, while US Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake is due to arrive tomorrow.

Male’ remains calm this evening. But meanwhile, far from the diplomats and international media thronging in Male’, MDP supporters in the southern-most city of Addu are alleging that a brutal police and PPM crackdown against the former ruling party is taking place in retaliation for the destruction of court and police buildings on Wednesday evening.

An MDP member told Minivan News this evening that he was dragged from his house, cuffed, and thrown into a pickup “like a dog.” He was taken to Gan with 33 others where the station had been burned by Nasheed supporters on Wednesday evening.

“They poured petrol around us and said: “We will burn you, we can do anything because no one knows where are you are and no one will come to save you,” he said.

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Rising Islamism Set Stage for Maldives Coup: Wall Street Journal

In the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s ouster of President Mohamed Nasheed, his political opponents fomented opposition among conservative Muslims by claiming Mr Nasheed’s government was trying to undermine their faith, writes Tom Wright for the Wall Street Journal.

Islamists calling for jihad against Mr Nasheed played a significant part in antigovernment protests that began in January. Events came to a head Tuesday when a band of armed police and army officers backed the protesters and forced Mr. Nasheed to resign.

The emergence of hard-line Islam is a relatively new development for the Maldives. But it is stoking concern in neighboring India that it could be used as a potential base for Islamist militants. It also raises questions about the stability of a country which sits on strategically important sea lanes used to transport a large portion of the world’s crude oil.

And the rise of conservative Islam could have an impact on the country’s tourism industry. Around 900,000 foreigners come to the country each year and the development of spas and bars to cater for them has angered some Islamist leaders.

Ahmed Naseem, the country’s recently ousted foreign minister, faced opposition at home last year when he became the first Maldivian official to visit Israel. He says religious orthodoxy has become the norm as more people go to study in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

“This country had no one wearing headscarves 10 years ago” but it’s common now, said Mr. Naseem. The political opposition, he added, capitalized on this growing religiosity by portraying Mr. Nasheed as un-Islamic. “They’re using Islam as a tool.”

The party of Mohamed Jameel, who was sworn in as Home Minister this week, issued a pamphlet last month in the local language entitled, “President Nasheed’s Devious Plot to Destroy the Islamic Faith of Maldivians,” according to a translation reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

The pamphlet claimed that empty bottles of alcohol, which is proscribed for Maldivians, were found in offices of Mr. Nasheed’s government. It blamed the government for planning to sell land to Israel. And it said the then-president was working to undermine Islamic law in the country.

Mr. Jameel, in an interview Friday in his offices overlooking Male’s aquamarine harbor, acknowledged the pamphlet. He said Mr. Nasheed had at times lacked sensitivity toward Muslims.

“It’s one of the obligations of the state to protect Islam,” said Mr. Jameel, who went to a religious high school in Pakistan and got his doctoral degree from London University.

The Maldives, a country of almost 400,000 people, is almost entirely Muslim. The constitution makes Islam the state religion and minority faiths are not recognized. The legal system is a mixture of common law, a legacy of the former British colonists, and Quranic law.

After the December rally, the participation of Muslim extremists in antigovernment protests grew. During demonstrations earlier this week, a group of Islamists, their faces covered, trashed Buddhist statues in the National Museum.

For now, tourism has not suffered visibly. Most visitors arrive at an airport on its own island and are ferried to their resorts on uninhabited atolls, where alcohol is allowed. But as numbers grow, more tourists also are stopping off in Male, causing frictions.

“There are some fringe religious extremist elements and we hope the radicalism doesn’t hamper the Maldives’ image as a tourist destination,” an Indian government official said Friday.

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Maldives mishandled by India: Eurasia Review

The Government of India appears to have been caught napping in the Maldives on two counts, writes B. Raman for the Eurasia Review.

First, it failed to foresee the implications of some arbitrary actions of former President Mohammed Nasheed such as the arrest of the Chief Judge of the Criminal Court and disciplinary action against a Sandhurst-trained Colonel of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF), who were perceived to be anti-Nasheed and advise him to desist from such actions.

