MDP Founder Returns From Exile

Mohamed Latheef, the founder of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has returned to the Maldives after three years of voluntary exile in Sri Lanka.

“It feels great to be back!” he told Minivan News.

A crowd of MDP supporters gathered at the jetty to welcome the MDP founder back to his country of birth, and a cheer went up as he stepped off the boat and back onto the island of Male’.

Latheef then led a procession of MDP supporters through the city to the MDP headquarters, before returning home to rest. “I tried very hard to keep this welcome thing as calm and quiet as possible,” he said. Still, many MDP supporters came to see him return, waving yellow flags, cheering and calling for the President’s resignation.

But the event was carried off completely peacefully. There was virtually no police presence and no arrests were made.

“We have started a process of change and reform and a lot of people in my party say that if I came back it might have a motivating effect on the reform process,” said Latheef, explaining his motives for returning.

He left the Maldives with other founding members in October 2003 fearing persecution after considerable political unrest. The month before, Evan Naseem, a 19 year-old jailed for drug offences, was beaten to death by prison officers, sparking prison riots and the shooting of 19 inmates, three of which died. That caused anti-government riots on the streets of Male’.

Latheef founded the party the following month in Colombo with Mohamed Nasheed (Anni), Ahmed Mausoom, Ahmed Shafeeg Moosa and others.

Latheef is quoted on the dissident Dhivehi Observer website, blocked in the Maldives, about the possibility of arrest. “It cannot be ruled out and I have received such treatment in the past but I believe the time is ripe for me to work from home for our cause.”

His daughter, Jenny Latheef, was charged with terrorism and sentenced to ten years imprisonment in October 2005. She was then pardoned by President Gayoom on August 16, 2006, but rejected the pardon. She left the country soon after.

The other main founder of the MDP, Anni, returned from exile on 30 March, 2005, and was arrested and placed under house arrest on 12 August, 2005. He was only released after much diplomatic and political pressure on 21 September last year, fourteen months later.

Latheef’s homecoming coincides with a visit by the UK Conservative MP, Gary Streeter, who will discuss the possibility of further cooperation and support from his party in Britain. Streeter will travel with Latheef to his native island of Thinadhoo, Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, where the British MP will give a speech to party members.

Latheef’s return comes at a critical time for the party, when it is struggling to maintain unity as the split between the parliamentary members and the shadow cabinet group grows. MDP party officials will now be hoping Latheef’s arrival helps to overcome disagreement and assert greater unity and direction on the party.

The MDP originally came into being after discussions in February 2001 among 42 Maldivians about the possibility of an opposition movement, including current Finance Minister, Gasim Ibrahim. He since defected to the government after a short spell in jail, but the movement was officially registered as the first political party of the Second Republic of the Maldives on 26th June, 2005.

Since then the MDP has become the largest opposition party in the Maldives.

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Expatriates Refuse to Work

Ninety-two expatriates working in Funamaudhoo, North Huvadhu Atoll have gone on strike claiming they have been beaten and not paid.

They have travelled to Thinadhoo, Ghaaf Daal, where they are waiting to return to their native homes, Thinadhoo Police said.

The majority of the labourers are thought to be from Bangladesh. They reportedly went on strike yesterday claiming they had not been paid and saying they were eventually beaten during the three-months they worked to develop Funamaudhoo into a tourist resort.

Police say the men arrived in Thinadhoo at around 1.30pm yesterday. They were reportedly dropped off at the island’s port by their employer and have been waiting there since.

“At the moment, nearly a hundred workers are waiting by the port to be taken to Male’,” an official from the Thinadhoo Police Station told Minivan News. “The men slept in boats last night, but should be in Male’ at around eight this evening.”

The Police official was unsure who was paying for the workers’ return journey, but said he suspected it was the employers, Yacht Tours Maldives. The company is owned by Majlis member for North Huvadhu, Abdulla Jabir.

When asked to explain the Funamaudhoo situation, Jabir refused to give comment and said that all questions regarding Yacht Tours Maldives must be answered by a representative at the company’s office. But Manager Mohamed Raffath, who was in the office when Minivan called, had no more to say on the situation.

He said: “It is not our people who are involved in this. We use subcontractors, so it is their problem, not ours.” Raffath went on to say that he was not allowed to reveal any information on the subcontractor due to an agreement between the two companies. He also expressed doubt as to whether the accusations were true.

But many Thinadhoo residents believe the expatriates story. According to one man quoted in the Dhivehi Observer, the workers have said it has been several days since they have had a proper meal and that some were beaten when they refused to work in protest at the poor conditions.

The Dhivehi Observer also published several pictures of injured men, which it claims is evidence of the expatriates’ stories. Thinadhoo Police say that are further investigation the situation.

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Opposition Parties Condemn ID Card Rules

Two of the three main opposition parties, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the Adhaalath (Justice) party (AP), have condemned a new regulation by the Elections Commission which says every citizen must have new ID cards in order to be eligible to vote.

An Adhaalath party official speaking on behalf of Chairman, Mohamed Didi, told Minivan News: “The Party does not consider it constitutional and the party believes it is very harmful to the citizens.”

Adhaalath says it believes one of the reasons the government has introduced the regulation is to increase revenue for the budget through charging for the new cards. A new card costs Rf. 100, and an upgrade from the old ID card costs Rf. 30.

The AP also says it is concerned members of the government’s party – the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) – will get the new cards first. “They will definitely give a preference to the DRP,” said the official.

The biggest opposition party, the MDP, also says the move is unconstitutional. “New ID cards are not necessary according to the constitution but now the government is introducing the new rule,” said Dr. Ibrahim Didi, Shadow Home Affairs and Local Government Minister.

Both parties believe the move to be a ploy to limit the number of opposition voters. The government is well-known for its use of obscure regulations and technicalities to limit various political freedoms that contradict its interests.

Currently the constitution allows anyone over 21 to vote.

The Elections Commission refused to comment.

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