Author: Minivan News

Islamic Foundation to host international Dhivehi Islamic event in Sri Lanka

The Islamic Foundation of the Maldives is holding an international Islamic event in Sri Lanka on May 22, 2011: ‘Da’wah Islamiyya at Colombo 2011’.

“The event consists of two religious lectures conducted by popular preacher Sheikh Ibrahim Fareed Ahmed and Sheikh Izzadeen Adnan, followed by a Q&A session,” the foundation said in a statement.

The sermons will be aimed at Maldivians living in Sri Lanka, and will be conducted in Dhivehi.

“Da’wah Islamiyya at Colombo 2011” will be held on May 22 at 4:30pm at Shahran Banquet Hall, 56 Hospital Road, Dehiwala.

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Former HRCM Commissioner joins MDP

Former President of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), Ahmed Saleem has joined the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), acknowledging the party’s support for his reelection to the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM).

“When I ran for the membership of HRCM, they issued a three-line whip to vote for me. They backed me when I ran for the membership of MBC’s board as well,” said Saleem, who was voted out of the position by the opposition majority parliament.

“I served the government for 42 years yet they rendered me unneeded. But MDP supported me even then.”

Saleem said he had “always held a firm belief in human rights and democracy and I strongly support MDP’s policy on democracy and human rights.”

“I believe that without those political parties will not exist either. I want to make use of what I’ve learned from the human rights field,” he said.

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Ahmed Naseem first Maldivian Foreign Minister to visit Israel

The Maldives’ Foreign Minister Ahmed Naseem is currently visiting Israel, the first foreign minister from the country to do so.

Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that during his visit from May 16-20 Naseem would meet Israeli President Shimon Peres and have dinner with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Avigdor Liberman, lay a wreath at Yad Vashem and visit other sites throughout the country.

Naseem also yesterday met with officials of the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah, including President Mahmoud Abbas, and discussed issues relating to the peace process and the Palestinian reconciliation agreement.

Palestine’s News and Information Agency reported Abbas as saying that the peace process had stalled due to Israel’s refusal to stop settlement activities and terms of references for the peace process. Naseem reportedly expressed support for the declaration of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry meanwhile noted that “Israel and the Republic of Maldives have enjoyed diplomatic relations since 1965, [which] were suspended in 1974. Israel was the third state to recognise the Muslim island nation and its ambassador was the first to present his credentials to the president of the Maldives,”

“Relations began to improve at the beginning of the 1990’s. The present government maintains relations of appreciation and friendship with Israel; the two states have signed three agreements in the fields of health, tourism and education.”

Visiting eye surgeons from the Israeli ‘Eyes from Zion’ NGO were recently met by large protests, the burning of Israeli flags in Republic Square and claims from several local religious NGOs that the doctors were seeking to “illegally harvesting organs from non-Jews around the world.”

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Court hears Umar Naseer’s dismissal case

The Civil Court has concluded the first hearing of a suit filed against the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) by its former Deputy Leader Umar Naseer.

Naseer’s lawyer claimed that he was dismissed not according to the party’s charter and he had lost the support of many of the public due to the dismissal.

Meanwhile, DRP’s lawyer requested the court allow him to respond to the accusations in written form, a request the court granted.

The next hearing of the case is to be held on May 31.

Umar was dismissed by the Disciplinary Committee of the party after he was accused him of conducting protests without the authorisation of the party’s council.

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President’s Office invites Customs Integrity Commission applications

The President’s Office has invited applications for membership of a Customs Integrity Commission (CIC), whose formation will be ultimately approved by parliament.

Under the Maldives Customs Act, five members are required to be appointed by the president to the CIC, with applications remaining open until May 29, 2011.

Application forms and declarations for the CIC memberships are said to be available from the President’s Office website here.

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Online university courses fill education gap in Maldives: New York Times

On the island of Fuvahmulak in the Maldives, a cluster of islands in the Indian Ocean, Abdulla Rasheed Ahmed’s options for acquiring a doctoral degree were somewhat limited, writes Liz Gooch for the New York Times.

“The nearest university is an hour’s flight from his home. And in any case, it doesn’t offer a doctorate in education, the program Mr Abdulla, a school principal, wanted to pursue.

