Laura Restrepo Ortega – Page 10 – Minivan News

One of ‘top six’ drug dealers found innocent by criminal court

The Criminal Court has ruled that Adam Naseer of H. Reendhooge is innocent of dealing drugs, despite being labelled by the government as one of the country’s ‘top six’ drug dealers and a police investigation lasting nearly a year.

Police searched Naseer’s home in Addu Atoll on 30 June 2009, where they found over Rf6 million (US$461,500) in cash and a tin containing drugs outside his house.

He was later arrested in early July in Addu Atoll, but “he wasn’t in prison the whole time,” explained President’s Office Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair. “On several occasions the court has delayed his imprisonment until the hearing.”

Naseer’s arrest last year was a big break for the Prosecutor General’s office and the police, who had been leading an investigation and following Naseer for months.

Naseer had also been arrested in 2007 on drug dealing counts and later on counts of bribery and giving false information to the police, but he was released due to lack of evidence.

In his verdict, Judge Abdul Baary Yousuf said there was not enough evidence to prove the money had come from dealing drugs. He added that the drugs could have been placed outside Naseer’s house by anyone and did not necessarily belong to him.

Zuhair said Naseer “is still considered to be a top drug dealer. He was caught red-handed.”

He added that although the executive and legislative branches have been reformed with the change in government, “the justice system is still going the way it was in Gayoom’s time” and “many of the judges are sympathisers of Gayoom.”

Ahmed Adam, program coordinator for Journey, an NGO with a mission to help addicts maintain their recovery and to raise public awareness on drug issues, said “these people shouldn’t be on the streets. If they’re not behind bars, what will happen?”

“The judge should ask where all this money came from,” added Adam.

Only one witness claimed the drugs belonged to Naseer. Under Shari’ah law, there needs to be at least two witnesses to prove a person guilty, annulling the witness’s testimony.

Deputy Prosecutor General Hussein Shameen said “he should not released, but… the court has acquitted him.”

Prosecutor General Ahmed Muizzu said he had no comment on Naseer’s release, but added that his office would “appeal [the case] to the High Court.”

Two of the ‘top six’ have now fled the country. police are still investigating the remaining three suspects.

President Nasheed has previously said that while the government knows the identities of the top six drug dealers, their arrests would appear politically motivated as they included political opponents.

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Ministry of Health criticises media for misinforming public

The Ministry of Health and Gender has issued a press statement criticising the media for its standards and ethics when reporting on abuse cases, especially those involving children.

Police and the ministry last week confirmed they were investigating a “very serious” case of child abuse, in which which four children were taken to Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) by ministry workers to undergo medical examination.

Deputy Minister of Health and Family Mariya Ali said at the time that all details of the case were being withheld for the protection of the children.

“We have the children’s best interest in mind, and that means we cannot give out any information that might put them in danger,” she said.

The ministry’s statement today claimed that the media had recently written stories misinforming the public “particularly relating to abuse cases”, and criticised the publication of stories “before the ministry releases information [about them]”.

“The media should keep to its professional standards and work to the ethics of journalism, respecting privacy,” the ministry said, referring to article 12 of the the Children’s Law, under which children’s names, ages or addresses should not be made public in the instance of abuse.

President of the Maldives Journalism Association (MJA) Ahmed ‘Hiriga’ Zahir claimed that “the media is respectful of these things. It is not appropriate to reveal this information”, but acknowledged that in the past there were instances in which the victim’s father’s or family name has been released to the public, making it easy for the victim to be identified.

“There needs to be a fine balance when dealing with these issues,” Hiriga said, adding that he still believed the public had a right to know about such cases.

He echoed Mohamed Shihaab of Child Abuse Watch Maldives, who last week said that while he understood the authorities’ fear that evidence would be corrupted, or that the families of the abused children would suffer if their identities became known, “the incident needs to be reported. It’s important that the community knows that something like this is happening,” he said.

Ahmed Rilwan, media officer for the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), said the “general viewpoint of the Commission is that there is nothing wrong [with the media reporting these cases].”

