Islanders on Milandhoo, Feevah, Foakaidhoo and Narudhoo in Shaviyani Atoll reported feeling an earthquake on Sunday afternoon.
A quake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale was detected in the Indian Ocean 215 miles south of Jakarta at 1:21pm.
“It seemed like the ground slipped under the feet. The people having lunch in their homes came out. The windowpanes also shook,” Foakaidhoo Island Chief Ali Nizar told newspaper Haveeru.
No damage was reported.
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(0)The ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) conducted internal elections yesterday for party posts.
A total of 455 candidates contested for posts in 77 constituencies, including a president and secretary for each voting district.
For constituencies with an MDP MP in parliament, elections took place for vice-president, secretary, assistant secretary and planning secretary.
With 250 ballot boxes in over a 100 islands, the party claims it was the largest election in the country to date.
Official results will be announced in three days.
Meanwhile, provisional results show that a number of senior government officials, notably State Ministers Ahmed Adhil and Ahmed Inaz and the Fisheries Ministry’s Food Security Coordinator Mohamed “OK” Zahir, lost out.
(0)Dislikes(0)Six journalists from private radio station DhiFM launched a protest outside the media company’s offices today, claiming unfair dismissal and editorial pressure for negative coverage of the government.
The journalists began protesting this afternoon outside Champa Guest House, which houses DhiFM and DhiTV, holding up placards that read: “Protect the rights of the journalists” and “Stop using media as a propaganda machine”.
“We are all protesting because our organisation terminated its staff in violation of the Employment Act and because it has also broken media ethics,” said one of the journalists. “Four of us here were sacked and the other two resigned.”
The journalist claimed that the sacked reporters were not given notice and were owed unpaid salaries.
“We cannot work freely. This is a very biased media,” he continued. “The management has a lot of influence on our work. We have to write stories the way that they want, according to their idea of politics.”
He added that the journalists did not accept the reason for the dismissals given by the management, which was reportedly to cut costs, as the station was presently hiring more staff.
Gufthaq Ajeel, 19, told Minivan News that he quit the station in protest after management allegedly leaked the source of a news report he filed about unhappy employees at the Hulhule Island Hotel (HIH).
“They went into my personal folder and leaked it,” he said.
As Article 28 of the constitution protects journalists from being compelled to disclose sources, Gufthaq said that he had filed a complaint with the police on Wednesday.
Moreover, he added, reporters at DhiFM were occasionally told to skew reports for an anti-government slant.
Following DhiFM’s coverage of a large rally in Male’ by the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) in July, Qufthaq explained, the DhiFM newsroom was shut down and four of its journalists fired.
Response
The protesters called for the resignation of DhiFM CEO Masoodh Hilmy and other senior management.
Speaking to Minivan News today, Masoodh denied the claims of his former employees.
“We had to terminate three of them due to punctuality and disciplinary issues, and the other three resigned of their own wishes,” he said. “We provided all the allowances and salaries mentioned in the Employment Act for the staff we terminated.”
He added that prior warnings were given to the staff verbally before the decision to dismiss was made.
“Nobody can handle it when one is too much,” he said.
Masoodh further denied the allegations of bias and undue influence on journalists working for the private broadcaster.
“If you asked a staff here you will understand, we have no influence on the journalists,” he said.
President of the Maldives Journalists Association (MJA), Ahmed Hiriga Zahir, told Minivan News that one of the journalists had contacted the MJA this morning notifying him of the intent to protest, “but otherwise we know little about it. We have not yet spoken to DhiFM management to get their side.”
The MJA was willing to assist the journalists by lobbying DhiFM management if requested, he said, but noted that the MJA had yet to evolve into a journalists’ union and was more focused on promoting issues such as media freedom.
Asked if the MJA was concerned about allegations from the sacked journalists of editorial interference, he observed that “media organisations have the freedom to decide whether they want to be pro or anti-government.”
“In countries like the US it is common for media [outlets] to even endorse political candidates, but that should not affect the [ethical] standards of their news reporting. Media’s role is still to keep the government accountable,” Hiriga stated.
Visiting journalism trainer Tiare Rath, Iraq Editorial Manager for the Institute of War and Peace Reporting (IWPR), last month identified resistance among senior editorial leadership in the country to evolve away from politically partisan media.
