Author: Eleanor Johnstone

Audience involvement in news changing journalism, observes visiting professor

“No matter how technologically advanced things are, you can’t take away the journalist’s role as a traditional gatekeeper of the truth.”

Dr William Silcock used these words to describe Maldivian journalism student Lujain Ismail Shafeeq’s video, “The Future of News”. Shafeeq’s video was a finalist in the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy’s 25th Anniversary video contest at the Harvard Kennedy School in the United States.

Dr Silcock is an assistant professor at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism in Arizona, one of the largest universities in the US. He was selected as a Fulbright Scholar in Ireland and Sweden, has received several awards over his 25 years of broadcasting, and is considered a pioneer in the research of global television news culture. Dr Silcock has previously organised workshops for journalists in Croatia, Bosnia, Albania, Macedonia, and Montenegro, among others.

He spoke to journalism students at the Maldives’ National University on Sunday, October 16 regarding topics in communications such as ethics and the evolving nature of the press.

He observed that Lujain’s video presented modern journalism as a function of technology: using phones, cameras and global positioning systems (GPS), the journalist covering a story is relieved of the tasks of identifying a story, verifying sources or selecting quotes.

“In his vision, machines do a lot of the work for us. The traditional facts of who, what, where, when and why don’t need to be asked anymore.” But as Silcock points out, one flawed Tweet could jeopardise the journalist’s value as a messenger. “The audience contributes to the story, but what if the information is bad?”

Silcock used this and other videos at Sunday’s lecture, “Social Media and Online Journalism”, sponsored by the United States State Department in Colombo, to explore the concept of free expression.

Silcock began by identifying the original meaning of a message.

“Sacred texts were the first ‘Word’. Across the spectrum of religious belief we have lots of varieties of sacred texts. I once asked a Muslim student to teach me the value of the Word in the Qur’an. She taught me this: words are synonymous in Islam with responsibility. She quoted from the Qur’an: ‘Man does not utter any word except that with him is an observer prepared to record. Each word we utter we are responsible for in front of Allah.'”

Today, however, the nature of a message and the responsibility it entails is morphing.

“We are in an era of the ‘visual village'”, said Silcock. “We all want more images across the news.”

Although visuals have been attached to words in many religious and mythical texts throughout history, Silcock pointed out that those detailed images required attention and appreciation. Today, however, audiences want immediate satisfaction.

Noting that “journalism is market-driven” and “advertising is fundamental to the free press,” Silcock observed that, “we now have so many devices, so many platforms to communicate, that the audience attention has become fragmented and fractured.”

The impact on journalism, he said, was serious.

“There’s the traditional legacy media, papers such as the New York Times which have been around. But now we have ‘down in the valley’ media. The audience is actively engaging in and contributing to the news.”

Referring to the blogs and websites that many news outlets use to provide further information about their stories, including the process of creating them, Silcock also highlighted the effect of Twitter: “It’s microblogging, a story comes out in under 140 characters.”

Turning the focus on Facebook, Silcock suggested that social media outlets were adapting to a growing concept of “tribal journalism: people sharing information across platforms.” In the interest of free expression, everyone’s voice is given room for consideration.

Yet it remains the journalist’s task to navigate the possible pitfalls of so much information. Not only can journalists get false information through social media, they can also get too close to the spotlight.

“It’s important to put up a firewall between show business and journalism,” Silcock said. “TV news in the US, for example. Anchors sit in front of a fancy desk with all kinds of monitors that make the place look like something from Star Trek or outer space. But we don’t need all that.”

Silcock consolidated the ethics of ambushing a source for a story-breaking quote in the following terms: “Heat for light’s sake. You want to clarify the story. The negative side to that is heat for heat’s sake.”

In his concluding remarks, Silcock recognized the impressive and useful influence of social media on the news industry.

“Historically, we got through lots of transitions with technology. The typewriter, radio came along and then the television,” said Silcock, showing slides of these items. “But notice this picture of America’s famous pioneer of television Edward R Murrow. What is he doing? He’s reading a newspaper.”

Silcock advised his audience to apply social media forums in innovative ways for positive results. Referring to American documentary maker Ken Burns’ concept of the computer as “the electronic campfire,” he said, “we can compare people sitting at a campfire late at night, to people at a computer. They’re fueling the fires of free expression.”

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Maldives a good ear for SAARC think-tank pointers

“A lot of countries in South Asia don’t see solar energy as a main power source – yet. Let’s put it this way: Maldives does.”

