Author: Minivan News

Hundreds mobilized in campaign against dengue

Hundreds of volunteers and staff at state owned companies and government offices began walking door-to-door in the capital Malé this morning with a checklist of activities to eliminate mosquito-breeding sites. At least four people have died this year from dengue fever,a mosquito-borne disease.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) is advising the public to empty stagnant water from containers, throw trash into dustbins, and keep containers sealed to prevent water from accumulating.

“We would like to appeal to the public to take up dengue control as an individual responsibility. We are taking measures to eliminate mosquito breeding sites in public spaces, but we do not have access to households,” said Asma Ibrahim, director at the HPA.

Of the 475 cases reported this year, some 180 cases were reported in Malé. Schools have been closed indefinitely to control the spread of dengue. Deaths include a pregnant woman and a migrant worker.

Dengue is now endemic in the Maldives. Prevention and control of the illness solely depends on effective mosquito control measures. Symptoms include high fever, headache, muscle and joint pain.

The HPA has also advised wearing clothes that hide the skin, using mosquito repellants, and keeping doors and windows closed during dawn and dusk.

The agency has stressed the importance of cleanliness and hygiene to prevent the spread of the disease and advised seeking medical assistance if a fever persists for more than three days

An outbreak typically lasts six weeks, Asma said.

The virus is transmitted to humans through the bites of infected female Aedes aegypti mosquito. It’s peak biting periods are early in the morning and in the evening before dusk.

The Housing Ministry is fogging public areas with insecticides and has requested construction companies to eliminate mosquito breeding sites from construction sites.

The HPA has meanwhile launched a 24-hour ‘dengue hotline’ and urged the public to call or text 7548221 for information.

A severe outbreak of dengue in 2011 saw a record high of 12 deaths. There were 2909 reported cases of dengue that year. In 2006, 10 people died of dengue.

There are four known types of the dengue virus, and the strains responsible for the illness wax and wane cyclically. In regions where dengue is common, one or two strains tend to dominate for two to three years at a time.

People in the region appear to acquire immunity for those strains and the number of cases will dip for a few years before another strain takes over and infections flare up again.

Dengue fever cases worldwide have climbed dramatically since the 1960s, with some 50 million people infected annually.

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Maldives secures US$50m loan for water and waste projects

The Maldives has obtained a US$50million loan from the OPEC Fund for Development to provide access to water and solid waste management on 49 islands.

Finance minister Abdulla Jihad signed the agreement in Vienna on Thursday. The loan is to be repaid within 18 years, including a grace period of four years.

The interest rate on the loan is 4.6percent.

Under the “Provision of water supply, sanitation and solid waste management project,” sewerage systems will be established on southern Addu Atoll’s Maradhoo, Maradhoofeydhoo, Feydhoo, Hulhudhoo and Meedhoo islands.

Water supply networks will be established in ten islands and water supply systems with desalination and storage facilities will be established in 14 islands.

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Sea plane with tourists crash-lands, all passengers safe

A Trans Maldivian Airways seaplane carrying 11 tourists crashed landed in the water near Kuredhu Island Resort in north central Maldives at 5:30pm today.

The passengers and three members of crew are safe, TMA has said.

The Twin Otter seaplane sank within minutes of crash-landing. A speedboat rescued the passengers and crew within minutes. There were no injuries.

“We have started a comprehensive investigation and will provide support to the relevant investigating authorities,” the TMA said in a statement.

The crash landing occurred just a couple of miles off of Kuredhu Island.

Seaplane accidents are rare in the Maldives.

The TMA and Maldivian Air Taxi (MAT) provide seaplane transfer to a number of tourist resorts. TMA transports nearly one million passengers annually.

In February 2012, an MAT aircraft crash-landed on the water runway at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) with nine passengers due to poor weather conditions. None of the passengers or crew sustained injuries.

A TMA flight crash-landed near Biyadhoo Island resort in February 2011.

TMA won the world’s leading seaplane operator at the World Travel Awards in 2014. The company which merged with MAT in 2013 operates the world’s largest seaplane fleet.

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Parliament debates lowering pension age

The parliament yesterday accepted for consideration a bill on lowering the pension age from 65 to 60 years.

The amendments proposed to the pension law by independent MP ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik was accepted unanimously with 56 votes in favour and sent to committee for review.

The deputy speaker also proposed amending the law to allow workers to withdraw from their savings after retiring at the age of 55.

During the debate on the legislation yesterday, some MPs noted that lowering the retirement age would make 6,000 more people eligible for the MVR5,000 a month old age pension, which would cost the government MVR30 million extra a month.

State institutions had opposed a proposal to lower the retirement age in 2012.

