Month: May 2010

Household expenses survey concluded

The third and final round of a nation-wide household expenses survey has been completed by the department of national planning.

According to Voice of Maldives, 440 households in 11 islands were maintaining expenses diaries for the last stage of the survey.

State Minister for Finance and Treasury Aslam Shakir, currently in charge of the planning department, said the purpose of the survey was to track changes in the price of goods and services for the consumer price index. The survey would also reveal levels of poverty and national productivity.

The results of the study will be compared to a baseline of five years ago. The final report is due in December this year.

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Rf5 million of Zakat allocated for scholarships

The Zakat committee of the Islamic Ministry has decided to use proceeds of the property zakat (alms for the poor) to issue scholarships, Voice of Maldives reports.

State Minister Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed said Rf5 million has been allocated for the scholarships, which will be interest-free and offered for diploma and degree courses.

The scholarships will be awarded to high achievers, students from poor families and others who face financial difficulties in pursuing higher education.

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UK election: hung parliament opens door to ‘ConDem’ coalition

The UK election has concluded in a hung parliament, the first in 36 years, with neither of the three primary parties having enough of a majority to form a government, in a situation that has both political pundits and electoral authorities scratching their heads.

David Cameron’s Conservative party, upon which the current Maldivian government’s economic policy is modelled, made substantial gains across the country, taking 305  seats, but fell short of 21 to reach a majority.

The ruling Labour government, headed by Gordon Brown, suffered a staggering loss of 91 seats but was not as scalded as many commentators had predicted, finishing on 258.

Both parties have now turned to the Liberal Democrats, headed by Nick Clegg, in the hopes of creating a coalition government stable enough to see off the opposition.

Given the widespread dissatisfaction with Labour over the expenses scandal, handling of the economic meltdown and its Middle East foreign policy, many commentators expected the Liberal Democrats to perform far better than they actually did among disgruntled Labour voters. The party took 57 seats, an overall loss of five on the previous election, but the result has effectively put Clegg in the position of kingmaker.

Both Brown and Cameron have already approached Clegg with offers of a coalition government, offering concessions around education, carbon cuts and tax reform, as well as an inquiry into electoral reform, the Liberal Democrat’s main point of contention.

On the surface the policies of the Liberal Democrats mesh far better with those   than the ‘small government’ Conservative, however Clegg has already positioned the Liberal Democrats as Labour alternative, vilifying the party in an attempt to lure dissatisfied voters. A ‘ConDem’ coalition is far more likely, however Clegg’s key supporters are likely to regard such a move as a ‘pact with the devil’.

Major disagreements include standing on the EU, immigration, public spending cuts of £6 billion and defence – areas on which Cameron has said he will not budge.

If a deal cannot be reached, it is likely a second election will be held – a not unwelcome outcome for the many thousands of voters who complained they had been unable to vote before the closing time of 10pm because of long queues, mismanagement and capacity problems at polling booths.

The uncertainty over the country’s political future has caused shares to plummet along with the pound and the FTSE-100, which dropped 138 points.

Meanwhile, as per protocol, the Queen is waiting on the sidelines in Buckingham Palace for the moment she will invite one of the party leaders to form a government.

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Islamic ministry completes religious unity regulations

The Ministry of Islamic Affairs has unveiled sweeping new regulations governing religion in the Maldives, to be published in the government’s gazette and made law under the Religious Unity Act of 1994.

State Minister for Islamic Affairs Sheikh Shaheem Ali Saeed said the new regulations had been produced with the assistance of the Attorney General Husnu Suood and the Maldives Police Service, and would be instrumental in curbing extremist ideologies in the country.

“The Islamic Ministry and the Government of the Maldives strongly support international concern about terrorism,” Shaheem said. “This why at the Islamic Ministry we are doing our best to work together with groups like the MNDF to make sure our country is peaceful.”