Tomislav Delinic, Director for Regional Program SAARC at German political organisation Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, believes the Maldives has a significant role to play in improving environment and energy policies across South Asia.

“Every country needs to find its own most suitable solutions, but it should also share these solutions with others,” he said. “Since the Maldives is pushing forward the renewable energy sector, it can be an asset for the region.”

Renewable energy has been a leading issue for researchers at the Consortium of South Asian Think-Tanks (COSATT) this year. COSATT is an informal non-profit organisation convened by the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS) to bridge policy research in South Asia.

Since 2008 COSATT has developed annual SAARC summit themes into year-long research projects for and by South Asian think-tanks. Previous topics include trade, connectivity, and counter-terrorism.

Delinic was one of several participants in COSATT’s third and final meeting held at Bandos Resort between Tuesday, October 11 and Thursday, October 13.

“We know South Asia lacks connectivity and we try to bridge it by bringing together leading think-tanks which are politically engaged to discuss the most important issues of connectivity,” said Delinic.

Last year’s topic, ‘Green Asia’, lead COSATT to organize a 12-month international research project on environmental security and renewable energy. Research institutes from all SAARC countries have contributed to a summary publication, released yesterday, as well as an eight to ten page letter of recommendations, to be submitted to policy makers prior to the SAARC summit in Addu this November.

The Maldives is figuring into COSATT’s 2011 recommendations in important ways.

The President’s Office last week hosted the release of COSATT’s 2011 report “Energy and Environmental Security: A Cooperative Approach in South Asia”; Vice President Dr. Mohammed Waheed delivered the keynote address.

Delinic said significant potential for action was in store for the Maldives over the next two SAARC summits. Partnership, however, is thin.

“We released the book here not only because SAARC summit will be held here but also because environment is so important for the Maldives. But we lack partners in the Maldives and are looking for researchers to contribute to our work. This is now even more crucial because we will soon pick up next year’s SAARC summit topic, ‘Building Bridges’. Since this has been initiated by the Maldives, their participation at COSATT would be very good.”

Delinic said several Maldivian policy makers and think tank members had met with the COSATT team during last week’s meeting to discuss opportunities, although no agreements have been reached.

While COSATT does not implement policies according to its findings, proposing suggestions is a key step.

“Cooperation has to start somewhere,” Delinic said. “If you’re lacking common ideas, you can’t develop concepts. So we don’t want to allow that our politicians are saying ‘We don’t have the concepts.’ We will give them the concepts. Leading think tanks from the region agree on that.”

Delinic said think tanks are the key to getting recommendations from groups such as COSATT off of paper and into action.

“Countries might have issues with each other, but if you see the think-tanks in many of these places, they’re doing very well. They’re cooperating, they’re agreeing, sometimes they even oppose their own government. This is the future, and we need to work on it further,” he said.

COSATT takes its biggest test at the government level.

According to IPCS research officer and COSATT report editor, J. Jeganaathan, bureaucratic processes tend to block efficiency. “I see the bureaucratic process in each South Asia member countries as an issue. They are rooted in traditional thinking, they cannot move beyond traditional values, and that is an obstacle to progress. Political will is also an issue, it leads to lack of commitment for common funds and cooperation in implementing new policies.”

Jeganaathan added that although international organisations such as the World Bank (WB) and United Nations Development Program (UNDP) have funds to support SAARC regional resolutions, poor cooperation among country officials prevents these funds from being applied.

However, India’s retired Major General Dipankar Banerjee, a mentor at COSATT, was optimistic about the Maldivian government’s support.

“Energy is a vital and immediate concern for the Maldives and for all of coastal South Asia. The Maldivian government ministers are particularly keen that our recommendations be put on the agenda at the summit,” he said.
Banerjee cautioned that implementation is a slow process. Agreeing with Jeganaathan, he said getting recommendations past the suggestion phase was difficult.

“One can’t expect the recommendations of a think-tank to immediately translate into official government policy. But our goal is to sensitize our respective governments, to show them the options as to how we can move forward, and show them a direction. And that’s a slow learning process, nothing happens instantaneously,” said Banerjee.

Delinic was keen to identify the COSATT recommendations as “an incentive of South Asia for South Asia,” and said maintaining close relationships with governments was important. He did note that follow-up has been a constant issue, and said the group’s final meeting today aimed to resolve it.

“Naturally we cannot push the governments further than offering ideas. But still, one can remind them of this. Keeping contact with the policy makers, dropping information through the media, and connecting with local NGOs on certain topics. For example, in the Maldives we feel sure we can find partners in civil society for certain issues,” he said.

