Author: Neil Merrett

Haveeru editor questions motivation of police press probe

Police questioning of two journalists over sources said to have seen indecent images used in the alleged bribery of high profile legal and political figures has raised suspicions that the conduct of law enforcement towards the media may be politically motivated, the editor of Haveeru has claimed.

Amidst ongoing investigations into a blackmail ring that allegedly used fake profiles of a young blonde woman on the Facebook website to obtain indecent and graphic images of a large swathe of Maldivian society, police last week obtained a court order to search the computers of some Haveeru staff.

Police officials said they ultimately opted not to conduct a search on Haveeru’s premises, but that the questioning of the journalists involved was important to an ongoing investigations into the suspected blackmail ring that has already seen a number of suspects arrested, including minors.

However, the questioning has been condemned by media groups such as the Maldives Journalist Association (MJA) as a step to suppress rights to a free media outlined under Article 28 of the constitution passed in 2008.

Haveeru Journalists Ahmed Hamdhoon and Ismail Naseer volunteered to take part in police questioning about an article published by Haveeru on February 22 concerning the content of images acquired through Facebook. The paper maintains it does not have any of the files in question.

Haveeru Editor Moosa Latheef told Minivan News that although police had acted politely and without aggression in requesting the identity of the sources said to have viewed the indecent images – a request he said was denied just as politely – the case could have serious ramifications for the national media in the future. Latheef stressed particular concern that should police repeat their conduct of looking to question journalists about their sources or stories.

“We are very much enjoying the press freedom in the Maldives right now. But I’m afraid that if the police or other institutions try to interfere with our [press] freedom then they will create an atmosphere where we are unable to fulfil our responsibilities,” he said. “If this repeats then we could have journalists who are afraid to write about issues. No one wants to go to the courts to defend himself or herself [over stories].”

Latheef said that in general, it could become very easy to begin such a case by accusing a journalist – or anyone – of having illegal content such as pornographic images on their computer. Yet on a wider level, the editor was wary about police being able to gain access to the computer files of the country’s journalists and their contents that could include confidential sources vital to break stories.

While the paper’s editor accepted that there were situations such as national security issues that could warrant a court to request the identity of a journalist’s source against commonly held industry ethics, he claimed such requests should remain very rare cases.

Latheef said that the Facebook bribery allegations were a story not about an issue of national security, but one concerning prominent members of the government, parliament and the judiciary, which paled in consequence to some of the stories he said Haveeru has previously published.

“Why are the police coming after us? We have written much more serious things about national issues like about corruption in the government, the opposition and the judiciary. This is not so serious news,” he said. “It will not damage any group as much as individual politicians, so if they have done something against their ethics, they can resign. They can submit their resignation to the president, or to the concerned parties or the judiciary. It is not like the national issues we have seen last August during the constitutional crisis.”

Latheef claimed that although he was not happy with the current government and opposition, he added that there had not been any interference with Haveeru’s output from either side of the national political spectrum in recent years.

“They didn’t interfere in anything like this. This why I’m considering why this time are police trying to get these sources? I suspect that the in some way perhaps the president or even an opposition leader may have tried to save someone close to them,” he said. “I am not sure, but maybe, the political influence may be behind this police action. Otherwise I don’t think police would take this kind of thing very seriously.”

Haveeru’s editor added that his suspicions were also raised by the nature of the police submissions to the Criminal Court for a warrant to investigate the paper’s office, which he said mentioned only that the investigation included members of the judiciary as opposed to other branches of state like parliament and the government.

“They did not mention the actual writing of our news report. We included that government officials, those in executive power, citizens and members of the judiciary may also be involved in these videos.  They mentioned in their submission to the court of only the judiciary [being included in the article].”

The editor claimed that he believed the submission was made to specifically ensure a court order against the paper’s staff, conduct which he derided in a Haveeru press release that was published yesterday.

Latheef claimed that no one at Haveeru had any of the alleged indecent images or to his knowledge seen the content; with reports by Hamdhoon and Naseer based on the accounts of “trusted” sources that included political insiders. However, he said it was accepted that police were also required to do their duty.

“They [police] suspected Haveeru had the porn [images and video files alleged to have been collected through the false Facebook sites] that they are investigating. That would be a criminal offense so it is police duty to investigate these kind of things,” added Latheef.