“So long as it is done responsibly, the reporting itself is not a problem,” he said.

He added that these cases should be reported without revealing identifying information that could “revictimise the victims”, and agreed that that the media has previously made more information public than it should.

Minivan News’ reporting of the ministry’s statement highlighted some of the difficulties faced by the media in obtaining accurate and timely information from ministries and organisations.

Media Coordinator for the Ministry of Health and Family, Yasir Salih, refused to comment on the ministry’s press statement, saying he is “not supposed to talk on behalf of the Ministry.” He added that he “directs people to relevant departments and officials” but is not supposed to give information.

According to Yasir, “sometimes our officials are busy and unable to give interviews and comments.”

Deputy Minister of Health and Family Mariya Ali did not respond to requests for comment at of time of publication.

Senior Social Service Officer at the Department of Gender, Fathimath Runa, said she would not be able to speak on the issue until she was “better informed on the issue”, but had not responded to Minivan News at time of press.

President of Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), Ahmed Saleem, said he was not the appropriate person to talk to concerning the question on whether or not the media should report child abuse cases.

Hiriga said he believed the ministries and government institutions should implement “proper mechanisms to regulate information” which is released to the media, in a bid to prevent confusion and misinformation being leaked from other sources.

“Various ministries are trying to influence the media,” he suggested. “They have no right to intervene.”

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Maldives donor conference ‘not a begging bowl’ says Shaheed

The IV Maldives Partnership Forum, or donor conference, is to be held on the 28-29 March at Bandos Resort and Spa will focus on attracting foreign investment rather than donations, said Foreign Minister Dr Ahmed Shaheed.

“You can do business here and make a profit,” he claimed, while still helping the country improve its infrastructure and economy.

“We don’t want to become mendicant people with a bowl begging for some money. We have interests to promote here.”

“A lot of countries are required by the UN system to focus their assistance on certain countries,” he explained, mainly those in the Least Developed Countries (LDC) list.

Until the Maldives graduates from the LDC list at the end of 2010, other countries with higher GDPs are encouraged by the UN to offer investment and concessions to the Maldives.

“The [donor countries] have their own internal policy requirements to fulfil by focusing on countries who are vulnerable, like island states,” explains Dr Shaheed.

“At the same time,” he adds, “there are those who are keen to promote certain causes or issues, such as human rights. They want certain opportunities to promote those issues.”

Dr Shaheed added that “a lot of countries want to invest in a stable Maldives. A stable, prosperous Maldives is a market. An unstable, impoverished Maldives is a liability.”

The invitations “are being sent out” and ministers are travelling to world capitals to begin lobbying, including Beijing, Seoul, Tokyo, Kuwait City, Riyadh and Doha.

The Forum will address five key areas:

Macro-economic Stability

For there to be macro-economic stability in the country, the government “hopes the parliament, when they come back, as a first order of business, will look at the taxation package and actually pass it.”

The government is currently working in partnership with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the economic development programme. Dr Shaheed says “it is very important that we make that programme succeed.”

He added that for the IMF programme to work, it is crucial for the taxation bill to be passed.

Public Reform

“Again this is linked to the IMF program,” says Dr Shaheed, “because we need to cut down expenditure.”

Part of this public reform is the very controversial policy of cutting down the number of public servants.

“We won’t just sack them,” he says. “We are going to restructure some of the government bodies into complex entities, like the media sector.”

There will also be some retirement packages available, as well as study and training packages.

Governance and Democratisation

“This is a very broad area,” Shaheed explained. “We need an oriented look at division, and how to increase capacity [in government agencies].”

All areas of government must be studied extensively to make sure they “function better”.

Climate Change Adaptation

Dr Shaheed said the most important issues concerning climate change are renewable energy and eco-degradation (for example, waste management). It also includes building “more sea walls, jetties and harbours.”

Social Development

The government will be “targeting the vulnerable of the population, like children, young girls, and old people” as the main recipients of the benefits of social development.

