Author: Neil Merrett

Island security not a concern despite resort robbery, say police

Police have confirmed that a safe containing thousands of rufiyaa was taken during a burglary at the Kihaadhuffaru resort in Baa Atoll on Tuesday, but insist that security at other lucrative tourist destinations in the country should not be a concern for staff and visitors.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said that a safe containing around Rf5,000 (US$390) had been stolen from an office area at the resort and that “no serious injuries” had been reported by staff caught up in the theft.

Shiyam added that investigations were continuing into the incident and that it was currently working to corroborate “different reports” it had received regarding Tuesday’s theft.

A spokesperson for Kihaadhuffaru said they were also unable to reveal details about the incident at present, though confirmed a burglary had taken place.

Haveeru today reported that a group of masked men brandishing “machetes and swords” had arrived on the island resort by dingy during the early hours of Tuesday, before threatening members of staff and stealing the contents of a safe on the site, citing an unnamed source.

“The masked men tied the hands of the male receptionist with a cable tie and kept him inside after taping his mouth and whole body,” the paper reported.

Shiyam said that he was unable to confirm the details of the report, but added that no guests were thought to have been attacked or robbed by the intruders on Tuesday, with only the resort’s safe taken during the heist.

Although Shiyam said that the police were remaining vigilant concerning any follow up robberies, the sub-inspector said that he did not believe resorts would need to review existing security measures in light of the Kihaadhuffaru theft.

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President upholds ACC’s postponement of border control shakeup

President Mohamed Nasheed has upheld the decision to postpone the roll-out of a new electronic border control system for the Maldives in accordance with concerns by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) over the project’s selection process.

The President’s Office confirmed to Minivan News that Nasheed has requested that the Department of Immigration and Emigration adhere to the ACC’s guidance until it rules over the next step for the project, with no appeal expected to be heard on the current decision.

Work on the project was suspended soon after being agreed last October, when the ACC raised concerns over allegations of corruption in the decision making process.

The ongoing criticism by the ACC of the Nexbis border control agreement has itself come under fire amidst accusations that it represents a politically-motivated attack on wider government reforms, according to a source within the immigration department.

A spokesperson for the ACC was not available for comment at the time of going to press.

However, the ACC this week sent a confidential letter to Immigration Controller Ilyas Hussain Ibrahim calling for approval from the Maldives Cabinet or National Planning Council (NPC) over concerns regarding corruption within the decision making process for the deal. The letter was also leaked to the press.

Prior to the President’s decision to hold the project, a source within the immigration department told Minivan News that it had remained confident that the project, signed with Malaysia-based Nexbis in October as part of attempts to prevent abuse of the working visa system, would be “greenlit” by either the cabinet or the NPC.

Having already been approved by two independent audits, the source claimed that President Nasheed had also indicated to local media this week that he saw no reason to oppose the existing agreement for the new border control system.

However, the immigration department said that it will comply with the President’s orders and wait for any further decisions by the ACC relating to border control.

Alongside refuting any suggestions that corruption had played a role within the decision to choose Nexbis, the Immigration Department insider claimed that technical criticisms of the system were part of wider political moves to try and disrupt the government’s reform of the border control system.

However, the anti-corruption body is said to have highlighted a number of issues concerning the different models used to identify travel documents such as passports under the visa scheme.

“The ACC does not have the technical background to be able to criticise and understand the [border control] system,” said the immigration department source. “More education is needed [within the commission].”

The Nexbis border control project had aimed to make use of fingerprint and facial recognition devices that according the Department of Immigration could be set up within four to six months as part of the first phase of the project focusing on working visas – essentially matching individuals to records without the requirement for paper documents.

However, the President’s decision means that the work will continue to remain on hold since the signing in October.

“On the very day we signed the contract, barely hours, maybe minutes later, the ACC had drafted a letter saying there was suspicions of corruption involved with the decision,” said the immigration department source, who asked not to be identified. “From that moment, we have stopped work on the system as requested by the ACC.”

