Mariyath Mohamed – Page 11 – Minivan News

Death penalty implementation “not advisable” without cabinet, parliament approval: AG

Implementation of the death penalty “is not advisable” without cabinet and parliamentary approval, Attorney General Mohamed Anil has told local media.

Last week, Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer ordered the Maldives Correctional Services to prepare for the implementation of the death penalty through lethal injection, despite the lack of laws administering capital punishment.

Naseer said he had sought advice from Anil before signing the order, but Anil refused to comment on the matter.

Instead, he said Naseer’s order had not been discussed in the cabinet. Anil has called for an advisory mechanism within the cabinet stating that the president of a Muslim country bears a personal responsibility in the implementation of death sentences.

“It is crucial that there is an established mechanism through which the cabinet of ministers has a role, and the president gets the opportunity to make an informed decision about the matter. However, the order recently released by the Home Minister was not conducted through such a process,” Anil said.

The best method to implement death penalty is through legislation passed by the parliament, he added.

Although the current legislative framework does not mandate legislation for the implementation of death penalty, Anil said broad and in-depth discussions needed to take place before the change in policy.

Since 1954, Maldives has had a moratorium on the death penalty, with the president commuting death sentences to life imprisonment.

“When we are bringing about such a huge change in policy, there are discussions that we must undertake within the cabinet, as well as with the Parliament. I do not believe it is the best thing to do to implement such a sentence at this moment without first going through these motions,” he said.

Former Attorney General Azima Shakoor had drafted a bill on the administration of the death penalty, but the government does not have a time frame to submit the bill to parliament, Anil said.

Once the parliament passes the bill, the death penalty can be implemented in retrospect, he added.

High crime rates in recent years has lead to widespread public support for the death sentence, Anil claimed.

“The rate of crime is rapidly increasing in the Maldives. This includes crimes of a heavily serious nature. Things are escalating to the point where individuals do not even hesitate when committing crimes,” he said.

“Therefore, I believe that the best medium through which we can get the general public’s view on the matter is through the parliament. It is imperative that the parliament holds a debate and comes to a decision on the matter.”

Anil also highlighted the importance of a responsible justice system, pointing out that implementation of such a sentence is in nature an irreversible act.

Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer said he wished to refrain from commenting on the matter at this stage.

Naseer’s order followed the passing of the death sentence on Hussain Humam Ahmed on charges of murdering the moderate religious scholar and MP Dr Afrasheem Ali in October 2012.

President Abdulla Yameen told local media on Friday that Naseer had released the order under his mandate, but without prior discussion with the cabinet. The cabinet would hold in depth discussions about the matter before coming to a final discussion, he added.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has called on the Maldives to halt any plans to end the current moratorium on the death penalty, calling such moves “a retrogade step and a serious setback for human rights in the country”.

In May 2013, the UN country team also called for the abolition of death penalty in the Maldives, stating “in view of the country’s more than 50 year moratorium, the UN calls upon the Maldives to take the opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to its international human rights obligations, and abolish the death penalty”.

The last execution in the Maldives was the death of Hakim Didi in 1954 who was sentenced to death for practicing black magic.

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Q&A: Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture Dr Mohamed Shainee

Following a feature article on the status of the fisheries industry – in which Minivan News spoke to local fishermen about their various concerns, an additional interview was conducted with the concerned cabinet minister about these issues.

Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture Dr Mohamed Shainee spoke to Minivan News about his political career, and the policies and plans of his ministry.

Shainee was appointed to his position on November 19, 2013 – two days after the new administration came to office. This is his first appointment to a cabinet position.

Mariyath Mohamed: With agriculture and fisheries being such a major component of our economy, what are the main achievements you seek to fulfill in this five year term as a minister overseeing these sectors?

Mohamed Shainee: I believe, as you rightly pointed out that fisheries and agriculture are a major part of the economy. But at this moment, I don’t believe it is well-represented in the economy as a vibrant sector. So, in these five years, what I would like to achieve is incorporating the fisheries and agriculture sector into the very vibrant economy of the Maldives. What I mean to say is that the fisheries and agriculture sectors should both be able to stand alone on its feet, without injecting any subsidies into them. It will be quite an achievement if I am able to do this. Five years is a very short time to change the way we’ve been doing things in these two sectors for a very long time. So I believe it will be a very good achievement if I can complete at least part of it in these five years.

MM: This being you first time serving in a cabinet, what are the main challenges you face?

MS: As a cabinet member, I don’t think there are any challenges. But the country has gone through many phases of instability and that is still present in the social fabric of the country. So I think it will be a challenge to get people’s trust built in the government, because we have passed through five years of lots of instability in the government or country. So it will be very difficult for the people to believe that the government will do something that is good and more solid for the people. So I believe that it will be a massive challenge to assure the public that we will really, sincerely do what we have promised to the public. So I guess, as a cabinet problem, there will not be a challenge.

And from what we have seen so far, I believe that the opposition is also willing to give the government, to prove whether we can or cannot do the promises in our manifesto. So I believe that we are now at a stage where we have a healthy government and a healthy opposition, which really is necessary for a country to move forward.

I don’t think there are any challenges within the cabinet, as all the cabinet ministers are well-educated and have the background, the knowledge, and the drive to pursue fulfillment of the manifesto we have put forward for the people.

MM: The government’s pledges include providing an allowance of MVR10,000 a month to fishermen during lean months. How will the government implement this and when?

MS: I have already announced that in the first quarter of this year I will reveal guidelines of how this will be done. It’s very simple: the system is an insurance scheme. If you take a look at PPM’s manifesto, you will see that the first pledge in the fisheries section is to provide fishermen with an installment or some form of payment in the lean months. And then after policy number two, we have policy number three. This is where we talk of introducing new people to the profession and increasing productivity of fisheries. There we talk about our aims and visions, one of which is that there won’t be a single perceived fisherman – I mean, when we talk about fishermen, there is skipjack fishery and yellowfin fishery, so not all fishermen – but on average, every fisherman will get about MVR 10,000 per month for their wages. This is where both of these combine together and becomes the slogan “10,000 regardless of catch”. In fact, we have already put together the forms to open up a registry for this particular scheme. We already know how many fishermen there are in this country, but for this particular insurance scheme we need to open up a new register.

It’s very simple. If you look at the skipjack fishing statistics for last year, you will see three or four months which are very difficult for the fishermen. The real goal of this is sustainability.

So the aim of the government is to ensure that even during these difficult months fishermen stay in the industry. For that reason, during those few months we want to give a payment so that they can do their basic necessities, so they can fulfill their daily obligations towards their family.

The MVR10,000 scheme is a top-up system. We actually do not want to inject subsidies into the industry. That is what I said in response to your first question – that I want the industry to work on its own in a vibrant, active manner. If we start giving subsidies, we will always remain dependent on subsidies. As you well know, subsidies are an injection of capital into an area where things have gone a little out of the ordinary. So, we needed that kind of subsidy from 2004 onwards as the catch amounts had gone down. So yes, in those days we needed a subsidy to make fishermen remain in the industry.

But it is slowly catching up. In 2013 we have seen productivity increasing. So now we need to make the industry stand alone and be more vibrant and shock-proof to absorb these shocks. We need to devise a way to get people’s minds set on the idea that they can work in the industry.

The real reason is the sustainability of the fishermen in the industry to keep them in the field during this low season. This is because what we don’t want is for fishermen to turn to other sectors in these difficult months because we need the fishing industry to run as it does now and get further developed. That is the main idea behind this.

MM: President Yameen has announced that the ministry is compiling a register of existing fishermen. According to your statistics of 2012, there were 10,264 registered fishermen at the time of the report. What is the need for a completely new register, and how much time do you estimate it will take for the completion of this register?

MS: We do have a register, but we are not sure they are inclusive of all the fishermen. This is because always a registry is maintained for a service. And we have the subsidy for which they are automatically registered, so we know exactly how many fishermen there are.

But for this specific purpose, we need to build a new registry. We need a new registry for the insurance scheme as this will be done by a second party.

We are considering for this purpose the government fund management agency NSPA, for example, to deliver this service to fishermen.

MM: Many fishermen I have interviewed have raised concerns about the decreasing price of fish. Does the ministry have any plans to address this?

MS: Yes, that is true. Every year in this time when the supply increases, the demand goes down and so prices go down. But one thing we did not say in the manifesto this time is that we will give a set price to the fishermen. But for the same reasons I said before – that we want an economically viable system to be in place – what we have said is we will give the best price to the fishermen.