These actions antagonised the judiciary and created fissures in the MNDF and the Police. These elements joined hands with anti-Nasheed protesters in forcing him to quit as the President.

Secondly, it failed to realise that despite his antagonising the judiciary and sections of the Police and the MNDF, Nasheed retained considerable popular support particularly among the younger generation and was in a position to take the battle against his opponents to the streets. Instead of keeping quiet till the street equations became clear and instead of desisting from any action that might be misinterpreted as granting legitimacy to the MNDF-engineered replacement of Nasheed by his Vice-President Mohamed Waheed Hassan, the Government of India prematurely made statements that were interpreted in Maldives as amounting to India’s abandoning its support to the democratically-elected President.

When Nasheed’s supporters, with a defiant Nasheed at their head, took the battle against their opponents to the streets, the Government of India found itself with its credibility badly weakened.

The result: the Government of India’s traditional position as the sole arbiter of political fortunes in the Maldives has been badly damaged and a number of international actors from the UK, the US, the European Union and the United Nations have rushed to the Maldives to try their hand in internal peace-making, thereby marginalising the traditional role of India. Only China and Pakistan have not yet entered the political fray in the Maldives. If they do, that will be ultimate humiliation for Indian diplomacy at its southern door-step.

We had earlier lost our clout in Sri Lanka as a result of soft and reactive reflexes and we stand in danger of similarly losing our clout -even if we have not already lost it – in the Maldives due to similar apologetic reflexes lacking in robustness of anticipation and action.

In the Net world, one could notice articulation of condemnation of the Government for failing to intervene militarily in the Maldives in support of the democratically-elected Government. Unfavourable comparisons have been made with the robust response of Rajiv Gandhi, the then Prime Minister, to support the then President Abdul Gayoom against threats from foreign mercenaries suspected to be from the LTTE by sending Indian rapid action forces to the Maldives to neutralise the threat.

The hesitation of the Government of India to send rapid action forces in response to a reported SOS from Nasheed is understandable because the present situation is qualitatively different from what prevailed in 1988. The threat to Nasheed was not from external forces, but from sections of his own MNDF and the Police due to his perceived arbitrary style of governance. If the Government of India had sent the security forces to the Maldives this time, they would have been called upon to act not against foreign mercenaries and their local supporters, but against sections of the political opposition in the Maldives and their supporters in the MNDF and the Police.

Our security forces would have been able to overcome opposition from the MNDF and the Police, but then what about managing the messy sequel – with the Maldivian security forces many of whose senior officers were trained by us turning hostile against India?

The criticism of the Government of India for not intervening immediately through our armed forces is not quite justified. But there is a lot of actions short of direct military intervention which we could have taken – such as visibly and noisily strengthening our direct action capability in the vicinity of the Maldives, to convey a message to the contending forces in the Maldives and to external forces that might be tempted to take advantage of the situation to undermine Indian influence that India was prepared to use its armed forces if needed to protect its nationals and interests, and rushing a high level and stick-wielding emissary to Male to cajole, if possible, and to force, if necessary, the contending forces not to undermine democracy and not to allow any other external elements to come in and partake of the broth.

The Government of India failed to take any of these actions and now finds itself with diminishing options in the face of an unpredictably evolving situation domestically and internationally. In 1988, the international community recognised implicitly that the Maldives was India’s concern and that India had every right to act according to its wisdom.

Even though the situation seems to be slipping out of our hands, we can still retrieve it provided we show leadership befitting a big power and act resolutely on the lines indicated above. Evidence of such leadership and resolute action is missing in Delhi.

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“We will burn you, we can do anything because no one knows where are you are and no one will come to save you”

Police and military are “ransacking Addu City”, former President Mohamed Nasheed claimed in a meeting with press today, in retaliation for the destruction of police and court buildings on the islands on Wednesday night.

Addu is a stronghold of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and is the second most populated area in the Maldives, after Male’. Together, both cities make up 50 percent of the country’s population, and councilors at both were unanimously voted in on MDP tickets in last year’s local council elections.

