Category: Society & Culture

Seventy-eight year-old man arrested for abusing 12 year old disabled girl

A 78 year-old man has been arrested for allegedly abusing a 12 year-old disabled girl last Friday on the island of Inguraidhoo in Raa Atoll.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam confirmed that an elderly man was arrested in connection with a child abuse case in Inguraidhoo.

”We can’t provide further information regarding the case,” he said.

An islander familiar with the matter alleged that the girl’s mother sold her to the old man, “because the girl is a disabled girl and she cannot even attend to school,” he said.

”The islanders say that her mother gave her to the old man for some amount of money. Both of them were taken to Inguraidhoo police station, and police have now released her mother.”

He said the old man was not a man from the island but said he used to visit Inguraidhoo.

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Lale School teacher and deputy flee Maldives

The Deputy Principal of Lale Youth International School Suleiman Atayev has fled the country, along with the computer studies teacher Yunus Yildiz.

Both staff members left seperately on flights on Sunday and Monday evening, and did not inform the school they were leaving.

Managing Director of Biz Atoll Abdulla Jameel, the Maldivian company responsible for the school which operates it under agreement with a group of Turkish businessmen after acquiring it from the former government, confirmed the unannounced departure of the two staff members.

“It is true. We have no idea why they left. We recently brought some changes to management and demoted the deputy principal [Atayev] to a teacher. I have no idea why the computer teacher left,” he said.

Minivan News understands that the pair were also implicated as suspects in the assault case facing Akar, after school staff testified against him.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said while Akar’s case was before court, there was “no specific evidence” to hold the two other staff members in the Maldives.

Akar’s passport was confiscated by police at immigration when he attempted to flee the country in May, shortly after Minivan News published an investigative report containing allegations by parents and staff members against him. He attempted to flee a second time and was detained in police custody.

An assistant principal also fled the country in January after Minivan first published allegations of child abuse raised by parents.

Atayev, who announced himself acting principal following Serkan’s detention by police, previously told Minivan News he was confident charges against the former principal would be proven false.

He was also very critical of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) investigation into the school: “They are refusing to tell us the nature of the complaints they are investigating. They are supposed be about human rights but they are not respecting ours,” he told Minivan News in May.

Shiyam said today that police were aware that the HRCM report “contains a lot of information against the school.”

“It has been a difficult investigation for us because of [a lack] of people coming forward to give evidence. We are still investigating,” he said.

Among nearly 50 recommendations, HRCM’s report recommended “that police should investigate the physical and psychological abuse going on at the school as an urgent concern,” and “separate those suspected of physical abuse from the school’s students until the police investigation is concluded.”

HRCM also recommended that the Education Ministry terminate its contract with Biz Atoll, “and hand over management as soon as possible to a qualified party.”

Deputy Education Minister Shifa Mohamed said the Education Ministry was under the impression that Suleiman Atayev was still the school’s acting principal, however Deputy Education Minister Dr Abdulla Nazeer said the Ministry was not required to be aware of the “hiring or firing of staff by school management.”

“I understand two deputy principals have been terminated – one local, the other expat,” he said.

Jameel confirmed that Turkish national Mohamed Akis Erdogan has taken over as principal of Lale, while Maldivian Moosa Rasheed has been appointed as deputy principal.

“The school is much better now,” he promised.

Dr Nazeer said he had met Erdogan on several occasions and had found him to be “educated and academic”.

“He has an undergraduate degree, a masters and a teaching diploma,” Dr Nazeer said, “the type of qualifications we require for the position of a principal.”

He said he was unable to comment on the validity of Erdogan’s qualifications, and had requested Biz Atoll validate them with the Maldives Accreditation Board (MAB).

He would not comment on whether the departure of so many senior staff members this year raised questions about Biz Atoll’s hiring practices, but noted that “when the school was given to Biz Atoll, I am not sure the previous government made the financial and other checks that needed to be done before handing over a school. Now, based on our criteria for public-private partnerships, I wouldn’t say these requirements had been checked.”

The Ministry was constrained by the “relatively simple contract, which had no minimum standards or a termination clause,” he said. “The Ministry has now amended the contract [to include these].”

The contract, together with the HRCM report, have been forward to the Attorney General’s office by the Education Ministry, which expects to receive an answer by next week as to whether the government can withdraw the school from Biz Atoll.