And to assure that, what we have done is we have put in clauses or actions in the manifesto to make it transparent – to let fishermen know that the price they are getting is exactly the best maximum price that they can get.

So for that reason, in the first few months of the government we have made a Fisheries Promotion Board to diversify our business to various markets. Insha Allah, I have gotten four countries interested – I’m looking into the arab markets, the Russian markets, the Chinese market and the Pakistani market, who are also very interested in diversifying.

So in fact, there is a lot of work being done in all these fronts to diversify markets, because what we cannot do is to rely on one specific market – which is the European market. I mean, the European market still is the largest and the biggest and the most important market for the country. But still, if we rely on one single market, any shock to that market will be felt very badly in the country here. So we are trying to diversify, that is one action.

The other thing is in this promotion board, for the first time, we have a fisherman in the board. This is to show to other fishermen that we are working on their behalf and that the price that they are getting really is the best price they can get. On top of that, even in the ministry website, we are now publishing the yearly rates of skipjack in the market. This, as well, is for the reason that we want fishermen to know they are getting the best price. So that when they go to any buyer, they can’t fool the fishermen now.

MM: You have said there is a fisherman on the Fisheries Promotion Council itself. How was he appointed?

MS: Yes. What we are trying to advocate from the ministry is for the formation of associations or co-operatives to voice for other fishermen, or vessel owners, or other sectors – to voice out through one body.

If I listen to one individual, and go to another island and listen to another fisherman, it will be totally different. Even in the same island, there will be different views. One way of doing it is for the vehicle to make the co-operatives.

At this time, in this country we have only one running organisation, which is the Fishermen’s Association. So we requested them to give us a candidate from the fisheries who is an active fisherman to be on the board. So so far we have only one that is functioning, and that is where we selected the fisherman from.

The fisherman on the board is from Alif Dhaalu Atoll, I believe. He is a skipjack fisherman and has sat in the past three or four sittings of the board.

MM: Another concern of numerous fishermen is the rising cost of fuel and ice, which in turn raises their overhead fees and brings down the profit they earn. While you have already said that the government wants to cut down on subsidies, what other plans does the state have to assist fishermen facing this issue?

MS: Yes, of course we are increasing the number of ice plants. In fact, one of the ice plants which has been idle for a few years now will be up and running in a few months time when we [open bidding on] this plant located in Thaa [Atoll] Guraidhoo. Insha allah, this will be done in the next few months.

And the other ice plant which, again, has been idle for the past three or four months is in Haa Alif [Atoll] Ihavandhoo. This will probably be starting from January 22 onwards. There are certain areas where we can reduce the price and one of the ways is by increasing the number of ice plants. Three ice plants will come in operation, insha Allah, this year.

What it actually does is it allows the fishermen to sell the fish at a higher price.

And unfortunately – I have to say unfortunately – the culture of the fishermen is they are very passionate about what they are doing. So if one of the fishermen builds a boat, the next one wants to build a bigger and nicer boat. So that has been an issue. We have been advocating that the increasing of fishing vessels to over a certain limit is not economically feasible. And already the fishermen have realised that ‘yes, we have a 35 tonne fishing boat, but how many days in a year does a fisherman actually catch 35 tonnes of fish?’

I think people will realise in time that we cannot keep increasing the size of the vessel and that we need an economic size. And we have shown through our ministry’s research that 85 feet is a manageable and economical size.

But now the real issue is that fuel prices have gone up and it will be difficult for us to stop that. But indirectly, the government is also working to get fuel at a cheaper price. In fact, the President His Excellency Abdulla Yameen has in his last visit had some negotiations with the Indian government to get fuel at a cheaper price. We are looking at other ways to land projects in the Maldives which will help us get fuel, diesel at better prices.

I am also on this committee in the government which has already started to explore for oil in the Maldives. So, these are long term, but indirectly we are trying to bring down the consumption or price of fuel in the country.

MM: The Malé City Council has announced that fishermen will have to take a special licence to sell their catch in stalls at the fishmarket. Which institution holds the mandate for this and does the Fisheries Ministry have any involvement in this?

MS: Like yourself, I am also confused in this area. We have a sort of tug of war going on between the council and the ministry and other institutions. But recently – about two or three weeks back – the council met with the ministry asking for our help in managing the fishmarket.

The truth is that until then we did not know what was happening on the other side. But now, after the new government came into place the council met with us and we are giving colloboration to the government.

In fact, I think it is today or next week we are planning to have training for the council members so that they know what the hygiene standards should be, what the methods are… And so we have requested them to give us the plan for the fishmarket so that we can give them the technical backing and advise them on how to build a market so that it is more hygienic.

So, I think it is a collaborative effort between the council and the ministry. We have a bigger role to ascertain that the public is safe and getting the right fish, so that everything goes smoothly. On the other hand, the council has the municipal right over the market. I think we can do this hand in hand. I believe this will happen now much better as things are happening much better now than a few months before.

MM: Are you supportive of the council’s initiative to lease stalls at the fishmarket?

MS: What I heard from the council, which is the truth, is that there a lot of issues in the fishmarket. And one way of always managing is through licenses or some mechanism where you have power over whom you allow and whom you don’t allow. So that might be a good idea.

But I don’t think it should be at a rate which is difficult for the fishermen. It should be a nominal fee just for the registration. It should just be a management fee, and not for business purposes. I think the idea – I don’t know, I haven’t heard from the council – but I believe the idea is to create a managed system rather than an open system. I think it should be that way. So that it is well-managed and not just anyone can go and do unhygienic practices there.

MM: What are the main countries that fish are exported to, via the state enterprise MIFCO and otherwise? What are the challenges faced in exportation of fisheries products in recent days?

MS: The EU is by far the biggest market, especially for yellowfin tuna. But apart from that, the industry also exports to the US, as well as some to Canada, to Japan, and other markets as well. I don’t have all the details of it at the moment but the EU is the biggest market, as well as the US then. And Japan is also another market to which we export certain type and grade of fish.

On the other hand, skipjack tuna is mainly exported to Bangkok. But if they are value-added, processed, then the can again goes to Europe, so that remains our main market.

MM: The president has appealed to the British high commissioner to impress upon the EU the importance of extending GSP plus facilities to the Maldives again. What do you think the chances of this happening are?

MS: I think it can be done, because I think in the past EU and Maldives have had a good relationship as countries. So I don’t think it is impossible for this to happen. It’s just more about bilateral relations and understanding.

I mean, looking at one side, the European market or consumer will be affected from this as well. There will a lot of pressure from the consumer’s side, as when prices of fish go up, it’s not just us carrying the burden, but also the consumers. So I think there will be a lot of pressure.

I think there will be a lot of pressure because when you look at Europe, people are more educated and want these kinds of niche products.

Maldives is the only country that doesn’t catch by-catch fish. We are dolphin free. We are catching one by one. We are the most green fisheries industry in the world, in fact. So I am sure the consumers in the European market would like to get something from this side of the world which is more green and environmental friendly.

There is no reason why it can’t be done. I think as an Islamic country – a Muslim country – we have worked together well in the past. There’s no reason why we can’t.

MM: Being a low lying island state, the Maldives is vulnerable to adverse effects of climate change. What do you see as the threats of climate change to the fishing industry? Is the ministry taking any steps to counter them?

MS: I think what we have felt in the past is actually part of this changing of the climate. And for us, it would be the change in the temperature of the surface water. Because we are very environmentally friendly fishermen who catch fish from the surface waters.

If the surface water gets a bit hot, then the fish swims deeper. So we need to penetrate through that layer of the ocean to get access to the fish. That is why we have already introduced long line fishing. That is to diversify from just one way of fishing.

Again, we will be very vulnerable if we commit to just one form of fishery. It is a good sign that in terms of income, we are meeting expectations by value in yellowfin and skipjack fishery. So we already have diversified into two forms of fishing. This is one of the ideas.

Another idea or another front we are working on is mariculture and aquaculture, which also is a way to minimise the impacts on the natural fishery that we have. This is because, from what we have seen, it is more seasonal, – about a ten year cycle. But even in those times, to reduce the impact of climate related issues, we need to diversify fisheries. That is what they policy is.

MM: What are the main challenges besides environmental, faced by the fishing industry, as well as the ministry, and what are the state’s plans to deal with them?

MS: The biggest challenge is actually the budget. As you know, over the years, the government has acquired a lot of debt. And that is a challenge for the government and one of our pledges is that by the third year we will get rid of the debt.

So during these two years, it will be harder to fund any of the projects from the government’s side, so we have to find innovative ways to do so. And that we are already doing. I mean, the ministry’s plan has not decreased because we don’t have sufficient funds. But there are ways we can do this. And that’s why the government’s plan is to enable the industry to become a more vibrant industry rather than the government doing business.