When news of the disruption broke in November, shares in Nexbis immediately dropped 6.3 percent. Minivan News has since spoken to other foreign investors in the Maldives who have expressed concern that their share prices were at risk of becoming collateral in local politics.

The injunction issued by the ACC effectively places an indefinite delay on the project. The commission has not finalised an investigation since 2008.

Trafficking concerns

Immigration reforms, of which the Nexbis project was part, were intended in part to address the government’s serious concerns over labour trafficking.

Last year, the Maldives was placed on the US State Department watch list for human trafficking, a crime which may actually narrowly eclipse the fishing industry as the second-largest contributor to the Maldivian economy after tourism, US$43.8 million on paper but potentially reaching up to US$200 million.

The Nexbis system was said to allow the immigration department to store and retrieve the biometric data of expatriates working in the country, effectively circumventing the abuse of paper documentation and curbing the ability of workers – and traffickers – to operate in the country.

“We currently have a large number of illegal expatriates running around the country,” another source at the immigration department told Minivan News back in 2010. “Right now estimate that there are 100,000 foreign workers in the country, but there are no official figures on how many may be illegal.”

Workers were arriving in the country legally “but once in the country they discard the documents and flee to islands, and seek better payment.”

Many companies in the Maldives were benefiting “and facilitating” the problem, the source said, which was impacting those companies “who do operate legally and pay visa fees to the government.”

Ensuring that workers could be accurately identified, even without documentation, was the key benefit of the new system, the source explained.

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Velezinee attack a “huge concern” for free speech: Dr Sawad

The stabbing this morning of Aishath Velezinee, Presidential Member of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) responsible for ensuring ethical conduct in the judiciary, has been condemned as an attack on free speech and law and order in the country, attorney general Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad has said.

Velezinee was taken to Male’s Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGHM) after she was stabbed in the back with a sharp object whilst out in the city this morning, police have confirmed.

The Maldives Police Service were unable to confirm if any suspects had as yet been apprehended over the attack and were continuing to investigate the case.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Dr Sawad said that the attack was a “huge concern” for the country. “Judicial abuse at any level cannot be tolerated,” he said.

Beyond the concerns held as a private citizen over an attack within the capital, Dr Sawad added that the assault on Velezinee had a direct impact on judicial proceeding in the country.

“The JSC is constitutionally mandated to oversee the ethical functioning of the judiciary, she [Velezinee] had been very vocal in her role and that is something that must be accommodated [in the courts],” he said “If we cannot express our opinions openly, than this obviously impacts the functioning of the judicial body and how it serves the public.”

Dr Sawad said that beyond his role as Attorney General, as a private citizen he was dismayed that “law and order in the capital could have deteriorated to such an extent”.

Haveeru reported that President Mohamed Nasheed had visited Velezinee this morning in hospital following the attack, which reportedly occurred on a junction between Maaveyo Magu and Majeedee Magu, expressing hope she would continue her work at the JSC.

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Maldivian Democracy Network hits out at parliament’s privilege amendments

The Maldivian Democracy Network (MDN) has hit out at proposed amendments to the privileges afforded to MPs, the judiciary and independent organisations, calling them irresponsible at a time of supposed national cost cutting, as well as potentially setting back social security development in the country.

In a joint statement issued with the Democracy House group, the MDN said that parliament, under Article 102 of the Constitution, needed to act responsibly in setting out state salary structures and its own allowances;  a requirment the NGO claimed had not been the case in passing certain amendments in the 2011 annual budget.

“We note that the bill on parliamentary privileges has been passed in a manner that will further increase state expenses,” stated the MDN. “The bill also grants members of the People’s Majlis certain privileges in criminal matters. We note that these privileges are of a nature that are not granted to parliamentarians in other open democratic societies, and are not even granted to the President under the Maldivian legal system.”

The NGO also dismissed claims that individual MPs required additional benefits and financial remuneration to provide “welfare services” to constituents, claiming such patronage compromises democratic principles.

Speaking to Minivan News last week, both acting Finance Minister Mahmood Razee and parliamentary Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim said that the proposed hikes in parliamentary wages were still required to obtain approval from parliamentary committees and the president before being passed.