Minivan News investigated the school in May, after parents and staff members aired concerns that the school was a ‘cardboard’ front for an international tax and visa racket operating out of Turkey, whereby Turkish businesses would allegedly make tax-free charitable donations through the company funding the schools in tax-friendly countries, and reclaim the funds through disproportionately high wages paid to local staff ‘in’ on the scheme.

One staff member reported sighting “bundles” of Rf 500 notes being given to Turkish staff, while a parent claimed to have spoken to one of the Turkish businessmen involved with the school, who had boasted that his business donated money to the school because under Turkish taxation law he did not have to pay taxes on it.

Another teacher told Minivan News that “Turkish teachers escort Turkish businessmen around the school on a weekly basis, and regularly make trips to Turkey. We certainly couldn’t afford to go to Turkey on our salaries, and this is a school that can’t even afford clocks or light bulbs.”

“A lot of money is going somewhere,” another suggested.

The school, which was provided to Biz Atoll free by the government, reportedly receives 50 percent of its funding from a group of Turkish businessmen who pour charity funds into schools in several developing countries, including Sri Lanka, Burma, Indonesia and Cambodia. Minivan News understands the new principal has arrived from a school belonging to the group in India.

Overshadowing repeated controversies over the school’s management is the issue of capacity. The school, which Minivan News understands was built to accommodate almost 1000 grade school students, currently has an enrolment of 98, not including the preschool.

“That is a major concern for us and we have raised it three or four times,” Dr Nazeer said. The government intends to build many homes and flats in Hulhumale and if every flat has 2-3 kids, we anticipate that the population of children [on the island] will double or even triple. So we need to better utilise the schools [on Hulhumale].”

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“Here’s some cash”: Kulhudhufushi islanders open charity box for MP Nasheed

Kulhudhufushi islanders have launched a charity fund box to help their elected MP Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed, an independent member of parliament, after he admitted it was his voice saying ”I need some cash” to Jumhooree Party (JP) leader Gasim ‘Buruma’ Ibrahim in a leaked audio clip.

Gasim is currently under house arrest while he is investigated by police for vote-buying and treason.

”We felt pity for our MP Mohamed Nasheed after hearing the leaked audio clip,” said Mohamed Naeem, a Kulhudhufushi islander who heads the group that opened the charity box.

”When he first asked Gasim about his financial condition, we thought that Nasheed was about to help Gasim. But then we heard he was running low financially himself and was in need of some cash.”

Naeem said the group of islanders did not wish their MP to be begging people for money, and had set up a charity box on the beach of the island for everyone to put money in to help Nasheed.

”We do not like the way he begged,” he added. “We heard him saying that he would send someone somewhere to pick up the money in case people might see.”

”We will keep the box open until 6:00pm on Saturday, and then we will open it and count the money,” Naeem said. ”Then we will hand all the money to Nasheed’s office, and if they refuse to deliver the money to him, we will send it to him directly.”

Many people on the island had already walked down the beach to the box and were putting money in it, Naeem said.

”We are not a NGO, not even anybody from the island office – we’re just normal islanders,” he added.

As an elected member of parliament, Nasheed receives Rf62,500 (US$4864) per month from the State.

Nasheed was not responding to calls at time of press.

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Comment: IMF stabilisation program threatened if Majlis ignores tax bills

The current majority of members in the Maldives Majlis have been cynically irresponsible in their handling of financial legislation.

Though they have found the energy to pass detailed amendments to the Finance Act which threatens to create administrative chaos and undermine the constitutional powers of the executive, they have ignored two tax bills – the Tourism Goods and Services Tax, and the Business Profits Tax.

These two bills are a vital part of the IMF program that stabilises the economy and keeps the country from bankruptcy.

The tax bills have been buried in the ‘Whole of Majlis’ committee for around a year, and it is obvious the members are not interested in passing them.

The sensational phone recordings released this week featured Majlis member Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed reading out a plan to ‘fast process’ the Financial Act Amendments bill and no-confidence motions, and  “cease all work on the tax bills submitted by the government to the Majlis”.

It is unlikely the IMF and international banking groups will tolerate this situation for much longer without a downgrading of the country’s credit rating, especially now the tax bills’ delay has become associated with high levels of corruption in the Majlis.

The IMF is not a benign charity. It is a hard-nosed organisation quite capable of taking action against countries that take its money and fail to keep their promises and obligations.

Unless a better taxation system is established in the Maldives, international bankers may pull the loan plug, and the public sector and lower income groups in the population will both experience job losses and extreme financial hardship.