So we have already given up on a lot of the businesses that we do, and we are promoting that the private partners should come and invest, and we will give them concessions so that we work in hand in hand to get what is required.

So the biggest challenge, I think, for the ministry, the government and the whole country, is the cash flow issue and the tightness of the budget.

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Government coalition reveals Majlis election plan – Adhaalath excluded

The government’s coalition announced on Sunday that it had finished dividing seats for the upcoming parliamentary elections between the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA), and the Jumhooree Party (JP).

According to the coalition, the PPM will be contesting in 49 areas, the JP in 28, and the MDA in 8.

PPM Deputy Leader Abdul Raheem stated that the division had gone according to the initial agreements made within the coalition during the presidential election.

He acknowledged that the parties had failed to get some of the seats that they requested, but affirmed that all seats had been allocated after much deliberation between party leaders.

He stated that special attention had been given to parties with incumbent parliamentarians in order that they could hold on to those constituencies.

“The areas have been decided upon as per the agreement of all three parties. To be honest, there wasn’t much debate. Everyone took care to make decisions in a manner that had least negative affect on the coalition, and would assist in getting us the most number of seats,” he is quoted as saying in local media.

Raheem had his phone switched off at the time of press.

Parties free to give seats to Adhaalath: PPM

The ruling party stated that, while religious conservative Adhaalath Party (AP) was excluded from the coalition’s Majlis plan, the parties are free to give the AP seats from those allocated to them.

Abdul Raheem informed local media that coalition parties will discuss the matter in the near future.

“In reality, Adhaalath is not an official part of this Progressive Coalition. So the parties’ idea is to give them what we can from the seats which have been allocated to us,” he stated.

He further stated that Adhaalath had made some requests of the coalition, adding that all of them cannot be fulfilled. He declined from providing details of the request.

“As far as I am aware, JP is considering giving some seats to the AP. The number of seats, or from where, has not been decided yet,” JP Secretary General Hassan Shah told Minivan News today.

JP acting secretary general Dr Mohamed Saud said that he was unable to talk at the time of press.

Adhaalath hopeful of inclusion

The Adhaalath Party, which has previously raised concerns of being excluded from the coalition’s plans, remained hopeful of inclusion – even if via separate parties in the coalition.

“We are still in the hope that the coalition will give us some seats. Now, it is true that we are not an official partner that joined the coalition under share agreements like the JP did. So it cannot be termed as contesting via a separate coalition party even if it is not the full coalition that is giving us seats,” AP Spokesperson Ali Zahir said.

“Of course, there is a limit to what we will accept. If it is way below expectations, then we will not accept it and will proceed to contest separately. I am hopeful that a reasonable solution can be found. We will only know this once the discussions are set into motion,” he explained.

The AP has previously announced that it has members possessing masters or doctorate level qualifications interested in running in 32 different constituencies.

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Adhaalath fears exclusion from coalition’s Majlis election plan

The religious conservative Adhaalath Party has voiced concerns that, despite it’s assistance in the presidential elections of 2013, the government coalition is failing to include the party in its allocation of constituencies for the upcoming parliamentary elections.

A senior council member of Adhaalath Party (AP) – who wished to remain unnamed – told Minivan News that the party has been excluded from seat allocation discussions currently being held between the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and its coalition partners the Jumhooree Party (JP) and the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA).

A representative of the PPM has explained that discussions are first being held with those parties engaged in official agreements with President Yameen’s party before considering electoral arrangements with the religious party.

He alleged that the parties have been in discussions for the past two days while Adhaalath, despite having candidates interested in contesting for 32 constituencies, awaits a response from the group.

“Although there are candidates interested in running for 32 areas, we will understand if the coalition is able to give us somewhat fewer slots. While we are willing to come to an agreement with the coalition on the number of areas to run in, the coalition has so far not given us any opportunity to engage in such a discussion,” he stated.

According to the council member, should the coalition fail to leave sufficient time for campaigning before reaching a decision, the AP will contest separately in the polls.

He further opined that the AP “might be the single party that is bringing out the most number of extremely qualified candidates, with almost all of them having educational qualifications of Masters or Doctorate level”.

AP Spokesperson Ali Zahir confirmed to Minivan News that the party has so far not had any official communication from the coalition regarding the matter.

“We have not yet come to an absolute decision that the coalition is completely cutting us out. We are still awaiting a response from them, which I think will happen after they allocate seats to the parties with whom they already have written agreements. If, however, the coalition does not wish to cooperate with us, we will contest – even if separately,” Zahir explained.

Will consider including AP: PPM

Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP Ahmed Nihan stated that he had learned of the AP’s interest in running in the parliamentary elections approximately a week ago, and that he had conveyed the message to decision makers within the party.

“The thing is, the PPM has official coalition agreements with the JP and MDA. The AP did not join us on an agreement basis. So we can only consider options of sharing seats with AP after we manage to come to an agreement with JP and MDA,” Nihan said.

“The AP usually just communicates with the ruling party through Islamic Minister Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed, who acts as a middleman. This should not remain so, there must be official communication between the two parties. I will need to check if they have even submitted an official letter asking for coalition cooperation in the parliamentary elections,” he continued.

“After the November 10 elections, the AP came to meet with our then presidential candidate, incumbent President Abdulla Yameen. They said then that they wished to back Yameen and that they would do so without setting any conditions for the agreement. This is why they are excluded from the agreements on the upcoming election,” Nihan said.

“So the thing is, we will first agree upon which seats will be divided between PPM, JP and MDA. As you know, the coalition agreement with JP agrees to give them 33% of the constituencies,” Nihan continued.

“As for the MDA, we have a far too close relationship with them. To use a metaphor, they are a party that married us without dowry. Due to the close nature of the relationship between MDA leader Siyam and Yameen, there are no written agreements between us. But they will be allocated seats as the two parties have never had any friction,” Nihan said.

AP Spokesperson Zahir said that he had no comments to make on the MDA getting seats despite not having a written agreement like the AP, saying “in any case, AP will never be treated like the MDA is treated. We will reveal our thoughts on the matter when the time comes”.

Nihan stated that he hoped the coalition would meet with the AP and come to an agreement, so as not to disadvantage the coalition.

President Yameen has previously called on the AP to contest alongside the coalition, as running separately may lead to vote splitting – benefiting the political opposition.

Earlier in January, the PPM had claimed discussions had been initiated with the AP regarding parliamentary elections, though the AP claims that no official talks have been held to date.

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Too much fish, too little pay: Fishing industry facing rapid state-initiated changes

The past twelve months have brought good news and bad to those in the fishing industry.

The new administration of President Abdulla Yameen came to power with special pledges targeted for fishermen – but fishermen also harbour concerns that the Malé City Council is in the process of imposing regulations on the capital’s fish market, run up to now as local fishmongers have seen fit.

While, according to the Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture Dr Mohamed Shainee, the average amount of catch has generally increased in the past year, fishermen worry that rising cost of ice, fuel, and even labour, are causing a rapid rise in the costs of managing a fishing vessel.

Minivan News has spoken to local fishermen and the authorities concerned in an attempt to better understand the challenges currently faced by the fishing industry – a major component of the Maldivian economy and society.

In 2012, government records show that over 120,000 metric tonnes of fish were caught in the Maldives, with over 10,000 fishermen registered.

Many fishermen expressed worry that the state was introducing new rules and regulations which challenged the old habits of those who frequent the fish market.

“I personally am scared by the suspicion that all these changes are to do more with political power struggles than any sincere wishes of good will for us fisherfolk,” said 52 year old seller Abdul Kareem.

Insurance or cash handout?

When campaigning for the 2013 presidential election, Yameen pledged to provide a monthly allowance of MVR10,000 (US$648) a month to every fisherman, regardless of catch.

He later revised the pledge with numerous conditions. It was soon announced that the allowance would be paid under an insurance scheme, in which fishermen must pay the state a guarantee fee on good months in order to be eligible for an allowance during the lean months. Provisions were also added concerning the type of fishing conducted, with not all fishermen qualifying for the sum.

While Fisheries Minister Shainee said in November that the guarantee fee would amount to MVR500 on ‘good’ months, Yameen stated in January that the monthly fee would be no larger than MVR80-90.

“I voted for Yameen specifically because of this pledge. I’ve lost faith in him now that he has gone back on his word,” said fisherman Ali Mahir, selling plankton outside of the fish market.

“It’s gone from an allowance to insurance. Next it will become a loan. How is this good for us?” Faheem, another fisherman, said.

