Author: Ahmed Nazeer

CMAG call for CNI review based on incomplete information: Thasmeen

The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG)’s calls to review the composition of the Committee of National Inquiry (CNI) are based on incomplete information, Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali has claimed.

Thasmeen’s comments were made last night during an interview aired on private TV station DhiTV.  During the interview the DRP head also claimed that the CNI investigation into the transfer of power on February 7 needed to be completed before early elections could be held.

CMAG stated Monday it would consider taking “further and stronger measures” against the Maldives government unless it reviewed the CNI composition and mandate within four weeks.  The Commonwealth body also repeated its call for early elections to be held in 2012.

The government of President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan later responded that although it would work with the Commonwealth over its concerns, it could not constitutionally hold elections until July 2013.  The President’s Office added that further clarification was also required on the nature of the Commonwealth’s concerns relating to the impartiality of the CNI – the body set up to assess the circumstances surrounding the transfer of power on February 7.

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), which alleges that former President Mohamed Nasheed was deposed in a coup d’état, has rejected the government’s claims.

Ahead of national protests scheduled for tomorrow, the now opposition MDP has claimed that elections could be held within two months without constitutional changes should President Waheed step down.

However, responding in local media to CMAG’s calls, DRP chief Thasmeen alleged that the Commonwealth had failed to conduct proper research before issuing its statement this week.

Thasmeen reportedly added during the televised interview that CMAG had decided the CNI inquiry commission did not have public support having only spoken to select groups of people.

“I was surprised that CMAG said so. How could they assess what the people of the Maldives think? Talking to a select few on their visits is not enough to determine that,” Haveeru reported the DRP leader as saying.

The CMAG must also provide further details on the measures the government is to take to ensure CNI’s independence, Thasmeen added.

“We don’t understand what they want to convey. They point out that the inquiry commission is not independent but they don’t specify what needs to be done to make it more independent,” Thasmeen claimed.

Moreover, no organisation can call for early elections until the investigation into the transfer of power is complete, he contended.  Thasmeen added that CMAG could only press for early elections if Commonwealth values had indeed been violated in the transfer of power, but such a conclusion had not yet been established through an investigation, Thasmeen added.

“They cannot set the terms on such requests, and even if they do, it is not on the hands of the government to organise an early election.  An early presidential election can only be held after revising the constitution,” he said.

When contacted by Minivan News, Thasmeen said he was unable to comment further at the time.

Resignation calls

In addressing both the DRP and government response to CMAG’s calls, MDP spokesperson MP Imthiaz Fahmy said early elections were possible without constitutional amendments.

Famhy claimed that under the constitution, if President Waheed resigned, Majlis Speaker Abdulla Shahid would become head of state, a development requiring fresh elections to be held within two months.

Otherwise, “political parties will need to come to an arrangement to agree that a 2012 election will elect the president for a five-year term,” Fahmy added.

“We are asking them for a date. Once a target date is set, then we can make all the necessary arrangements. A date is the test of their sincerity” he said.

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Pro-MDP Facebook group alleges police intimidation

Administrators of a Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) aligned Facebook group called “Kula Yellow” have claimed they have been “threatened” by police over their page’s content.  Police officials have denied the accusations.

The Kula Yellow Facebook page, which at the time of press has just under 14,000 likes on the hugely popular social networking site, collects images, videos and other information relating to the opposition party and its work.

However, in a written statement issued today on the site, Kula Yellow’s administration team alleged that “police intelligence” had accused the page of being linked to “violence”, whilst also pledging to “crush” the site.

The alleged threat was also claimed to conclude with a warning that law enforcement officials would continue to be monitoring the page.

Kuda Yellow responded in the statement that police had no right to accuse the page or its administrators of being linked to violent crime.

‘’Arrest one of us. Two more appear. You cannot arrest an idea,’’ the statement said referring to the alleged police threats.

Kula Yellow’s Facebook page so far has more than 13,000 fans, who are said to represent mostly young Maldivians that oppose the current government and support the MDP’s demands for early elections.