It will also deal with the health and education sectors, which it hopes to improve.

Past Forums

Dr Shaheed said the first forum, held in 2007, “was a time when a lot of questions were asked about where the Maldives was headed.”

The focus was on the reform program, which he claimed was “a very good forum to bring the donor community, the recipients, and policy makers together on the same page.”

For this year’s forum, the minister says “we have projects in place, so we have a much clearer idea of what we’re going to do.”

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Maldives to withdraw reservations on women’s rights treaty

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs today announced the government’s intention to withdraw the reservations of the Maldives to the UN Woman’s Rights Treaty.

The Ministry has informed the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights that the Maldives will shortly be withdrawing the controversial national reservation, which limits key aspects of the international Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

The reservation restricts the application of Article 7(a) of CEDAW, under which state parties commit “to take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the political and public life of the country and, in particular, shall ensure to women, on equal terms with men, the right: (a) to vote in all elections and public referenda and to be eligible for election to all publicly elected bodies.”

Under the 1998 Constitution, women were banned from running for president. Article 109 of the new Constitution of 2008 does not include any restrictions based on gender under “qualifications for election as President”.

Aishath Zahir, Deputy Additional Secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said “this withdrawal is reinforcing the Constitution,” and “it reinforces our obligations under international law.”

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women had repeatedly asked the Maldives to withdraw this reservation, since it was contrary to the purpose of the Convention of Women’s Rights and went against the principle of the equality of women and men.

The withdrawal of the restriction on Article 7(a) is a necessary official notification from the Maldivian government to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the statement claimed. This is being done so that “the new reality is fully reflected in international law.”

Because under the new Constitution parliament must approve any changes in the legislature, it is necessary for the government to submit a procedural bill to the Majlis seeking approval.

“As soon as it’s passed by the Majlis we will lodge our instrument of withdrawal to the UN,” said Zahir.

The Bill has been prepared by the Department of Gender and Family in the Ministry of Health and will soon be considered by the People’s Majlis.

Minister of Foreign Affaris Dr Ahmed Shaheed said the reservation was “a relic of a time in the Maldives when women were openly and explicitly discriminated against even within our primary legal framework.”

He added that this withdrawal makes explicitly clear that “everyone is entitled to the same rights and freedoms…without discrimination of any kind, including based on gender”.

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A little about Alison, IVP volunteer

Alison Warnock is a 24 year old from Edinburgh, Scotland. She describes herself as “a very over-enthusiastic Scottish girl” and says she absolutely loves the Maldives.

She is starting her second year teaching at Jalaluddin School in Kulhudhuffushi Island in Haa Dhaalu Atoll, in the upper-north province, as part of the International Volunteer’s Program (IVP).

She was working at a cancer charity in Scotland when her friend Sarah, who was also a volunteer in 2009, heard about the IVP. She asked Sarah if she could come along for the interview and got the job. Alison “saw what an incredible opportunity it was and took it.”

Her friends and family were all very excited about her coming, and some of them were slightly jealous. She says “there’s a misconception that every single island will look like the resort islands, with houses on stilts in the water and long, white sandy beaches.”

Even though she knew there would be some home comforts that she would miss, she packed her bags and flew half-way around the world.

Coming to Kulhudhuffushi

Alison arrived in the Maldives in May 2009 and taught until November of the same year. She then went home for five weeks and returned to the Maldives in January 2010.

Coming from a city like Edinburgh to a small island like Kulhuduffushi would be a great challenge for many people, but Alison says she “thrives in small communities”. She attended St. Andrew’s University, a soon-to-be 600 year old university in Scotland, which has “about 3,000 people less than the island.”

“I’m quite used to the small community feel where everybody knows your name. I like knowing where everything is and who everybody is. I love being in small communities, especially when everybody is so welcoming and friendly and everything is so beautiful.”

She says the entire community has been very supportive of her.

“If my washing machine isn’t working or I don’t know how to cook something, they all help me.” She says she never feels alone.

