The Maldives Media Council (MMC) has called on protesters at tomorrow’s protest not to obstruct journalists or violate the press freedom.
MMC also said journalism was a national service like the work of the armed forces, and called on the armed forces to provide as much as opportunity for the press to take coverage of the protest.
MMC also called on journalists to be careful for own safety while reporting on the protest.
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(0)Parliament yesterday passed a bill to bring universal health coverage to Maldivian citizens for the first time in the nation’s history. The bill was submitted by Nolhivaram MP Mohamed ‘Colonel’ Nasheed and unanimously approved by with 72 votes.
“Previously, the public paid for health care and the need applied for subsidies under the welfare system, or sought assistance from well-connected friends and family,” the President Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair explained. “This bill means a lot.”
According to the bill citizens receive government-sponsored coverage up to Rf100,000 (US$6,500) per year. Zuhair said the bill includes provisions for citizens who require further financial assistance.
Expatriate workers are also eligible for coverage providing their employers pay a upfront fee of Rf1,000 (US$65).
The Aasandha (well-being) program was officially signed at Artificial Beach today with hundreds of Maldivian citizens in attendance. The mood was positive.
“This will make it much easier for everybody in the Maldives,” said onlooker Mariyam Hafseena. “Before we had to pay for treatment and medication, which is expensive. Now it will be free. We never expected this would happen, it’s a surprise and we are very happy!”
A statement from the Mexican government recalled that universal health insurance was approved in Mexico eight years ago. “Mexico and the Republic of Maldives are developing countries, but with our universal health insurance programs our people’s health care can be better than that of developed countries such as the United States.”
Health Minister Aminath Jameel said the program brought “excellent and comprehensive health care for all from the public and private health sectors.”
Aasandha is a public-private partnership with Allied Insurance. Under the agreement, Allied will split the scheme’s shared 60-40 with the government. The actual insurance premium will be paid by the government, while claims, billing and public awareness will be handled by the private partner.
Provision of the service was said to have been made available through a collaboration with London-based international banking organisation Lloyd’s and the US-based Global Assurance Group.
The service will cover emergency treatment, including overseas if the treatment is not available locally, inpatient and outpatient services, domestic emergency evacuation, medicine under prescription, and diagnostic and therapeutic services.
Maldivians regularly travel to Sri Lanka, India and Singapore for medical treatment, including giving birth. Allied has also claimed that its premium package now allows for coverage everywhere in the world including the US and Canada.
Zuhair confirmed that the government has agreements with medical centers in these countries and can provide coverage for treatment at designated centers as well as travel stipends.
Coverage for treatment abroad is limited to high-income individuals, however Zuhair understood that the some government funds would be available to needy families.
The universal deal also comes with universal responsibility.
Zuhair said the public is expected “to appropriately follow a healthy lifestyle”, reiterating that the new system does not equate with a free-for-all dispensary. At the same time, the government “is challenged to raise the standards of medical service and continuously improve the care available in the Maldives.”
Plans for such improvements are in place. One recently proposed plan would shift the pharmaceutical industry to generic drugs, which the World Health Organisation considers more affordable and reliable than brand-name products.
The same plan would also streamline the prescription process, cutting back on paperwork and reducing patient stress.
The new health insurance plan will become active on January 1, 2012. Zuhair said citizens can expect minimal paperwork responsibilities.
“The new system should be very easy,” he said. “We are working to cut down paperwork and keep all the information in a central database. More will be handled by the government.”
Zuhair advised the public to attentively update their identification cards, as these will be necessary to receive treatment under the Aasandha plan.
Parliament yesterday also passed a pre-school bill, submitted by Meedhoo MP Ahmed Siyam Mohamed and approved with 71 votes, and an archive bill submitted by Manadhoo MP Mohamed Thoriq, approved with 66 votes.
(0)Dislikes(0)The government has apologised for miscommunications which led to the “unfortunate” media coverage of a contract between the Ministry of Tourism and J Hotels and Resorts for a mid-market tourism center at Laamu Gan Asseyri Project, Tourism Minister Mariyam Zulfa has said.