Today, Nasheed claimed members of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) are “dragging people out from their homes and asking them if they are MDP or PPM. If they say MDP, they are spraying them with pepper, beating them and arresting them.”

Nasheed claimed that individuals in Addu have been stripped and handcuffed. Other sources in Addu claimed said that those arrested were being on Coast Guard vessels following the destruction of police and court buildings in the wake of the police crackdown on Wednesday afternoon. Fishermen reportedly claimed to have heard the sound of weeping coming from the moored vessels.

Minivan News was contacted by a man, identifying himself as an MDP supporter, who claimed to have been “arrested and beaten” yesterday on Hithadhoo in Addu City, at 1:30pm. He said he was released on Thursday night at 7:30pm.

He believes he was targeted because the Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) in Addu sent a list of people who had participated in protests to the police.

He was taken from his house with his family: “They threw my sister like a dog, and said all kinds of very bad words to my parents.”

He said he was dragged from his house and trodden on by the military, then cuffed and thrown into their pickup “like a dog.”

He was taken to Gan with 33 others where the station had been burned.

“They poured petrol around us and said: “We will burn you, we can do anything because no one knows where are you are and no one will come to save you.”

The military and police members allegedly removed some peoples’ clothes, sprayed them with pepper spray, and made them all “dance like dolls. They were doing it for their own entertainment, smiling and laughing.”

He was released at 7:30pm last night. “They said ‘Tell no one I’ve seen this kind of thing or you will never see your family again.'”

He reported that the military and police were still searching for people on Friday evening. Mayor Abdul Sodig was said to be in hiding.

Military and police officials are going around with members of the opposition, the MDP supporter claimed. He also said those who attacked him had told his family at his house: “Now this is our government. We can do anything we want.”

Similar events were occurring in Thinadhoo and Fuvahmulah, also in the country’s south, former President Nasheed said: “We are losing a country as we speak.”

Minivan News was today informed that Ibrahim ‘Ibra’ Ismail, former member of the Special Majlis and the committee responsible for drafting the new Constitution, had flown to Addu with several lawyers to assess the situation in the remote island. The team was reportedly attacked, beaten and had their phones taken.

Several media outlets, including some foreign outlets, were scheduled to fly to Addu this evening with MDP representatives, but the trip was called off after organisers claimed that the violence had spread and they were unable to guarantee reporters’ safety at night.

Police statement

Police Spokesman Ahmed Shiyam said any arrests made by police would be conducted legally. Approximately 70 people were being questioned, he said, and noted that court warrants had been issued for the arrest of several others. He said he had no knowledge of people being held on boats.

Meanwhile new Commissioner of Police Abdhulla Riyaz has in a statement requested that the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) and Human Rights Commission of the Maldives closely monitor the treatment of all those who are brought into police custody related to the investigation of disturbances on the evening of February 8, which he said had “caused severe damage and harm to government and public property and as well as police personnel.”

“During these disturbances that occured in Male as well as other regions of the Maldives, several police stations and the police traning school in Addu was torched and severely damaged,” the statement read.

“The Commissioner of Police has instructed all police officials who are involved in this investigation to protect the rights of the detainees including the right to an attorney, right to food and other entitled human rights. The police commssioner also assured that all individuals who will be arrested with regard to the above disturbances will only be arrested in accordance with the constitution, rules and regulations of Maldives.”

During his meeting today, former President Nasheed said “I believe that what the people of this country want is clear from what is happening on the streets. We can bring the government to our terms by demonstrating on the streets, but I fear it is not the best course of action.”

He noted that the opposition “was only able to gather 300 to 400 people” each night during three weeks of protests against the detention of Chief Judge of the Criminal Court, Abdulla Mohamed.

On Thursday morning the Criminal Court issued a warrant for Nasheed’s arrest, however police had not complied with it by Friday evening.

International support

Nasheed said that his party was not depending on the international community to bring fresh elections to the Maldives, and was relying on the Maldivian people to make their feelings felt: “In the absence of international support, we will have to go back to the streets and demonstrate”, Nasheed said. “We cannot join this government as we believe it is illegal.”