However, the Maldives Police Service has denied that it was focusing on, or investigating the Kula Yellow page and its administrators.

Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef said there had so far been no complaints filed against the Facebook page Kula Yellow and added that police were not investigating anything related to the page.

The police official declined to respond when asked about whether law enforcement officials were concerned over the potential role that social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter were playing in organising both recent peaceful protests and violent unrest between its officers and civilians.

A member of the Kula Yellow team speaking to Minivan News today on condition of anonymity claimed its members had been receiving several death threats and abusive messages over the past few weeks.

”But last night one of us received a text message, the contact number appears as ‘Police Intel’ and the message said that they are watching over Kula Yellow’s actions and they will ‘crush’ you,” the source said.

The source added that the Kula Yellow team last night met with some  senior officials of the MDP to inform the party about their concerns.

”Police officers followed us when we left home after the meeting, we noticed their actions and realized that they have been haunting us,” he claimed.

The spokesperson additionally expressed concern that the phone interview given to Minivan News, as well as other incoming and outgoing calls to his mobile were being listened to by police.

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Missing five year-old boy found dead in Lhaviyani Atoll

Police have said that a five year-old boy reported missing from Naifaru in Lhaviyani Atoll has been found dead this morning as investigations continue into the exact cause of death.

The Maldives Police Service said that the child’s body was discovered at 1:20am today in the lagoon of Naifaru. The boy has since been identified by law enforcement officials as Hassan Javid Ibrahim of Muleeha house in Naifaru.

Officers from the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and the police joined islanders in searching for the boy after his family reported that he had gone missing at 1:30pm.

Search teams began searching the island’s lagoon for the boy after the child’s slippers were discovered drifting in the local waters at about 4:15pm, police have said.

An islander from Naifaru who spoke to Minivan News on condition of anonymity said that the boy’s mother was believed to have sent the child to the island’s harbour to see if his dad returned from fishing.  The islander said that the boy did not return.

According to the source, the child was last seen at 3pm the same day near the harbour area of the island, where it had been raining at the time.

The islander said they believed that the person who had saw the child may not have known at the time that he was missing, or perhaps did not understand the severity of the situation.

The same source claimed that once the body of the child had been recovered, there appeared to be no visible injuries.

With investigations into the case continuing, Police  Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef today told Minivan News that it was not yet possible to speculate on the potential cause of death.

“We will inform the media after concluding the investigation,’’ said Haneef.

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MDP Parliamentarians submit no-confidence motion against Speaker Shahid

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Parliamentary Group has today passed a no-confidence motion against Abdulla Shahid, Speaker of the People’s Majlis.

The now opposition party said it had moved to pass the current no-confidence motion against Speaker Shahid over allegations that he had been making decisions relating to significant parliamentary issues without discussing them with various political parties.

The party claimed that Shahid had been acting outside of his mandate by deciding to suspend certain parliament regulations, whilst opting to follow others that were to his personal benefit.  The MDP allege the speaker had been doing this without discussing his decisions among any political parties represented inside parliament.

From within the MDP Parliamentary Group, 27 members out of a total of 32 belonging to the group are said to have signed the no-confidence motion.  The party claimed that its members who did not sign the motion had been unavailable to do so at present.

Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) MP Ahmed Mahloof could not be contacted at the time of going to press regarding his party’s response to the motion.

Speaker Shahid told Minivan News today that parliament had received the no-confidence motion, though he did not wish to elaborate further at the present time.

‘’I will issue a written statement tomorrow,’’ he said. ‘’I have decided not to say anything before that.’’

The MDP previously called for a no-confidence motion against the Speaker in March 2010, accusing him of siding with the then-opposition parties.

In January last year, there were widespread rumors that MDP, the People’s Alliance Party (PA) and the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) were planning to forward a no-confidence motion against the speaker.

However, all the parties denied such a collaboration at the time and a no-confidence motion was not forwarded to the parliament.