The Maldives Police Service has denied any allegations that its decision to seek a warrant from the country’s criminal court to search the computers of two Haveeru journalists – which was not carried out in the end – was a politically-driven attack on press freedom.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said that in light of the ongoing serious cyber crimes investigation into the Facebook profiles, attempts were made to to obtain further information from the sources used in Haveeru’s article.

“For that we needed more cooperation from Haveeru so we sought a court order to go ahead with this,” he said.

Shiyam claimed that the questioning was not therefore a ‘political attack’ on media freedom but a means to see what help the people mentioned in the article would be to the police investigation.

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Police questioning of Haveeru journalists an attack on free media, claims MJA

The questioning of two Haveeru journalists by police over a report on the alleged blackmail of MPs and other high profile figures through indecent images has been criticised by the Maldives Journalist Association (MJA) as a step to suppress free media in the country.

MJA President Ahmed ‘Hiriga’ Zahir said that the action taken by police in questioning Haveeru’s Ahmed Hamdhoon and Ismail Naseer was unprecedented under the current constitution.

The questioning represented a serious challenge in the country to investigative journalism and a denial of rights outlined under Article 28 of the constitution relating to freedom of the press.

Police confirmed that Hamdhoon and Naseer were questioned in relation to reports they had written on the police investigation into the use of false Facebook accounts to coerce hundreds of Maldivians into recording nude videos and pictures of themselves – material that would later be used to blackmail them.

The case has already led to the arrest of 14 people across the country. Hundreds of photos and videos claimed to be taken from a number of fake Facebook profiles were said to have been found by law enforcement officials on hard drives and laptops of the arrested suspects that were then alleged to have been used to blackmail figures from across Maldivian society, including government officials, MPs and senior businessmen.

It was these files and the case surrounding them that formed the basis of an article that Haveeru published on February 22 regarding the possible identity of those involved, which police have said was the basis for the questioning of the two journalists.

A media officer for the Maldives Police Service said they were unable to confirm what sort of questions the journalists were asked and if they may be called in for further questioning at a later date.

However, Ahmed Zahir at the MJA questioned why the police needed to summon the journalists about a story and images already thought to be in the public domain.

“I don’t think this was simply a case of police asking journalists to help them with an enquiry,” he said. “I personally believe it is an attempt to censor and suppress the Maldives media, which has been free.”

Minivan News this week reported that police have said that they would potentially prosecute any figures found to be genuinely featured in the material accrued through the Facebook profiles if they contravened laws.

Police say they have already arrested 14 persons including a minor – reportedly a 17 year old girl – for alleged involvement in acquiring the nude pictures and videos through profiles thought to have used the same image of a young blonde woman wearing sunglasses.

The false profiles – the front for an alleged blackmailing ring that netted incriminating photos of those who signed up – had netted a combined 2500 ‘friends’, most of them Maldivian, making the scope of the blackmail operation potentially massive.

The ring is expected to pose a “security risk” for politicians in the Maldives, according to Deputy Speaker of the People’s Majlis Ahmed Nazim told Minivan News, but was unlikely to lead to parliamentary censorship in the future on how the internet was used.

Police have not yet confirmed whether any figures thought to be featured in or affected by the Facebook scam may be serving MPs or government figures.

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Police integrity commission calls for revised procedures after clearing police of suspect’s death

The Police Integrity Commission (PIC) has ruled that the Maldives Police Service was not culpable for the death of 20 year old Abdulla Basith Zubair whilst in their custody, although it has called for revised safety procedures when holding suspects.

Head of the PIC Shahindha Ismail told Minivan News that a five member independent panel ruled after reviewing evidence, which included medical reports, that police were not accountable for Zubair’s death after he was taken into custody last month for alleged drug offences. The five members of the PIC panel that rule on cases are initially nominated by the president before being put before the Majlis for approval and do not contain any serving police members, according to Ismail.

Zubair was reportedly found dead on the morning of January 14 after he was taken into custody where police said he had tested positive for the presence of illegal drugs in his system.

His death was confirmed after he later was taken to hospital after being discovered by officers who the police service had claimed thought he had been asleep.

Ismail confirmed that although the police were not being held accountable or found to have treated Zubair inappropriately, the case had served to highlight a lack of familiarity and training among officers in dealing with potential addicts or drug offenders when they were held in custody.