Key to the new regulations is the creation of a board with representatives from the Islamic Ministry, the Education Ministry, the Maldives College of Higher Education, the Fiqh Academy, police, NGOs, Maldivian religious scholars and licensed lawyers.

“Their job is to give advice to the Islamic Ministry and the government about how to make religious policy in the Maldives, and how to control these ideas,” Shaheem explained.

“For example, if we want to cancel a scholar’s license, first we will submit the problem to the board and the board will investigate and determine if it should be cancelled. Previously if a minister or the President of the Supreme Islamic Council could just cancel it, and it’s not good to have all the powers in one hand. We need to share it with NGOs and especially the Maldives police, because they have a lot of intelligence about international problems.”

He said he wished to thank “the international community, the President’s Office, the Maldives Police Service and the Maldives National Defense Force for their assistance and input [with the new regulations].

Shaheem noted that the new rules would require private organisations or civil society associations to seek the ministry’s approval before organising sermons by foreign scholars, and added that it was particularly strict concerning the issuing of fatwas (religious edicts) by individuals.

“Individuals issuing fatwas can be very dangerous and increase the level of extremism and terrorism,” Shaheem said.

The new regulations would also restrict the content of public speeches, in that “when a scholar gives speech he must respect both men and women, and he has no right to encourage aggression.”

Such talks could no longer be broadcast or telecast, he said.

New regulations in depth

The stated purpose of the new rules and guidelines is to “protect and maintain the age-old religious unity among Maldivians, eliminate problems that arise in society because of differences of opinion among scholars on religious matters, ensure that information provided to the public on these issues of conflict does not lead to division and strife, provide the opportunity for religious scholars to raise awareness on religious issues among the public, institute an advisory board to the Ministry of Islamic affairs and designate its functions and responsibilities.”

Clause 4 states that the regulations shall be enforced by the Islamic Ministry and authorises the ministry to delegate enforcement of provisions to other parties, while remaining the country’s highest authority on issuing rulings on religious matters.

Moreover, the ministry shall be empowered to issue “official fatwas” concerning issues on which scholars disagree, based on the Qur’an, the Prophet’s Hadiths, consensus among scholars and after considering “the social traditions of the country.”

Under the regulations, the president shall institute an advisory board in consultation with the Islamic Ministry to offer counsel and assistance in enforcing the regulations, including advising the ministry on revoking or suspending licenses issued to religious scholars.

The board shall also advise the ministry on ordering the relevant government authority to take action against “threats to religious unity”, recommend changes to policy, laws and regulations.

The Islamic Ministry will determine the composition of the board and assume its secretariat post.

To be eligible for the board, members must have at least a bachelors degree in either Islamic studies or Shariah law from an institution or university accepted by the Maldives government, while one of the three Islamic Ministry representatives on the board shall be elected as the chair.

Once the regulations are enforced, the Islamic Ministry will issue licenses for religious scholars to preach and deliver sermons.

The criteria for issuing licenses requires that the scholar be a Sunni Muslim of 25 years of age with a degree in Islamic studies from an accredited University.

Moreover, scholars who have been convicted of either a crime with a punishment prescribed in the Quran or of corruption, bribery, sexual assault or a drug-related offence shall not be eligible.

For scholars without the requisite qualifications, the ministry can issue licenses based on the board’s recommendation and the scholars’ experience and contributions to religious knowledge.

Further, foreign scholars must be mindful of Maldivian culture and tradition in delivering sermons or providing counsel.

Meanwhile, the guidelines for issuing fatwas requires that it conform to the Sunni sect and should not be in conflict with the consensus of Islamic scholars. Fatwas can only be issued in line with the Fiqh academy of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), the European Council for Fatwa and Research, the Egyptian Darul-Ifthaqil, Azhar University, the Maldives’ Islamic Fiqh academy, and the Rabiyathul Aaalamil Islamic Fiqh Academy.