The blame for this potential economic disaster will rest squarely on the Majlis members who the people elected in 2009.

The latest IMF report for Maldives criticises the high public sector wage bill that is “very high by international standards”, and the low tax rate for its tourism sector, which the IMF says “remains well below international standards”.

Maldives’ hotel tax rate is one of the world’s lowest, well behind India, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Indonesia, and other comparable tourist destinations such as Dominica, Fiji, Barbados, Mauritius, Costa Rica, Vanuatu, Bahamas, Seychelles, Tahiti, and Jamaica.

Most of the profits from the tourism sector go to wealthy men and families who are often members of the Majlis and/or owners of media companies. The dreaded word ‘tax’ is rarely heard in the political discussion programs that dominate Maldives’ radio and television. Print and internet website news organisations also avoid the subject of tax. Serious informative articles on economics and business are impossible to find.

Significant government tax revenues will undermine the present system of patronage and corruption that permeates Maldivian society. People’s loyalties would shift away from wealthy men towards the government, which will be able to provide pensions, subsidies, adequate salaries and health care. These are the foundations of a just and fair society.

The Majlis majority who are refusing to pass tax legislation are acting against the best interests of the people and threatening the independence and national security of the country.

All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]

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Amendments will send food prices soaring, warns government

The prices of staple foodstuffs will “go up dramatically” if amendments to the Public Finance Act are ratified, warns the State Trading Organisation (STO).

At the now daily President’s Office press conference yesterday, Undersecretary Ibrahim Rasheed revealed that the STO has informed President Mohamed Nasheed that prices would spike if the government ceased its subsidies.

“Until subsidies can be given again through new legislation, subsidies given by the government for foodstuffs will become illegal (if the amendments are ratified),” he said. “Therefore, if this amendment becomes law, a kilo of rice will be at Rf9.75, a kilo of flour Rf6.12, a kilo of sugar Rf8.01.”

In 2009, the government provided over Rf139 million in food subsidies to STO to control prices of staple foods.

According to STO, the price of a kilo of rice or flour will increase threefold while the price of a kilo of sugar will double.

Rasheed accused opposition MPs of attempting to block government services and aid in order to foster negative public perception and shift blame to the administration.

“Even for greed of power, this is too much,” he said.

The parliament’s amendment bill to the Public Finance Act, which was voted through in June, was cited by the cabinet as one of the main reasons for their resignation.

“Act of deception”

In a press release today, the main opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) denies that government subsidies will have to be discontinued.

Condemning the claim as “an act of deception”, the statement accuses the government of trying to “mislead the public,” undermine public confidence in MPs and “light fires of hatred.”

“The reality is that while President Nasheed’s government does not have the capability to provide the services required by citizens, this is a cheap propaganda activity to incite fear among the public by using the State Trading Organisation and other such institutions,” it reads.

The amendments

According to the amendment proposed to article seven of the Public Finance Act, “any relief, benefit or subsidy by the state” must be given in accordance with laws passed by the People’s Majlis.

Legislation governing the issuance of subsidies and other state benefits has not yet been proposed to parliament.

The amendment to article 10(a) reads that financial benefits provided by the government in order to pursue its policies must also be issued in line with laws passed by parliament.

However, article 10(c) of the amendment bill states that the government could grant “some financial assistance” from the emergency funds allocated in the state budget under certain circumstances, such as to provide relief after natural disasters.

Meanwhile, 10(d) states that assistance could still be given “if the government believes providing financial assistance to a businessman or a business facing financial difficulties was in the public interest” or if the financial difficulty is believed to impact “the lives of a sufficiently large number of people in society”.

Moreover, article 34(c) stipulates that the government must implement recommendations of the parliamentary committee that reviews the state budget.

Addressing press after the resignation of the cabinet, President Nasheed announced that he would veto the amendments as it would make it “impossible for the government to function” and because “MPs themselves could see that it was proposed without the slightest consideration.”

Article 91(b) of the constitution states that any bill returned to parliament “shall be assented to by the President and published in the Government Gazette if the Bill, after reconsideration, is passed without any amendments, by a majority of the total membership of the People’s Majlis.”

“In my view, these things are happening because a few members of the People’s Majlis are working to preserve their self-interest,” Nasheed said. “If you look at the latest amendment to the public finance law you will see very clearly what’s written in those amendments. It is very clear that those amendments have provisions that directly involve Majlis members’ interest. So what I see here is that we can’t allow [people to] destroy the constitution of the Maldives and render it powerless while hiding behind the protection of the Majlis.”