DRP Parliamentary Group Leader and MP Dr Abdulla Mausoom did not respond to Minivan News at time of press.

Dr Mausoom has today told the local press that he will make sure the no-confidence motion against Speaker fails in parliament.

He also said there might be a chance that MDP has sided with some of the independent MPs in parliament to pass the no-confidence motion.

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Police claim Bangladeshi prostitution ring smashed following Male’ arrests

Police have arrested seven foreign nationals from Bangladesh over alleged involvement in a prostitution ring amidst an ongoing crackdown over the last month on premises suspected of operating as brothels.

The suspects – four female and three male – were apprehended during raids by police officers inside Ranfaunu house, based in the Mahchangolhi ward of Male’ on 9 April.

Inspector Mohamed Dhaudh yesterday told the press the arrests had been made after police intelligence confirmed that prostitution had been taking place at the property.

Following this confirmation, Dhaudh said police entered the house through the main door of the house at 10:10pm on the evening of April 9 .

Once inside, officers reported that although the house looked as if it was built for residential purposes, a reception was found inside and a bell was placed on the staircase.

Inspector Dhaudh claimed that the bell situated on the staircase was suspected as functioning as a warning device used to signal people inside of possible danger.

Dhaudh said condoms were discovered inside a drawer in the reception and that officers also found two women inside a room on the ground floor along with pills used for sexual activities.

He said one man and two women were found inside a room upstairs and alleged that a second room on the building’s first floor was suspected of being used for homosexual prostitution.

One of the women tried to escape by jumping on to the roof of the house next door police said.   One of the male suspects was also said to have a previous criminal record related to a kidnapping incident.

Dhaudh also noted that all of those arrested were believed to have been illegally transmitted in to Maldives.

Police announced yesterday that they had arrested two Thai women and two local men on prostitution charges after raiding a Male’-based business suspected of operating as a brothel.

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Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem reiterates calls for control of mosques to return to Islamic Ministry

Islamic Affairs Minister Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed has continued to call for the control of Maldivian mosques to be returned to his department from the country’s island councils.

Local media has reported that Sheikh Shaheem used social media this week to reiterate his hopes that the Islamic Ministry would reclaim control of the country’s mosques following the failure of one scholar to obtain permission to speak on the island of Fuvahmulah.  Sheikh Shaheem was unavailable for comment when contacted by Minivan News today.

Local authorities in Fuvahmulah said today that the decision not to grant permission for Sheikh Idhrees Hussain to preach at a mosque in Maadhandu Ward on the island was the result of an administrative oversight rather than a personal “grudge” against the scholar.

However, in referring to the issue of granting permission for Sheikh Idhrees to preach during his visit to Fuvahmulah on Facebook yesterday, Shaheem stated that he hoped the country’s mosques would be soon back under the legal control of the Islamic Ministry.

“This is the result of handing over mosques to Councils. God willing, all mosques in the country will be brought under Islamic Ministry,” Sun Online reported Shaheem as stating on his Facebook page.

In the meantime, the Islamic Affairs Minister said that his department would continue to work with island councils who were presently responsible for local mosques to ensure order in the nation.

Following the failure of Maadhandu Council in Fuvamulah to grant permission for Sheikh Idhrees to preach at the mosque, island officials said that about 15 people gathered at the council’s offices to protest at the decision yesterday. The protest was claimed to have lasted for around 15 minutes.

Ahmed Wafir, a member of Maadhandu Council today told Minivan News that the issue arose after Sheikh Idhrees visited Fuvamulah on a personal trip and wanted to preach in a mosque in Maadhandu Ward without the permission of Maadhandu Council.

“He [the sheikh] apparently asked the Atoll Council instead of Maadhandu Council, and the Atoll Council informed four councils in the island that he had requested for permission to preach in some of the mosques in the island,’’ Wafir said.   He noted that there was a total of eight councils in Fuvamulah representing different wards.