Policy recommendations will be released on 9 November, however they will be distributed to the appropriate government ministries and departments prior to the summit.

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“Overdue” national drug survey active across Maldives

The first “scientifically robust national survey” of drug use in the Maldives is kicking off with training for employees and volunteers this week. The survey was contracted by national research organisation Inova Pvt Ltd, in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Family.

The survey examines the drug use habits of Maldivians ages 15 to 64, and is a contributing factor of the program, “Strengthening the National response to Combat Drug Abuse in the Maldives”, which began in July under the remit of the United Nations (UN) and the Maldivian government.

United Nations’ Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC), the All Indian Institute and the European Union are providing funding and expertise, and 13 local NGOs are assisting the project, particularly within island communities.

International Project Coordinator for UNODC, Sarah Waller, said the survey would add structure to the Maldivian government’s sparse drug policy.

“The survey should generate a better understanding of where treatment gaps in the community are, in order for the government and civil society to target appropriate evidence-based treatment and interventions in their drug-treatment planning. At the moment, it’s a bit of a guess how services are set up. This will enable to the government to provide a much more targeted response to the issue.”

The survey is being conducted according to two methods.

On islands, ‘enumerators’ employed by Inova will gather and process data by conducting household interviews.

Waller said many enumerators come from the recovering community, and staff from Journey are providing specific training to those who have little to no experience in drug use and abuse.

“Many have likely never interacted in the past with drug users. The first few days of training are about building awareness and sensitisation around drug users, around the Maldives’ treatment systems, and around the patterns and trends of drug abuse here,” Waller said.

Another method will be applied on Male’. Volunteer ‘respondents’ will serve as the middle man, gathering survey participants from Male’s more dense and urban community and connecting with them enumerators.

“The methodology for Male’ is quite different from what is given out on the islands,” said Waller. “The method, Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS), is more appropriate to the community on Male’. This approach identifies initial seeds in the community, and those seeds generate additional seeds. So you’re really generating responses through one initial seed.”

Respondents will be rewarded with coupons according to their efforts gathering participants. Waller emphasised that the compensation had been carefully designed to protect the survey’s validity.

“The evidence base suggests that incentivizing the driving of seeds to identify more individauls to take part in the study can enable a much more representative and accurate sample. When it comes to incentivizing recovering or abusive populations, there are ethics that need to be considered regarding that incentive. In particular with doing research amongs drug users, there have to be ethics whereby monetary incentives aren’t sufficient enough to encourage the workers to use them on drugs.”

Minivan News spoke to Journey volunteer member Imlaaq Shareef about the survey’s methods.

“It’s an advanced form of snowballing. First, the respondents will bring one or two and give a reward, maybe three coupons. Then they’ll bring another three addicts, and get a reward for that. So from one respondent the team will get more and more samples,” said Shareef.

When asked if the survey was likely to be accurate, Shareef doubted that all participants would initially be honest.

“But in the survey there are a lot of recovering addicts who are volunteering, and they’ll be able to identify the community here,” Shareef observed. “This is a small place, so, even the person who is doing drugs the most secretively somehow some people will know about it. So we can reach for them. I think by this survey, we can get a good estimate.”

In Shareef’s opinion, the survey is overdue.

“It should have been done earlier. Day by day, the number of IV users is getting high, and drug users are getting high, the number of sex workers are increasing. And in most cases, sex workers are addicts because it’s the easiest way for a girl addict to get money to buy her drugs. There is no choice for these girls, and most do not enjoy it,” said Shareef.

In addition to having an information shortage, the Maldives is struggling to plug the gaps between drug rehabilitation and law enforcement.

“There are very few rehabilitation service providers here,” said Shareef. “The problem is, once people get out of rehab they have to sign up for community service and stay here for a year or so. If they relapse during that period, it’s a big case. They might end up in court or jail. So most people are afraid of taking a treatment, because of the loopholes in the law.”

Shareef complained that a drug reform bill has been stalled in Parliament.

“Even very recently, at Journey, we put out a petition that was signed by nearly 8,000 people and sent it to the Majlis to pass the drug bill. But they don’t give a damn about it. They are just concerned about the Rf20,000 they are getting. I wonder what kind of risk they are taking,” said Shareef.

Parliament accepted the bill in March 2010 and sent the legislation to committee for further review.

Shareef said the bill would significantly improve drug addicts’ recovery process.