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Comment: Thick as thieves

“Would a Rose by any other name still smell as sweet?” wrote Shakespeare. In the case of the Maldives People’s Majlis, call Rose what you like – she will still stink of corruption.

The ‘cash for votes’ scandal has gripped the nation ever since secret telephone recordings between opposition MPs were published on the Internet yesterday afternoon.

In one recording, the deputy speaker of the Majlis Ahmed Nazim discusses with Abdulla Yameen how Gasim Ibrahim took ‘Rose’ to Paradise Island Resort to finalise a Rf1 million deal.

“So Rose is joining Jumhooree [Gasim’s political party] now?” Yameen asks.

“No it’s not that….it is just for these matters,” assures Nazim, before explaining that ‘Maniku’ will complete the deal with Rose for a further Rf2 million. Nazim goes onto say that Gasim “has said everything will be OK… 100 percent and not to worry.”

In another recording, MP Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed says to Gasim, “I need some cash.”

“Yeah, OK,” replies Gasim before the two MPs discuss how the transaction will be completed.

In the third recording ‘Kutti’ Nasheed explains to Yameen and Nazim how he will “prevent the government from trying to do what it is doing” by moving motions of no-confidence against Finance minister Ali Hashim and Economic Affairs minister Maumood Razee. He reads out a plan to stop “all work on the tax bills submitted by the government to the Majlis.”

Rumours of corruption in the Majlis are nothing new, but never before have the sordid details of MP’s shenanigans been aired in such excruciating detail.

Last week, President Nasheed was being pilloried in sections of the media for being ‘dictatorial,’ following the arrest of Yameen and Gasim for alleged corruption and bribery. Now, significant sections of the community seem keen to lock them up and throw away the key.

“Petty, cheap, revolting, nauseating” – “Have nothing to say except that…I am ashamed. How cheap are our parlimentarians?” – “Thick as thieves. Guilty as sin. Let them hang from the nearest coconut tree!” – a few readers’ comments from Minivan News’ coverage of the scandal.

While many Majlis watchers will not be surprised to hear the tapes involving Yameen, Nazim and Gasim, many people have been shocked to hear that ‘Kutti’ Nasheed is also implicated.

Kutti likes to present himself as an independent MP par excellence, a symbol of integrity who rises above the grubby day-to-day deals of the Majlis. No longer. He has been treating Gasim as his personal ATM. In return, he appears to be chief architect of plans to subvert the government’s tax and privatization initiatives, measures that could damage Gasim’s and Yameen’s extensive business interests.

In his personal blog, Kutti says he simply borrows money from Gasim from time to time and it has no influence on his voting in parliament. Few, if anyone, will believe his excuse.

So far, the corruption allegations appear concentrated on Yameen’s Peoples’ Alliance party, Gasim’s Jumhooree party, and their ‘independent’ supporters in the Majlis. Indeed, President Nasheed said yesterday that the speaker of the Majlis, DRP MP Abdulla Shahid, is “an honourable man.”

How far this scandal spreads is anyone’s guess, but it is likely to lead to both political and cultural change in the Maldives, as people recognise the real damage that corruption can bring to their institutions.

For centuries, Maldivians have pledged their loyalty to rich men, bodun, whose political power and status was measured by the number of their followers. These loyalties often spanned generations, and the practice of honouring the rich and seeking their ‘benevolence’ was deeply entrenched in the Maldivian psyche. The dictatorship and crony capitalism of the previous Gayoom government welded easily with this old cultural tradition. The democratic revolution of President Nasheed’s administration, and the President’s open condemnation of corruption, is demanding new loyalties to the rule of law, honest administration and institutions, and personal integrity.

It’s a painful process for the old cliques who profited so much and enjoyed high social standing, but a welcome change for the young Maldivian population who see an opportunity to compete and prosper without selling their loyalty and bowing to the bodun.

All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]

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We will uphold the constitution and rights of the people: Supreme Court

Regarding the political chaos that has developed in the Maldives, the Supreme court has issued a statement assuring the people that the judicial system will maintain the power of the constitution and rights of the people for every individual without discrimination.

The judicial system is one of the basic elements of democracy and the most important institution for maintaining freedom and rights, says the Supreme Court.

”We appeal to the beloved people to maintain law and order,” said the statement. ”We are one nation, we speak one language, and our religion is Islam.”

