Month: December 2010

Education workshops mull Maldives university “masterplan”

The development of a higher education “masterplan” for the Maldives that could eventually establish a network of university and training facilities were the key focus of consultation workshops held in the country this week.

The workshops, which were held yesterday at Male’s Traders Hotel and earlier in the week – December 2 – at Gan, Addu Atoll, were held to consult with a number of stakeholders in the field of higher education for a study on expanding training opportunities in the country, Miadhu reported.

Speaking yesterday from the Traders Hotel, Education Minister Dr Mustafa Lutfi said the workshops form part of a study that is being jointly conducted with World Bank support to try and provide higher education for everyone in the Maldives, an ambition he claimed that was vital for developing the nation.

Maldivian Vice President, Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan, who was also in attendance at the event, was reported to have spoke on the vital need for a university in the country; something seen by the government as a “work in progress” at present.

According to Miadhu, Dr Waheed stressed there was a serious need to look at the Maldives’ capability to support multiple state-run universities that were technically capable of meeting international standards.

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Higher education will shape the future of Maldivian democracy: Vice President

The future of democracy in the Maldives is tied to the country’s embrace of higher education, according to Vice President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan.

Speaking at the Consultation Workshop on Future Higher Education in the Maldives, Dr Waheed said he doubted the Maldives could develop a thriving democracy “without a free and high quality education system”.

A higher education system would set what was built and developed at lower levels, he explained, and therefore it was vital to improve the “very weak liberal arts education foundation that we have today.”

“We need to broaden our understanding and our conception of needs of higher education in our country than merely filling vacant jobs,” Dr Waheed said.

The Consultation Workshop on Future Higher Education that was held yesterday was organised by the Department of Higher Education, with the assistance of the World Bank.

The main objective of the workshop was to consult with a wide audience of stakeholders in higher education, which would lead to the preparation of a master plan in higher education in the Maldives.

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Leaked cable shows Maldives’ behind-the-scenes politicking in Washington

The Maldives was offered US$85,000 to assist with the “resettlement expenses” of a Guantanamo Bay inmate, sought increased access to “liberal western education” in a bid to tackle growing fundamentalism and vowed that it would “not let relations with India impact relations with the United States.”

These and other diplomatic revelations emerged yesterday with the publication of a leaked diplomatic cable detailing consultations between Washington and the Maldives’ Ambassador to the US, Abdul Ghafoor Mohamed.

Dated February 26 and stamped by US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, the cable document reports on Ghafoor’s first consultation with US officials on February 23, 2010 ahead of presenting his credentials to US President Barack Obama the following day.

Assistance with UN Human Rights Council seat

According to the cable, Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake asked Ghafoor about the country’s progress towards gaining a seat on the UN Human Rights Council (which it later obtained).

In response, Ghafoor said he was confident that the Maldives could obtain one of the four Asia Group seats, as he did not believe Iran had enough Arab support. But he expressed concern that a vote split between Thailand and Maldives left the possibility open for Iran to win by “working African capitals.”

“As such, Maldives is not only lobbying Asian missions, but also African missions,” the cable stated.

Blake offered “quiet” US assistance “if it would be helpful”, however Ghafoor said that while he appreciated the offer “the Maldives needed to be seen as earning the seat in its own right.”

“As a small country, [Ghafoor] said, Maldives can’t play other countries against each other; it needs to take principled positions.”

Guantanamo Bay

The cable discusses arrangements for the transfer of a Guantanamo detainee to the Maldives and refers to an individual named ‘Fried’, presumably the Special Envoy to facilitate the closing of Guanatanamo Bay, Daniel Fried.

Information on the matter would be “kept close until we transfer the detainee”, Fried said in the cable, and referred to an offer “of US$85,000 to assist with [the detainee’s] resettlement expenses.”

“Fried stressed the importance of working out more detailed security arrangements for the detainee, along the lines of those applied in other countries that have accepted Guantanamo detainees for resettlement; Embassy Colombo could work directly with the Maldivian government on those arrangements,” the cable stated.

Vulnerability to extremism

Seeking additional US support from the US towards tackling fundamentalism, Ghafoor pressed for increased access to “liberal western education”, which he suggested would also help to combat growing fundamentalist trends.

In the leaked cable, Ghafoor explained that rising fundamentalism stemmed partly from students travelling to places such as Pakistan and Egypt for a free education in Islamic studies, and returning with extremist views. This, he said, had altered the Maldives’ traditionally peaceful and tolerant culture: “‘It used to be simply a question of faith; now you must show that you are more Muslim than others,’ he said.”

The cable also articulated the Maldivian government’s concern about the impact of an attack on an island resort, such as by Somali pirates, which Ghafoor noted “would cripple the country’s economy.”