“A user should never end up in jail. It has been scientifically proven that addiction is a chronic brain disease. So why should they end up in jail? It’s a big problem,” Shareef said.

Waller said the survey could provide a base line for developing a sufficient drug management infrastructure.

“The data can assist government in how and where to apply the information, and what communities need in terms of service. There is certainly an affinity between the two,” she said.

The project’s final report is due for release in February 2012.

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Rowers gear up for SAARC summit

Addu City and Hulhumale’ students will compete in an International Rowing School Competition during the 17th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), to be held in Addu City during the first eleven days of November.

Students over age 11 from Addu’s 12 schools and Hulhumale’ have been training in four-seater crew boats, or ‘quads’, since September. The teams are down to their last three weeks of training for one of the Maldives’ first contemporary rowing competitions.

“Over the past few days we’ve been racing the students to select the fastest from within each age group for every school. There have been some very close results so I’m looking forward to some great racing between the schools come the 4th of November.”

British national rower Natasha Howard trains students from a program base on Hithadhoo Island. She arrived in the Maldives in August with fellow rower Rachel Loveridge to volunteer coach students for the competition.

Unable to exercise during the day in Ramadan and with few resources (boats were imported, and the island’s Utility Office has served as a boat house), Howard used the first month to meet with principals and the city council to arrange a schedule to ensure the teams would be ready to compete in November.

“The City Mayor Abdullah Sodiq and all the council members have gone out of their way to ensure that I have everything I need,” said Howard, who has operated from a desk in the council’s education unit.

Howard said the program has generated great enthusiasm in Addu. Without volunteer support from Hithadhoo Youth Center, only a fraction of interested students would have received any training. Instead, seven volunteers learned the sport in order to help instruct 213 interested students on necessary skills.

But limited resources have made cuts necessary.

“I could have cut the sessions twice over and had children in tears when the cut was made to reduce the group to just 16 boys and 16 girls [from each school]. Others ask me constantly could they come for more sessions and don’t believe me until I show them my schedule that there really is not another hour in the week they could come (unless they skip school).”

Further cuts will reduce the team to four boys and four girls from each age group (U14, U16, U19, U21) for the race on 4 November.

Start line: Zero Degrees

The program began with a world record. On 30 March 2010, British national Guin Batten became the first person to row across the Maldives’ equatorial Zero Degree Channel.

Speaking at a presidential ceremony in April, Batten reflected on her record’s significance. “I hope that my crossing is an inspiration to bring rowing back here to the Maldives,” she said.

Primary school teacher and coastal rower James Cowley took the suggestion to heart. When Batten left her boat in the Maldives in March, Cowley used it to develop the sport of rowing from his volunteer base in Thinadhoo.

One significant step was establishing the Rowing Association of the Maldives. In November 2010, the Maldives became the 131st member of the International Rowing Federation (FISA).

Equipment has been slowly added to the Maldives’ rowing collection. Acting as the Sports Development Coordinator for Friends of Maldives (FOM), Batten arranged for two four-person ‘quad’ rowboats and several coaches to be brought to Thinadhoo and Ghadadhoo in 2010 with the support of British Airways (BA), British Rowing and Westminster School.

This year, Howard and Loveridge were accompanied by seven coastal ‘quads’ from the UK, three of which are being used in Hulhumale’ and four of which are in Addu.

“Our aim is to ensure that when the volunteer coaches leave there is a self-sustaining club in place,” Howard said.

The Addu program instructs 213 students, mostly boys, who are shuttled across Addu’s 14 kilometre road, Maldives’ longest, each day for practice. In a progress report, Howard noted that fewer girls had the necessary swimming skills to participate in the program, “it wasn’t for lack of interest in rowing.”

Remembering the drowning incident at Kuda Huraa earlier this year, Howard reported that rowers will receive swim training by a Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) volunteer after SAARC. She also mentioned plans for an Addu swimming program next year “as concern is growing at how many of the students do not know how to swim.”

Students have shown enthusiasm for the program, which involves two two-hour sessions of land fitness and water training each week. Most groups are separated by gender, according to school advisories.

“Like everywhere in the world some students are keener than others and push themselves harder but not a single student has refused to do anything we’ve asked of them from carrying 50 kilo boats to and from the water to doing burpees, press ups, squat jumps and sit ups. We’ve had lots of reports of sore muscles during the first week but everyone came back for more,” Howard said.

In addition to gaining physical strength and finesse, rowers develop strong communication skills.

“The art of communicating with each other and doing the same thing together and at the same time are crucial and something we have been working on with the students,” said Howard, adding that each student learns at an individual pace.