“One thing we have noted with some other cases as well, is that special processes are required regarding the handling of drug users in custody,” she said. “We think these suspects need to be hospitalised and not left alone in a cell. Also, at present some officers may not be familiar how to handle such cases.”

According to Ismail and the PIC, the problem represents a wider issue regarding police procedure for holding suspects in custody, as well as ensuring the protection of its officers as outlined under article 19 of the Police Act.

In an attempt to try and ensure officers are better trained and prepared for the challenges posed by holding suspects, the PIC has announced it will be hosting a two day workshop to try and outline minimum standards for holding suspects at police stations and custodial centres from 27 – 28 February.

Along with measures for handling possible drug addicts and users, Ismail claimed the workshop would attempt to outline procedures for a wide array of custodial issues including the administrative requirements of officers on duty.

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Judiciary has failed to keep up with parliament and the executive, says Attorney General

The Judicial Services Commission (JSC), the body entrusted to vet and regulate the conduct of judges in the Maldives, has failed to match the government and parliament over the last two years in operating within a constitutionally defined role, Attorney General Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad has claimed.

The claims follow the publication this week of a report by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) that was critical of both political interference in the judiciary by government and opposition groups, and critical of the JSC’s ability to “carry out its functions” in ensuring judges were both impartial and capable of performing their duties.

Along with outlining recommendations for the executive, the Majlis and legal bodies like the JSC to follow in order to better ensure a judiciary independent from government and opposition influence, the ICJ’s Director of Asia Pacific Operations, Roger Normand, suggested a lot of work lay ahead.

Accepting that positive developments had been made within its courts since the Maldives became a democracy, concerns remained over a number of issues, Normand said. Having spoken to stakeholders across the country’s legal system, “ordinary” Maldivians did not look to their courts for justice or to solve problems, he suggested.

The report criticised the conduct of the government during a period of crisis last year; where the government locked shut the Supreme Court questioning its legitimacy on conclusion of the interim period. The report was also critical of the JSC’s decision-making, which was perceived as being inappropriately politically influenced.

Sawad said that he welcomed the observations by the ICJ in regards to recommendations for improving efficiency in the JSC and judicial administration, but added that ultimately, all stakeholders working within the Maldivian court system were under pressure to step up accountability.

“I think there is a lot to be done by the JSC in terms of enhancing the standard of the judiciary,” the attorney general told Minivan News.  “I think there is a need to inwardly look into the judiciary and all agencies related to it. That is the judicial administration, the judicial council, the JSC, the Attorney General’s Office, the Supreme Court and the High Court – it’s time they work together in bringing about perceived standards required of the judiciary in the constitution.”

Sawad said that he believed that as a judicial watchdog, the JSC had at times tended to act defensively instead of self-critically, particularly when reviewing the constitutional role it was assigned within the constitution to appoint judges and protect independence in the judiciary.

In order to try and ensure it was able to meet these roles efficiently, the attorney general suggested that it may be appropriate to have the Majlis consider reviewing the role of the JSC during the last year and a half to determine if it was functional.

However, Sawad claimed that no single entity alone should shoulder the blame in terms of perceived issues with independence in the judiciary.  He added that during a seven year period allotted for education and improvement under the Judges Act, education was a key to ensuring effective changes and developments in ensuring confidence within the legal system.

“When I look at the crucial actors in this, I feel the JSC has a crucial role to play.  I feel the judicial administration have a crucial role to play and I feel there is a missing link in the form of a judicial training academy,” he said.  “We cannot burden the Supreme Court or the High Court of with continuously setting the standards of measure for the rest of the judiciary day-on-day.”

Ultimately, Sawad said that as one of three distinct branches of the state along with the government and the Majlis, the judiciary was required to meet the same levels of accountability as part of its independence – making the role of the JSC essential.

“What we have [under the constitution] is an accountable government and an independent judiciary,” he said. “But independence is a perception made by the people who are the beneficiaries – in this case the public.  If the people do not perceive that level of independence then there is a problem.”

Sawad stressed that the perception of independent courts within the country were especially important in defining the difference between the judiciary before and after 2008, when the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) came to power on the promise of trying to bring more political accountability.