In response, the US expressed interest in “expanding bilateral defense and security engagement, continuing training, and helping build the Maldives’ maritime security capabilities to counteract the threat from terrorism, piracy, and trafficking.”

Defence probing

Robert Scher, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia, asked Ghafoor how US military training compared with that of India “in terms of quantity and quality.”

Ghafoor avoided committing to an answer, instead stating that “both were substantive and substantial.”

“Scher indicated that the US did not want to get in the way of Maldivian relationships with its neighbors,” the cable read.

In addition, “Ghafoor assessed that [India’s] perception of the US has evolved and that Male’ would be able to address any concerns. He stated that [the Maldivian] government would not let relations with India impact relations with the United States, reflecting the Maldives’ attempt to ‘show balance’ in the past. Ghafoor replied that, if necessary, Maldives would explain that neither India nor Pakistan need suspect anything ‘untoward’.”

Climate dealing

In a meeting with Deputy Special Envoy for Climate Change Jonathan Pershing, Ghafoor said that the Maldives would like to see small countries at the forefront of the climate debate “receive tangible assistance from the larger economies. Other nations would then come to realize that there are advantages to be gained by compliance.”

Ghafoor then identified several projects including harbour deepening and the strengthening of sea walls that he said would cost “approximately US$50 million.”

“Pershing encouraged Ghafoor to provide concrete examples and specific costs in order to increase the likelihood of bilateral assistance and congressional appropriations,” the cables said.

The Maldivian Ambassador also suggested that President Obama use the “dramatic backdrop” of the Maldives “to deliver a speech on climate change when he next visits the region.”

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Government failing female entrepreneurship test: Aminath Arif

Despite government pledges to ensure all woman across the country are being given basic support and education, one award-winning female entrepreneur believes that the Maldives currently provides little assistance for educated women hoping to own a business or pursue career development.

Aminath Arif, founder of a vocational training and community development group for young people called Salaam School, told Minivan News that she believed the government is on one hand very committed to grass root education to allow women to provide for themselves on a basic level. However, she added, efforts towards encouraging women to establish businesses of their own and become entrepreneurs were very limited.

Arif last month received a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Women Entrepreneurs Excellence Award for her work in trying to provide training for women and young people across the country’s secluded islands and atolls.

The awards were handed out as part of an exhibition outlining the work of SAARC’s Women’s Entrepreneur Council that represents female business from across the 12 states that make up the association’s membership; such as the Maldives, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and India.

Arif was one of 12 women to receive the award at the ceremony at the Taj Coromandel in Chennai, in recognition of her “significant contribution to women and youth [and] her initiative in establishing an institute that reaches nationwide, and  her innovative approach to address a very challenging issue.”

Annisul Huq, President for the SAARC’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, addressed attendees during the award ceremony and exhibition, calling for greater government focus on empowering more women to become entrepreneurs in South Asia.

Arif told Minivan News that in the Maldives, women face a unique set of challenges pursuing business ambitions, preventing them from competing equally with male entrepreneurs who are institutionally-favoured by current regulation.

“We live in a very male environment,” she said. “Most women are resigned to it.”

Arif conceded that it was important to accept that a number of Maldivian men are also being marginalised in the hunt for skills and employment within the country, particularly on some islands where young people are provided with limited opportunities upon leaving school.

This lack of opportunities was seen by the Salaam School founder as being a major contributor to a sense of restlessness and lack of self confidence in some individuals. Beyond these shared challenges though, she claimed that women face additional difficulties and stigmas related solely to their gender rather than financial or business acumen.

One particular example, Arif said, were board meetings.

“When a woman sits across a table, she can face attitudes from male colleagues or peers that are difficult to overcome even with a solid business plan,” she explained.

Citing banks as another example of the challenges faced, she claimed that both male and female bank workers had a tendency to look less-favourably on a female business person looking for loans or financial support, solely on the issue of gender and societal attitudes.

In order to try and overcome potential challenges of gender discrimination in business, a step-by-step approach was needed to help encourage a greater entrepreneurial spirit in Maldivian women, Arif suggested.

Arif said that Salaam School was offering vocational certification to women in areas such as office and administration skills, in the hope that females can work closer to home and both support family and develop careers of their own. These skills are increasingly being offered among training in areas such as hospitality and literacy.

The Maldives National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI) suggested that in its experience, it did not believe it was women, but rather small and medium businesses as a whole, that were being the hardest hit in the current national finance market.

“We are not going to differentiate between genders in business,” said a spokesperson for the chamber, who asked not to be identified.

With five of its 18 board members represented by women in fields such as resort ownership, the MNCCI said that its primary concern for its members was in trying to keep small and medium enterprises competitive against larger groups that hold  more extensive resources and funding.