A Vice President, Nasheed contended, was expected to carry out the policies of the government were he to replace the sitting President: “He is not supposed to find a new cabinet or new policies.”

Nasheed also commented that he had been “aware for some time” that Dr Waheed had met with opposition leaders in his home, and in the last month “it was obvious” that he had leanings towards the opposition. He added that Dr Waheed’s party “hasn’t a single seat” in Parliament, and said he could “not see how would get a cabinet approved. How can he have control? He would have to rely on his masters.”

A foreign journalist asked Nasheed as to the identity of those “masters”. Nasheed speculated that Gayoom’s half-brother Abdulla Yameen and Jumhoree Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim were involved “because I have seen them at it. I am very sure it is the old order.”

Nasheed had met with the Indian High Commissioner Dynaneshwar Mulay prior to the press conference. A journalist asked if he “felt India has let you down”.

“I’m sure India with its ideals and policies will find the most amicable set of policies in the Maldives,” Nasheed responded.

Addressing the matter of international influence in the Indian Ocean, Nasheed said his government had always been clear on its friendship with the neighboring country, however the “present government has not been clear on its stance with regards to India and China”, adding that “there’s always room for maneuvering.”

“My policy on international relations is very simple – find a friend and be good to that friend,” he said.

The United States today recognised the government of Dr Waheed, and expressed hope that the Maldives would resolve the current issue internally, according to media reports.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said that Washington “recognised the new government of President Mohammed Waheed Hassan as legitimate”, but clarified that it was collecting more information.

US Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake is due to arrive in the Maldives tomorrow. High-level delegations from the UN and Commonwealth are currently active in the Maldives and meeting all parties.

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Comment: “We might be tourists but we are not blind or deaf”

Open letter to the Honorable Dhivehi people.

Dear all,

This letter is written with plenty of love and respect for you, your culture and your country. I am writing on behalf of a group of university professors that have visited many times your country, a group of people from the international university community that feels very sad for what is happening in Maldives and have their heart shred into pieces.

It is terrible for us to see what is happening to such nice and friendly country. Brothers against brothers, brothers killing brothers. We use to say that you where very different from Sri Lanka as every time we went to Dhivehi land, those 190 islands surrounded by a blue sea, we traveled also to old Ceylon, always in war, always in troubles, the population always in fear.

The Maldives was different, although we knew that human rights were not respected, nor did free expression exist. We knew that a dictator was controlling the country, we knew that poverty was present, we knew that the country did not have a proper hospital and no university. For us this was very strange — we knew that people were in prison, we knew of families losing their land for not being princes of the regime.

We might be tourists but we are not blind nor deaf.

We might stay in upscale resorts but we have a heart and we are not stupid. We made plenty of friends, people that came to visits us in Europe and others that could not afford to travel, but showed interest and sympathy to us every time we surfed the Maldivian blue waters. Some of these people are apparently now in jail.

What is happening? The news in Europe says you have dismissed your elected President and a new one is in power since a few days ago.

This is not possible as a new President cannot appoint him or herself and needs to be elected. I don’t think you had the time for that.

We all fear that you are back to dictatorship, black into the grey dark political clouds of the last 30 years. We are not even sure that this open letter to all Maldivian will be published, but we want to show that we are with you in this difficult moment.

Whoever will be in power, cannot be called President as he or she has not been elected.

It seems like your path to democracy has suffered a twist. Often it is like that in countries without a culture of respect for human life. The photos we get here in Europe makes us think about old times back here. If that is the case it is very sad.

We don’t know exactly what your situation is as the mails we get are very confusing, but it seems like plenty of blood has been shed lately. From Europe, at least from the university community, we want to say to all that fighting for democracy is worth it. Some of you may not understand it fully, but indeed democracy is the only way to go these days. Some of your Muslim brothers in north Africa know it very well.

May all the troubles end soon and may your country regain the wisdom that will allow you to continue to develop. No more blood should be spilt. No more dictatorship should take place.

Irwin Glass is a teacher at the European University in Barcelona.

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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