Prohibitions

Once the regulations are published in the government gazette, it will be illegal to promote personal views on matters where there is a difference of opinion among scholars.

Sermons should not contain language that “encourages violence” or could lead to “conflict, quarreling and antagonism among the people”.

Moreover, it will be illegal to either telecast or broadcast sermons that “encroaches on the rights of a person based on gender” in opposition to Islamic principles.

It will also be illegal to preach other religions, and disseminate information on “culture and traditions” of another religion in a way that could “engender admiration for it” or build places of worship for religions other than Islam.

Clause 30(d) states it will be illegal to preach a religion other than Islam “through any medium” or disseminate information on another religion in a way that could “draw people’s interest and attention”. Publication and distribution of religious literature translated into Dhivehi will be illegal.

The ministry will also be empowered to order the deportation foreigners “suspected with sufficient evidence” of preaching or proselytizing other religions.

However clause 22 of the regulation states that providing information about other religions for academic purposes, official research or lectures for the purpose of comparison with Islam will now not be illegal. Moreover, the protection and preservation of ancient relics would be exempt from the regulations.

It will remain illegal for licensed broadcasters to air programmes, advertisements or music that either “insult or denigrate Islam”, in line with article 27 of the constitution, which allows for free expression except where that expression contradicts the tenets of Islam. Clause 35(b) of the new regulations explicitly states that internet websites and blogs shall not be exempt from this.

“There are two sides to extremism,” Shaheem explained, “including the extreme irreligious side. Some people are saying their own opinions about the Qur’an and and our beloved Prophet’s (PBUH) sunnah; it is not allowed for anyone to say whatever he wants to.”

It will furthermore be illegal for local businesses or companies to make announcements or publish advertisements with content that is “contrary to Islamic codes of conduct or behaviour.”

Religious subjects may only be taught in the country with authorisation from the relevant government authority, which has to approve the curriculum and syllabus.

The regulations will also make independent or breakaway prayer congregations illegal and subject to police action.

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MJA lambasts government through IFJ ‘Battle for Democracy’ report

A report on Press Freedom in South Asia published by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), entitled the ‘Battle for Democracy’, contains heavy criticsm of the Maldives’ commitment to free and independent media.

The glossy publication by the highly-regarded association, which also issues international press cards, cites President of the Maldives Journalists Association (MJA) and editor of newspaper Haveeru, Ahmed ‘Hiriga’ Zahir, as saying that President Mohamed Nasheed’s words in support of press freedom “were not being matched by deeds.”

“There have been overt and other more subtle efforts by his government to suppress the free functioning of the media,” the report claimed, referencing Hiriga’s comments.

The report also highlights “the potentially grave threat to independent media [in the] government’s decision to publish all press releases, announcements, tender notices and job advertisements in a specialised Government Gazette”.

Describing the recent attacks on media organisations, in which DhiTV was stormed by a gang of six men who threatened staff, and the stabbing of a Haveeru printery worker, the IFJ report notes the attacks “led to bitter exchanges between the MDP and DRP.”

“The following day a DRP official accused the MDP of instigating the attacks and questioned the ruling party’s oft-stated commitment to media freedom. Others spoke of strategies the government had introduced to kill the media.”

The report goes on to note that “government officials were known to be all too quick to use defamation laws to sue journalists and independent media outlets.”

However, no official of the new government has sued a journalist for defamation to date.

“The DRP and its allies as of 2009 had three criminal defamation suits pending against journalists, one by a former Chief Justice against Manas weekly, another by People’s Alliance President and MP Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom against Haama daily, and another by the President of the Poverty Alleviating Party MP Ahmed Saleem against Jazeera daily.”

The report also contained detailed criticisms of the country’s new media council, which it claimed would generate “an adversarial relationship between the media and the public.”

“[The media council] may be at variance with the general practice in media accountability legislation worldwide, which is to encourage self-regulation and promote a dialogue between the media and the public,” the report noted.