Wafir claimed that the Maadhandu Council President responded at the time that he alone cannot give such permission to the scholar and therefore, a council meeting had to be held to grant the permission to preach. According to the council’s rules, Sheikh Idhrees was then required to send a letter to the council along with a copy of his preaching license.

“Some of the islanders got angry about this and the next day total 15 persons came near Maadhandu Council Office to protest, but after 15 minutes they left,’’ he said.

Wafir claimed that the council knew of Shikeh Idhrees and had previously permitted the scholar to deliver sermons at the local mosque  when he had requested to do so according to the rules.

“It’s not that the council has any grudge against Sheikh Idhrees, but everyone has to follow procedures and rules,’’ he said. “Sheikh Idhrees later changed the schedule and delivered the sermon in another mosque not in Maadhandu.’’

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Four arrested on prostitution charges in police raid of salon

Police last night arrested two Thai women and two local men on prostitution charges after raiding a Male’-based business suspected of operating as a massage parlor.

The business, called Maldivian Care, was located on the first floor of H.Hulhugali, a property belonging to Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Former President Ibrahim Zaki – who has not been implicated in the raid.

Speaking to the press today, Deputy Head of Serious and Organized Crime Inspector Mohamed Dhaudh said that police had received information that prostitution was allegedly being conducted at Maldivian Care’s premises -charges it said were later confirmed through police intelligence.

Dhaudh said police entered the saloon last night at 9:45pm with a court warrant.  Maldivian Care was located on the first floor of the house, where police claim that the business was ran from an apartment with two lockable rooms.

Dhaudh added that when police entered the property, the outside door of the apartment was locked as well as the two interior rooms as well.

Police officials identified the two Thai national suspects as Thonbai Sons and Sdhafone Budicha and the two Maldivian men as Mohamed Shinah of Thinadhoo in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll and Moosa Ibrahim of Inguraidhoo in Raa Atoll.

Police said that although the Maldivian Care business appeared to be operated as a salon, officers had discovered items used for sexual activities inside the property.

In the first room, police reported finding a Thai woman and a naked Maldivian.  After searches were conducted of both suspects, an unused condom was found inside the pocket of the man’s trouser, whilst Rf500 was found in the pocket of the woman.

Police claimed that large amounts of Maldivian Ruffiya, US dollars and Euros were found inside the female suspect’s bag.

According to police, another Maldives national and a Thai female were found inside the second room.  Upon entering, police reported that the Maldivian man was discovered lying down, whilst the Thai woman was waiting near him.

When police searched the woman’s bag, lots of Maldivian Ruffiya, Euros and US dollars, as well as pills used for “sexual activities” were found inside.

Dhaudh said the sponsor of the two Thai nationals arrested during the raid was Mohamed Adam of Fenfushi in Alifu Dhaalu Atoll.  According to police, the sponsor has a previous police record relating to prostitution charges.

Last month, police confirmed they had made several raids on properties linked to prostitution, resulting in the arrest of a number of female expatriates.

Under the previous government, the shutting down of alternative medical centres linked to sexual activities was one of the five demands made by a coalition of NGOs and then-opposition party politicians.

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Attacked Raajje TV presenters allege “political motivation” behind assault

Two TV presenters working for private broadcaster ‘Raajje TV’ were assaulted yesterday whilst on the island of Hulhumale’, an attack the station has claimed is politically motivated.

Speaking to Minivan News, Qufthaq Ajeer claimed he and colleague Mohamed Jinah had been assaulted and threatened with sharp weapons on the island as a result of a political TV program they presented together.

‘’We were waiting in Hulhumale yesterday, I went there to get my bike,’’ said Qufthaq. ‘’At about 6:30pm, four men on two motorbikes came and attacked us.’’

Qufthaq said his colleague Jinah was stabbed in the back and he was hit in the eye.

“My colleague suffered a 7 inch-long, 2 inch-deep wound on his back,” he said.

Qufthaq alleged that the attacks were politically motivated.‘’They [the attackers] asked us to stop the TV program,” he claimed

The presenter also noted that a week ago, an unknown caller rang up Raajje TV’s Offices and warned the channel to stop broadcasting their TV program.