Nazim claimed that although MPs “have not taken pay increases”, parliament had considered amendments to the wage structure as part of attempts to test methods for improved “productivity” among the Majlis.

Regional salaries

However, in figures compiled from sources including the Asian Development Bank, the CIA Fact File, the Economist magazine and official government statistics, the Maldives was found to offer a significantly higher salary for its MPs than some of its South Asian neighbours such as India and Sri Lanka combined, at least on 2009 levels of income.

Combining both base earnings and allotted allowances, the monthly salary of a Maldivian MP was said to be equivalent to US$ 7,083; well above Sri Lanka and Indian levels, which during 2009 were found to be around US$877 and US$5,966 respectively. Based on 2009 levels, both Sri Lanka and India had much higher national rates of goods and services produced – recorded as Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$96.47 billion and US$3.6 trillion respectively. By comparison, the GDP of the Maldives over the same period was US$1.683bn.

In terms of MPs monthly salaries, the Maldives remained behind nations such as Singapore (US9,264), the UK (US$8,552) and Australia (US$9,687), however, the GDP of each of these nations was found to be significantly higher.

While the MDN said that it accepted some difference in the salaries and benefits afforded to state officials, was “necessary and inevitable”, the NGO claimed that economic burdens needed to be shared equally.

“It is unacceptable that this gap be widened by increasing the salaries and benefits given to high ranking state officials at a time when the average citizen faces financial difficulties,” the MDN stated.

The NGO also expressed concerns regarding the administration of social security within the country, which it said needed to be provided through fair, equitable and ultimately transparent systems rather than the private incomes of individual MPs.

Welfare systems

Speaking to Minivan News, MDN Executive Director Ahmed Irfan claimed there was strong concern that members of the Majlis were undermining democratic principles by creating dependency among constituents for financial assistance from local MPs.

“Unfortunately, it does seem that the practice of MPs providing financial and other such support to constituents is a common and accepted practice in the Maldives,” said Irfan. “Rectifying this will require both a more robust welfare system and a change in culture and attitudes among all stakeholders.”

While praising the work of the Majlis in passing a number of “important bills” during recent sessions, Irfan said the MDN did not support proposals to extend benefits and privileges for state employees within the 2011 annual budget.

“The MDN hopes that the increase in expenditure on senior state officials will not be implemented,” he said.

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New Year brings new tourism tax to Maldives

The New Year has potentially ushered in a new era for the Maldives’ lucrative holiday market as a Tourism Goods and Services Tax today comes into effect placing an additional charge of 3.5 per cent on a host of services supplied by the country’s travel industry.

The new tax is set to be levied on a wide of services; from room rates at resorts, guest houses and liveaboards, to tourist vessel hire and the cost of food and drink, diving schools and domestic transportation.

Speaking this week to the Agence France-Presse (AFP) service, acting Finance Minister Mahmood Razee claimed that the implementation of the new tax represented a government strategy aiming to roll out more direct national funding from Maldivian industries, where operators like resort owners have not previously been required to pay profit or income tax.

“It will gradually be extended to other [business] sectors… to reduce relying on indirect taxes, especially import duties that hurt the poor,” Razee told the AFP.

Mohamed Maleeh Jamal, Secretary General for the Maldives Association of Travel Agents and Tour operators (MATATO), said that as an organisation, it was not against a service tax within the travel market, yet he claimed that concerns existed how the funds would be implemented.

“We as MATATO have concern over the negative impact there may be from the tax on local travel agents in the Maldives, which unlike other travel markets, has no law protecting [domestic] operators,” he told Minivan News. “This can make it hard to be competitive when foreign operators are also working directly with resorts and the industry to obtain strong value.”

Pointing to key travel markets like the UK that have themselves last year instigated amended departure taxes such as an Air Passenger Duty (APD), Jamal said he believed there was international industry concern over the “Maldives becoming a more expensive destination”. He claimd that the taxation developments could hamper the country’s competitiveness against other holiday hotspots.