As a positive development, the IFJ mentions that “towards the end of his tenure as President, Abdul Gayoom signed in a set of regulations providing public access to information.”

The online version of the report is missing the section on the Maldives, although it acknowledges a contribution by the MJA.

Awards and Workshops

Following his address on Tuesday to mark UNESCO World Press Freedom Day, President Mohamed Nasheed launched the Maldives Journalist of the Year award, to recognise and promote quality journalism in the country.

Beginning in 2011, Nasheed explained that the recipient would be determined on a peer review basis, and not by the government.

“We want to have a free press and we want to do this because we strongly believe that freedom of press is important for consolidating democracy, and we also strongly believe that development can only be achieved through a free press,” he said.

In a further bid to improve the standard of journalism in the Maldives, the Commonweath Secretariat is holding a media development workshop June 14-17 in collaboration with the MJA.

Two senior editors from Singapore, including Bhagman Singh from MediaCorp News and Channel NewsAsia and Deputy Foreign Editor of English-language daily The Straits Times, will be leading the free seminar. Minivan News will also presenting a session on some of the challenges of reporting in the Maldives.

Topics will cover reporting and editing, as well as media law, ethics, media freedom, democracy and international relations.

Commonwealth Secretariat Deputy Spokesperson Manoah Esipisu said the workshop united two commonweath neighbours, Singapore and the Maldives, “in the sharing of expertise and experiences in media development.”

“This cross-cultural exchanges will help to broaden and deepen understanding on journalism and the influence of politics and governance, culture, tradition, environment, education and technology,” he said, adding that he hoped the workshop would lead to “greater consistency in the accuracy, fairness and balance of news reports.”

Maldivian nationals working in the news media are invited to submit an application form through the MJA’s website before June 1.

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President to veto local council elections bill

President Mohamed Nasheed has announced that he will veto the bill on local council elections voted through by parliament earlier this week.

Speaking at a ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) rally last night, President Nasheed said ratifying the bill on decentralisation would be “the intelligent thing to do” but article four of the local council elections bill would deprive many citizens of their right to vote.

Article four requires that voters would have to be present in their island of birth or registered constituency in order to cast their ballots.

The bill was voted through by the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP)-People’s Alliance coalition without any votes from MDP MPs.

The president said a large number of people from the atolls living in Male’ or “40 per cent of the population”, would be deprived of the right to vote if he ratified the bill.

Moreover, he said, young men and women who work outside their islands would not have a say in local government.

He added that the bill was “definitely unconstitutional”.

In the 2008 presidential elections, said Nasheed, MDP received the majority of its backing from islanders living in Male’.

President Nasheed accused opposition MPs of employing “trickery and deceit” during the last session of parliament.

“50,000 people will vote for MDP. This is a cunning plan to deprive them of their vote,” he said.

Shifting blame

The two main political parties have  blamed each other for the controversial article four.

Two amendments proposed by the MDP to allow remote voting were defeated in parliament on Sunday.

”We proposed to amend the bill in a manner everyone can vote for,” said MDP MP Eva Abdulla. “But DRP MPs did not vote for it.”‘

Eva said then MDP then proposed another amendment to allow people of other islands living in Male’ to vote in the council elections “but they refused for that also”.

”There are more than 20 percent of each islands population who are from other islands,” she said.

DRP MP Ahmed Nihan said that DRP MPs did not vote for the amendments because it did not provide the right to vote for everyone equally.

“‘One amendment allowed voting for people living in Male’ who had left their birth place, which is not fair,” Nihan said. “The other reason why we did not vote for the amendments is during the meeting held with political parties and the Elections Commission (EC), DRP objected to article four, but everyone else supported so we also agreed.”

Apart from DRP, said Nihan, MDP and MPs of the Dhivehi Qaumee Party participated in the meeting with the EC.