“Pre-2008, people knew that the judiciary was part of the executive,” he said.  “Post-2008, the people need to know the judiciary is independent.”

Government criticism

Along with concerns over the impartiality of the judicial system in the Maldives, the ICJ was also critical of the handling by the government of what it called a “constitutional crisis” last year over the legitimacy of the courts and the arrest of some prominent opposition figures.

In addressing these concerns and whether the actions of the government were a setback to the democratic mandate it promised, Dr Sawad said it was unacceptable under the constitution for any branch of the state to have jurisdiction over another, whether in the case of the executive over the judiciary, or the Majlis over the executive.

The attorney general claimed that ultimately, a “culture of respect” needed to be created by different branches of the state and government that would allow these different groups to work under the mandates they were assigned.

“That is a constitutional convention that needs to be dealt with. We haven’t had that in the past,” he said.  “It’s just over two years since 2008.  Now a convention takes a little more than two years, but it must nevertheless be started.  The commencement of that respect agenda, that’s what needs to happen.”

Sawad said that he was generally encouraged by findings in the report, which he suggested were “timely” in light of political tensions across the nation, though may have been better served if it had been released a year earlier to grant more room for maneuver (prior to the end of the interim period).

However, the attorney general claimed to be cautiously optimistic that the report would provide guidance to “tweak” the problems that had been experienced in trying to establish courts independent of political and commercial manipulation.

“When you look back at what has happened, it has been a tumultuous two years where the three branches of the state have been morphing into their own jurisdiction perimeters – there have been teething issues, but I think two years is long enough to learn respect,” he said.  “I am more optimistic about the future, I think we have a permanent judiciary now and the role of the judiciary is very clear.”

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Police will investigate those pictured committing crimes in Facebook nude photo haul

Maldives Police Service today said that further action will be taken against people pictured committing crimes in the files acquired by Facebook blackmailers.

A media officer said police were unable to confirm whether any political figures were be involved in the case while the investigations continued.

Police have arrested 14 persons including a minor – reportedly a 17 year old girl – for alleged involvement in acquiring nude pictures and videos of Maldivians through two profiles that both used the same image of a young blonde woman wearing sunglasses.

The two false profiles – the front for an alleged blackmailing ring that netted incriminating photos of those who signed up – had netted a combined 2500 ‘friends’, most of them Maldivian, making the scope of the blackmail operation potentially massive.

The ring poses a “security risk” for politicians in the Maldives, Deputy Speaker of the People’s Majlis Ahmed Nazim told Minivan News, but was unlikely to lead to parliamentary censorship in the future on how the internet was used.

Nazim, who is also a member of the People’s Alliance (PA) Party, said that police investigations into accusations that two Facebook profiles had been used to acquire “hundreds of nude pictures and videos” of Maldivians were not expected to impact MPs’ social networking.

”While some of the pictures were taken of people while drunk other pictures were taken without the consent of the persons [involved],” police confirmed yesterday, adding that Maldivians across the social spectrum had been affected by the racket.

Nazim said that despite allegations appearing in the media that certain national politicians might themselves have been blackmailed already through some of the content acquired through the profiles, he did not expect a review of how social networking was used by MPs in the future.

“[The investigation] is obviously a very concerning fact, but it is the first time this has happened in the country,” he said. “Almost all MPs have profiles they use to spread messages and communicate with their constituents, which is important. There is nothing that can be done about this.”

Despite raising suspicions that the Facebook profiles may have intentionally targeted specific sections of society like political figures and civil servants, President’s Office Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair claimed that the developments were not a cause of “alarm” for the government.

“No one has provided conclusive evidence that anyone in the government is involved in the case,” he said. “However, it appears that a group of cyber criminals have tried to target a certain group of peoples including MPs and government officials. They have certainly not been going after fishermen.”

Zuhair added that the fact that these files and videos were now out in the open and available for public scrutiny should “make everyone more cautious of their behaviour online”.

“The very fact this has come to light shows that all people should be more careful when using social network sites like Facebook or their webcams,” he added.

Police investigation

Police investigating the case have reported that some people in the Facebook files were allegedly performing explicit acts in the presence of minors, and warned that this “could affect the future and discipline of the minors”.

”The case relates to the rights of many citizens and affects the social policy of the Maldives, and may also affect the safety of the society,” said police.