“The Cabinet did not decide to cancel the contract, if you read the government gazette closely it just put the project on hold for some time. The intention was never to withdraw the agreement,” she explained.
Minivan News recently reported along with local media that the Cabinet had terminated its contract with J Hotels and Resorts and would solicit further bids for the project. Company chairman and former MP Abdulla Jabir issued emphatic warnings that he would sue the government.
Jabir today said he has been informed by the Minister that the Cabinet would approve the project.
“So far I’ve been advised that it will go forward, so we’ll see how things go. I don’t know what the Cabinet will do, one day they make a decision the other day they change it, but in time we will see how it proceeds,” he said.
Jabir reiterated that the Minister had assured him that the project would go forward, and that he had no bad relations with any ministry.
Speaking with Minivan News yesterday Zulfa said, “J Hotel and the Tourism Ministry were and are keen to get the project going, especially since the President has said that the mid-market project is a priority to the government and that it will make sure that project gets done.”
Given the project’s value, Zulfa said the Cabinet wanted to ensure that everything was in line with the government’s vision before proceeding with the agreement. She believed the Cabinet had not been provided with sufficient information to make an informed decision on the matter.
Zulfa said she has now presented all the relevant information to the Cabinet, and the project will move forward.
“The government enjoys a good relation with the development party, and we regret the unfortunate turn of events that led to this misunderstanding,” she said.
The Asseyri project, launched in March, aims to bring two 300-bed hotels and 69 guest houses to the 25 hectare area along with recreation activities, water sports and restaurants.
“Right now we can’t cater to the mid-market tourists who want to have options when they make a trip to or within the Maldives. This will give them that opportunity. And the basis of the project will be the natural beauty–the beach, lagoon and reef are absolutely fantastic,” said Zulfa.
She added that the mid-market project is designed in and around the airport development project, and will offer job opportunities and economic growth.
Moving away from the existing one island, one hotel tourism product, the Asseyri (beachside) project intends to rent out commercial components of an area to different parties, allowing larger numbers of local entrepreneurs to participate in the Maldives’ lucrative tourism sector.
In July, Addu City Council announced its intention to incorporate the project’s core values and aspects into Addu City’s development plan.
The two areas ear-marked for the project are the Maafishi Area of Hulhumeedhoo Island and the start of the Hankede area, Hithadhoo.
(0)Dislikes(0)Parliament has endorsed a recommendation to dissolve the Maldives ailing national shipping line (MNSL).
The Finance Committee had originally recommended that MNSL be either privatised or dissolved.
In June, MNSL’s government-owned board also endorsed a proposal to discontinue operations and dissolve the company, allegedly to settle debts, reports Haveeru.
Sale of the company’s cargo ships was expected to settle MNSL’s US$8 million debts in three installments.
Parliament also approved Villufushi MP Riyaz Rasheed’s proposed amendment requiring the government to conduct feasibility studies before creating a new shipping line.
(0)Dislikes(0)Senior figures of the uling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) together with a number of supporters have started signing a petition calling on MDP’s National Council to reconsider an earlier decision to protest on Friday.
Secretary General of MDP Ahmed Shah today confirmed to Minivan News that some “hardcore figures” in the party has started signing the petition.
‘’I do not know who is in charge of this petition or who is taking the lead, but I have had reports that it is going on,’’ said Shah.
Asked about his opinion on the decision to hold a protest in support of moderate Islam at the same time as the opposition and religious NGO-organised ‘Defend Islam’ protest, he said that he and all MDP members were obliged to follow any decision made by the National Council.
He said the petition was expected to reach the National Council sometime this afternoon.
Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair today told Minivan News that a media report about a meeting supposedly held by the President this afternoon to meet with MDP National Council members was correct.
‘’The President has assured that he will go out with the MDP supporters to express support for moderate Islam and oppose extremism,’’ Zuhair said.
On Friday opposition political parties and a coalition of local NGOs have planned to conduct a protest to ‘’protect Islam.’’
