Month: March 2011

Addu “tailor-made for the lazy tropical cyclist”: UK Telegraph

Once described as a place of “harrowing tranquillity” where “grown men weep with sheer geographical frustration”, Addu is now a secret speck of heaven, tailor-made for the lazy tropical cyclist, writes Nigel Tisdall in the UK’s Telegraph newspaper.

“Spared the worst ravages of the bleaching that has dulled the coral in other parts of the Maldives, the seabed here is bejewelled with flashes of blue, green and purple. As the sun gains strength, the lagoon surrounding me fills with an immense calm. It is 82F (28C) and you know it’s going to be another classic day of clear blue skies, sensational snorkelling trips, siestas on the daybed, then dinner on the beach with rows of candles decorating the sand.

“So far, so very high-end Maldives – except that down here in Addu, the southernmost atoll in this 500-mile island chain, the holiday experience is refreshingly different. Traditionally, a trip to the Maldives has meant flying into the capital, Malé, then bouncing onwards as fast as possible to one of almost a hundred small and luxurious lily-pads that ceaselessly vie with one another to offer the most indulgent experiences.

“Some islands are so small you can walk round them in 10 minutes, others proffer ridiculously OTT amenities such as an underwater restaurant, pretentious afternoon teas and wine cellars with bottles costing up to £38,000. Invariably there is a niggling fear that a week in the Maldives, however much you are in love, could well leave you feeling trapped, bored and overcharged.”

Full story

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Bangladesh and Maldives have long shared histories, says Nasheed at national day celebrations

The High Commission of Bangladesh yesterday celebrated its national day, marking 40 years of independence, with a reception and dinner at Dharubaaruge.

Speaking at the ceremony, High Commissioner of Bangladesh to the Maldives, Rear Admiral Abu Saeed Mohamed Abdul Awal, observed that the Maldives recognised Bangladesh’s independence in 1972, “soon after our independence.”

Bangladesh was “keenly watching the democratisation process” in the Maldives, Awal said, “and it is gratifiying to watch the Maldives consolidate its democracy.”

Awal congratulated the Maldives for graduating from the UN’s definition of a Less Developed Country (LDC) to a Middle Income country, adding that this was one of Bangladesh’s goals and that it hoped to learn from the Maldivian experience.

“I hope the Maldives retains the advantages of being a LDC by using the climate change card effectively, so we can follow later,” Awal said.

Bangladesh was the world’s 21st fastest-growing economy with a US$90 billion economy, and was now the world’s fourth largest exporter of garments, he said. Even during the global recession Bangladesh had retained a growth rate of 5.5-6 percent, he added.

Acknowledging the large number of Bangladeshi expatriates working in the Maldives, Awal noted that worldwide, remittances from Bangladeshi expatriates contributed US$11 billion to the country’s economy.

“At the same time we are working very closely with the Maldivian government to ensure that expatriates can work under proper conditions. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on manpower is in final stage, and the signing will bring the employment of expatriates under greater regulatory approval.”

President Mohamed Nasheed noted that the relationship between Bangladesh and the Maldives extended far into both country’s histories.

“As traders we have always had good contact with Bengalis,” Nasheed said.

“In recent times both our countries have become more strongly joined, not just through just SAARC, but through the immense contribution of Bangladeshi workers to our development efforts. We are thankful for the work done by the Bangladeshi community in the Maldives, and we strongly believe living conditions for migrant workers has to improve.”

Nasheed noted that Bangladesh had worked closely with the Maldives on issues and challenges relating to multilateral agency funding, adding that Bangladesh had very strong experience with the procurement proceedures of international donor agencies.

“Donor agencies funding mechanisms have their own cycles relating to their own administrative affairs, not to the development efforts of recipient countries,” he said. “This has been an issue very widely discussed in Bangladesh.”

South Asia, Nasheed said, “deserves much better. We are one of the fastest growing regions in the world, but very often a large number of people are left behind in development efforts.

“We want to see wider distribution of wealth as well as the provision of safe drinking water and electricity.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Letter on High Court appointments

Dear President Mohamed Nasheed,

Since the committee has not followed the criteria set up by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to allocate marks for the potential judges of the high court, and since constitutional problems are apparent in the process of appointing judges to the High Court, I voluntarily participated in case forwarded by Baa Kendhoo Abdul Bari Yousuf, in the hopes that an independent and fair verdict would be reached.