In the current market, the spokesperson claimed that business legislation in the Maldives was failing to differentiate between larger and more modestly-earning companies.

Offsetting societal concerns about women being at a disadvantage in the business world, the chamber spokesperson claimed that the commercialised banks within the Maldives looked towards “low risk investments” as a guiding principal.

The MNCCI said it believed therefore that banking groups in the Maldives looked solely for good collateral on loans rather than at specific genders to inform their decisions on business.

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Salaf calls on government to offer military training to citizens “before Jews take over the country”

Religious NGO Jamiyyathusalaf has called on the government to “provide military training to all Muslim Maldivians and familiarise citizens with the use of modern weaponry” before “Jews take over the country”, days before a controversial visit by a team of Isreali surgeons to offer free-of-charge eye camps in Male’, Gaaf Dhaal Thinadhoo and Addu Atoll Hithadhoo.

A statement on Salaf’s website claims that “Maldivians would not accept under any circumstances extremist Jewish organisations from Israel, which ignores UN resolutions in brutalising Muslims, exerting influence in the Maldives.”

Following the announcement of the eye camp last month, the Islamic Foundation of the Maldives called on the government to “shun all medical aid from the Zionist regime” and not to normalise relations with Israel.

The Foundation claimed that Maldivians should be wary of the eye surgeons as Isreali medical teams “have become notorious for illegally harvesting organs from non-Jews around the world.”

Political Counsellor at the Israeli Embassy in New Delhi, Itay Tagner, dismissed the claims as “outrageous and ridiculous” with “not one gram of truth to it.”

The religious conservation Adaalath party, coalition partner of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) which controls the Islamic Ministry, meanwhile issued a press release yesterday claiming that it has learned “from reliable sources” that the camp is funded by the American-Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC).

“Doctors who are coming for this eye camp are from a Zionist organisation called ‘Eyes from Zion’,” reads the Adhaalath statement. “Don’t think that these are doctors from a normal hospital! We have learned that a group from the Israeli Foreign Ministry will be coming with them.”

It adds that while the party has welcomed medical teams from countries such as Germany, America and India in the past, the Israeli delegation was a different matter.

“Allegations that the Maldivian government has secret ties with the Israeli government is something Maldivian citizens should be concerned about today,” it continues. “What is the truth about claims that some senior government officials made secret trips to Israel via Jordan?”

Adhaalath further claims that the Isreali government gifted a floating ambulance to the Maldives in June this year but was not made public by the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH).

The statement adds that “Zionists wishing to freely assist a 100 percent Muslim country defies logic” since it is “as clear as the afternoon sun that Jews would not wish well for Muslims”, cautioning that help from Israel would only come with “a hidden agenda”.

“Today it’s a team of doctors. Tomorrow it will be Israeli flights. Then will follow Israeli teachers, technicians and advisors,” it reads, adding that Adhaalath has voiced concern with the government’s efforts “to dim the role of Islamic studies” ever since it began pursuing relations with the Jewish state.

The party claims that the government’s plans to make Islam an optional subject in higher secondary education and allegedly remove reservations it holds to international conventions “could no longer be seen as coincidences.”

The party cautions citizens to be wary of Jews infiltrating the Maldives and “be watchful of agents that facilitate their plans”.

However, Islamic Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari told Minivan News today that the ministry has neither raised concerns with the government nor urged the authorities not to go ahead with the camp.

Bari insisted that the Adhaalath press release did not reflect the views of the Islamic Ministry.

Some 739 people in Male’ and 879 in Addu and Fuvahmulah have registered for treatment at the eye camp on December 9.

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Battling heroin in the Maldives: New York Times

Fifty percent of Maldivian youth are addicted to some kind of drug, according to a video report produced for the New York Times, ‘Battling heroin in the Maldives’.

“You would not find a family without a single member or near relative not suffering from drug abuse,” Foreign Minister Dr Ahmed Shaheed told journalist Mariana Keller, who visited the country with Mirva Lempiainen in June to run workshops on citizen journalism.

“Heroin was  first introduced 70’s, when Sri Lankan workers brought into the country to pave the roads,” Keller explains. “Most kids start using in school.”

And while it was previously hard to find somebody selling the drug, the introduction of mobile phones has made it very easy.

“Ordering a pizza in Male’ takes 30 minutes, but with brown sugar [heroin], it takes just five minutes for it to be at your door step,”  explains Ali Adyb from rehabilitation NGO Journey.

Jobs are scarce, but parents are willing to give their kids money, often feeding their addiction, narrates Keller.

Adyb places some responsiblity on parents: “Parents don’t want their kids to end up in jail – the path of denial is very strong with parents. Even if find out [about the drug use], they say ‘It’s not my son, it’s daughter’. And they practically give them money.”