Meanwhile, government-sponsored legislation on national disasters was also accepted for consideration at yesterday’s sitting of parliament with 54 votes in favour.

The bill proposes the formation of a ‘national disaster council’ and specifies the role of state institutions in relief efforts and mitigating the effects of national disasters.

A national plan outlining preventive measures must be formulated every five years, the proposed law states.

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Dr Bari rejoins Adhaalath Party

Former Islamic minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari has rejoined the Adhaalath Party.

According to local media, Bari signed for Adhaalath Party on Monday, but the religious scholar has not publicly spoken about the move.

Bari served as Islamic minister under former President Mohamed Nasheed. He left the Adhaalath Party in June 2013 and signed for the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) ahead of the presidential election in November 2013.

Following the imprisonment of former President Nasheed in March, the Adhaalath Party formed an alliance with the MDP and launched anti-government protests under the ‘Maldivians against tyranny’ banner.

The Adhaalath Party leader, Sheikh Imran Abdulla, remains meanwhile under police custody. He was charged with terrorism and accused of inciting violence at a mass protest on May 1.

Bari has also been active in the opposition alliance.

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Murder suspect found dead

A 23-year-old man arrested on suspicion of murder last year was found dead in a residence in Malé around 10:00am on Monday morning.

According to local media, the man from Fuvahmulah was arrested in connection with the fatal stabbing of 28-year-old Ahmed Mafaz in December last year. He was reportedly released after being held in remand detention.

The police declined to reveal further details and have yet to determine the cause of death.

 

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Eight Bangladeshi men arrested for gambling

A total of eight Bangladeshi nationals have been arrested in the Maldives June on charges of gambling. They were arrested during police raids and caught with large sums of money and card decks.

Four Bangladeshi men were arrested on June 30 at 6:15am in Malé with MVR21,000 (US$1362). Another four were arrested on June 9 from suburb Hulhumalé with MVR10,000 (US$649) and a card deck.

Gambling is prohibited in Islam. It is punishable with six months in jail or a MVR150 (US$10) fine under the 1968 penal code.

There are some 124,000 migrant workers in the Maldives. A significant majority are from Bangladesh.

In December, the police arrested a Maldivian man and a woman with empty alcohol bottles and a poker set. On the same day, the police arrested 18 Bangladeshi men on suspicion of gambling with an unspecified amount of money.

According to police statements, at least 17 Bangladeshi nationals were arrested in 2013 for gambling. Eight were arrested in southern Fuvahmulah, and another nine were arrested in Addu City.

The new penal code, due to come into force in July, does not criminalize gambling.

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Four police officers promoted to assistant commissioner rank

Four police chief superintendents were promoted to the rank of assistant commissioner of police yesterday.

The four new assistant commissioners are Abdulla Nawaz, Abdul Rahman Yoosuf, Ahmed Mohamed Ismail and Mohamed Jamsheed.

Mohamed Jamsheed has also been appointed the new head of police intelligence.

The former intelligence chief, assistant commissioner Ahmed Arif, was appointed as the head of the development directorate. The post was previously held by Jamsheed.

A police media official told Minivan News that the promotions were routine and that positions are changed whenever a term expires.

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Maldives calls for action against Israeli leaders

The Maldives called on the International Criminal Court to investigate alleged war crimes committed by Israel during its military offensive in Gaza last year and urged “prompt action to be taken against Israel and its leaders.”

The Maldives made the call in a statement delivered at the 29th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council at an interactive dialogue with the Independent Commission of Inquiry on the 2014 Gaza conflict.

“The Maldives also noted with deep regret the complete non-cooperation of Israel with the Commission, where the Israeli Government did not allow the Commission to enter the territories,” the foreign ministry said in a statement today.

“The Maldives condemned the well planned attacks, which were carried out during very specific times, such as ‘iftar’ and ‘suhoor’ – the Ramadan meal times, which maximised the number of civilian casualties.”

The Maldives also called on Israel to “respect the inalienable rights of the people of Palestine to self-determination and statehood.”

The foreign ministry explained that the United Nations Human Rights Council considers the plight and situation of human rights of the people of the Occupied Palestinian Territories, under item seven of its agenda, “which faces resistance from the United States of America and some Western States.”

“The Maldives has on every occasion reiterated its strong position that Agenda Item 7 should continue, as long as the occupation continues,” the foreign ministry said.

In August last year, the Maldivian media organised a ‘Help Gaza’ telethon and raised a record MVR29.4 million (US$1.91 million). The funds have since been used by the International Federation of Red Crescent (IFRC) to construct 100 housing units in Gaza for displaced Palestinian families.

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