But to the surprise of the whole judiciary, this particular case has been rejected by the courts and as a result the trust I, myself and the people have placed in the judicial process has grown faint.

Therefore as I am responsible for heading an official institution, I am obliged to work towards correcting this matter. And according to the article 115 of the constitution, since it is your responsibility to maintain the rule of law, I am obliged to report this to you. I sincerely request you to bring an end to this process which is violating the rules and laws of the State. Due to the inconvenience and shortage of time, I am unable to provide you with all the details of the matter.

Yours sincerely,

Hassan Saeed

Chief judge of Family Court

All letters are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write a letter, please submit it to [email protected]

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

JSC appoints five judges to High Court bench

The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has appointed five judges to the High Court bench. The five took their oaths of office last night.

The five were Shuaib Hussein Zakariyya, Dr Azmiraldha Zahir, Abdurauf Ibrahim, Abbas Shareef and Ali Sameer.

The appointment of the judges had been previously scheduled however right before the five were about to take the oath and officially commence work, Criminal Court Judge Abdul Baary Yousuf filed a case in the Civil Court claiming that there was discrimination between men and woman in the appointment.

Judge Baary’s case, which was later taken to the Supreme Court, ended up as a void complaint after the court ruled that Judge Baary had left the town without informing the Supreme Court.

The High Court has said on its website that the five new judges have taken the oath of office last night.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Maldives marks Earth Hour

Many shops along Male’s main street of Majeedee Magu, as well as houses and even television stations turned the power off for an hour last night to mark Earth Hour.

At the Bangladesh independence day celebrations held yesterday at Dharubaaruge, attended by President Mohamed Nasheed, the lights were ceremoniously dimmed then restored.

The international event, organised by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) was first held in Sydney in 2007 when 2.2 million residents turned off the electricity. Power utilities estimated that electricity consumption dropped 10 percent.

Earth Hour 2011 took place across the world at 8:30pm-9:30pm local time.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Islamic Ministry says alms payments up during 2010

The Islamic Ministry has claimed that the number of Maldivians paying alms has raised “dramatically” due to its own efforts in raising awareness of the religious rite.

The claims were made as the “Nisab”, defined as the minimum amount of income that should be earned before people are required to donate 2.5 per cent of their savings and revenue, rose 14.2 per cent to Rf8,573.95 based on the ministry’s guidance, according to Haveeru.

This guidance is formed around calculations made by the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) based on factors such as comparing market prices for gold and silver.

The paper reported that by December of last year, Rf36,000,478.05 in alms was paid by 2,225 people. The figure was up from the Rf 27,412,507.83 collected over the same period in 2009.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Child Abuse Prevention Society to hold workshops for parents

Local NGO, the Child Abuse Prevention Society (CAPS), will lead a series of educational workshops and camps for parents on the prevention of child abuse in the Maldives in conjunction with the Juvenile Justice Unit, Society for Women against Drugs, and Maldives Police Service.

Vice President Dr Mohamed Waheed launched the programme at a function held at Aarah on Saturday afternoon, expressing concern over the prevalence of child abuse in the Maldives.

Noting that legal framework, although basic, to stop child abuse was in place, he underscored that a positive relationships within the family and between parents and children were as important as legal system to prevent all forms of violence against children.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Zaki resigns from MDP Disciplinary Committee

Current President of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Ibrahim Hussein Zaki, who is also the chair of the party’s Disciplinary Commitee, has resgined following the upcoming elections to appoint members to the party including the party’s president and vice president.

MDP’s official website said that Zaki had sent a letter to the Chairperson of MDP, Mariya Ahmed Didi, saying that his resignation was to ensure the MDP elections were conducted “free and fair.”

In the letter Zaki requested Mariya appoint Home Minister Hassan Afeef as the chair of the committee to deal with complaints concerning the elections until the elections were over.

Afeef is currently a member of MDP’s Disciplinary committee.

Zaki is running for the presidency of the party during the elections, challenging former Fisheries Minister Dr Ibrahim Didi who is also running for the same post.

Recently a voice clip of a conversation between Zaki and a person named Anandhu, purportedly in the UK, was leaked to the local media, concerning negotiations for the delivery of T-Shirts for the MDP ahead of the Presidential election.

The General Elections Act article number 70 states that “products or money” given by foreigners shall not be used by a Presidential Candidate or any person on behalf of a Presidential Candidate, and article 70[a] states that ”Products or money given by foreigners, foreign parties or foreign administrations shall not be used.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)