She is picking up some Dhivehi, but says she can understand a lot more than she can speak.

“My accent doesn’t help,” she says with a giggle, “it makes words sound completely wrong, and sometimes it just means a completely different thing.”

Her neighbour finds Alison “hilarious” and they have bilingual conversations in the mornings.

Jalaluddin School

Alison is currently teaching three biology classes at Jalaluddin School: two grade 9 classes and one grade 10 class. One of her grade 9 classes is one she also taught last year, and she says they work like a “well-oiled machine” now: “I’m getting used to them and they’re getting used to me.”

The school’s head of department gave her an “idea of what needs to be taught and over what time-frame” at the beginning of the term. The departments then have weekly meetings where they discuss what the students have been learning.

“You can’t choose what to teach, but you have freedom to do it in whatever way you want,” she says, adding that her students enjoy films and slideshows. She’s teaching them about the heart this week.

The program has provided her with everything she needs and she says “even the things I didn’t think I would need I can get easily on the island.”

The school went on a science trip once, and Alison says it was nice to be around her students in a non-classroom environment which allowed her to get to know them better.

“Everybody is really friendly, and we have been on some really nice staff trips. They have been some of the best days here for me, going on picnics to uninhabited islands.”

Home Sickness?

Alison has travelled to Canada and Thailand, among other places, but she has never been away from home for so long. “I’m really enjoying it, it’s an amazing country, it’s wonderful.”

The school organised a house for her, with bright purple and aqua walls, which is less than a five minute bicycle ride from the school.

“The house is so uplifting: I never feel depressed,” she says.

Although every now and then she gets a craving for something (unhealthy) to eat from back home, “some ice cream or chocolate or popcorn,” she says she loves Maldivian food. “It’s so healthy and tasty; just looking at my skin I can see how good the food is for me.”

Alison also tutors a girl after class and says the girl’s mother has just about adopted her. “She’s always checking up on me and she gives me dinner.”

Alison says she’s very lucky that the school has really good internet access.

“The internet just makes the world so much smaller. I can keep in touch with everyone,” she says. She speaks to her parents every Friday so she doesn’t “feel so far away.”

She loves the lifestyle, the colours, the food, the weather, the view, and her job. And she says if she ever gets stressed, she just has to walk 500 feet and she’s at a spectacular beach: “What’s not to like?”

Alison will continue to teach until November this year, when she will decide whether or not to renew her contract for a third year. “I don’t know if I will renew it again,” she says. “It’s something about the Maldives, I don’t have to look too far ahead.”

There are currently fourteen other education volunteers in different islands throughout the Maldives working through the IVP.

The International Volunteer’s Program (IVP) began operating in 2009 in a partnership between Friends of Maldives (FOM), the Ministry of Health and Family, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is coordinated principally by the Maldivian High Commission in London.

Its intent is to recruit qualified teachers and health professionals from overseas. The education volunteers teach in local schools in small island communities.

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Government “will not allow Maldives to become a Taliban playground”: Shaheed

When Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Ahmed Shaheed was asked by TV Maldives whether the country was in danger of becoming a safe haven for terrorists, he answered with “a flat no” and said “the government would not allow the Maldives to become a playground for the Taliban.”

On the weekend of 22 January, a group of Afghan MPs, “a government official” and seven people linked to the Taliban met in the Maldives for secret talks. At the time, Al-Jazeera reported that one of the Taliban’s representatives claimed the destination was chosen because “we feel safe.”

Photographs of the meeting have surfaced showing the Afghan MPs with another group gathered at the Bandos Resort conference centre.

Delegates at the meeting between Afghan MPs and representatives linked to the Taliban

A spokesman for the resort confirmed a group guests including Afghan MPs stayed at the resort and used the conference facilities, but noted it had no way of knowing whether the group was linked to the Taliban or not.

“We don’t go in [to the conference centre] when there is a meeting going on,” the spokesman explained.

Dr Shaheed said that the government was “fully aware of [the meeting] before it happened,” and at the time tried to determine whether to stop the meeting or allow it and see what was going on. He added that there was also no legal reason for denying them entry into the country.