Information gathered so far had revealed that people from all levels of Maldivian society were affected, “including underage females juveniles, young women, professional and semi-professional persons, and people of both genders working all across the country.”

Police appealed to Maldivians to be more careful approving friendships with strangers on social networks.

”It is notable that underage females are victims in this crime, and that a minor was arrested as a suspect. It is necessary that parents monitor the work of minors when they use internet and social networks,” said police.

Two Facebook profiles identified as being involved in the ring where those belonging to ‘Lyshiaa Limanom’ and ‘Angelic Sharrown’. Both of these profiles show the same picture of a young blonde woman wearing sunglasses, and each profile has between 1200-1300 Facebook ‘friends’ – most of them Maldivian.

Police warned Maldivians to be careful of receiving invitations and messages from these profiles.

Social media adoption in the Maldives is prodigious, particularly Facebook, with almost a third of the country’s population signed up to the service.

According to statistics from Facebook, the Maldives has 89,460 registered users – two thirds of whom are male. Almost half Maldivian Facebook users are aged under 18.

Police late last year identified cyber crimes such as hacking as a major concern for both private and public organizations, leading it to form a special team to try and curb illegal online practices.

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Maldivian courts failing to serve the public impartially: ICJ report

The Maldives legal system is failing to serve its citizens despite many “positive developments” that have been made in an effort to depoliticise the courts; with many of judges found lacking in qualifications and independent attitude, according to the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ).

“How often do ordinary Maldivians look to the courts for justice? Is there a sense that ‘We [Maldivians] have an independent judiciary that is capable of resolving problems?’ I think the answer is no,” surmised Roger Normand, Director of the ICJ’s Asia Pacific operations.

“Historically, [independent resolution] has not been the role of judges. Judges were an outcome or a product of the executive power. This is not a controversial statement, this is an outline of what their legal role was in the previous [government],” Normand stated.

Normand’s claims were made as the ICJ published a report on the Maldives legal system that outlining a huge number of challenges to ensure the country’s courts are in the long-term transparent in their decision making. It is hoped that the developments can remove the opportunities for abuse from government and opposition politicians alike, the ICJ stated.

The report itself is highly critical of both the role of some members of government in calling for protests and gatherings outside judges’ homes, as well as the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) that it said was “unable to carry out its functions” to impartially vet and reappoint judges on the basis of qualification and background.

“To date, JSC decision-making has been perceived as being inappropriately influenced by a polarised political environment,” the report stated. “Also troubling is that members of the judiciary have been subject to threats and intimidation as well as improper inducements by both governing and opposition party members.”

The ICJ said the report, entitled ‘Securing an Independent Judiciary in a Time of Transition’, had raised particular concerns over the “constitutional crisis” that occurred last year concerning the legitimacy of the courts and judges and the conduct of the government of President Mohamed Nasheed in addressing this.

Despite these concerns, Normand claimed that while there were “significant” problems with judiciary in the Maldives, and that the structure of a watchdog body such as the JSC needed much work needed to resolve, he was encouraged that there appeared to be a political mandate to bring changes to the legal system. However, the ICJ Asia Pacific director stressed that a non-independent judiciary could not simply change directly to an independent body.

“To have a sudden change, where suddenly judges are independent – this can’t just be signed on a piece of paper or constitution, it’s an attitude and a practice,” he said. “I think it’s safe to say we don’t have those attitudes and practices in the Maldives, but I also think the size of the developments are very positive.”

According to Normand and the ICJ, part of the challenge in trying to provide an independent judiciary is to ensure public support and acceptance of the country’s legal institutions and their verdicts, which in itself was linked to transparency within the decisions of bodies like the JSC.

“Judicial accountability is key to cultivating such public confidence and is an integral aspect of judicial independence,” the report stated. “Accountability must be manifest both at institutional level, in terms of court administration and access to justice, and at the individual level. This enables judges to decide cases without fear or favour and that they strictly apply the law to the facts before them.”

Recommendations

The report recommends a number of areas, such as education and training programmes for court appointees, bringing foreign experts to assist long-term, and advise on developments that it believes the Supreme Court could adopt to boost its own accountability.