“How quickly a student learns the new skills will vary with each individual – if they are naturally shy and quiet building the confidence to talk and give instructions to their partner will take that little bit longer than it does for an out going, noisy and naturally bossy person! However, the desire to win races is a great motivator and all our students have worked out their various ways of communicating.”

Not just kids’ play

As Batten noted in 2010, the Maldives has a unique appeal for rowing. Howard highlighted the climate’s unique advantages for coaches, novices and experts.

“The area of water we use here in Addu is great for getting novices started – sheltered by some small islands it never gets rough and there are no strong currents. Even when the wind is blowing hard the boats cannot be blown out to sea.

“The warm weather and water also means everyone is very happy to get soaking wet (the more often the better) and we, as coaches, are able to hang off the back of the boats as the students learn to row and so provide one on one coaching support very easily.

“The other great advantage is the ability to look over the side of your boat and see coral, fish and turtles swimming by – definitely not something many other rowing locations can boast about!”

While rowing was a traditional transportation method in the Maldives, contemporary facilities are sparse. Howard said resources are currently being channeled into SAARC preparations on Addu, but that improvements are expected after the summit.

After consolidating the programs in Addu and Hulhumale’, “our next priority is to utilise the local boat building skills and investigate the possibility of having the boats built here in the Maldives to reduce costs and so make them more widely available.”

According to Howard, there is plenty of demand for expansion.

“Interest is not just limited to the students. Teachers, parents, doctors, council members and the ladies in the Education Unit are all desperate to come and have a go and race. Time and too few boats means that everyone has to wait their turn right now,” Howard observed.

For Maldivian rowers, Batten’s record remains fair game for the breaking.

After failing to break her own record in the Zero Degree Channel in November 2010, Batten told the public, “The record is still there for the taking, and there’s a good chance somebody local could break my time of 7:16.”

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ACC investigates Disaster Management with forensic experts

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) yesterday entered the Disaster Management Center (DMC) with a police escort to investigate files relating to a 2006 housing construction project in Laamu atoll.

The Ministry of Housing and Environment did not comment on the investigation’s purpose, which is being conducted four months after outstanding payments to the construction company were made.

Movey Construction Company was hired under the former government to manage an Rf18 million project in 2006, which was completed in 2007. In 2009, DMC delayed payments due to a financial shortage, and in January 2011 Movey Construction filed a complaint for financial losses.

Deputy Minister of Housing and Environment, Ahmed Zaki, said he had been puzzled by the delay. “All the paperwork was in order,” he told Minivan News today. Moreover, the complaint against the Disaster Management Center “had enough evidence, and the payments were made with approval by the Finance Ministry in May.”

Zaki said forensic experts had accompanied ACC staff yesterday to “review paperwork and files in a clear and informed fashion. The hard drives which had been removed for further examination were returned today, all clear.”

When asked if the ACC investigation implied a concern for corruption, Zaki said he did not believe there was any reason to suspect corruption in the dealings between DMC and Movey Construction Company.

“This is just an accusation because payments were delayed. But the payments were made this May with sufficient documents from all parties. The financial system in the Maldives is very transparent, there are a lot of layers, checks and balances, so I am confident that there is no issue of corruption here,” he said.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said the police would provide support as needed during the investigation.

“We have a signed agreement with the ACC to provide support as needed. Our forensic experts are currently working on the case,” Shiyam said.

Members of Movey Construction Company and the ACC were not available for comment.

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Indian teacher arrested after religious hymns found on school laptop

Indian teacher Shijo Kokkattu was arrested last week on Raa Atoll for possession of Catholic imagery and a Bible.

A Raafainu School teacher had contacted police after finding what appeared to be Christian hymn videos on a school computer, which 30 year-old Kokkattu had allegedly transferred from his personal flash drive by accident.

Foreign media and school sources reported that religious songs and pictures had been transferred onto the desktop of a school laptop, which Kokkattu had used.

“The videos were in Indian, so I don’t know what they were saying, but the images were Christian,” said Raafainu Principal Mohamed Shiraj. Shiraj did not know if the video transfer was intentional.

Shiraj said that a teacher had found the material and contacted the National Administrative Center, which had reported the matter to the police. Kokkattu was taken into custody, where he has been held for the past week.

Police could not confirm Kokkattu’s arrest and detention.

Kokkattu, of Kerala, India, had been teaching at Raafainu School for two years before his arrest. “He was a very good teacher, we’ve not had any complaints of him in the past,” said Shiraj.

