Author: Ahmed Nazeer

Moosa blames Gayoom for cancellations of parliament sessions

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Chairperson and MP ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik has claimed parliament sessions were disrupted deliberately by opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MPs, led by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, because they feared that an amendment presented to the Former Presidents Act would be passed.

Moosa gave an interview to the press today outside the parliament after Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim cancelled the session, after DRP MP Ali Azim refused to leave the chamber despite repeated instructions.

‘’The parliament has been disrupted following on the orders of former president Gayoom,’’ Moosa alleged to the press outside parliament.

Moosa said that tomorrow he would send a letter to the former President requesting to meet him and clarify “why exactly he is disrupting the parliament sessions and what he expects to gain from doing it.”

However, today DRP’s Z-faction MP Ahmed Nihan said faction’s main issue was that members for parliament committees were appointed during an “unlawful” sitting and that any decision made in an unlawful sitting would also be unlawful.

Nihan said that if Speaker of the Parliament Abdulla Shahid accepted that the sitting was unlawful and decided to hold the sitting once again, and reappoint members for the parliament committees, “the main issue will be solved.”

Successive parliament sittings have been cancelled after the Z-faction of DRP complained about the legality of a sitting in which the ruling MDP won majority control of the National Security Committee and Finance Committee, the most influential two committees in parliament.

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Civil Court orders EC to release funds for People’s Party, Social Democratic Party

The Civil Court has ordered the Elections Commission (EC) release funds for both the People’s Party (PP) and the Social Democratic Party following an earlier decision by the EC to withhold the money citing political inactivity.

The EC had contested that the budget was withheld because the two parties were receiving public funds but had not been engaged in political activity “to an adequate level”.

Civil Court judge Maryam Nihayath ruled that it was not within the jurisdiction of the EC to determine whether a political party was working to achieve the goals mentioned in its charter.

The judge ruled that Elections Commission was obliged to distribute the budget allocated for each party according to the Elections Commission Act and that there were no probable grounds to believe that the EC had authority to decide whether or not to deliver the money.

Ruling on the suit filed by PP against the EC, Judge Nihayath ordered the EC deliver the money to the party by Thursday.

The Social Democratic Party also filed a lawsuit against the EC for holding the budget allocated for the party, and the Civil Court ruled in similar fashion, ordering the EC to pay the party by Thursday.

Vice President of the Elections Commission Ahmed Hassan Fayaz told Minivan News that the Commission was studying the legal implications of the decision, before deciding whether to appeal.

“Political parties are allocated a budget [from public funds] and in this case we felt these parties were not doing anything [political], and decided it was time to be proactive and make a decision,” he said.

“In the absence of a law you look to public opinion,” he said. “Public opinion was that these parties were not operating as political parties, but were still receiving money from the Elections Commission.”

Correction: An earlier version of this story mistakenly stated that the EC had withheld funds from the People’s Alliance Party (PA),  rather than the People’s Party (PP). Minivan News regrets the error and apologises for any confusion caused.

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MFDA shuts down Billabong International School’s canteen

The Maldives Food and Drugs Authority (MFDA) has shutdown Billabong International High School’s canteen after the authority’s inspectors determined that it did not meet hygiene regulations.

Media Coordinator of the MFDA Jameela Adam said the authority would not close an eatery if the condition of the place was “not that poor.’”

“Our first priority is to suggest the improvement of the hygiene condition without forcing them to shut down their business,’’ said Jameela. ‘’But there is this certain criteria that all food outlets are required to have, which is the minimum standard. If any food outlet’s condition is poorer than those standards, we ask them to close the place immediately.’’

The MFDA has ceased providing reasons for the closures after complaints from outlet owners. Prior to that details for closures were disclosed – in one instance, a teashop was shut after inspectors discovered a live goat in the toilet.

‘’I can confirm that the hygiene condition of Billabong’s canteen was very poor,’’ she said. ‘’We took pictures and showed them what we found, and they also agreed that they had to correct those issues.’’

‘’Issues such as finding live animals, cockroaches, house flies and other foreign materials inside the food outlets are normally the major issues,’’ she said.