In areas such as education, the ICJ said that seven-year periods outlined under the national Judges Act was used more effectively to enhance the qualifications of judges as well as ensure that a code of ethics was introduced in line with international agreements such as the Bangalore Principles on Judicial Conduct.

In addition, the ICJ claimed that steps could also be taken to ensure the Department of Judicial Administration was used to try to provide smoother administration of justice,such as requiring all levels of court to issue written reasons for its actions and establishing a judicial database so the court and public could refer to similar case law and precedents.

Normand stressed that the Maldives was relatively unique in that its courts would turn to Sharia law where Maldivian legislation didn’t apply, but that it was not alone in such experiences.

“We would recommend [collaboration with] countries that have experience of working both with common law – using previous legal cases to set precedent – and Sharia law, Pakistan is one example, Malaysia is another,” said Normand. “There are other countries where the issues the Maldives faces have been looked at before. It’s not the first time so you need to take advantage of this.”

The ICJ also recommended steps it hoped the JSC would take to act with greater transparency after coming under criticism and allegations of possible corruption.

Beyond adopting regulations and procedures to create greater accountability into the JSC’s decision making by recording detailed minutes of its meetings, a technical secretariat could also be established by a neutral party that could limit the workload to allow the organisation to work to its constitutional requirements.

The ICJ added that these developments needed to be backed by using international experts to help oversee work, and also ensure the high “moral integrity” of judges in relation to their criminal records that is also outlined under various international treaties and agreements.

The report also outlined recommendations for the country’s parliament and government to adhere to in their conduct in relation to the courts such as launching public awareness campaigns in relations to the requirements under the constitution of various legal institutions. The government was also called on to provide funding and strengthen the faculty of law and Sharia in the country, and the Majlis were called upon to pass vital laws such as the Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code to allow swifter and more impartial delivery of justice.

The organisation also called for reform of the JSC in relation to concerns the report and others have raised over issues of transparency.

“As a principle, the JSC must become more transparent and effective in processing the complaints by the public about judges,” added Normand.  “In fact, it is important for the judges themselves that the institution of the judiciary has the confidence of the public – that you’re qualified, that you’re not a criminal – it’s important for everyone.”

Taking the example of other nations such as Indonesia that are claimed to witnessed huge problems with trying to establish an independent and efficient judicial service, Normand claimed there were positive examples of countries like the Maldives that had seen vast improvements in the impartiality of its courts.

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UNICEF urges support for “overwhelmed” social services

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has praised developments in the reporting of child abuse cases in the Maldives, but is concerned at the challenges posed to “overwhelmed” social services.

Mohamed Naeem, a UNICEF Child Protection Officer based in the Maldives, told Minivan News that although he believed developments in the area of child protection were proving “quite promising”, greater collaboration with members of the public, NGOs and government authorities remained key challenges ahead.

The claims were made as a number of stakeholders from across the Maldivian child protection system met at Bandos Island Resort and Spa last week to try and outline a programme on how to best cooperate on improving the welfare of children in the country, particularly in far flung island communities.

In a speech delivered at the Conference on Child Protection, Ron Pouwels, UNICEF Regional Advisor for Child Protection told the audience assembled at Bandos that outlining a strategy against violence towards children on a national level represented important societal developments.

“Across countries, many challenges remain and violence against children is still often accepted as a lawful practice in the education system, as a form of sentencing by judicial bodies and as a disciplinary measure in care institutions,” he said. “The gap between law and practice also remains wide and challenging. Protective legislation needs to be enforced, permeate the work of institutions and shape the training and ethical standards of professionals.”

Figures taken from an unpublished UNICEF report conducted back in 2008 to study violence against Maldivian children reported that abuse of minors was found to exist across wide sections of Maldives society, both at home and in school – as well as the wider community.

The report claimed that eight percent of student respondents had apparently been hit by a teacher, children with disabilities were found to come under higher risk of receiving physical punishment and girls faced a high risk of being sexually abused, particularly in the capital of Male’.

The findings also reported that eleven percent of boys in the study and 20 percent of girls were believed to have been sexually abused at least once in their life.

Looking ahead

Mohamed Naeem said at present there were no comparative figures on how the child abuse situation had changed in the country since 2008, though he believed there had been improvements in the reporting and monitoring of child abuse in its different forms at the very least.