Shiraj said Kokkattu had not shown the material to anyone.

Meanwhile, the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) has demanded in regional media that the Indian government seek an apology from the Maldives over Kokkattu’s treatment.

“The lack of justice and the degree of religious intolerance in the Maldives is reflected by the actions of the Maldives government,” GCIC President Sajan K George told Asia News. “This is the worst form of religious persecution. The Indian government should demand an apology for the shabby treatment inflicted on one of its citizens.”

George called Kokkattu’s case evidence of the Maldives’ paradoxical nature. He said the Maldives “claims to be a major tourist destination, yet arrests innocent people,” George said. “This shows its intolerance and discrimination towards non-Muslims as well as its restrictions on freedom of conscience and religion.”

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Civil court rejects legal challenge to MPs’ committee allowance

The Civil Court today rejected a case filed on behalf of a civil servant challenging the legality of controversial Rf20,000-a-month committee allowances for MPs.

A group of concerned civil servants filed the case on behalf of Maah Jabeen, Seenu Maradhoo Fenzeemaage, arguing that releasing funds for committee allowance without reimbursing civil servants for amounts deducted from their 2010 salaries violated constitutional provisions on fairness and equal treatment.

On 26 September, the civil court issued an injunction prohibiting the Finance Ministry from releasing funds to parliament until the court delivered a judgment on the case.

In October 2009 – almost a year into the new administration – unpopular pay cuts of up to 15 percent for civil servants were enforced as part of austerity measures to alleviate the country’s ballooning budget deficit.

The austerity measures were met with a severe political backlash. In December 2009, the opposition-controlled parliament added Rf800 million (US$62 million) to the 2010 state budget, including the restoration of civil servant salaries to previous levels.

In January 2010, however, the Ministry of Finance and Treasury refused to restore the salaries after just three months of the cost-cutting measure.

After weeks of legal wrangling with the parliament-appointed Civil Service Commission (CSC), the ministry accused the independent commission of hiding “a political agenda”, and in February 2010 filed a case with the police asking them to investigate it on suspicion of trying to topple the government “and plunge the Maldives into chaos.”

At the height of the dispute in early 2010, permanent secretaries at ministries were ordered to submit different wage sheets by both the Finance Ministry and the CSC.

In April 2010, the Civil Court ruled that Finance Ministry did not have the legal authority to overrule the CSC. Although the government contested the ruling and refused to restore salaries to previous levels, the High Court upheld the lower court ruling in May this year.

Meanwhile in the verdict issued today, the Civil Court noted that the state had appealed the High Court ruling at the Supreme Court, which has since agreed to hear the case.

The court ruled that there were no legal grounds to order the Finance Ministry not to release the funds to parliament as the two budget items in question were “not in the same state or condition.”

Civic action

After parliament’s Public Accounts Committee decided to issue the committee allowance as a lump sum of Rf140,000 as back pay for January through June, a loose association of concerned citizens launched a campaign noting that the state had a staggering fiscal deficit of Rf1.3 billion (US$85 million) as of the first week of September.

Neither lawyer from the civic action campaign was available for comment today.

Some sources have meanwhile criticised the MPs for comparing their salaries and privileges to those of United States congressmen.

“You can’t do that, the two countries are too different,” said No MP Allowance Media Coordinator Hamza Khaleel.

“The salary difference between the highest-paid civil servant and a congressman in the US is 175%, while in the Maldives it’s 365%,” Khaleel pointed out. “Our MPs get as much as MPs in Sweden, but our GDP is nowhere near Sweden’s.”

NGOs have retreated from the issue in recent weeks, but No MP Allowance, a group of concerned citizens which operates primarily through social media outlet Facebook and has almost 3000 members, has been networking to protest the allowance since February. Khaleel said the group is the “single largest civil movement for this issue.”

“You can see that our Facebook page is very active. All of the members might not show up to protest but they are writing letters and suggesting ideas, so you can see that they are involved,” said Khaleel.

Khaleel noted that MP opposition and negative media have deterred the group from publicising its plans, but he said media coverage lately had improved.

Upon hearing of the court’s verdict today, Khaleel said No MP Allowance’s campaign did not depend on a court ruling but on the constituents’ opinions.

“If you ask the MP’s constituents, they will say that the MPs aren’t doing as much as they could have. Very few MPs have taken up issues that are community-focused,” he said.