‘’We received death threats a week ago and I think this attack is related to the earlier threats,’’ said Qufthaq, who was also a former journalist at private radio station DhiFM.

Raajje TV CEO Ahmed Rafeeq told Minivan News today that the channel was extremely concerned by the attack, which had followed  a number of warnings previously sent to the broadcaster.

‘’We have been receiving several warnings recently and now that they have attacked one of us, the other journalists are scared and mentally affected,’’ Rafeeq said.

The Maldives Journalist Association (MJA) also condemned the attack on the two presenters, stating that it was against freedom of expression.

The MJA said it believed the attack had been designed to intimidate journalists and to obstruct the freedom of press and expression as guaranteed under the national constitution.

The association also called on authorities to bring the assailants to justice.

Police Spokesperson Hassan Haneef told Minivan News that police were presently investigating the case, but no arrests have been made so far.

‘’We questioned both of them and we are trying to identify the assailants,’’ Haneed said. ‘’No arrests have been made so far.’’

Pro-government political parties have previously alleged that Raajje TV was biased and working in favour of former president Nasheed and his Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP). The station has actively covered MDP protests and rallies, and in several cases aired incorrect reports of fatalities which police later cited as a factor in the subsequent and widespread destruction of police property.

However, Raajje TV is not the only private media group to claim to have come under politically motivated attacks of late.

VTV attack

Last month, the offices of private broadcaster Villa Television (VTV) were attacked during confrontations between security forces and alleged anti-government protesters in Male’ on March 19.

VTV was briefly brought off air following the incident – an act claimed by the station’s owner to be tantamount to “terrorism”.  Local media bodies also criticised protesters for allegedly threatening journalists and media personnel covering the clashes.

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Police investigating staff death at W Retreat and Spa property

Police have confirmed investigations are continuing into the death of a male member of staff at the W Retreat and Spa Maldives resort this morning – with preliminary findings suggesting the man passed away of natural causes.

Police Spokesperson Hassan Haneef confirmed that police were notified by the resort this morning that a 55 year-old Indian national who worked as a chef at the North Ari Atoll property had been found dead.

”His body was found dead inside his room at about 3:45am,” Haneef said. ”The body was then taken to South Ari Atoll Mahibadhoo Hospital.”

Haneef added that according to the doctor on duty at the hospital, the chef appeared to have died of natural causes.  Haneef stressed that police were still investigating the case before confirming the cause of death.

W Maldives

In a statement, W Retreat and Spa Maldives, which is operated by the Starwood Hotels brand, confirmed that a male staff member had passed away today.

“The hotel team immediately contacted emergency services and local authorities requesting assistance at the resort. Local authorities are investigating the case currently,” the company stated.

“W Retreat & Spa Maldives is extremely saddened by what has transpired and would like to express our deepest sympathy to the family and friends of the deceased.”

As resort management were continuing to work with local authorities over the case, W said it was not able to comment further at present over the possible cause of death.

“The safety and security of our staff and guests continues to be a priority at all times,” the company added.

While unrelated to today’s incident,  Indian nationals working in the country have been at the forefront of several high-profile police investigations over the last two weeks.

High profile cases

Late last month, an Indian national working in a local resort was attacked with a hammer and mugged while in Male’ city – allegedly by a former employee of the resort he worked in.

The victim, identified by India’s Express News Service as 24 year-old Ramakrishnan Sadanandan from Thiruvananthapuram, was reportedly attacked at 2:30pm on March 31 while staying in a local guest house.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, police confirmed investigations were taking place into the suicide of a 39 year-old Indian national whilst he was in custody at Dhoonidhoo.  The exact details of the suicide were being looked into by police.

However, the case prompted Indian High Commissioner Dynaneshwar Mulay on Friday to raise concerns over the general treatment of Indian expatriates in the Maldives by the country’s police and judiciary in particular.

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