”The EC said that it would be difficult for them to keep ballot boxes everywhere and said they had financial difficulties too,” he said. “But we said it should be like any other elections, and the EC said that it was different from presidential elections and parliamentary elections and also said that it was the way they do it in other countries as well.”

He said that the ruling party was trying to “mislead people”.

”DRP had confirmed that we will present amendments to that bill and try to keep ballot boxes in other countries where Maldivians live,” he said.

But, MDP MP Mohamed Hamza dismissed Nihan’s claims as “all lies”.

”We presented two amendments, first one to at least allow people from islands living Male’ to vote,” Hamza said, ”the second one to hold the elections as widely as the elections commission could,”

He said that DRP MPs rejected both even though they understood it would deprive people of the right to vote.

DRP MP Ahmed Mahloof said the DRP raised the problem at the meeting with the EC and warned that article four would “become an issue”.

”[But] the EC wanted to make it different from other elections,” he said.

Mahlouf said President Nasheed was unhappy that the bill states all appointed island and atoll councilors should be dismissed.

“We want as many people to take part in the vote,” he said.

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Plastic bag import clampdown leading to local manufacture

High government import taxes on plastic bags, intended to reduce their use, has prompted some businesses in the country to manufacture their own plastic bags.

While a 200 per cent duty import duty is levied on plastic bags, the import duty for raw materials is 25 per cent.

The manager of a popular bakery in Male’ told Minivan News that the store had a machine able to produce 45,000 to 50,000 plastic bags everyday.

He added that the bags were produced for their own use and were not for sale.

“We cannot use paper bags to pack bread,” he said. ”I do not think that it is done anywhere in the world.”

Moreover, he said, the bakery had been producing plastic bags for ten years now.

”We do not have any permission from the environment ministry,” he said. ”We did not ask for permission because we use it for our own purpose,”

He said the company imported raw materials needed to produce plastic bags.

“We sometimes produce blue color plastic bags also, we can do any color we want,”‘ he said. “We import the raw materials mainly from Dubai and Saudi Arabia.”

However, an employee in an office located behind the bakery told Minivan News that he and his colleagues were “unable to work” whenever the machine was being operated, because of the toxic fumes.

”When they turn it on, a smell like paint thinner spreads through the whole area,” he said. “We get headaches, feel like vomiting and experience difficulty breathing when the fumes reach us.”‘

Everyone in the area faced the problem, he claimed.

”The substances they uses are very toxic,” he said. ”That’s why we feel ill when the fumes are released.”

Deputy Environment Minister Mohamed Shareef said that there were two companies permitted to produce plastic bags in the Maldives.

‘There will be no company permitted in Male’,” Shareef said. ”We give the permission after conducting an environment inspection survey.”

Shareef said that the government was trying to completely ban plastic bags in the Maldives.

”We are trying to make a law to ban the importation and production of plastic bags,” he said.

Shareef concurred that the fumes released when producing plastic bag contained toxic substances.

Head of Environmental NGO Bluepeace, Ali Rilwan, said that although the government’s 200 per cent tax on plastic bags was intended to discourage people from using it ”now they have started to bring in raw materials and establish factories.”

Rilwan said that the manufacture of plastic bags in a residential area poses health risks.

”People living near the bakery complain that they can’t breathe when the machine is on,” he said.

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CSC and political appointees: Pay cuts (Part II)

In part two of our comparisons between salaries of political appointees and civil servants, Minivan News examines the pay cuts initiated last year, parliament and the government’s promotion of state-owned companies.

The figures reported by Minivan News yesterday represented the fixed salaries of both political appointees and civil servants. The pay cuts made to salaries last October meant a 20 percent reduction for political appointees and a 15 percent reduction to civil servants’ salaries.

Press Secretary for the President’s Office, Mohamed Zuahir, said starting on 13 May 2010, civil servants and political appointees will get a 7 percent reimbursement from the government, which will go into a pension fund.