Jameela also noted that food inspectors had observed that a lot of expatriate food outlets in Hulhumale’ had been operating without the authorisation of the MFDA.

‘’We have closed many expat food outlets in Hulhumale’ for operating without MFDA permission,’’ she said.

She also said it was not the aim of the MFDA to shut down food outlets.

‘’Our goal is to ensure that safe food provided to customers in all food outlets,’’ she added.

Recently, famous restaurants such as West Park, Raaveriya and Alfresco Café were closed by the MFDA. Most reopened after addressing the authority’s complaints.

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Parliament accepts Police Integrity Commission Act for vote

The parliament today accepted the Police Integrity Commission Act presented by People’s Alliance (PA) MP Abdu-Raheem Abdulla, with the objective of making the Police Integrity Commission an independent body.

Out of the 67 MPs present, 36 MPs voted to accept the bill for preliminary debate and decide whether or not to pass it into law.

According to the bill, members of political parties or political activists would be banned from being member of the commissions.

The father, mother, son, daughter, wife or husband of a police officer would also be blocked from being a member of the commission, according to the bill.

Appointing members to the commission would be parliament’s responsibility, and a member of the commission could be dismissed if a parliament majority found that person incompetent or incapable.

The President of the Commission also will be determined by the parliament in a sitting by popular vote.

The PIC currently operates under the Police Act, and the Commissioner appointed by the President.

According to the bill, it would be prohibited for the PIC to disclose any information a commission member receives in an investigation unless for the investigative purposes of a lawful body.

Parliament’s finance committee is responsible for determining the wages and allowances of the commission members, the bill states.

The police are obliged to inform the commission within 24 hours if anyone dies, attempts suicide or is seriously injured while under police charge, according to the Integrity Commission Act.

The bill also rescinds all articles concerning the Police Integrity Commission from the Police Act.

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Islam allows use of drugs for medical treatment, says Zuhair

Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair has said that Islam permits the use of narcotics under exceptional circumstances, such as in the treatment of drug addicts.

Speaking at a ceremony last night marking International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, prominent religious scholar Sheikh Ilyas Hussein said that even a small amount of drugs were not allowed in Islam, and claimed that illegal drugs “are no cure”.

‘’These religious scholars lack information on the topic, they don’t really have adequate information on drug abuse treatment,’’ Zuhair said. ‘’Scholars have to collect more information before they preach.’’

Zuhair explained that opiates were commonly used as pain killers, and questioned why illegal drugs would be disallowed under Islam if it permitted opiates to be injected into the body prior to painful operations.

‘’The government’s aim is to reduce the amount of new drug users, and we have seen progress,’’ he said. ‘’Police statistics show a 50 percent reduction in new drug users last year compared to previous years.’’

Zuhair credited the government’s decision to combine three sessions of school a day into one session with reducing the number of young people on the streets with nothing to do, placing them at risk of drugs and gang involvement.

‘’Formerly when we had three sessions, children studying in the first session would finish school at midday and go home. His mother and father would not be around and he had a lot of free time without anything to do,’’ Zuhair explained. ‘’Then he goes out and join the gangs and starts doing drugs.’’

Zuhair also said penalties and treatments for hard drugs and soft drugs in the Maldives were different in other countries, but said that in the Maldives users of both hard and soft drugs received the same penalties and treatment.

He signaled the government’s intention to seek amendment to these laws, but said this would depend on the level of public awareness and understanding of the issues.

Sheikh Ilyas in his speech last night said that is was impossible to combat the drug issue by administering drugs in increasingly small doses.

He said that the penalty for taking drugs was 40 lashes if it was the first time and more for second time, with harsher penalties also permitted under Islam.

A former drug addict told Minivan News that he agreed with Sheikh Ilyas and that the best method was “stopping it at once”.

‘’I myself tried to recover taking it little by little, and it did not work for me,’’ he said. ‘’There are some others who tried that method and succeeded, but most of the time it is successful only if you try to stop it at once.’’

He said the most important thing for addicts seeking to stop taking drugs was the support from people around him or her, “especially friends and family.”