“I have been really impressed with news judgement here, and the understanding of the basic principles of journalism,” Rath said of her experience training young reporters in the Maldives.
“But on the other hand, one of the major issues all my students talked about is resistance among newsroom leadership – editors and publishers. Even if the journalists support and understand the principles being taught, they consistently tell me they cannot apply them,” she said. “This is a very, very serious problem that needs to be addressed.”
(0)Dislikes(0)This article was originally published on the website of the Islamic Foundation of the Maldives. Republished with permission.
A month ago I was shocked to hear the news of an 18-year-old woman from Afghanistan who was punished by slicing her ears and nose, for running away from her abusive husband’s house.
The news was carried around the world by the leading news agencies for many days, especially the western media. A few days later, I was shopping at Ashrafee Bookshop – one of the largest bookstores in Male’ – and happened to see the mind-disturbing image of the abused woman named Aisha.
The image was published on the cover page of the TIME magazine. I did not have the courage to gaze at the horrifying picture for long, because the beautiful girl’s nose was missing. A maroon coloured shawl partially covered her head while her ears were covered with the beautifully combed black hair.
The image would certainly create hatred against the Taliban, the previous rulers of Afghanistan, before the US forces occupied the country to hunt Osama Bin Laden. Like any other reader, the bold letters on the image also caught my attention. It read: “What happens if we leave Afghanistan?”.
The message was very clear.
What I understood from it was that if US forces withdrew from Afghanistan, the country’s condition would worsen as seen in the picture. Every woman would be abused likewise, as we see Aisha in the image.
The article was written by the famous writer Aryn Baker. I read the whole article twice. My conclusion is that the purpose of publishing the article was to criticise Islamic Sharia and to blame the Taliban because they are gaining victory over the US forces in many of the districts in Afghanistan.
One line in the article read: “Under the Taliban, women accused of adultery were stoned to death; those who flashed a bare ankle were whipped”.
The whole article was in favour of Islamaphobia, and creating abhorrence against Islamic customs, principles and jurisprudence. The article was very much in support of the occupied forces while failing to bring all the sides of the story.
Although I am not a professional journalist, I had the opportunity to report from Pakistan and Indian controlled Kashmir. To my knowledge all the parties involved in a sensitive story should be given a fair chance to respond.
But the writer has failed to bring the comments of Aisha’s husband and in-laws, and Taliban. The whole article was single sourced, breaking journalism ethics. It may be hard or impossible to get an interview from the victim’s husband and in-laws. But if the writer wished, she could have got a comment from Taliban.
The writer also could have mentioned Taliban’s denial statement made through internet. The whole story is totally a biased one. Aisha’s case may be true, or it is possible that the story was created. There is no way to prove the accusations made by Aisha.
She might have been abused by her family or by muggers. Who knows what is behind the picture? Aisha might have blamed the Taliban by posing for the cover image of TIME, as it may be her only chance for reconstructive surgery.
In the editorial, Managing Editor Richard Stengel wrote: “Aisha will head to the US for reconstructive surgery sponsored by the Grossman Burn Foundation, a humanitarian organisation in California. We are supporting the effort.”
This statement proves that TIME has bought the story by funding for the surgery to some extent.
Since US and its allies invaded Afghanistan in 2001, hundreds of innocent civilians have been killed and many were made disabled by ‘accidental’ attacks. But these incidents have failed to catch the attention of the international news media.
On 19 September, the Washington Post reported that the US military was investigating a case where three civilians were killed for fun by a group of US soldiers. The newspaper also reported that the culprits even posed for pictures with the amputated body parts of the dead Afghans.
I want to question the western media as to why stories involving abusive acts of US military are not covered in the same manner as the story of Aisha? Like Afghanistan, the unlawful invasion by the US has killed hundreds of thousands of civilians in Iraq. A report published by Iraq Body Count Project (IBC), an independent UK-US group reveals that nearly 1,989 civilians have been killed in Iraq only in 2010 by coalition military action, Iraqi insurgency and excess crimes.
According to IBC, 106,072 civilians have been killed since Iraq was invaded in 2003. This is also an under estimated figure as the information was based only on those reported by media organisations. IBC project’s director John Sloboda has said earlier “We’ve always said our work is an undercount, you can’t possibly expect that a media-based analysis will get all the death.”