However, the MATATO Secretary General said that the association did not have issues with the actual figure of 3.5 per cent being added to services in itself and remained positive that MPs would still be able to help try and alleviate some industry concerns over the new tax rates.

“We are hoping we can discuss measures with parliament that will help protect local travel agents,” he said.

With the new rates in place as of today, Jamal said that the industry had already begun working with tax authorities to ensure its members and the wider travel industry understood how to deal with the new system.

“Some of our [travel] agencies have not quite been clear on how the tax works,” he said. “It takes time to become familiarised with such a new system.”

In looking back, 2010 had be seen as providing a positive turnaround in visitor figures.

Official statistics from the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture released in November reported year-on-year visitor growth of 21.8 for the first ten months of the year.

Between January to October 2010, the official ministry figures showed that 63.3 percent of visitors to the Maldives came from European markets. Asia Pacific territories contributed 32.3 percent of overall travel demand to the country during the same period.

Publication of the figures followed a period of turbulence for the tourism industry towards the end of the year generated by media coverage of a video recording of a ‘false wedding’ conducted at the Vilu Reef Resort and Spa. Footage leaked onto video sharing sites like Youtube depicted some staff members mocking a Swiss couple in the local dialect of Dhivehi during a vow renewal ceremony being leaked online. The incident garnered both local and international coverage.

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Controversial salary amendments not yet approved, say MPs

MPs “have not taken pay increases”, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ahmed Nazim has said, despite the Rf20,000 wage hikes for MPs included in the 2011 state budget approved yesterday.

Deputy Speaker Nazim said the proposed wage hikes must receive additional approval by the Majlis before they can take effect.

Despite “cross party support” for budgetary amendments allowing additional MP privileges like salary increases, he said, no wage hikes have actually been approved. Nazim anticipates that the proposals, considered a possible means of improving parliament’s “productivity”, would come under review in March after the recess.

The claims were made at the first session of the Mjalis since it passed the 2011 state budget. It opened to chants of “We need cash” from protesters gathered near the parliament building, angry over the salary amendments passed as part of a budget said to be aimed at cost-cutting.

However, acting Finance Minister Mahmood Razee said he believed the budget had been passed relatively well. He added that any amendments such as those suggested for MPs’ salaries – passed yesterday by a majority of members – would still ultimately require presidential approval.

In addition, the acting Finance Minister said, all amendments would ideally fulfil the commitment to keep the budget at about Rf12.37bn for the year ahead.

These commitments are also focused on trying to ensure a budget deficit of around 16 per cent, which has been sought in an attempt to appease institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which suspended finance to the country earlier this year over concerns about it living beyond its means.

However, Nazim, who also serves as Deputy Leader of the opposition People’s Alliance (PA) party, rebuked the optimism shown by the acting finance Minister. He added that concerns remained among some “opposition and independent MPs” over a lack of detail in the budget, such as in the funding of enterprises like the Maldives National Broadcasting Corporation (MNBC).

Addressing the topic of MPs salaries outlined under amendments to parliamentary privileges, Nazim claimed  the salaries were not solely a “money issue”, but were also part of an attempt to test methods for improved “productivity” among the Majlis.

“The amendments were not to do with spending cuts, the salary structures have been amended as part of measures to increase productivity among members, which will be reviewed by parliament’s Public Accounts Committee,” he said. “The figure of Rf20,000 is an upper ceiling level that parliament will look to see whether it can be increased, it doesn’t mean anything has been passed.”

“We are not taking a pay rise,” Nazim added.

In looking at the wider budget, Nazim stressed that there remained concerns among some MPs over a number of proposed amendments to the budget, such as those concerning MNBC, that had been dismissed by Parliamentary speaker Abdullah Shahid as “not in the budget”.

Citing the 2010 budget that he claimed had not outlined funding for the MNBC, Nazim said  the government still provided a total of Rf54m for monthly salaries to the broadcaster, which had not been accounted for once again in the latest state finances.

The Deputy Speaker also noted that the state-owned Maldives National Shipping Limited, which  had required Rf84 million from the government’s contingency budget in 2009 had also required another Rf48 million so far this year.