“If they were complying with the UN resolution 1267, we had to allow them in,” he said.

Dr Shaheed is referring to the travel ban imposed in 2002 by the UN Security Council which bans “Osama bin Laden, members of the Al-Qaida organisation and the Taliban and other individuals associated with them” from entering or transiting through the territories of UN Member States.

Press Secretary for the President, Mohamed Zuhair, said the group “weren’t technically Taliban; there was one group from the Afghan government and another group who were sympathetic to the Taliban.”

Zuhair added the Maldivian government wants to focus on “reintegration and reconciliation.”

The government says it was aware of the meeting held at Bandos Resort

Dr Shaheed said that if there proves to be an “official affiliation between a foreign government [and the Taliban]”, the Maldives will protest to that government.

He added that the Maldivian government “are on our guard” and there is an ongoing investigation “examining who was here” and “whether there was anyone in that group who wasn’t meant to be here.”

He also said the government is “not too pleased about this” and is “very watchful” for these types of meetings taking place within the country.

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Alcohol licenses to be issued to hotels on inhabited islands

Hotels with more than 100 beds will be allowed to sell alcohol on inhabited islands – such as Male’ – according to new regulations approved by the Ministry of Trade and Economic Development.

In addition to tourist hotels, bars at the airport departure terminal will be authorised to sell alcohol. Diplomats at the ambassador level will also be eligible for liquor permits.

The illegal imports law 4/75 authorises the ministry to formulate such regulations. The new law applies to both alcohol and pork products, and will go into effect from 1 March.

The new regulations for liquor licenses were proposed in November 2009, but were withdrawn shortly afterwards due to public outcry and opposition from the Islamic Ministry.

State Minister of Trade Adhil Saleem said a hotel seeking to acquire a liquor license under the new regulations would be required to follow the government’s “strict rules” on the sale of alcohol.

Hotels will not be allowed to have a bar that is visible from the outside, and it must only serve foreigners. Furthermore, the alcohol can only be sold and consumed in designated areas of the hotel.

Maldivians cannot be employed at the bar and all employees of the bar must be registered with the economic development ministry and undergo a police check. Security cameras must be installed in both the serving area and storerooms, and back-up recordings kept.

Moreover, an inventory of the alcohol in storage and daily sales must be maintained and made available to police on request.

Saleem believes a side effect of the new license regulations will be “the proper disposal of empty liquor bottles”.

“Now, it’s not an issue if you find an empty bottle of liquor on the streets of inhabited islands,” he said, suggesting that with the new licenses establishments must dispose of bottles properly.

Sim Mohamed from the Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) said the changes in alcohol licensing would have little effect on the tourism industry, “as most people travelling to Malé do so for business, or stay only for the day.”

Mauroof Zakir, spokesperson for a coalition of NGOs against the sale of alcohol on inhabited islands said the issue is intrinsically a serious one.

“Maybe the government thinks it’s only a few people with beards who want to stop this,” he said. “The government is doing what it likes without considering what the people might want.”

He said the Islamic Foundation and the coalition of NGOs “will not support this and will take action against it, within the law.”

Regulations at a glance:

a) alcohol and pork cannot be served outside the bar area, for instance from mini-bars in hotel rooms

b) Maldivians cannot be employed at the bar, while all employees must be registered at the ministry after a police clearance

c) the bar should not be visible from outside and should be located at a place that is not easily visible to those who visit the hotel

d) the hotel should have a separate warehouse to store pork and liquor items and it should have proper security

e) a daily inventory must be kept, including the amount in storage and the amount served

f) the inventory should be made available to police upon request

g) only expatriates registered at the ministry after a police clearance should be allowed to store and remove items from the warehouse

h) there must be a CCTV at the warehouse

i) only those with foreign passports can be served at the bar and Maldivians with foreign passports cannot be served

j) the security guard at the bar must check passports before entry

k) the hotel must establish a private security system approved by police

l) it will be illegal to remove pork and liquor items from the bar or selling it outside the hotel

m) inebriated customers should not be served before they regain sobriety nor should they be allowed to leave the hotel

n) the hotel must establish a breath-testing mechanism approved by police for patrons before they leave the bar

o) cameras must be installed if police request it and CCTV camera footage must be kept for a month