Skipjack fisherman Easa Mahmood, however, felt that the insurance would prove beneficial in the long term.

“While there is so much confusion at the moment, I believe this will be good in the long run. With the changing seasons, there are months where we absolutely cannot make ends meet. There are thousands of fishermen. This is possibly the only feasible way for a poor government like ours to assist us,” Mahmood said.

The fisheries minister explained that the current government aimed to make the industry a self-sustaining one, which does not depend on subsidies in the long run.

“We will hopefully begin implementation of the insurance scheme by March. We need to make a unique register of all fishermen for this purpose and are currently in the process of doing so,” he stated.

Rising overhead costs

“The price of fish is going steadily down, and the cost of fuel and ice keeps increasing daily. I don’t know for how long I’ll be able to take my crew for fishing,” said Ahmed Fizan from Haa Dhaalu Atoll.

Many other fellow fishermen echoed Fizan’s concerns. One explained that he had built a larger boat to be able to better cater to growing demand from resorts, but was now worried that he may not be able to continue running the business owing to low buying prices and high cost of fuel and labour.

“It’s true that we are able to catch so much fish these days – the yield is high. But ice costs so much, how can we preserve them for sale? In the end, we end up selling them underpriced and at a loss. It’s ridiculous,” Kareem said.

While the minister, Shainee, assured that he was working towards resolving these issues – with plans to build additional ice plants – he argued that larger vessels may be unsustainable due to fluctuating prices of oil on global markets.

“However, even if indirectly, the state is trying to assist fishermen on the front of rising fuel prices too. Even in President Yameen’s recent official visit to India, he deliberated on ways to get easier access to fuel at cheaper rates,” Shainee said.

He stated that, though the government did not believe that provision of subsidies is a solution, it is exploring other forms of helping fishermen adapt to more sustainable models of business.

Meanwhile, the managing director of state-run Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO) rejected claims that the price of fish is decreasing.

“The price has remained constantly at about MVR18 to 20 per kilo. We do not decide on the prices unilaterally, rather it depends on the buying rate on the global market,” Dr Abdulla Shaheed explained.

“We have never had our own fleet of fishermen. All the fish we acquire for our products are bought directly from random local fishermen, based on availability. We always give them the best possible price,” he said.

The fisheries minister acknowledged that, while the country is facing difficulties with the EU market, the government was currently exploring new markets, including Arab countries.

Fish market

Further changes to the industry come from the decision of Malé City Council – with municipal rights over the capital’s only fish market – to introduce licenses in order to use the premises for selling their catch.

While Shainee claimed that a nominal fee may be charged in releasing licenses, Malé Mayor ‘Maizan’ Ali Manik denied the new license would add to fishermen’s financial burden.

“This is something that we have been attempting to do for a while, and yet kept on getting delayed. We at the council finally decided that we must complete this task. We opened up for bids, and finally made a contract with a company called Ocean Emperor to develop the market,” said Manik.

“The fish is often kept on the floor to be sold, so numerous times we have installed benches there to be used for this purpose. However, the fishermen dislike change, and the benches end up being damaged and vandalised. I decided to do this at any cost. That even if the benches we have kept there most recently gets vandalized, I’ll just start over again,” he continued.

Indeed, one displeased fish seller described the new measures to Minivan News as unnecessarily complicating things.

“For decades, we have sold fish at this very market and there have been no complaints. Why does the government suddenly feel a need to interfere?” complained Gafoor.

“We’ve been coming here to sell fish all our lives. We are doing fine by ourselves. We don’t need police and authorities to get involved and tell us what to do. We can sort our own problems and co-habit here,” said another seller.

Mayor Manik also revealed that the World Health Organization and the Food and Drug Authority had expressed concerns about the low quality of fish being sold at the market.

Manik claimed that the regulations would bring an end to foreigners reselling fish at the market, as licenses will only be given to Maldivians. He further said that all fishmongers will be mandated to undergo a biannual health checkup.

He further claimed that new regulations for fishmongers have been drafted – together with penalties for those who breach them – and that it will be effect tentatively from February 6. City Council staff will be then be monitoring the market with the assistance of police.

“I want citizens to be able to buy good quality fish. I will try to do so as long as there is life in me.”

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Home Minister Umar Naseer orders preparations for death penalty

Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer has released an order on the Maldives Correctional Services mandating the implementation of the death penalty.

“I order the Maldives Correctional Services [MCS] to implement the death penalty – as sentenced by the Supreme Court – through the use of lethal injection, and to make all necessary arrangements for the implementation of such sentences, and to obtain all necessary equipment for the implementation and maintain the set-up at the Maafushi Prison,” read the order signed by Naseer and made public at a press conference today.

The home minister’s decision comes just days after a death sentence was handed to Hussain Humam Ahmed on charges of murdering the moderate religious scholar and MP Dr Afrasheem Ali in October 2012.

The order was received by MCS Commissioner of Prisons Ahmed Shihan at today’s event.

Naseer stated that the order is in alignment with the draft bill on death penalty implementation which the state has made ready for submission to the parliament. He confirmed that advice had been sought from the attorney general prior to the signing of the order.

“We will not wait for laws to be drafted and passed. The law allows for implementation, and it is at the discretion of the home minister to order implementation,” Naseer said, adding that – should a relevant law be passed in the future – the state would then abide by the new laws.

Implementation only after appeals

The home minister further stated that the death penalty will be implemented only after all appeal processes are exhausted. If the sentenced fails to appeal his case, the state itself will initiate all avenues of appeal prior to the implementation of the sentence, he added .

Naseer said that while the order applies to all pending death sentences, and not just the ones that come after the issuance of the order, the state will not seek to expedite any of the existing appeal cases.

“The government will not interfere with the work of the judiciary, either to expedite or slow down a process. The bottom line is, the death penalty will only be implemented once all the appeal processes are completed,” he stated.

“Regulations on how this penalty will be implemented have already been compiled. Media will have access to the centre of implementation, but not will be allowed inside. The MCS now must run training programs for those who will be involved in this work and they will also begin work on establishing the necessary set up,” he continued.

“While this order does not detail a specific deadline for completion of this task, the MCS will have everything ready by the time we will need to implement such a sentence.”

The minister added that, in the case of minors sentenced to death, “I think the rule is to wait till they turn eighteen for implementation of the sentence. It will be done in accordance with international treaties we have signed”.

Naseer stated that, as Home Minister, he would need to sign a specific order to authorise the execution of each individual person sentenced to death.

A source at the Home Ministry stated that, although there are approximately twenty individuals currently sentenced to death, all cases are being appealed at the High Court and have not yet reached the Supreme Court.

Background

While death sentences continue to be issued in the country, these have traditionally been commuted to life sentences by presidential decree since the execution of Hakim Didi in 1954 for the crime of practising black magic.

In May last year, the UN country team called for the abolition of death penalty in the Maldives, stating: “in view of the country’s more than 50 year moratorium, the United Nations call upon the Maldives to take the opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to its international human rights obligations, and abolish the death penalty”.

Earlier in 2013, calls for presidential clemency to be blocked resulted in then Attorney General Azima Shakoor asking the High Court to decide upon the matter.

Azima further drafted a bill in December 2012 favouring the implementation of the penalty via lethal injection. This was met with opposition from religious groups including Jamiyathul Salaf, which called for the draft to be amended in favour of beheadings or firing squads.

In June 2013, Dhivehi Qaumee Party MP Riyaz Rasheed submitted a bill asking for death penalty to be implemented by hanging. The bill was rejected by 26 votes to 18, with no abstentions.

During campaigns for 2013 presidential elections, incumbent President Abdulla Yameen stated that “murder has to be punished with murder”. Yameen revealed that, although he was previously not an advocate of the death penalty, he “had a change of heart” due to “murders that have become too commonplace”.

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Q&A: Minister of Tourism Ahmed Adeeb

Minister of Tourism Ahmed Adeeb Abdul Ghafoor speaks to Minivan News about his mandate, his aspirations for his five year term in the cabinet position, and his political career.

Adeeb served in the same cabinet post during the previous administration of former President Dr Mohamed Waheed. He is also currently the elected Deputy Leader of ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM).

Political Career

Mariyath Mohamed: What are the main things you hope to achieve in these five years as Tourism Minister?

Ahmed Adheeb: As you know, I initially became Tourism Minister in the last government, with the endorsement of PPM, with about two years left of the term when I assumed office. At the time, we worked to complete some of the then-existing work, for example completion of the Fourth Tourism Masterplan.