In light of the recent privatisation agreement with Indian infrastructure group GMR to manage Male’ International Airport, Nazim asked why the government had “not sold off” the shipping enterprise to aid finances.

“The government refused to give this contingency budget out before it was brought to the Majlis,” he said. “They have not cooperated with parliament. Though there have been improvements since the acting [Finance] Minister came in, we still believe there has been systematic abuse of the system.”

From a government perspective, Acting Finance Minister Razee claimed that he believed budget discussions had “actually gone quite well”.

He said the approved budget was within the Rf12.37bn first projected earlier this month, but amendments would require it to “take some funds from existing programmes” so they could be invested elsewhere.

Razee said he remained hopeful that the funding would not significantly impact the proposed target for an annual budget deficit of 16 per cent.

However, he conceded that possible amendments to programmes within the budget could yet “be more significant” in terms of their financial impact than anticipated.

When asked if passing proposed amendments to parliamentary privileges such as increased wages for MPs was a failure for a budget aimed at cost reduction, Razee said that the proposals were not part of the government’s original plan.

“These [privileges] were amendments to existing bills,” he said. “Obviously, these amendments that have been provided would have to be approved by the president, who would decide if there was enough revenue to support such an increase.”

Razee added that he did not have the figures on the exact numbers of MPs and party members who had voted to approve the amendments that included the privileges, though he confirmed they “had been passed by the majority”.

“I can’t say why people voted for it, the amendments had included allowances to independent institutions so perhaps they were confused,” he claimed.

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Police strategy launch focused on challenges of expansion and “emerging” crimes

Despite uncertainty over funding allocated by the 2011 budget, the Maldives Police Service has today unveiled commitments to try and expand its services among a wider number of islands in the Maldives, whilst also prioritising the prevention of “emerging” threats like cyber crime and human trafficking.

The commitments were announced as part of a new strategic plan outlining key focus areas for police between 2011 and 2013. These focuses include aims to extend measures on the prevention of cyber crime, human trafficking, “extremist ideologies” and piracy, along with more day to day crimes such as theft, violence and drug abuse.

Yoonus Sobah, head of the Bureau of Criminal Records and a member of the Police Service’s strategic development department, told Minivan News that any new commitments outlined for policing the nation were tied, and perhaps limited, to the 2011 state budget that had just been passed yesterday.

Saboh said that the force had not therefore outlined any additional projects in the “short run”, such as new island-based police stations or other service extensions.

“Our goal is to have our services increased across the islands, though this has to be linked to the budget,” he said. “Initially, this means there will be no new police stations constructed, though there are five additional structures in development across a number of islands that were already planned.”

According to Sobah, as part of strategy to try and improve delivery of policing across the country, the service is moving ahead with “decentralisation plans” to try and create a strong presence across the country’s capital islands. Such a focus is expected to allow for cases that were previously transferred to Male’ to be examined on a more local regional basis instead, according to the Police Service spokesperson.

On a wider national scale, Sobah said that the new police strategy would aim to increasingly deal with “emerging” larger-scale crimes such as financial misconduct, people smuggling and even maritime protection in conjunction with groups like the Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF).
“Alongside our commitments to street crime, we will try and prioritise on bigger cases that we are not as experienced in solving, such as cyber crime,” he said.

Sobah added that so called larger or “emerging” crimes also involved potential external threats such as terrorism, piracy and financial crime.

Speaking today during the unveiling of the new three year police strategy at the Iskandhar Koshi bulding, Commissioner Ahmed Faseeh highlighted the importance of serving the people with loyalty and integrity and how the new strategic plan could help met these aims.

“The purpose of the police is to enforce the law and maintain a peaceful environment in the society,” said Faseeh. “This strategic plan was established after conducting research with the practical assistance of the Scottish police.”

In addressing the challenge of “emerging” criminal activity in the Maldives such as cyber crimes, the commissioner said he believed progress was already being made.

”The police have achieved satisfying progress in the last three years when we worked under the recent strategic plan,” he added.

Home minister Afeef claimed that although the last police strategic plan was not fully successful in meeting its aims, police achieved satisfying results nonetheless.