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Lawyer suspended from court by Judge Abdulla Mohamed

Lawyer Imthiyaz Fahmy, also an MP for the Maldivian Democratic Party, has been found in contempt of court and suspended for six months by Senior Judge at the Criminal Court Abdulla Mohamed.

Fahmy was defending a man who had been accused of throwing an egg at a DRP supporter in their campaign office next to the former president’s wife’s house Enderimaagu.

Fahmy says before he began with the case, he noticed the defendant’s name was misspelled and his address was not on the charge document.

“The charge document should say who it’s against,” he said.

Fahmy said that due to procedural methods, he felt he needed to correct the matter before beginning the case, and asked the judge if this mistake could be rectified.

“The judge was taken by surprise,” said Fahmy, “and asked the prosecutor to correct the document in court. This is not how a criminal case is conducted.”

Judge Mohamed said Fahmy “did not cooperate with the court” and “just wanted to play.” He added that Fahmy “was not being serious” and was “arguing” with him and the attorney.

Fahmy said he was then asked to leave the courtroom by Judge Mohamed, while his client was told to remain there. Fahmy claims his client later told him that he had been asked to give his statement before another judge in his absence.

The next day, Fahmy found out through the media that he had been suspended.

“I wasn’t even informed,” he said. “I went to the court for the document on my suspension, but was denied [the document].”

Judge Mohamed says Fahmy cannot attend the court on the same case again.

Fahmy said he was “not surprised by the judge’s misconduct in court,” and he intends to make an appeal against Judge Mohamed’s decision to the High Court and the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).

The commission confirmed that Judge Mohamed is currently under investigation for issues relating to conduct.

The case Fahmy would have been defending has been dismissed.

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Turtles killed for their eggs in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll

Two sea turtles have been discovered dead on the beach of Laabadhoo island in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, cut open for their eggs and left to rot on the sand.

Sixty-nine year old Abdulla Saeed from Fares-Maathodaa found the turtles on the beach. The first was found on 4 February. It had been cut open for its eggs. From the size of the maggots found on the corpse, Saeed estimated it had been killed 48 hours earlier.

He found the second turtle on 6 February. Its corpse was still fresh, suggesting it was killed overnight.

Saeed believes the turtles were killed by islanders of Maathoda on Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, and despite the illegality of killing turtles, it is still a relatively common practice in his region.

Aya Naseem, a marine biologist, says many islands kill turtles for their eggs.

“People have no idea of the harm they are causing,” she says. “They just see it as another way of getting food.”

Ali Rilwan from the NGO Bluepeace says the organisation has reports of turtles being killed, but “we normally hear of this happening for their meat, not eggs.”

Both turtle meat and eggs are considered delicacies in the Maldives, but killing turtles is prohibited by the law. Collecting the eggs from the beach is legal in all but 11 islands, according to Rilwan.

The turtles come up to the beach overnight to lay eggs during their egg-laying cycle. Saeed says the ”turtles would come to lay eggs once every 13 days,” and this can happen four to five times during each cycle. The turtles will not lay eggs again for another six to eight months.

Even though it is legal to harvest eggs from the beach, Saeed says the unlaid eggs are almost only yolk, unlike the eggs laid at the end of the cycle which can be hard and stony. He added that “islanders in the region love to eat short eats made from turtle eggs.”

“They do not even wait for it to lay eggs,” he said. “They do this just for the pleasure of killing.”

Even on the islands where it is illegal to harvest the eggs from the beach, “there are no warnings…and it’s not properly managed,” says Rilwan.

With sea turtles being on the endangered species list, and their eggs and meat considered delicacies, there is a looming struggle between tradition and the environment.

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