The people had established a democratic policy to obtain economic development and a better life, says the Court.

”The basis of this policy is for the people, the executive and the institutions to obey the constitution and laws, and for the three powers of state to fulfil their obligations within the law,” the statement said. ”and for those powers to co-operate together to achieve national goals without impeding each other.”

However, former attorney-general Husnu Suood has said recently that he did not believe that the Supreme Court can make judgments fairly.

The government could not resort to the Supreme Court to overturn parliamentary decisions, “because we filed two cases in the Supreme Court, and they ruled it was not the right of the government to file such cases.”

State institutions had failed, Suood said, and senior officials of the judiciary were “irresponsible”, and the independent commissions were operating like “small governments”. “All this has brought the government to a standstill,” he said.

Meanwhile, opposition MP Ali Waheed has claimed that the government is trying to declare a state of emergency to gain more powers.

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Criminal court order not unlawful, rules High Court

The Maldivian High Court has ruled that the criminal court order for People’s Alliance party leader and MP Yameen Abdul Gayyoom and Jumhoory Party leader and MP Gasim ‘Buruma’ Ibrahim to be brought before the court within one hour, was not unlawful.

The ruling was given in response to an appeal by the police against the criminal court order.

”Maldives Police Services understand that the criminal court order was contrary to the law,” said the prosecution lawyer Dheebanaz Fahmy yesterday.

The legislation states that police can keep a person in custody without a court appearance for 24 hours. The two MPs were arrested around 6.30 p.m. and around 9.30 p.m. Yameen’s lawyer Azima Shukoor requested the criminal court to determine on what grounds Yamin was arrested.

The order was issued around 12.15 a.m. that same night, less than six hours after the arrest. The police claimed the court order was unlawful and against judicial procedure.

Last night the criminal court ruled both MPs were to be placed under house arrest for three days while the investigation continues, and that they would be free to attend parliamentary sittings and committee meetings. The police also appealed to the High Court against this ruling.

DRP deputy leader and MP Ali Waheed meanwhile condemned the actions of the police for arresting the two MPs. “The government is trying to gain a majority in the Majlis by force,” said Ali Waheed. ”That’s why they are threatening the opposition MPs.”

Waheed claimed that the police were influenced by the government. ”I have been repeatedly trying to contact Commissioner of Police Ahmed Faseeh to hold a meeting to discuss this issue,” Waheed said. ”He has not responded.”

Waheed also said that the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) was active in Male’ although there was no civil unrest.

“The government is trying to declare a state of emergency,” he said. ”Then the executive will gain a lot of powers.”

He claimed that the former minister of defence Ameen Faisal (who resigned two days ago along with the entire cabinet) was attending MNDF headquarters. Waheed said this was a threat to national security.

”After he resigned, he had no authority to enter MNDF headquarters,” Waheed said. ”He is a person who also had some connection with November 3rd attack.”

The judicial system of the Maldives is not impartial, says the secretary-general of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Ibrahim Shareef.

He said that the MDP might include that issue in their ongoing protests against opposition party actions in the Majlis which the MDP claims are an attempt to undermine the constitutional powers of the executive branch of government.

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Sex change disguised infamous JonBenét murder suspect as transsexual Billabong teacher

A teacher who worked at Billabong High School in Male’ from Feburary until June 2009, Alexis Valoran Reich, has been revealed as the transsexual alter-ego of John Mark Karr, a man who falsely confessed to murdering JonBenét Ramsey in the United States and has been investigated for possession of child pornography.

The JonBenét case remains one of the most high-profile unsolved murder cases in the US. The six year old was discovered dead in the basement of her parent’s house in Boulder Colorado in 1996, apparently strangled with a garrote made from a length of cord and the broken handle of a paintbrush.

The case initially focused on Ramsey’s parents as the murder suspects, attracting extensive media coverage, which often remarked on her participation in child beauty pageants.

Karr, who was on the run in Thailand after being charged in the US for possession of child pornography, confessed to the killing in 2006 and was extradited to the US to await trial. He was eventually acquitted because his DNA did not match that discovered on Ramsay’s body. The five charges of possession of child pornography were also dropped after investigators reportedly lost the computer they seized from him in 2001, containing the images.

Boulder police reopened the case February 2009, although the case remains unsolved despite the unmatched DNA evidence.

Karr disappeared from the public stage and reportedly began working as a teacher in countries across Europe and Asia. He arrived in the Maldives on January 20 last year as a woman, ‘Alexis Valoran Reich’, and was employed at Billabong school as a preschool and grade one English teacher.