‘’He has to understand that he is suffering the consequences of his own actions and has to go through the pain [or withdrawal], understanding that it does not last forever and that taking drugs again as a temporary cure is not a permanent solution,’’ he said.

He described the rehabilitation facilities in the Maldives as “useless places.”

“Firstly, the government needs to bring major amendments to the laws, categorising drugs and bringing in other changes to overcome the drug issue,’’ he said.

Society needed to be more aware of illegal drugs and how to cure addiction, he suggested.

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Police examine three suspected ‘mothers’ of abandoned newborn discovered on Thinadhoo

Police have examined three women in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll Gahdhoo suspecting that one of them might be the mother of the newborn baby found abandoned inside a garage in Thinadhoo in the same atoll.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said the three women have been examined by a doctor, and that details of their medical reports would be later given to the media.

Gadhoo Island Council issued a press statement after islanders of Gahdhoo obstructed police a police team from Thinadhoo from taking the three women to Thinadhoo to have them examined by a doctor.

In the statement, Gahdhoo Council claimed that islanders of Thinadhoo had blamed the three women of Gahdhoo in an attempt to sabotage the island’s reputation.

The three suspected women went to Thinadhoo on the day the newborn baby was discovered “for different purposes.” the council stated.

The three were examined by Gahdhoo hospital, and medical reports showed that they had not delivered a baby recently, the council said.

Two of the women work in Gahdhoo hospital, while the other is a school teacher, the council added.

The islanders on Gahdhoo gathered near the police station on the island refusing to allow the three women be taken to another island for medical examinations.

Meanwhile, during the police operations to trace the baby’s mother, a 28 year-old woman was arrested in Nilandhoo of Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll on suspicions that she had aborted a baby recently.

Sub-Inspector Shiyam said the woman was currently being investigated on suspicion of having aborted a child.

Abortion is illegal in the Maldives outside of exceptional circumstances.

The religious Adhaalath Party has recently campaigned that women should be subject to Islamic Sharia law should they be found guilty of aborting a child.

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Police arrest suspected drug kingpin after months of investigations

Police have arrested an individual suspected of being one of the Maldives’ most high-profile drug dealers after spending several months collecting information about his procedures for importing narcotics into the country.

The Head of the police’s Drug Enforcement Department (DED), Superintendent Mohamed Jinah, told members of the press that the alleged drug lord was arrested Friday (June 24), along with several companions also suspected of involvement in supplying drugs.

Jinah identified the suspected dealer as Ibrahim ‘Shafa’ Shafaz, 30, of Lonumidhi in Maafannu ward.

Details of three of his companions – also suspected of involvement in the drug ring – were also revealed. Jinah identified them as Ismail Shameem, 30, of Thaa Atoll Thimarafushi, Hussein Atheek, 27, of Fehi in Maafannu ward and Hussein Athif, 25, of Kudhehige in Maafannu ward.

Jinah claimed that Shafaz has been suspected of importing drugs to the Maldives since 2005, with police having since labelled him as one of the country’s most high profile drug traffickers.

About 896 grams of illegal drugs were said to have been discovered inside his apartment following a police raid of the premises on Friday.  The apartment, which was rented in a building belonging to MP ‘Redwave’ Ahmed Saleem, contained a number of tools that could be used to pack drugs, while powdered narcotics were also found.

According to police, Ismail Shameem’s alleged role in the network was to distribute the drugs in small packets – originally bought in kilograms -while Hussein Atheek is suspected of transferring money to the network in Sri Lanka.

Hussein Athif is suspected by police of playing the most important role in the whole network by communicating with an agent in Sri Lanka in order to safely traffic drugs to the Maldives.

Jinah said the traffickers have been using an authorised money exchange company called A J Amporium to send funds to Sri Lanka, while another company named MC Galleria is alleged to have been receiving the money.

The drugs are believed to have been imported via Sri Lankan Airlines, though Jinah said these three companies were not suspected of being knowingly involved in the drug trafficking.

He said between February to April of this year, Rf1.3 million of drugs were trafficked in to the Maldives by this network.