Following the announcement of this protest, MDP’s National Council had a meeting and decided to hold a ‘moderate Islam’ protest at the same time as the opposition-NGO coalition protest.
(0)Dislikes(0)The proposed 2012 State Budget has been reviewed by a parliamentary committee and does not include unpaid civil servants’ salaries and allowances.
Committee Vice Chair Hinnavaru MP Ibrahim ‘Ibu’ Mohamed Solih said inclusion of the unpaid salaries depends on a favorable Supreme Court ruling.
If the court rules in favor, a supplementary budget should be submitted for parliamentary approval within 30 days, Haveeru reports.
Inclusion prior to the ruling would render the current proposal “useless”, Solih said.
The Civil Service Commission (CSC) last month requested the committee to include the unpaid salaries and allowances (total value of Rf443,653,634.89) in the 2012 budget.
The Supreme Court is expected to publish its verdict soon.
(0)Dislikes(0)Amnesty International has declared imprisoned blogger Ismail ‘Khilath’ Rasheed a prisoner of conscience, and called for his “immediate and unconditional” release.
The controversial blogger was arrested on December 14 following his participation in a ‘silent protest’ on Human Rights Day, calling for religious tolerance in the Maldives.
A group of men attacked the protesters with stones, and Rasheed was taken to Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) with a fractured skull. He was subsequently arrested for questioning over his involvement in the silent gathering, and the Criminal Court granted police a 10 day extension of detention for the investigation.
“The continued detention of Ismail ‘Khilath’ Rasheed is in breach of international treaties on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which the Maldives is a state party,” Amnesty said in a statement.
“Amnesty International is dismayed that instead of defending Ismail ‘Khilath’ Rasheed, who has peacefully exercised his right to freedom of the expression, the government of Maldives has detained him. Moreover, the government has taken no action to bring to justice those who attacked the ‘silent’ demonstrators, even though there is credible photographic evidence of the attack.”
The attack on Rasheed and his subsequent detention was a “clear example of the erosion of freedom of expression in the Maldives,” Amnesty stated.
“This basic human right is not just under attack from some religious groups; it is also violated by the government of the Maldives. All people in the Maldives should be able to enjoy their right to freedom of expression without being attacked or detained by the police.”
President Mohamed Nasheed was himself declared an Amnesty prisoner of conscience in 1991, following his repeated and prolonged incarceration by the former government.
Journalist detained
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has also called for Rasheed’s immediate release.
“All he did was start a debate about the issues of religious freedom and tolerance in Maldives,” RSF stated.
“The authorities must explain the reasons for his arbitrary detention and release him at once. It is disturbing to see the government yet again yielding to pressure from the most conservative fringes of Maldivian society.”
Rasheed was one of the country’s leading free speech advocates and one of the few Maldivians bloggers to write under his own name, RSF observed.
“The Maldivian constitution bans the promotion of any religion other than Islam but guarantees freedom of assembly and expression as long as it does not contravene Islam. Rasheed professes to be an adherent of Sufism, which emphasises the inner, spiritual dimension of Islam.”
Reaction
President Mohamed Nasheed’s Press Secretary, Mohamed Zuhair, told Minivan News that Hilath had been arrested under an existing regulation passed by parliament that had no bearing on the [executive] government.
“The government’s policy is to allow freedom of expression to the greatest extent possible under the Constitution,” he said.
Under new regulations published by the government in September, interpreting the 1995 Religious Unity Act passed by parliament, media is “banned from producing or publicising programs, talking about or disseminating audio that humiliates Allah or his prophets or the holy Quran or the Sunnah of the Prophet (Mohamed) or the Islamic faith.”
Violation of the Act carries a prison sentence of between 2-5 years, and the Communications Authority of Maldives (CAM) in November blocked access to Rasheed’s blog on orders from the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, on the grounds that it contained anti-Islamic material.
Rasheed was arrested amid growing religious and political tensions in the Maldives in the lead up to a ‘Defend Islam’ protest to be held on Friday, December 23.
The protest follows several incidents of religious intolerance in the past few months, including as vandalism of the ‘idolatrous’ SAARC monuments in Addu Atoll and hostility towards calls by the UN Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay for a moratorium and debate on the flogging of women for extramarital sex.