The officials Keller spoke to blamed the country’s “porous borders” for the extent of the problem, and a lack of ability to scan cargo.

“We still don’t have equipment to scan certain kinds of cargo,” Vice President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan says, explaining that once the drugs enter the country, the supply becomes so scattered it is difficult to trace.

Adyb notes that Maldivian society was showing a growing acceptance of drug use.

“People don’t care as much anymore,” he tells Keller. “People accept it as part of life.”

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Adhaalath calls for caution over Jewish doctor visit

The religious Adhaalath Party has claimed the Maldivian public should be cautious of a team of Israeli doctors coming to the country this week to help perform eye surgery treatments, alleging that some medical staff from the nation have been involved in harvesting organs from “murdered Palestinians”.

Citing a press released sourced from the Adhaalath Party, Haveeru reported that the team of doctors, which form part of an organisation called Eye from Zion, are suspected of being financially supported during their visit by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC).

According to the release, the JDC is claimed to be a missionary group, though the organisation’s official website lists itself as a body to provide “humanitarian assistance”.
“A doctors’ team from Eye from Zion is visiting the Maldives in this eye camp. Do not think that they are from a normal hospital. We also understand that the doctors’ team is accompanied by an Israeli Foreign Ministry delegation,” quoted Haveeru from the Adhaalath press release.

The party has claimed that it is not trying to create a panic among the public, but added that it aimed to bring attention amongst international media of the alleged “actions against our brothers and sisters of Palestine.”

Haveeru added that the religious conservative political party had also accused the Maldives government of having “secret relations” with their Israeli counterparts.

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Campaigns of disinformation “illustrate the death throes of the fossil fuel interests”: Nasheed

President Mohamed Nasheed has urged students at Oxford University to refrain from working for oil and coal companies who “threaten vulnerable countries like the Maldives and fund campaigns denying the existence of Climate Change.”

In his address to the Oxford Union, Nasheed claimed that the campaigns of disinformation “illustrate the death throes of the fossil fuel interests.”

“It is natural that these powerful vested interests are fighting hard – for they are fighting for their own survival,” Nasheed said. “Their dominance of the world economy is coming to an end.”

Addressing a packed audience of students, President Nasheed urged them to ignore the “lure of the fossil fuel industry” but to “join the new, exciting economy of tomorrow” created by renewable energy and clean tech companies.

In his speech, which was focused on climate change, the President reiterated his call for a fair and comprehensive climate package from Cancun summit.

Nasheed returns from a tour of the UK on Monday.

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Party “needs a president not a conqueror”: DRP spokesman

Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) Deputy Leader Ibrahim Shareef has said the party is best served by current leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali as a force to unite its members rather than turning to a “conqueror” focused on self-interest, following the dismissal of Umar Naseer.

The senior DRP spokesperson said today that following last week’s dismissal of Naseer, the party does not fear a bitter split of its members, yet it accepts it will almost certainly be hindered in upcoming local council elections and in its role as the main parliamentary opposition.

Shareef accepted that the party now faces a serious challenge in light of losing the Deputy Leader, and that it remains impossible to predict whether the party could lose any experienced MPs due to potential discontent with the Naseer decision.

After being dismissed from the party amidst growing animosity with party leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali over an ‘unapproved’ protest, news reports have circulated that suggest Naseer’s departure may have come against the wishes of former president and party’s ‘Supreme Leader’, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

DRP MP Ahmed Mahlouf last week told Minivan News that he believes a split within the party could be imminent following the disciplinary committee decision against Naseer.

“[Naseer] is someone with a lot of support in the party, and to date he has done a lot of work for us,” Mahlouf said. “He is very loyal to the former President, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.”

Umar Naseer was unavailable for comment at the time of going to press.

Shareef said that although the termination of Naseer’s party membership had “been within the DRP’s constitutional rules”, it was still likely to create difficulties that the party would rather not have to face given the upcoming elections and ongoing opposition within the Majlis to cabinet appointments.

Yet, in Thasmeen, Shareef added that the party had “a quiet, peaceful leader” that he said would put national interest ahead of self interest instead of acting “like a conqueror”.

“We need a man who is president of a country, not just a party,” he added.

Shareef accepted that Naseer, who was removed from his position of DRP Deputy Leader on Thursday after the party disciplinary committee ruled against him during a day that saw its headquarters invaded by a dozen or so civilians, has many supporters within the party.

Shareef said that while Naseer’s popularity was expected to create “some difficulties and setbacks” for the party, the party was well known for is resilience and would continue to serve as the Maldives’ primary political opposition group.

“Despite these many setbacks and difficulties, the DRP is now the only hope for Maldivians,” he claimed. “People have lost hope in the MDP.”

Several MDP MPs contacted by Minivan News said they did not wish to discuss “the internal workings of the DRP”.

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