Jinah claimed Shafaz had last year bought a shop named ‘Charm’ for Rf150,000 (US$9700) that was sold this month for Rf200,000.

Shafaz is also believed to rent three apartments in Male’, with one property having been rented for 21 years for Rf300,000.

He also owns a tailor shop which he bought for Rf200,000 (US$13,000) for 15 years, a shop in Kaafu Atoll Maafushi, a Suzuki Swift car for Rf180,000 (US$11,673), later sold for Rf170,000.

Jinah said a special DED operation to try and seize the suspect began in 2009 with significant cooperation from the Prosecutor General and Criminal Court.

Speaking from his office this morning, President Mohamed Nasheed said that police were now looking to investigate the exact methods of money transfer thought to have been used by the alleged drug dealers.

Nasheed claimed this morning that even if the investigation ended up being linked to his mother and father, he would not step back in fulfilling his pledge to clamp down on the drug trade.

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Two men arrested with three kilograms of drugs worth Rf1.7 million

Police have arrested two Maldivians with three kilograms of illegal narcotics during a special operation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Department (DED).

Speaking at a press conference held today at the Iskandar building, DED Superintendent Mohamed Jinah said that the police were able to seize the drugs before they had been circulated across the country, and that this was a great success for the police and government.

Jinah identified the two persons arrested as Hussein Sobah, 27, of Maduvvari in Raa Atoll and Mohamed Aswad, 29, of Nadella in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll.

Police said the street value of these drugs would be Rf1.7 million (US$110,000) approximately.

The two men were arrested near the UN building in the Galolhu district on Male’, following intelligence reports, police said.

The Drug Enforcement squad searched a private office owned by the pair and found the three kilograms of drugs inside.

Furthermore, Jinah told the press that the drugs were imported with the assistance of a cargo vessel.

‘’The vessel drops these things into the sea into an area determined by them,’’ Jinah said. ‘’They went to the location on a dingy and picked it up and brought it to Male.’’

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Adhaalath Party calls for execution of mothers who abort children

The Adhaalath Party has issued a statement calling on the state to implement Islamic Sharia and execute mothers who abort their children.

The Adhaalath Party is in coalition with the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), and is led by its newly-elected   President Sheikh Imran Abdulla.

‘’The penalty for taking the life of another without any purpose is death [according to Islamic Sharia],’’ said the party in its statement.

The party claimed abortion was an issue that should concern all Maldivians, who should be “very afraid” given the “rising popularity of fornication.”

The party added that an Adhaalath delegation had met with senior officials of the Health Ministry to try and find a permanent solution for illegal prostitution conducted inside massage parlours and medical centres.

‘’The health ministry officials noted that powerful figures were running these businesses and that the ministry faced many challenges in combating the issue,’’ said the Adhaalath Party. ‘’The ministry said it has been working continuously to tackle prostitution and feels it needs cooperation from the Adhaalath Party and other concerned institutions.’’

The Adhaalath Party also said the ministry told them it had met with concerned authorities last year to draft regulation governing massage parlours, but was unable to conclude the work for various reasons.

‘’All staff working in these places, other than ‘practitioners’, are not employed with the authorisation of the ministry,’’ Adhaalath said. ‘’Sinful activities are conducted the those unauthorised employees in these places.’’

The party said the health ministry has expressed great concern that there was the chance of spreading diseases such as HIV and AIDS through prostitution.

Abortion is illegal in the Maldives except to save a mother’s life, or if a child suffers from a congenital defect such as thalassemia. Several studies on HIV in the Maldives have identified risk factors including high levels of promiscuity and little use of contraception, and anecdotal evidence points overwhelmingly to a high rate of abortion.

In an article on the subject in 2009, Minivan News reported that many women unable to travel to Sri Lanka resort to illegal abortions performed by unskilled individuals in unhygienic settings.

Abortion-inducing pills and injections administered by amateur abortionists are one recourse while others turn to harmful vaginal preparations, containing chemicals such as bleach or kerosene. Although infrequent, some insert objects into their uterus or induce abdominal trauma, such is the stigma of having a child out of wedlock.

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