The December 23 protest is being organised by a coalition of religious NGOs and opposition political parties, who have attacked the government for decisions such as its diplomatic relationship with Israel.
“The government is saying that the Maldives has had an unbroken Islamic tradition for 800 years, and 90 consecutive Chief Justices who have applied Sharia Law,” Zuhair said.
“The President is asking everyone to take a stand tomorrow on the 23rd for the continuation of the Maldives’ moderate Islamic tradition,” he said.
It was “not accurate” to suggest that the government was yielding to fundamentalist fringe elements, he insisted.
“This is political. [Former President] Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and his cronies are testing their support base. The people who are funding this so-called Islamic gathering are the same people selling pork and alcohol.”
(0)Dislikes(0)The development of housing, industry, and transportation infrastructure is expected to greatly improve the “extreme” situation on Male’, said Infrastructure Development Ambassador Sarangu Adam Manik.
“There are more people in Male who do not have housing than people who do,” he said.
The capital Male’ has a land area of less than two square kilometers but is home to one-third of the country’s population or approximately 125,000 people residing in an estimated 16,000 households; the total number of households in the Maldives is estimated to be 46,000.
With 50,000 people per square kilometer Male’ is the most densely populated city in the world, outdoing Mumbai’s 33,000 people per square kilometre.
President Mohamed Nasheed previously said the “household is the main engine of development.” Making good on this claim, he yesterday conferred land tenure agreements to 20 parties who had applied for housing and housing grants to 27 applicants, saying the government intends to provide housing for all 21,000 applicants to the Veshi Fahi Male’ housing program.
Earlier this year, ten flats were awarded under the same program.
The government originally pledged 10,000 flats.
A statement on the President’s Office website said the program aims “to satisfy the lives of all Maldivian citizens, and augmenting the nation’s economically active population by economically mobilizing nearly 150,000 people.”
Under phase one of the project launched in January, a total of 1,000 parties were invited to apply for the housing scheme. Over 8,000 application forms were submitted on the first day.
The Cabinet also approved related projects including the development of a container park in Thilafushi to incentivise relocating warehouses in Male’ and construction of a multi-purpose local market with modern facilities for residents of Male’.
The programme was launched on November 10, 2010 with the aim of combining the development of Malé, Vilingili, Guli Falhu, Thilafushi, Hulhumalé and Malé International Airport.
Manik said the network of projects will jointly reduce the stress on Male’.
“Gulhifalhu will help tremendously the housing and economic situation. Thilafushi will centralise the industrial sector, and the bridge will improve mobility–all components will help the situation on Male’,” he surmised.
The Cabinet yesterday decided to proceed with the plan to construct a bridge between Male and Hulhule, a reclaimed island attached to Hulhumale.
Since Hulhumale’s population is expected to double in the next year as people take advantage of new housing opportunities, mobility will become an issue, Manik said.
“Think about it, you will have two to three thousand flats, each with a family of four or more people on average. That’s eight to twelve thousand people,” he pointed out.
He also noted that the current boat-based system is vulnerable to changes in weather.
Manik said building a bridge was not a new idea. “The previous government proposed it but didn’t find a way to do it. President Nasheed’s ability to think ahead and think strategically means that the new government has found a way to do it. Gayoom’s government talked about it but we never saw a plan.”
Reflecting on public complaints of some infrastructure development programs, Manik surmised that “everybody wants to be the khafir except the khafir.
“Each power is trying to draw new borders, and there are always demarcation problems. People will settle down and things will become more progressive. It takes time to accept a new democracy.”
(0)Dislikes(0)The Indian government has recalled its earlier decision to cease issuing dependent visas to the families of Maldivian students studying in India, local newspaper Haveeru reports.
According to a Foreign Ministry official, a Maldivian student’s family will continue to receive the dependent visa as “family visa” until the revised visa agreement is signed by both countries.
The expired dependent visas can be renewed within two days by applying at the Maldivian consulate in Trivandrum.
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