As witnessed in other countries, the US Embassy is investing money on lots of projects in the Maldives under the banner of promoting democracy, human rights and free media. But the reality is that there is a hidden agenda behind these investments.
The purpose is to influence and control the country through modern methods of colonialism. My answer to the messy writer is, if you (US and other coalition forces) leave Afghanistan, tens of thousands of lives would be saved, so leave Afghanistan and other Muslim countries.
(0)Dislikes(0)The body of a tourist from the UK has been found on the beach of Kuredhoo Island Resort in Lhaviyani Atoll.
Police reported that the body of the 42 year-old woman was discovered at 12:30am on Friday night. She was a guest at the resort, police said, adding that the Serious and Organised Crime Department was now investigating the matter.
A staff member working on the island told Minivan News that the woman had no injuries on the outside of her body.
“Her body was found just after midnight, on the seashore,” he said. “Police have now arrived at the resort and are investigating the case.”
Another staff member working on the resort told Minivan News that the body had been transferred to Male’ Mortuary.
The Front Office Manager at the resort said he was not allowed to comment on the issue.
Kuredhoo is situated on the northern reef of the Lhaviyani Atoll, 80 miles north of the international airport at Hulhule.
(0)Dislikes(0)The opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) have accused Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Mohamed Mustafa of violating the Terrorism Act with comments intended to “intimidate” former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
Mustafa had recently criticised the former president and DRP ‘Honorary Leader’ for deciding to take part in an official DRP protest, despite earlier claiming to have resigned from politics.
The DRP today said that Gayoom’s participation in protests “does not mean that he is involved in political events. We believe he can take part in the DRP events to strengthen the unity of the party, as he is the DRP’s Honorary Leader,” the statement said. “We do not believe that those speaking against this have a valid point.”
Mustafa was recently arrested for allegedly bribing a Civil Court Judge.along with Deputy Leader of minority opposition Peoples Alliance party (PA) and Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Ahmed Nazim.
However, the Criminal Court released both MPs due to lack of evidence when of police appealed at the court for an extension of detention.
The Statement said that the former president “deserves the protection afford him under the constitution”, whether other political parties liked it or not.
“That protection cannot be violated when one party dislikes it,” DRP said. “Therefore, the actions of MP Mustafa were to smear the respect of the former president, which violates the Terrorism Act. We will take legal action against him.”
Mustafa replied that DRP’s thinking was “still back in the ancient ages.”
“They are angry because I said that if a former president is becoming affiliated with protests and political events, I might have to take allegations that the person was involved in torture to the court,” Mustafa said. “I also said I will take those issues to the International Court of Justice.”
Mustafa said that to file a terrorism case against him for these comments was “impossible.”
“Maybe it is possible according to the constitution made before Maumoon’s blue constitution,” he said. “One no longer gets sent to the torture chamber for mention the name ‘Maumoon’.”
“There is no treatment or medication for people spoiled with communism,” he added.
(0)Dislikes(0)Rain has prevented gas supplies from reaching Fuvahmulah, forcing the islanders to switch back to wood for fuel, reports Haveeru.
Gas retailers told Haveeru that the two main supply boats have been forced to remain in Laamu and Huvadhu Atoll due to the bad weather. Islanders are now using firewood and oil for cooking.
Haveeru also reported that switching to traditional methods of cooking has been a “painful” experience for the people of Fuvahmulah.
(0)Dislikes(0)The United Nations Human Rights Council has unanimously adopted a resolution to appoint a Special Rapportuer to promote and protect the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association across the world.
Reports from the Foreign Ministry say the resolution was introduced to the 15th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva by the Maldivian delegation on behalf of the Czech Republic, Indonesia, Lithuania, Mexico, Nigeria and the United States.
Article 20 of the UN Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to peaceful assembly and association, and that no one should be compelled to belong to an association.
(0)Dislikes(0)The illegal sale of timber from large timber trees has resumed in Laamu Gan, two years after police put a stop to the activity, reports Haveeru.
An islander who wished to remain anonymous claimed that a boatload of timber was being sold for Rf30,000 (US$2,300).
Mathimaradhoo district Island Chief Abdul Raheem said that large trees lining the industrial roads of the large island were fast disappearing.
A small number of people from all three districts of the island were employed in the illegal trade, he added.
Deputy Province State Minister Hussein Umar said that complaints had been received and action would be taken to stop the environmentally harmful activity.
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