Month: April 2012

Financial Committee considers action over Election Commission expenses

Elections Commissioner Fuad Thaufeeq has expressed concern today that current Elections Commission (EC) staff could be held responsible for the potential misdeeds of employees no longer working for the body.

The claims were made after the Financial Committee yesterday discussed taking action against the EC after Auditor General Niyaz Ibrahim raised concern over an apparent failure to document Rf15 million of spending by the body.

Niyaz said that the Financial Committee debate concerned an audit report from 2010.  However, he claimed that particular concerns were raised during the discussions over a portion of Rf54 million that was spent over a three year period.

When asked about the precise period of time under scrutiny, Niyaz stated that more time was needed to acquire these exact details.

It was revealed late last year that the 2010 Auditor General’s report had uncovered “irresponsible” spending by the Elections Commission.  This spending was said to include the illegal withdrawal of allowances, the purchasing of an excessive number of expensive phones and computers, and overtime pay for unconfirmed work.

However, Thaufeeq stressed he was confident over the conduct of the current commission.

“None of the members in the present commission have done anything against the financial regulations or the constitution,” he claimed.  “We are very much ready to prove we are innocent. The present committee doesn’t have to be responsible before November 24, 2009.”

Despite his assertions that the expenses concerned pre-date the current incarnation of the EC, Thaufeeq had the impression that the government were going after current members.

He added that the expenses being referred to by the Financial Committee in their discussions related to the period before the current commission body was assembled on November 24, 2009.  The Auditor General concurred with Thaufeeq that the period in question did pre-date the current Election Commissioner’s tenure.

Niyaz also noted that  some MPs had been keen to see the case referred to the police –  a decision he claimed to be against.

“I associate the case with mismanagement rather than criminal fraud,” Niyaz added.

EC under pressure

The ability of the EC to fulfil its mandate has come under scrutiny in recent weeks after the body was cited as one of the obstacles to free and fair elections by government representatives.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Dunya Maumoon told the BBC that there could be no early elections in the country as institutions such as the judiciary, the human rights commission, and the elections commission needed strengthening.

The United States pledged $500,000 in technical support the same week as these statements were made.

However, State Minister Dunya Maumoon reaffirmed the government’s commitment to implement the recommendations of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) which has called for early elections in the country.

CMAG reconvened on Monday, criticising what it saw as a lack of political progress being made to facilitate early elections in the Maldives.

The Commonwealth human rights body suggested that stronger measures would be taken against the government should President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan’s Committee of National Inquiry (CNI) not address CMAG’s concerns about its independence and impartiality.  The CNI is charged with conducting an independent investigation into the transfer of power in February.

Meanwhile, Thaufeeq assured Minivan News before last weekend’s by-elections that the EC was capable of carrying out its duties.

“We are confident we can organise any election mandated by law – whether it is a presidential election, referendum, or by-election. We will serve our duty,” he said at the time.

The two council elections and two parliamentary by-elections held last weekend were the second test of the EC’s capabilities since the controversial change of government earlier this year. The polls passed without significant incident and Thaufeeq told the media that he had received no complaints that would bring the results into disrepute.

However, concerns are said to have been raised in some diplomatic circles over the potential for politically motivated attempts to discredit Commissioner Thaufeeq.

A source present at a meeting of the UK’s All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on the Maldives on March 21 reported to Minivan News that Dr Ahmed Shaheed, former Foreign Minister and United Nations Special Rapporteur to Iran, specifically raised concerns over the position of the Election Commissioner.

He was reported to have told the panel of UK politicians of his concerns that Commissioner Thaufeeq may be targeted by the regime due to his independent political stance.

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Housing Ministry instructs MCC to vacate its offices at Huravee

Male’ City Council (MCC) has said it has today received a letter from the Housing Ministry requiring the body to vacate its offices based in the Huravee building by 3:00pm tomorrow.

Minister for Housing and Environment Dr Mohamed Muiz told the Haveeru newspaper that the council had been asked to vacate the offices in order to accommodate two new government ministries. He said that the work done by the MCC in these offices would be relocated to Male’ City Hall.

Minivan News was unable to reach the Dr Muiz for comment at the time of press.  However, Councillor Mohamed Abdul Kareem confirmed that the MCC had received the letter, which informed the council that its members were to be evicted from the offices which provide health services, trade, and registration services.