There were also many other legislative issues. As an example there is the case where tourist resorts were being formed under the old law on uninhabited islands. Then there were other resorts which had not been completed as agreed, and many islands from which the government was not receiving due payments. I believe that I was able to sort out a lot of issues like this.

At the time, it was not a PPM agenda that we were following, and the government was a rather large mix. Our aim at the time was to sustain tourism. As you know tourism is a sector which is very much connected to the country’s economy. When I assumed office, the political turbulence had caused the cancellation of many bookings, including charter flights from China. Maldives is a place which usually has bookings made two or three months ahead of the estimated date of arrival, and so booking cancellations mean that the rate of arrivals were dropping.

I came and made a set up to deal with the issue. The civil service team at the Tourism Ministry has a lot of experienced personnel with long term institutional memory. They have a lot of practical experience, for example in how they tackled the 2004 tsunami disaster and the effects of the Gulf War, and many other such incidences.

As I see it, I assumed office in the middle of a crisis too, so I pulled together the crisis management team and we made a cell to deal with the matter. We had the resorts report back to us on a daily basis with records of how many booking they had made and how many bookings had got cancelled every single day. We used this as a barometer at the time, and commenced work. I went to the ITB fair in Germany as well as the WTM in London and held press conferences.

I believe it is crucial to face press and respond to their enquiries. At that time, the opposition was raising its voice, accusing us of having come to power through a coup d’etat and we addressed those allegations. What I mean by that is, I pointed out that a Commission of National Inquiry had been established with Commonwealth intervention on mutual agreement and called on the opposition to not draw conclusions while the investigation was pending. I called on them to give us time until the investigation was completed. And in any case, I don’t believe tourism must come to an end regardless of the political volatility, as it is something closely knit with the livelihood of all Maldivian citizens and the country’s economy. We said that more than a political agenda, our focus is on marketing tourism. It was well accepted and if you check headlines from then you will find our interviews in the Telegraph and other such news agencies.

I believe we were able to sustain the tourism industry within those two years. In 2012, I worked hard to reach a target of 1 million tourist arrivals, but were able to reach 965,000. However, last year we reached the target. I am happy with the 1.2 million arrivals, I believe we were able to reach a good target.

This government has recently come into effect and as PPM’s deputy leader, I too did a lot of work on our manifesto, mainly on the economic sector. Our plan is to create three special economic zones, and to develop even the tourism sector through these. The model in mid-Maldives, of Malé and the atolls connected within the seaplane’s zone, is a very ideal one to be replicated in North and South of the country. This can only be achieved by building certain infrastructure in these zones. A law on economic zones needs to be drafted.

Additionally, we need to explore what needs to be done to implement what is in the Tourism Masterplan. Whether we should increase beds, and how to do that, and so on. As you know, the current bed capacity of the country is 25,000 and I believe this needs a fast-paced increase. During the new year season, there was a fall of about 2000 beds due to overbooking. There’s also the Chinese New Year. So I believe we need to very quickly increase bed capacity, whether it be in resorts, city hotels or other new products.

I especially want to also note that the real estate market in Maldives is also something we can promote through tourism.

MM: After having previously worked in the Maldives Customs Services, and then the Chamber of Commerce, how did you enter the political arena?

AA: I worked in the Air Cargo department of Maldives Customs Services for three years. During my time there, I became familiar with trade and import. All imports into Maldives, including even seafood, is usually brought in by air freight. I became familiarised with trade and at the time decided to go abroad for further studies.

After completion of my degree, I worked in stock exchange in Sri Lanka. I then completed my Masters programme, returned to the Maldives and worked in private consultations. In 2009, on invitation of the existing board of Chamber of Commerce, I contested for a post on its board of directors. I served as a board member then, and as its treasurer. I stayed there since about 2011.

I believe that as people who research the economy, we all have our views and certain set principles on everything, including privatisation, foreign exchange, and how an economy must be moulded. That, I believe, is our ideology. I believe in openness, Maldives is a very open country. Maldives cannot develop at its best unless it is opened up for investments and we need to bring about certain economical reforms.

If we look at the last five years, it is mostly political reforms that have been brought, and that too at a very fast pace. Meaning, for example, we can now say Maldives is one of the countries where press freedom is granted most openly. However, in an economical perspective, reforms have not been brought yet. Being a country with a low population and with low savings, foreign investments are very important.

In that sense, the Chamber of Commerce is a very political organisation internally, in that we fight for businessmen’s rights, and lobby for changes. I was involved in this, and was often invited to TV shows and other media programmes. I often did research for various businesses, and this always includes economic research of the Maldives. With these updates, I was always outspoken about any issues we may have with the policies of the government then in power. I have always given opinions on these matters to media in my own name. For example, when the government implemented the change in dollar rates, I revealed my view in my own name in the media. Our prediction proved more true than the estimates of the government’s policy makers at the time, for example they were unable to solve the foreign currency issue by the introduction of a dollar band. We said even then that it was a wrong step and called on them to reverse the decision.

Although I am junior by age, I have conducted a lot of research and work. For example, back when current President [Abdulla] Yameen was in People’s Alliance, I did a lot of technical work for the party, including budget reviews, analysis, and providing details of these to the party’s parliamentarians. I used to debate a lot on economical matters with Yameen at the time. He is a very academic and technical person in the field.

It then led to Yameen inviting me to take on the responsibilities of a cabinet minister during the change in government in 2012. I responded that I cannot take on responsibilities of a cabinet minister unless it is in my field of expertise, i.e in the business area. That I would not know how to handle something like the health or education sector. That if it was in the business sector, I would know well to take policy decisions. So I accepted the post of tourism minister and took it as a challenge. I was 29 years of age then.

Many friends and family members advised me to not take up the position, owing to the political atmosphere of the time. However, as I see it, it is very easy to stand outside and criticise matters. But when one has to actually implement things within the legal framework, it is a completely different experience.

Every decision we must make in a position like this is a tough one, but needs to be taken firmly. It is impossible to please everyone with any decision we make. We must also be able to digest criticism levied against us by media or other sources.

There are certain things I have observed since I assumed this post. Cabinet ministers are policy makers. The policies we decide on must be implemented by the civil service, but it is the Permanent Secretary that will deal with the day to day management of civil servants. I will not engage in the hiring and firing of civil servants. I distinguish between the two.

The other thing is I believe every tourism minister must maintain good public relations. We cannot solve the existing issues without building rapport with all investors. I work to understand their concerns, and to get win-win results for the government through the understanding of these concerns. And in that way I gained their acceptance.

I also always ask elders and more experienced persons for advice, including policy makers and former presidents. I believe in treating them respectfully.

A lot of people were of the mindset that I would not be up for this challenge as I was appointed at such a young age. I took it up as a challenge and have been careful in my work. This is because I realise that if I fail, it will reflect not just on me alone, but there will be a reluctance to appoint young ministers in the future.

I do get a lot of criticism, but I believe getting criticism from the opposition is a success in its own right. I also strongly believe that criticism that comes for my decisions is not out of a dislike of me personally, but something that comes along with the cabinet position. So I take it all professionally, as it is an indication that I am doing something right. I have always been told that one will have enemies if they stand up for something.

I don’t differentiate between people of different political ideologies. I believe a person’s political affiliation is a very personal thing and we must be willing to work alike with everyone. I have been trained in politics through the democratic system, and so find it easy to handle the criticism and work through it all.

MM: How do you currently manage time between fulfilling the responsibilities of being both a cabinet minister, as well as the Deputy Leader of PPM?

AA: A deputy leader of a party is also a policy maker there. If the party’s president is unable to attend councils or larger committee meetings, I chair them. Council meetings are normally held once a month unless there is an election approaching. But in these we just decide on policies.

I always differentiate between policy making and implementation. Once we decide on policies to observe, and for example ways to obtain funds, it is the office staff and volunteers who will then work to implement these. I never micromanage things. So it is easy to manage time at a policy making level.

The difficulties arise because once you become a high level politician, either in state level or party level, a lot of individual citizens want to contact you directly. It is often difficult to respond to them in a timely manner, but I do attempt to call them back even if later. But I believe that this is something I need to improve on.

MM: Are you able to fulfill both responsibilities at your best capacity?

AA: I believe I do. If you ask other party members, or council members or parliamentarians, they too will tell you that since I adopted this position as deputy leader, I have taken up huge responsibilities within the party. Even if you ask the former president of other cabinet colleagues, they will tell you that I am a man who always stands up and remains firm even during difficult times and through chaotic times. As I see it, you have to be courageous in taking up responsibilities, and should not shy away from the repercussions that come your way.

MM: What are your future plans for your political career?