“Cases of reporting child abuse is up immensely, however this has brought additional challenges that need to be faced,” he said. “With a growing number of cases being reported, social services are being overwhelmed and need to be strengthened.”

Naeem said that a key consideration in bolstering the country’s child protection would be in the provision of more support from local communities and government agencies to social services.

The UNICEF Child Protection Officer claimed that existing initiatives such as Child Protection Committees made up of public citizens who liaised with social services from islands where they did not have a presence were strong examples of the type of collaboration the organization hoped to see.

Naeem claimed that the Child Protection Committees model could be adopted by NGOs and government agencies to maintain a nationwide network focusing on child protection – an area UNICEF has said it will be actively supporting.

In light of this month’s local council elections, Naeem added that decentralised councils and governance were a further positive opportunity to install monitoring and protection systems to benefit young people.

“There are a lot of challenges that would remain in terms of getting such systems up and goin,g” he said. “However, the situation in terms of preventing child abuse is quite different since 2001, I think it’s quite promising.”

Beyond general optimism in terms of developments in national child protection, Naeem said that another key challenge remained for UNICEF and authorities in trying to identify children who were seen as being most vulnerable to possible abuse in society.

The Child Protection Officer claimed that although actions plan were being drawn up, difficulties remained in pinpointing vulnerable groups.

“This could involve cases where children are away from their families for education reasons, have disabilities, or come from single parent families or environments of drug abuse,” he said.

The Conference on Child Protection was held as UNICEF and its partners announced the allocation of US$1.72 million to promote children’s rights in the Maldives as part of a country-wide programme outlining development between 2011 and 2015.

In a statement, UNICEF said that activities identified in the 2011 plan include improving the legislative framework for child rights, strengthening the evidence base for policy planning, and improve capacity of government to deliver improved quality health care and water and sanitation services.

Support will also be provided to ensure enhanced national capacity to deliver inclusive and child friendly education, and to scale up services to protect the most vulnerable children and women from violence. UNICEF will also partner with civil society organizations and the media to enhance their capacity for active monitoring and reporting on children’s issues.

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Mid-market appeal amongst 2011 tourism challenges

As a growing number of Asian markets like India begin flocking to the Maldives for their holiday escapes, the country’s tourism minister believes the government’s goal of providing more middle-market beds to “compliment” premium resort properties will boost the industry in the long run.

As the country continues to look at potential revamps for how it markets itself in the tourism market, Dr Mariyam Zulfa, Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, told Minivan News that the Maldives risked being seen as a destination with “too many” premium beds.

However, Zulfa said that in looking to diversify towards more mid-market tourism, the issue of replacing the country’s current “Sunny Side of Life” ad slogan remained under industry consultation – including over whether it should be changed at all.

Zulfa’s comments were made as new findings published by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) and the Nielsen Company found the Maldives was among several destinations like China, Indonesia and Bangladesh to be attracting increasing interest from Indian travellers.

“The diversification in destinations indicates a greater sense of adventurism and discovery that should be heartening for tourism as a whole, and a clear symptom of a confident Indian consumer mimicking their country’s confidence and prominence,” Neilson Company Executive Director Surekha Poddar stated in the report.

“The Indian traveller is set to become a prized possession as potential spending power and disposition to travel to new countries increases.”

Zulfa said that with income levels in nations like China and India growing in general on a daily basis, the Maldives was beginning to see “exponential growth” in the number of visitors from both of these markets.

“The government has introduced a mid-market policy focusing on three to four star resorts,” she said. “These are being introduced to complement the premium beds we have here.”

Although not willing to speculate if these tourism developments were directly related, Zulfa said that more middle market properties was seen as a move that would be cater to a changing customer demographic.

“Premium beds alone are not suitable for visitors from the South of Asia. We need to look at how to reach out to them,” she said. “These tourists have very different vacation habits to more established markets like Europe.”

Slogan talks

Zulfa claimed that opinion was currently divided on the direction to take on marketing the Maldives to travellers around the world, particularly the merits of changing “the sunny side of life” slogan – one that has been in service for eleven years.

“We will be having informal discussions whilst we will be at the Internationale Tourismus Börse (ITB) – a tourism trade show being held between March 9-13 in Berlin,” she said. “Right now, we have two levels of feedback, one of which is that it [still] works.”