“Our main focus is still to get constituents to write to their MPs asking them not to take the allowance. We have drafted sample letters that we are distributing for signatures, and will collect and deliver to the MPs. We represent the constituents, if they are not satisfied then we still have work to do,” Khaleel said.

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Fishermen’s Union says ‘No’ to private ownership

The Fishermen’s Union has rejected Male’ City Council’s proposal to privatise the fish market on the grounds that the change would eliminate competition and complicate boat routines.

“We have to keep our system,” said union chairman Ibrahim Umar. “Privatising will make the operation too big.”

Umar said that 50 vessels currently come to Male’ each day to deliver fish, and that space is tight. Under the proposed plan, said Umar, fishermen would have fewer responsibilities in Male’s fish market but would be expected to make more frequent trips in and out of Male’s harbor.

“There isn’t room for that kind of traffic in the harbor. And there isn’t storage capacity for the extra fish that would be coming in,” said Umar.

According to Umar, the fish market currently enjoys a healthy level of competition.

“Every day the fishing is good, there is enough money, and there is even demand from other atolls for fish from Male’. Privatising the fish market will kill the competition because fishermen will have to sell at the same private rate. Bringing in more fish will also keep the price down, and there’s nowhere to keep it on Male’. We need to run this through the union,” he said.

Male’ Mayor ‘Maizan’ Ali ‘Alibe’ Manik said the plan to privatise is an effort to comply with World Health Organisation (WHO) standards, Haveeru reports.

“When we hand over the fish market for management, the fishermen will just have to bring the fish to the market and hand it over to those in charge of management. That way it saves the fishermen time, allowing them to set off fishing faster,” he said.

For Umar, the advantages were unclear.

“How will fishermen get paid? It will take longer if they aren’t selling the fish themselves,” he observed.

Addressing the issue of facilities, however, Umar said that an earlier proposal to build a fish harbour in Hulhumale’ was being revisited by the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture, the Ministry of Transport and Hulhumale’ Development Corporation (HDC).

In 2009, plans to build a fish harbour on Hulhumale’ were sent to the National Planning Council. The harbour was intended to expand and expedite the fishing industry, and reduce the pressure on Male’s market.

When the National Planning Council rejected the plan, however, Umar said there was a breakdown in communication and trust. “They weren’t talking to us, I found out through the Fisheries Minister that they had rejected the plan. There was no communication with [the union] about the plan or the finances.”

Umar said the union was told there was a lack of funds, but claimed that the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) had set aside money for the harbour. “I don’t know what happened with that money, we never got an explanation.”

In 2006, IFAD approved a post-tsunami recovery program in agriculture and fisheries. IFAD currently classifies the program as ‘ongoing’.

Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture, Ibrahim Didi, said the earlier financial problems have been resolved and the ministry is currently working with HDC to construct a fish harbour.

Didi said expanding work space is integral to privatising the fish market, which is growing.

“There’s already plenty of demand for the fish,” said Didi. “Privatising it would bring significant benefits to fishermen. They will have more access to the harbors, necessities such as ice will arrive on time, and things will happen more quickly.”

Didi said development of Hulhumale’s fish harbour has priority, and plans for other fish harbours will be considered accordingly.

According to Didi, President Mohamed Nasheed’s plan will distribute fishing components such as ice, oil and parts to different interested parties. Didi said the approach would improve facilities.

“If the different components of the fishing industry are spread out among interested parties working with a commercial interest, then business will move very fast because there will be a real business interest.”

The City Council earlier told Haveeru that the goal of privatising the market was to improve selling procedures, not to increase profits. Representatives said the union’s response would affect planning.

Council representatives and officials familiar with the proposal had not responded to inquiries at time of press.

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MP allowance debacle “not a mix-up”: State Finance Minister

The Finance Ministry today rejected implications that yesterday’s release and recall of the controversial Rf20,000-a-month committee allowances against a court injunction was a mistake which had caused confusion in the government.

“I don’t think it’s a mix-up,” said State Minister of Finance Ahmed Assad today. Assad was unclear about the court injunction.

“Releasing that sort of money is not a big procedure, I think this is just people trying to follow the general rules and experiencing an administrative error,” he said.

Assad didn’t believe anyone deserved blame, and said that “if anything, it is the ministry at large that was at fault.”

Local daily Haveeru yesterday reported that the allowances had been issued “by mistake.”

Finance Minister Ahmed Inaz had not responded to Minivan inquiries at time of press.