AA: A lot of people ask me that. I am only turning 32 this year. I am definitely not a presidential candidate. Even in 2013, a lot of people asked me if I was going to be a running mate or candidate of some party or other. I responded even then that I am not that ambitious. I only consider things as they come to me through given opportunity. I don’t proactively look for positions. My political career will be built on the next five years. Implementation of our economic policies is a huge dream of ours, and that is what will give me the most satisfaction. I see the achievement of this dream as far more important to me than attempting to get higher positions than the one I am in now. This is also the party president’s vision.

As I see it, we have only recently gained the opportunity to show our own results. It is through the results that we manage to show in these five years that my political career, too, will be shaped.

The country has a huge youth population. While there was a difference of opinions when I was appointed during the former administration, due to my young age. But Yameen well understands that with the huge youth population in this nation, it will be difficult to develop the country without youth inclusion.

What I have to say to youth is, if you have a dream, show your capacity and exploit your potential. Being a country with a small population, there is a lot of vast opportunity here.

Section Two: Tourism Policies

MM: The current cabinet is split into economic and social councils. What are your responsibilities on the Economic Council and which other colleagues sit on it?

AA: The economic council has five ministers, including the youth minister and is chaired by the President. I am the co-chair.

There is a Social Council and the Economic and Youth Council. Even in previous governments, there were separate committees, but the cabinet also met on a regular basis, which led to these committees meeting less frequently. But as the president wants to reach results at a fast speed, he holds the council meetings every single day. I believe that with about ten years of cabinet experience, this initiative by the president adds to added effectiveness and better time management. Now each cabinet minister can better focus on matters that directly involve them.

However, on major issues that involve the full cabinet, there are full cabinet meetings.

MM: What are the government’s plans for establishing guest islands? Are these to be on uninhabited islands alone? What then is the distinguishing factor between a guest island and a tourist resort?

AA: Yes, it is targeted mostly to uninhabited islands. The thing is, it is a huge infrastructure investment to build a tourist resort. It becomes an expensive place to go to when they invest in water set-ups, sewerage systems and all before building rooms. We at advanced stages of making a model where we are speaking with MWSC to make water set-ups, sewerage systems and electricity set ups in an island, after which we can give plots to individual businessmen. For example, common restaurants can be managed by one party, water sports by another party, twenty rooms by one company, another twenty rooms by another company and so on. In that way, we are creating numerous businesses there. We are planning to introduce this as a test model to see if many mid level businesses can co-exist and run a guest island in this manner. MWSC is already on board to set up the utilities, and the businesses will just need to pay monthly bills to them.

While it will be difficult for a small business to invest in a full resort, there are many small and midlevel businesses that can invest in small sections of an island. We can even replicate this in uninhabited areas of large inhabited islands. First we intend to test this on an uninhabited island. We plan to begin implementation around March this year.

MM: The government has also recently announced that permits to run guesthouses will only be given if the said guesthouse is to be built on an island with existing water and sewerage systems. Will this cause more income to islands which are already somewhat developed, while marginalising less developed islands which may perhaps even be better suited for tourism in other manners?

AA: There is a lot of confusion around this matter. There are four tourism sectors: tourist resorts, tourist hotels, guest houses, and yacht marinas. Under the Tourism Law, tourists are not allowed to spend nights at any place other than places registered under one of these sectors. This is not to say that one cannot invite a friend to stay over at their house, but it cannot be done commercially. This is also for the protection of tourists as well.

We often get proposals to build city hotels. What we are saying is, how can you build a city hotel without an investor also building a sewerage and water system there. How can it be managed otherwise?

What we are encouraging is for people like those councils from large islands that ask for state land to be leased to build a city hotel to also condition investors to build utility systems there. The opposition is, however, often confusing this with the guesthouse licenses which we already do authorise.

Under a law, we have to authorise the opening of guesthouses on any private land as long as it fits in with the set guidelines. Former President Nasheed had released about twenty licenses, and even I have released about a 160 licenses since then. That is going steadily forward and we encourage it.

We even assist in solving any issues that may have. For example, to assist the guesthouse community in Hulhumalé, we authorised some cars to carry tourists from the airport to Hulhumalé over the connecting road. Even in Maafushi, we have addressed many issues.

The thing is, we just don’t talk about guesthouses so much. The thing is, from a marketing perspective, we have positioned the Maldives as a high-end destination. A-category guests will continue coming for as long as we market the country as an A-category destination. Guests for B,C,D and E categories are something we automatically get. Even guesthouses are able to get guests to stay for 80 or 90 dollars because Maldives is marketed as a high end destination and for guests it is a dream come true to be able to stay here for that price. If the government begins to market tourism at guest house level, this will drop down drastically. This is the strategy we employ.

Even locally, culturally, people get disheartened when we talk about guesthouses. So although I don’t much talk about it, guesthouse owners are aware that they have my full cooperation. The circular was meant to let investors know that it is feasible to run a 20 room hotel only if the utility services are also set in place.

MM: What is the implication of the cancellation of charging bed tax, which has been in effect from January 1? What is the government’s plan of action to make up for this loss in revenue?

AA: The bed tax is supposed to be cancelled from January 1 this year, but this is not considered when the budget is expanded. We are asking for an extension until June.

Normally, budget and government revenue earning bills are passed together. But here, the parliament goes into recess after passing the budget, leaving the income bills pending for after that. And even then, they often just fail.

This causes the budget to expand, but there’s no way for the government to earn enough to implement it. The T-GST [Tourist Goods and Services Tax] matters even more to the state income. The state keeps expanding, the allowances and salaries keep increasing, but the income for all of this still depends on the 25,000 tourist beds. Unless we expand this, how can we increase what we earn? We can’t keep expanding the state, and then squeezing the existing tourism sector without expanding it.

MM: As a low lying island state, do you think climate change is a serious threat to the Maldives, and may have large adverse effects on tourism? Does this ministry have any existing plans to deal with these effects?

AA: After the 2004 tsunami, the country now has a good response system to disaster. Each resort has a high rise shelter in case of such an emergency and evacuation plans for all guests to see. The tourism sector, in developing resorts, pays attention to sustainable development and prioritises the environment.

The current government does not believe Maldives needs to be a guinea pig for the climate change cause. I mean, it is not the Maldives that conducts activities which are harmful to the environment.

However, we cannot go around saying Maldives will sink in 20 years and then ask for investments of 50 years in the tourism sector. This causes investors to be reluctant to invest in the Maldives. We do not believe we are at risk of suddenly sinking and think in a perspective of protecting investments.

Although we don’t speak about this at a marketing level, we do want to make Maldives a model in sustainability. We do take action on the matter though we do not speak of it much at a marketing level. We do not want investors to lose confidence, so we cannot do both. Let us first develop to this stage.

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Q&A: MP Ahmed Easa – Kendhikulhudhoo constituency

In a series of interviews to lead into the the 2014 parliamentary elections – scheduled for March 22nd – Minivan News will be conducting interviews with incumbent MPs.

All 77 sitting members have been contacted, from across the political spectrum, to be asked a standardised set of questions with additional topicals. The interviews will be published as and when they are received.

As part of the series, Minivan News interviewed MP Ahmed Easa.

MP Easa represents the Kendhikulhudhoo constituency of Noonu Atoll and is from opposition Maldivian Democratic Party.

Mariyath Mohamed: What made you enter the political arena and how?

Ahmed Easa: My maternal family has always been a political family. My maternal uncle Tholhendhoo Hassan Gasim even spent time in detention as a political prisoner during Maumoon’s [former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom] regime and was tortured then. Hassan Gasim was my guardian after my mother passed away. So from a young age I was exposed to political discussions. Hassan Gasim also served as island chief for about 40 years, and even as Atoll Chief for Noonu Atoll. He even received an Award of Honour from the state for his practice of traditional medicine. He was quite popular in the North, and this led to many high level political discussions happening in my house at the time.

From a young age I was exposed to the truth of the torture and injustice that was a norm in Gayoom’s regime, and so from a young age I disliked Maumoon’s leadership.

I grew up and joined the tourist resort industry. I had the good fortune to get many opportunities to work abroad within the luxury hotel industry, which resulted in my getting to meet numerous famous personalities, including politicians, leaders of various nations. I also became aware of the levels to which citizens of other countries had their human rights protected and civilian rights respected. While I have not been able to acquire academic credentials in the field of politics, various experiences led to my knowledge of the area being quite strengthened.