Karr/Reich left the school in June after “personal differences” with then-Principal Kevin Dillow, explained Billabong board member Ahmed Adhly Rasheed.

“Reich was employed through a reputable English teacher recruitment agency, which provided us a [clean] Seattle City police report in his name,” Rasheed said.

“We did several checks – the immigration check when [the staff member] enters the country, the check when the work permit issued, and we checked the referral letters from places where he had worked before. We also do our own checks, and were in the process of doing that when Alexis left. He arrived on January 20 and left four and a half months later.”

The connection between Karr and Reich only became public knowledge in March-May 2010, following news reports in the US on his sex change that led to an update of Karr’s entry on Wikipedia.

The photo of Reich in Billabong’s personnel file is unmistakably a feminine likeness of Karr, and his passport details – birthdate December 11, 1964, issued December 2008 in his hometown of Georgia – match Karr’s details exactly.

“We had the police in the school this morning asking where this person was,” Rasheed said, emphasising that Reich had left the school over a year ago, destination unknown.

During her time at the Billabong there were no allegations made against him or any evidence of impropriety, Rasheed said. Reich was by all accounts an excellent teacher – “he was in fact the most popular teacher at the school.”

“He left because of a conflict with the principal Kevin. I don’t mean to defend this guy, but he was actually very popular among the parents. When he left and parents found out it was to do with a conflict with management, some parents approached us and expressed disappointment that he was leaving, and desire that he [remain at the school].”

A Billabong teacher who worked alongside Reich concurred: “Sure he was a bit strange, but he was really good with all the kids. They all liked him – there was no seediness,” the teacher said. “I think he pulled a runner because he wasn’t enjoying the work. He used to complain, but just about normal work things. There were no issues.”

Rasheed said the school received no allegations about Reich while he was working at the school.

“Nothing of any concern happened while he was here – there were no allegations,” Rasheed said. “Our concern is the talk around town that this is somebody who is still working at the school.”

Reich’s passport identified her as male – it had been issued the month before he arrived, Rasheed explained.

“He spoke with a deep voice. I don’t know the extent of his sex change operation,” Rasheed said. “He was known as a man to co-workers, teachers and students while he was in the Maldives.”

Billabong’s unwitting employment of an infamous transsexual teacher acquitted of murdering a six year old beauty queen – a saga somewhat at odds with the conservative nature of modern Maldivian society – together with the allegations of child abuse facing the (former) Principal of the Maldives’ other private school, Lale Youth International – has raised questions among parents and the Education Ministry as to the efficacy of the country’s vetting procedures.

In a letter to Minivan News, concerned parent Muzaffar Naeem said that while he “was relieved that Mr Alexis Reich no longer works at the school”, he questioned the Education Ministry’s guidelines on the employment teachers, and whether the rules were as stringent for privately-owned schools as they were for government institutions.

Deputy Education Minister Shifa Mohamed said the same proceedures were required to be in place at private schools as those in government-owned schools.

“The Ministry expects all schools to follow the same proceedures and obtain police clearance before employing teachers,” she said. “It is also the responsibility of each school to take the initiative and check that teachers are of good quality.”

Rasheed reiterated that the identity of Alexis Reich was only revealed a month ago: “we followed our proceedures but of course in this case there was no connection between the two individuals.”

Current Principal of Billabong David Key, who took over from Dillow in November, observed that Reich’s Seattle City police record would have been clear if his history of charges was kept in another US county.

“It’s similar if you ask the London Metropolitan police for a police record check – they won’t check the rest of the country,” said Key.

“This school is putting in proceedures that are stock standard in every international school in the world – get records, references, call referees first, all these kind of things. Police records should not only come from the country where they were born, but should come country the person was last living in. This is very important – you can have a teacher who has worked for five years in Thailand but hands in a UK police report. They been in Thailand last five years, how do we not know anything [happened]?”

Most important, Key said, was the need for schools to interview teachers “face to face, person to person.”

“I think we need to actually meet people, because that gives you a better idea of nature of a person than Skype or a phone call. The teachers I would like to employ [at Billabong] are people I know would fit into this society and have an agreement with the way of life here – rather than necessarily having the best educational qualifications. Those are important, but it’s more important that the teachers we get fit into the Islamic culture here and the nature of the Maldives.”

Correction: Reich’s passport, issued December 2008, identified him as male, not female as previously stated.

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