”Other institutions related to the work of the police should also cooperate more to achieve their best,” said Afeef. ”Police are ready to take the risk, although they have to deal with the most violent criminals in the country.”

He also appealed for witnesses at crime scenes to be more cooperative with the police when providing information.

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Razee confident budget aims can be met as voting day looms

With voting to finalise the 2011 state budget expected to take place later today, acting Finance Minister Mahmood Razee said he remains confident that the government remains on target to meet its financial objectives, though stressed it was too early to say without “seeing amendments” suggested by parliament.

Despite criticisms by some opposition MPs regarding what they see as a lack of detail in the budget over the exact nature of government spending – particularly in areas of decentralisation and broadcaster funding – Razee said this morning that he believed any potential member-submitted amendments would not set back proposed aims of trying to reduce spending.

“We would only be concerned [by the amendments] if the total budget goes over the 12.37bn (US$962.6 million) originally set,” he said.

Razee added that it would also be vital to try and ensure the predicted 2011 budget deficit remained at about 16 per cent, after coming under pressure from financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to cut the current figure of around 26.5 per cent.

“We would need to maintain the deficit at that level [16 per cent].  Most of the discussions we have had about the deficit have been in line with this,” he said. “However, I don’t know what will happen until voting.”

The passing of the annual budget is constitutionally required to be completed before the end of the previous calendar year, with the government having claimed to be focused on spending cuts as part of plans to try and reduce the country’s budget deficit.

There has been concern over whether the budget will be passed on time, with debate taking place within parliament over the last few days as members have attempted to add amendments to the annual expenditure before passing it through the Majlis.

Budget criticism has come from both opposition MPs like Ahmed Nazim and independent members like Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed over claims that there is insufficient detail about the exact nature of certain government spending projects.

Nazim has claimed that although opposition members were just as committed to ensuring the country’s budget was completed within the deadline, there remained concerns over issues such as the government supplying about Rf54 million to the Maldives National Broadcasting Corperation (MNBC) without seemingly including it in the budget.

“There are so many problems with the budget, which is lacking details regarding a number of projects and figures,” he said.

Nasheed, an independent MP, also said last week that he had identified some preliminary concerns over spending allocation in the budget, particularly in areas such as decentralisation, despite claiming he was optimistic that the finance document would be passed before the New Year deadline.

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No calls for Sri Lanka travel ban despite “Influenza Pandemic” caution, says CCHDC

The Maldives Centre for Community Health and Disease Control (CCHDC) has said it is not advising people against travelling to Sri Lanka amidst concerns about a recent rise in cases of the H1N1 influenza virus in the country, adding that no cases of the disease have been confirmed in the Maldives of late.

According to the CCHDC, data from the Sri Lankan Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition’s Epidemiology Unit has recorded 342 cases of the disease, which in turn has been linked to 22 deaths in the country. Sri Lankan authorities have said that the country, particularly around the city of Colombo, is undergoing an “epidemic of Pandemic Influenza”, with 65 cases of H1N1 occurring just last week – between December 13 to December 19 – resulting in nine deaths across the country.

An official from the CCHDC told Minivan News that it was not calling for any travel restrictions as a result of the influenza report, but added that the centre did urge any travellers to be cautious when visiting the country.

In terms of caution, the centre urges travellers to maintain basic hygiene measures like washing hands, particularly among those most susceptible to the disease such as pregnant women, children and the elderly.

“The disease is spread by the respiratory routes, so we recommend avoiding crowded areas as much as possible, particularly as measures like wearing masks will not really help,” said a spokesperson for the centre.

Regular washing of the hands with soap was strongly recommended by the CCHCD, which said it had not had any confirmed cases of the virus recently in the Maldives, thought the centre claimed it would continue to keep the public informed.

However, beyond precautionary measures, the CCHCD has said that anyone developing a fever, a cold or a cough upon returning from Sri Lanka or being in contact with other travellers should try and obtain medical advice as soon as possible.

More information for those concerned about the virus is available by calling 3315334.

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