Zulfa added that if a decision was taken to keep the slogan, it would perhaps need to be reintegrated or redesigned with a “more modern” aesthetic.

“There is another reasoning that suggests that although the wording is OK, it is too general,” she said. “The slogan is now 11 years old and perhaps to fill the premium beds we have, a new slogan may be needed to reinvigorate the market. This will be discussed during consultations at the ITB.”

Zulfa said that work was nonetheless continuing on a Maldivian marketing strategy despite uncertainty on the final product.

Mohamed ‘Sim’ Ibrahim, Secretary General of the Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI), said that MATI did not itself have an opinion on the final outcome of any possible slogan revamp. However, Ibrahim said that MATI hoped to see greater study and research into what the industry itself would prefer to see in terms of branding and marketing.

“We don’t think enough is being done, [in terms of studying the slogan issue],” he said. “We would like to see more cooperation from resorts, airlines, travel companies and other major stakeholders in the Maldives tourism industry.”

From the outset, 2011 is proving to be a year of change for Maldivian tourism, with the implementation of Tourism Goods and Services Tax (GST) on January 1 that placed an additional charge of 3.5 percent on a host of services supplied by the travel industry.

Mohamed said that although he believed that adoption of the GST among service operators had gone “smoothly”, MATI held “serious issues” with the tax related to payments and other technical issues.

The MATI secretary general said he was unable to provide more details about the concerns at present, but added that the association was looking to hold a meeting with resort chains over the issues.

Zulfa claimed that the implementation of the GST had so far gone well for the industry, with no major complaints received concerning the charges.

“Most operators in the tourism industry agree that the 3.5 percent GST is a very reasonable amount to pay,” she said.

“This is a way that more people can equitably benefit from tourism.”

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EC calls for final council seat re-vote in five islands

A second round of voting will take place for the fifth and final seat on five island councils after an equal number of votes were received for some candidates, though no other ballots from this month’s local elections will be re-contested without a court ruling, the Elections Commission (EC) has said.

EC Vice President Ahmed Hassan Fayaz confirmed that registered constituents would be able to return to polling stations in Baa atoll Kihaadhoo, Raa atoll Dhuvaafaru, Gaaf Alif atoll Kolamaafushi, Haa Dhaal atoll Kumundhoo, and Meemu atoll Veyvah to reselect a fifth respective council candidate on 12 March 2011.

Fayaz claimed that every island taking part in this month’s elections was required to pick five candidates to sit on their respective councils. However, he added that recounts were required in five of these constituencies solely between the fifth and sixth placed candidates who received an equal number of votes.

“Effectively they were tied within these constituencies, so according to the law, the fifth and sixth placed candidates will have to be voted on again,” he said.

The ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) had previously alleged that voting was unfairly conducted by the EC in terms of favouring certain political parties and called on recounts of a second round of voting in some constituencies.

The constituencies included Haa Alifu Atoll Kela, Raa Atoll Ungoofaaru, Noonu Atoll Miladhoo, Manadhoo, Laamu Atoll Gan and Maabidhoo.”

However, Fayaz told Minivan News today that there would not be any additional voting for this month’s local council elections conducted without a court ruling.

The comments came after the High Court of the Maldives issued an injunction on the announcement of official results of Haa Alifu Atoll Kela ballot box number A05.06.01. The injunction was made after the filing of a case alleging that the EC had violated the Elections Act and the Elections Commission Act.

The High Court said that if the official results of the H.A Kela Atoll and Island Council were announced, it could violate the rights of several citizens and requested the announcement of ballots be delayed until ordered otherwise. The High Court did not reveal who filed the case in the court.

Major disruption to voting occurred on the island of approximately 2200 people, when clashes between islanders, police and election officials forced authorities to evacuate the ballot box to Hanimadhoo.

The EC has said it will respect the High Court ruling and any others made in the future.

Despite its criticism of the elections process, the MDP released a statement claiming it had calculated the popular vote in the local council elections as 44 percent MDP, 40 percent DRP, based on current available data.

The popular vote reflects the overall political preference of voters, and has not yet been released by the Elections Commission (EC). The MDP said it produced the figures based on data published by the EC on its website at the time.

Both parties declared victory and were celebrating last week after the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) won a decisive seat majority in the local council elections, while the MDP won control of major population hubs.

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