“Meaning those who had a 15 percent reduction will now only have an 8 percent reduction,” Zuhair noted.

Most members of the civil service are in the middle management services, who earn anywhere from Rf 7,680 to Rf 10,106 after the pay cuts. This rank includes directors, senior technical officers and deputy and assistant directors.

The wages of Permanent Secretaries have also been queried, as they are civil servants working for political appointees. They are not in the regular structure but are linked to deputy ministers.

Their fixed salaries were originally of Rf 20,500 plus Rf 15,000 for allowances. After the 20 percent pay cut which started in October 2009, they now earn a total of Rf 28,400 a month. This makes permanent secretaries the highest paid members of the civil service, followed by professors who now earn Rf 20,280 after the pay cuts.

Civil servants and political appointees

The figures obtained by Minivan News show the highest number of political appointees are island councillors, with 168 across the country. After the pay cuts, they are making Rf 9,600. In total, the government is spending Rf 1,612,800 per month on island councillor’s salaries alone.

The figures also show that 35 state ministers and 55 deputy ministers are currently working for the government. State ministers are currently being paid Rf 37,600 a month, while deputy ministers get  Rf 28,400 per month, after the 20 percent salary reductions.

Together, the wages for state and deputy ministers add up to Rf 2,878,000 per month.

Despite Parliament’s decision to pass the decentralisation bill without the provinces act, and the government’s promise to reduce political appointees, former Utility Development Director at the President’s Office, Ahmed Nasheed, was appointed Deputy Minister of State for the South-Central Province yesterday.

His wages bring the figure up to Rf 2,906,400 each month.

Government-owned companies

Another point of contention has been the creation of government-owned companies which have been transferred from the civil service, such as the Malé Health Services Corporation.

Those who are critical of the salary cuts for civil servants have argued the government is still technically paying the wages of those working in these companies, which means government expenditure on wages has not reduced.

Zuhair said the creation of these companies was not only to reduce the civil service, but “it is also a more practical model.”

He said these companies are “self-sufficient and depend on earnings as a commercially viable business,” and are now relying more on Private Public Partnerships (PPPs) than on government subsidies.

Zuhair noted although many state-owned companies such as STELCO were receiving government subsidies in the past, new policies mean they will not be subsidised any more. “MNBC salaries were given out based on revenue,” he added.

Parliament

MPs are currently earning Rf 62,500 a month, and are among the few sectors paid by the state who did not take a pay cut last year.

Parliamentary sittings take place three days a week, and there are three Parliament sessions a year. The sessions are held for three months and are followed by a one-month break.

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP for Hoarafushi, Ahmed Rasheed, said he would not support a reduction to MPs’ salary cuts because he is always helping his constituents by giving them money of his salary. “I am not using a single rufiyah from my salary,” he said. “Last month, I spent Rf 134,600 for my island’s people. When you look at it like that, 62,500 is not much.”

Rasheed said this money was used mostly for medical purposes, including bills from IGMH and even air fares to Sri Lanka for medical treatment.

He said people from his island “are very poor, and right now they don’t know what to do.”

Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP for Galolhu South, Ahmed Mahlouf, said if the economic situation was really that bad, “then yes, of course we would agree with lowering our salaries.” But, he said, “DRP and other opposition MPs don’t believe that the salary of any servant should be reduced.”

He said “Maldives is not going through such a bad economic stage,” adding that “even during the tsunami salaries weren’t reduced.”

Mahlouf said no one’s salaries should have been reduced, and “if we agreed to reduce it, it would mean we agree with the economic situation being that bad. That is why we are fighting for their rights.”

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National Art Gallery functions transferred to National Centre for the Arts

The functions of the National Art Gallery have been transferred to the National Centre for the Arts, operating under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture.

The National Art Gallery will not be administered separately but as an office of the National Centre for the Arts.

The change was made to eliminate duplication of work by the art gallery and the centre, thus reducing the costs of managing the gallery.

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