The court injunction, which was issued on September 26, ordered the Finance Ministry not to release funds for the committee allowance until the court rules on a case filed on behalf of a civil servant, contending that the allowance could not be given before deducted amounts from civil servants salaries were paid back.

The injunction has since been appealed by the Attorney General’s Office at the High Court, which is due to hold a first hearing on Sunday.

Parliamentary privileges

Meanwhile parliament yesterday debated a motion without notice proposed by Vilufushi MP Riyaz Rasheed claiming that a civic action campaign launched by concerned citizens in late August violated MPs’ special privileges.

MDP MP Ahmed Easa told Minivan News yesterday that colleagues had said the allowance was being released to the parliament secretariat, but he was told that it had been held back by the Minister of Finance.

“I don’t think there was any wording, anything in what the court said indicating that they couldn’t release the money,” said Easa. “But no money has been going in to my account today, I can tell you that.”

Easa elaborated on the allowance, saying that the amount of staffing support and allowances other government branches received justified MPs accepting the proposed allowance.

“The MP point of view is that some of the independent wages and allowances are greater than MPs. The MPs are expected to do research and other duties, but we don’t have an office, a supporting staff, a phone allowance, a travel stipend to visit constituents or other things to support our work. Seven percent of our salary is taken out for a pension fund, and Male’ is an expensive place to live,” said Easa.

Easa said he will accept the allowance, but pointed out that he had always objected to it in parliament on the grounds that all payrolls should be streamlined.

“But if these other government groups are taking an allowance, why not the MPs? This is a democracy, so I always respect the majority decision.”

Lawyer Mohamed Shafaz Wajeeh, one of two lawyers involved in the civil case, argued that the number of people benefiting from the allowance does not justify the sum released, which amounts to Rf18 million (US$1.1 million).

“It’s greed. Just greed,” Shafaz said. “MPs and higher-ups in the government are probably more aware of their own power than they should be. The thinking behind this goes against everything we know.”

Shafaz suggested the government consider other options, such as releasing the allowance in installments to lighten the burden on the state budget and other subsidiaries.

“But I’m not sure how much political will there is to do this. Everyone says the allowance is a good idea.”

Civil society

Although members of the civil sector earlier issued a statement objecting to the allowance, which they called “a gross injustice to the Maldivian people,” they have not articulated an official position on the issue of late.

Maldives Democracy Network (MDN) Director Fathimath Ibrahim Didi said that individuals in the organization were involved at the beginning, but that they did not represent MDN.

“Now, I think there may be a group working against the allowance, but it is loosely formed involving people from NGOs, lawyers and individuals,” she said.

Transparency Director Ilham Mohamed told Minivan News that a volunteer team was addressing the matter, but that large protests had not been organized among local non-government organizations (NGOs).

“I believe there may be sporadic gatherings in different places,” said Mohamed. “I do know that the NGOs that were involved in the original statement opposing the MP allowance are unified on this issue.”

“Symbolic”

The decision to approve the Rf20,000 (US$1200) monthly allowances in December 2010 was met with  protests and widespread public indignation. However in June this year, parliament rejected a resolution proposed by opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Ahmed Mahlouf to scrap the allowance.

Meanwhile the current civic action campaign was prompted by parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) deciding in late August to to issue a lump sum of Rf140,000 (US$9,000) as committee allowance back pay for January through July this year.

Article 102 of the constitution states that parliament shall determine the salaries and allowances of the President, Vice President, cabinet ministers, members of parliament, members of the Judiciary, and members of the independent institutions.

The Rf20,000 allowance was initially approved on December 28, 2010 as part of a revised pay scheme recommended by the PAC.

During yesterday’s debate on a privileges motion regarding the anti-committee allowance campaign, MP ‘Colonel’ Mohamed Nasheed, a member of the PAC, explained that the committee felt that MPs should earn a higher salary than High Court judges.

“But even then the honourable members of the Public Accounts Committee believed that MPs were receiving a sufficiently large salary in relation to the country’s economic situation,” he said, adding that a decision was made to institute a “symbolic” committee allowance.

“The thinking at the time was to give it to MPs who attend committee meetings as a very symbolic thing, for example one laari or 15 laari. But to ensure that take-home pay for MPs would be Rf82,500,” he said.

However, he continued, this “noble effort” became politicised and the subject of “an anti-campaign programme.”

Colonel called for legal action against the activists “when they go beyond the boundaries of free expression” and the right to protest, claiming that MPs’ families and children had been targeted.

Echoing a claim made by a number of MPs yesterday, Colonel said none of his constituents had asked him to decline the allowance.

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