“Having already taken time off to complete his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Malaysia, Mr Abdulla was reluctant to take more time away from his job or family, so he enrolled in Asia e University, an institution in Kuala Lumpur that offers online courses.

“Studying online is very suitable for working people,” Mr Abdulla said in a telephone interview. “You can study at anytime, anywhere, regardless of your location.”

Some universities have long specialized in such distance education, but now more homegrown Asian institutions are seeking to tap the demand for higher education in underserved areas. And as Internet connectivity spreads, more students like M. Abdulla are realizing that their education options are no longer bound by geographical constraints — or even by the older model of distance learning, in which students received bundles of course materials in the mail.

Full story

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Police confiscate alcohol brewing equipment in Fuvahmulah

Police have said that equipment suspected to have been used to brew alcohol has been confiscated after being discovered in an abandoned home on the island of Fuvahmulah.

The alleged brewing apparatus and a number of containers thought to have contained alcohol was reported to have been picked up by police.   Law enforcement officials claim they have dealt with six individual cases during the year so far relating to alcohol consumption or production, according to Haveeru.

The news report claimed that the equipment and alcohol were found both in an abandoned home and around swamp land across two separate wards on the island.

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Handling of economy affects popularity of Maldivian President: Sunday Times

Maldivian authorities have placed a restriction on the repatriation of foreign currency by expatriate workers including Sri Lankans to tackle an acute shortage of US dollars in the market, writes Feizal Samath for Sri Lanka’s Sunday Times, a move that recently triggered protests in the island nation.

“The restrictions, according to rules enforced in a gazette notification by the Maldivian Monetary Authority (Central Bank) on Friday, permits workers to remit their contracted salary and nothing more.

“The foreign exchange crisis in the Maldives has been precipitated by ballooning budget deficits spilling over from the regime of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

“Huge capital expenditure on new development which is not matched by revenue has widened the trade balance and precipitated the foreign exchange crisis. Banks have limited the issue of dollars. Most banks are limiting the issue of dollars against the rufiya (local currency) for repatriation, a move which has also affected tourism, the country’s main foreign exchange earner, and even for local business.

“’There is absolute confusion in the industry about how much can be retained by us in dollars (for our work). There are no clear guidelines,’” said a resort owner, accusing the government of mismanaging the economy.

“New taxes to be enforced in July on income and business profits, for the first time in the Maldives, have affected President Mohamed Nasheed’s popularity and led to a week of protests against cost of living and alleged corruption. Another new tax, Tourism GST was enforced from January.

“Prices of essential commodities have escalated and inflation has sharply risen mainly due to the shortage of dollars in the market. The Maldives imports all its needs except fish. Its main foreign earnings comes from the bed tax from tourism and fish exports while local taxes in the past have been limited to import duties and levies.

“The President’s chief spokesman Mohamed Zuhair, while acknowledging that the new measures have affected government’s popularity, has accused opposition parties and disgruntled businessmen unhappy over the taxes, of instigating the violent protests by youths, and also blamed unscrupulous traders for jacking up prices.

“He said while taxes were inevitable and had been announced a long time ago, the latest round of protests came after Mr Gayoom broke away from the main opposition DRP and formed his own faction.
Opposition spokesman Mohamed ‘Mundhu’ Shareef rejected the claim and said the protests were a natural reaction of the people against rising food prices and what he called ‘a corrupt regime’.”

Full story

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Local council elections cost Rf45 million: EC report

The Elections Commission (EC) has claimed the bill for the local council elections, held in February this year, reached Rf45 million (US$3.5 million) – approximately US$15 for every voter in the Maldives.

Money was spent on transport, supplies, printing, salaries, overtime allowances and food, the EC stated.

In its report, the EC stated that problems encountered during vote counting were minor and solved quickly.

“Elections carried on rather successfully compared to previously held elections. Ballot counting was finished with minimal obstructions,” the report said.

Several cases sent by the EC to the Prosecutor General’s office including a man who gave false information to contest in the election (Rf20,000 fine), a man caught videoing the ballot (Rf12,000 fine) and a man who attempted to alter voter registration details and was sentenced to a year in prison.

The EC has yet to report party preference results from the election. The ruling MDP won seats in most populated areas almost unanimously, while the opposition DRP won the majority of seats overall, taking islands into account.

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