And then after I came back to work in the Maldives, the Employee Act was formed, and tourist sector employees were completely removed from having these rights. With our background knowledge of labour rights in other parts of the world, we could not at all tolerate this injustice. So, along with other long term colleagues, we set out to obtain the rights we were entitled to. Our belief was that if we were not able to find a solution to this matter ahead of the 2008 presidential elections, it would later prove doubly hard to accomplish our goals. This is because, as you know, it is easiest to get the attention of politicians at times when there is an election looming closely ahead.

So we exerted a lot of pressure to amend the law. We met with all the parliamentarians, the cabinet and other government authorities. We submitted the largest local petition to date, with signatures of over 10,000 tourism sector employees. And even then we were not able to get a good enough response, and so we called for the country’s first industrial strike. We called for employees to halt work in all resorts of the Maldives, and received immense support. When work in resorts began to come to a halt, Gayoom asked then Minister of Legal Reform Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed to submit amendments to the parliament. I believe that was a huge accomplishment gathered with my leadership and the hard work of many others. I take pride in the fact that the association we formed is now stronger, and operating as an internationally recognized trade union under affiliation with international trade unions. While I am not on its leadership anymore, there are some very young capable persons leading it today.

The first purely political activity I engaged in was during the referendum on whether there should be a presidential or parliamentary system here. I actively led the campaign in Kendhikulhudhoo to elect a parliamentary system. I took leave from my work at the resort and even freelanced as a reporter for the publication known as Minivan News at the time. The regulation’s Article 21 said that the votes cast in any island must be counted at the island itself before the ballot box is shipped back to the capital. In many islands, things happened in contradiction to this act, with ballot boxes being sealed and sent out without being counted. I protested. I said that things have to be done as per the regulations. After some chaos and huge problems around the matter, the Elections Commission finally ordered the regulations to be followed in all islands.

Even at that point, I am a man who sticks to my principles. I enter anything after much consideration and thought. I only take up what I believe to be something that I must do. Once I do come out, I will work on the front lines. My belief is that once we set out to do something, there are only two possible results. One is to succeed, and the other is to fail. There are things we must accept both in our successes and failures.

For example, the recent presidential elections. I don’t accept how the matters around the election proceeded. I don’t believe it was a free and fair election. It can only be a free and fair election if the Elections Commission is able to practically have all the powers and authority granted to it by law in the conduct of an election. What I saw was that the past election was held by the Supreme Court, and not the Elections Commission. There are no laws that allow the Supreme Court to conduct an election, and so I don’t accept the way the elections were conducted.

However, although we did not win the polls, there are certain things that we did succeed in. One is that we were able to bring the Maldives out of the state of coup, and install an elected leader voted in by the people, regardless of how the elections were conducted. So we have accepted this. Our party believes it is a huge success that there is a government which came to power as a result of citizens being able to exercise their right to vote.

Even today I believe, the country is better suited to be run under a parliamentary system. I don’t think that the overlap between the three powers of state and the issues that arise as a result will still be present if we can better understand the governing system. I believe the political leaders must think about this today. One must not try to change the system once there is an election overhead, that will only lead to chaos. It must be well thought out and done in more peaceful times.

MM: Referring back to the association you have mentioned, what is your role in the formation of TEAM (Tourism Employees Association of Maldives) and do you still assist in its management at present?

AE: Like I said, we started working as a group to ascertain that we are entitled to our rights. It was not an easy job to get employees in over 90 resorts to sign the petition without us personally travelling to those islands. However, even the petition did not bring about the desired result. So we believed, after the advice of experienced persons, that it is through forming a trade union that we can advocate for our rights effectively. However, as it was not clear if we authorised to form such a union under then existing laws, we registered as an organisation. However, today it has changed into a trade union.

Today, my role is only advisory. And that too, I only provide advice if I am requested for it, and the association is not mandated to follow my advice. The trade union has a strong leadership today. As there may arise a matter of conflict of interest, they advised me to resign and stop attending board meetings from the point I got elected as an MP of then ruling party MDP.

MM: Based on your attendance and work in this ending term, how would you judge your performance as an MP?

AE: As I see it, the parliament is a hectic place, and one that carries serious responsibilities. I attempted to perform at my maximum capacity. I don’t think my attendance records will be too bad. Unless I am away on an official trip, or more recently out of Malé for a medical trip, I have rarely failed to attend any sessions. There have been instances where I have flown back on my own expenses from official trips in Europe just to participate in important votes in parliament. So as I see it, I paid a lot of attention to attending well. I have never missed any important votes taken in parliament.

I believe strongly in multi-party democracy and have always worked to uphold party values. I believe the work I conducted was rather good.

My attendance to committees is also very good. As the MDP member who simultaneously served on the most number of committees, there are some I might have missed due to overlapping meetings.

MM: What are the main committees you worked on? What particular bills did you focus on?

AE: I submitted numerous amendments to the Employees Act. I also submitted a bill regarding state expenditure, targeted to holding the state accountable. That bill has been passed and ratified now. That bill brings down the threat of the state going into debt regardless of which government comes to power in future. There are procedures under which state funds can be spent and loans can be taken included in this act and I believe it is a crucial piece of legislature in times as politically volatile as now.

Also other legislature like the Pre-school Act passed while I was the Chair of the National Development Committee. I did a lot of work as chair of that committee. If you do some research into it you will see that until I became chair of that committee, it had never before succeeded in completing draft of any bill and submitting it to the parliament floor.

I was in the National Development Committee, the Government Oversight Committee, the Disciplinary Committee and a temporary committee.

After the February 7 transfer of power, I focused strongly on the Government Oversight Committee as I believed it was one of the most important committees in session at the time. It is something deeply connected to citizens.

MM: What would you say are the biggest achievements within your term; in terms of what you have accomplished for your constituency and the country as a whole?

AE: In Noonu Atoll, one very sad truth is that we never see our elected MP except when elections near. Especially when Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom served as the MP for the constituency, people only see him during election time. I, for one, never saw Yameen except during election time. Before I myself got elected to parliament, the last time I had seen Yameen was just before the previous parliamentary election. We see him every five years.

One thing that citizens often said to me when I first contested is that they won’t see me either from the point I get elected. That I won’t be where I can hear their concerns again. I pledged then that I would change that norm.

Today, I can proudly say that of the six islands in my constituency, there isn’t a single one I haven’t visited at least twenty to twenty five times. I have walked down all main streets, talked to the people, and dropped by several houses during these visits.

The other thing is how much I have assisted people in various things. Besides my parliamentary work, the only thing I have spent time on is assisting people in my constituency in various things.

However it is the citizens who will decide if I have served them well enough, that is not for me to say. They will make that decision in the upcoming election. If I do not get re-elected, it means I haven’t visited those islands frequently enough. That the citizens want to see their parliamentarian more. If, however, I do get re-elected, I have room to believe that the people are satisfied with the work I have done. That I must strive to do even better in my next five years.

MM: What would you say is the biggest mistake or worst step you have taken in your political career? Why?

AE: Letting a vote in favour of Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb slip through my hands in the recent parliament vote to endorse Yameen’s cabinet. That is the biggest mistake of my political career, what I politically suffered for most.

MM: As what you have referred to was a cause for much public criticism, would you like to explain how you came about to commit what you have termed your biggest mistake?

AE: As I see it, it is something I cannot really give much explanation for. It is 100 percent my fault. The parliament is always a loud and chaotic place, especially during important votes such as this one. Once the members start shouting, it is hard to hear what the speaker is saying or anyone else is saying, even if they speak over the microphone. That is not any justification for having let that vote slip by. If I had been able to concentrate as much as I should have, then that vote would not have slipped through my hands.

This is a kind of mistake that should not have been made by someone of my political calibre. But it happened because it was so loud there and I misheard the name that was announced.

I myself wouldn’t believe it if someone else told me what I am today. Someone of my status should not have committed such a silly mistake, and yet is done. I am facing many political challenges due to it. I am also being criticised by the grassroot level of my party because of this. I respectfully accept it all, I do understand how they feel. I believe that I deserve a penalisation for my mistake. As an organisation, the party must penalise me for this mistake. MDP is the most democratic and strongest political party. To remain so, it must take action against those in responsible positions whose acts negatively affect the party, regardless of whether the act was unintentional or deliberate.

I believe I must be penalised. It is the party that will decide what the penalty will be.

I began my political career with MDP and will not work with any other political ideology. I believe the MDP leadership includes those most faithful to the country right now. I believe President Mohamed Nasheed is the most sincere political leader. I remain steadfast in my decision to stand behind him.

I have heard through social media that MDP is considering retracting parliamentary tickets from those that voted to endorse those cabinet ministers. If they do so, I will wholeheartedly accept their decision. By saying ‘accept’, I mean that if MDP does cancel my primary ticket, if I try there might be opportunities where I can contest through another party or even as an independent candidate. However, if the party does take that action against me, I assure you that I will neither defect to another party nor will I contest as an independent candidate. Additionally, I will back whichever candidate gets the ticket and will do what I can to assist him in his campaign.

What I mean to say is that I began my political career with MDP, and that I will end it with MDP.

MM: You have just said that a vote to endorse the Tourism Minister slipped through your hands. Does this mean that this is the only cabinet minister you voted in favour of that day?

AE: Yes. I have never voted against party lines in the past five years. Even in more important votes, votes which our political opposition tried far harder to succeed in, I have steadfastly voted in alignment with party lines.

I have never broken a party whip line, deliberately or mistakenly, except for this time. And even in this instance, it was only the Adheeb vote – I voted along party lines for everyone else.

MM: Are you taking the optional committee allowance of an additional MVR20,000? Why or why not?

AE: I never really supported it even when it was first spoken of. If I remember right, I did not even participate in the first vote that was taken regarding committee allowance. I don’t remember too well how I voted in the later vote on the matter.

As I remember, I voted in line with the majority of votes that day in parliament. This is something I often do. If the party gives us a free whip, I vote as the majority of the full parliament feels is best. I think this is one of the best policies of democracy, aligning with majority. Perhaps, by doing so, I might have acted in a way that led some citizens to be displeased. What I am saying is it is possible that 77 of us do something that may displease the 200,000 or 300,000 citizens of this country.

I cannot say for certain whether I voted for or against it, but I definitely would have voted in the way the majority did that day.

The committee allowance issue led to a lot of discord. I have often spoken in parliament of compiling a solid financial structure under which those in state positions get paid. I have always advocated that the same principles be applied when giving incentives and privileges to those serving in the three separate branches of the state.

For example, about MVR100,000 is being spent on a Supreme Court judge every month, which is a huge amount. With all our allowances, an MP is also paid about MVR 82,500 or 62,500 a month, which, yes, is a hefty amount. So what I am saying is, talking only about the incentives that an MP gets and ignoring judges and others in state positions will not bring the system into order. All of it needs to be addressed.

We cannot adapt a system where we have to spend more than what the state earns.

MM: What is your view about parliamentarians and other public servants declaring their financial assets publicly for the electorate to be able to refer to?

AE: When the Disciplinary Committee discussed about financial statements, MDP members advocated for it to be made public. But the DRP, PPM, and JP stopped it through a vote then. As I see it, citizens must be able to see the financial assets of politicians. It must be available publicly even on the parliament website.

That day, opposition members said to me that while I may not have any concerns about making financial statements public as I don’t engage in other businesses, they have family businesses which they don’t want out in the public eye. I accept that they might have family businesses, but I am not referring to those. I am saying that the person who must be accountable to the public must reveal his personal financial statement.

MM: Are you re-contesting in the next elections? Why? What do you hope to accomplish should you be elected for a new term?

AE: Yes, so far I have got the parliamentary ticket without a primary as no one else contested for the Kendhikulhudhoo constituency from MDP. If, like I said before, MDP does not retract my candidacy due to my mistake in the cabinet vote I will contest. But I will remain in serving the people through MDP.

Why am I re-contesting for Kendhikulhudhoo constituency? I have always said I will contest in two terms. I have always believed that it is for very good reason that many countries say that a president can serve for ten consecutive years maximum. While the constitution does not have any limitations on how many times a person can apply for reconstestation, I believe that after two terms we must allow younger new candidates to come out and face up to the challenge. This is what I intend to do.

MM: What improvements do you feel the 18th Majlis will need to make to improve as an institution?

AE: There are some administrative challenges that the parliament faces in running effectively. This year’s budget includes funds to complete the new parliament building, which I think is absolutely necessary.

There are also some bills that need to be completed for the Constitution to be fully in effect, and so far we have not been able to finish this work.

However, as someone who worked in parliament in five years, I must say that although the performance of many members on the parliament floor may not seem satisfactory to the general public, they do a lot of work in the committees, which is where the majority of our work is conducted anyway. It is a huge challenge to effectively do this work that we do not have sufficient space to conduct meetings in.

MM: What are your thoughts on party switching? Do you think it undermines the party system?

AE: As I see it, we cannot force anyone to remain in a party. The question that then arises is if we should narrow this habit of defection through a law. However, there is a Supreme Court verdict which clearly states that this cannot be done.

What is left to be considered is honesty and sincerity. A party is an ideology. I believe that it is people who do not have a strong political belief or ideology that switches parties. The only cure for this is for parties to focus on ensuring that it is people with strong political beliefs that they raise to positions.

I for one am saying clearly that I believe in the MDP ideology very strongly. I have no doubts about my political beliefs and will not change it. As long as MDP remains steadfast in upholding its current political principles, I will remain with it.

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PPM initiates discussions with Adhaalath Party to jointly contest elections

The ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) has initiated discussions with coalition partner, the religious conservative Adhaalath Party (AP), to jointly contest in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

While dismissing rumours of having left the government coalition, the AP has announced that it will be contesting in both the parliamentary and local council elections separately from the other coalition members.

The party has further announced that all of its parliamentary candidates will possess educational qualifications to a postgraduate level.

Last week, the AP announced that it had made no agreements regarding working together in the local council and parliamentary elections with the government coalition. Party spokesperson Ali Zahir informed local media that, having worked with the coalition to succeed in the second round of 2013’s presidential elections “without setting any conditions”, the party did not have any subsequent obligation in the upcoming elections.

He said that unlike the other parties in the coalition, the AP was not promised a specific percentage of slots to contest in the upcoming elections. While admitting that the separate candidates could give rise to complications in some constituencies, Zahir claimed that there was no misunderstanding between the party and its coalition members.

“While there were no discussions among the parties’ leadership, in most areas contestants came out after discussion with coalition members in that particular constituency. However, there are some areas in which there might be have been some clashes between who is contesting,” Zahir was quoted as saying.

On Saturday, AP leader Sheikh Imran Abdulla stated that, while the party had held discussions with the Jumhooree Party (JP) about contesting local council elections, no “meaningful or detailed discussions” had been held with the main coalition party PPM.

“When there is less than 24 hours left, and PPM still does not decide on the matter or speak with us about it, and we proceed to separately submit the candidacy form of our contestants, I don’t believe it can be termed as our initiative to separately contest,” Imran said then.

He stated that at an island-level, the parties still worked together, with a view to resolving matters amicably through inter-party deliberations. He too admitted that certain disappointment had arisen in a small number of constituencies regarding those contesting.

Imran asserted that the AP had no issues with coalition members and repeated that he remained steadfast in his belief that the AP had backed PPM in the presidential elections as a crucial sacrifice to protect Islam and the nation.

“Perhaps the PPM is so busy with handling other governing matters within the executive. This might explain their delay in initiating discussions with us,” Imran opined.

PPM initiates discussions with AP

On Monday, the PPM announced that it had commenced discussions with the AP to jointly contest in the parliamentary elections.

“We have started discussions on the matter with Islamic Minister Shaheem and AP President Imran. AP has decided to compile a special team to engage in these discussions. Our intention is to allow opportunities for AP to contest within the coalition with, of course, consideration to other member parties,” PPM Parliamentary Group Deputy Leader Moosa Zameer told local media.

Zameer stated that while an agreement could not be reached in regard to the local council elections – owing to its immensity – he remains positive that a mutual agreement can be reached in relation to the parliamentary elections.

Speaking at a rally in Dhaalu atoll on Sunday, President Abdulla Yameen called on AP to raise national above personal interest.

“Adhaalath Party has now decided to leave the coalition and contest individually in the upcoming elections. However, we must not allow space for disintegration and creation of factions within the coalition as a result of this,” Yameen said then.

He stated that Adhaalath’s decision would lead to votes being split between the coalition parties and would facilitate opposition parties in winning seats.

“Things don’t end just by getting elected to run a government. We come to power to serve the people. For that, it is vital to get the cooperation of councils and the parliament,” Yameen said, adding it will be impossible to reach goals without the support of these institutions.

“Despite coming to government with numerous pledges, it is reasons like this that inhibit a government from fulfilling its promises. This is what citizens must think about. You elected me to accomplish certain things for the citizens. For me to able to complete this, you citizens must ensure that you elect the cooperation that I require, that you give me the empowerment that I need,” Yameen stated.

Yameen called on the AP to extend cooperation to the coalition during the upcoming elections similar to their support during the past presidential elections.

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