“The council has decided to make a public announcement saying that public services will be disrupted,” said Kareem.  “They [the Housing Ministry] are not obeying the law. They don’t want local government,” Kareem continued. “We have not yet decided to give over the property.”

A similar dispute between the municipal council and the Housing Ministry took place yesterday concerning control of the Dharubaaruge conference centre.  “They are not disturbing the MCC, they are not disturbing the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), they are disturbing the citizens of Male’,” Councillor Kareem claimed while discussing the two disputes.

Yesterday’s dispute arose after the Housing Ministry informed the MCC that its staff at Dharubaaruge were to be transferred to the Ministry of Housing and Environment.

This news prompted the MCC to lock the centre and send staff home for the day. Dr Mohamed Muiz described this action as “unlawful”.

Later in the day, Police were seen outside of the conference centre, where they drew the ire of MDP supporters gathered at a demonstration site set up at Usfangandu, an area of land adjacent to Dharubaaruge . Police Spokesman Hassan Haneef confirmed that three arrests had been made in the unrest that followed.

Earlier this month, the Housing Ministry informed the MCC that it intended to claim jurisdiction over Usfangandu, the site of the new MDP protest area. The ministry claimed that the use of the land for political activities was in contravention of regulations, a claim the MCC denied.

The MCC itself came into existence with the passing of the decentralisation act in 2010 under the administration of former President Mohamed Nasheed. The MCC consist of eleven councillors, nine of which belong to Nasheed’s MDP.

Sun Online has today reported that the MCC has filed a suit that disputes the legitimacy of the letter sent from the Housing Ministry regarding the transfer of staff at Dharubaaruge.

The Chairman of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) yesterday stated that “institutions and land belonging to central government can be changed by cabinet decision according to the rules.”

Decentralisation

Local media has since reported that the decentralisation bill itself came under scrutiny in the People’s Majlis yesterday.

Haveeru reported that MPs argued that the act needed root and branch reform rather than “piecemeal amendments” that had been presented before the parliament in order to make any changes more suitable to the country.

Sun Online reported on the same debate, covering the comments of Ahmed Siyam, who argued that the current constitutional set up of the nation would lead to financial disaster for the country.

“I think, unless we revise the laws, and especially the constitution, within the next two or three years, our economy will be completely destroyed. Our country will be left in poverty. Even if we look at this Parliament – it’s larger than any other Parliament in the world, and the government structure is top-heavy. Our economy is not able to survive on its income due to money not being used in the most optimal manner,” Shiyam is reported to have said.

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Pro-MDP Facebook group alleges police intimidation

Administrators of a Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) aligned Facebook group called “Kula Yellow” have claimed they have been “threatened” by police over their page’s content.  Police officials have denied the accusations.

The Kula Yellow Facebook page, which at the time of press has just under 14,000 likes on the hugely popular social networking site, collects images, videos and other information relating to the opposition party and its work.

However, in a written statement issued today on the site, Kula Yellow’s administration team alleged that “police intelligence” had accused the page of being linked to “violence”, whilst also pledging to “crush” the site.

The alleged threat was also claimed to conclude with a warning that law enforcement officials would continue to be monitoring the page.

Kuda Yellow responded in the statement that police had no right to accuse the page or its administrators of being linked to violent crime.

‘’Arrest one of us. Two more appear. You cannot arrest an idea,’’ the statement said referring to the alleged police threats.

Kula Yellow’s Facebook page so far has more than 13,000 fans, who are said to represent mostly young Maldivians that oppose the current government and support the MDP’s demands for early elections.

However, the Maldives Police Service has denied that it was focusing on, or investigating the Kula Yellow page and its administrators.

Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef said there had so far been no complaints filed against the Facebook page Kula Yellow and added that police were not investigating anything related to the page.

The police official declined to respond when asked about whether law enforcement officials were concerned over the potential role that social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter were playing in organising both recent peaceful protests and violent unrest between its officers and civilians.

A member of the Kula Yellow team speaking to Minivan News today on condition of anonymity claimed its members had been receiving several death threats and abusive messages over the past few weeks.

”But last night one of us received a text message, the contact number appears as ‘Police Intel’ and the message said that they are watching over Kula Yellow’s actions and they will ‘crush’ you,” the source said.

The source added that the Kula Yellow team last night met with some  senior officials of the MDP to inform the party about their concerns.

”Police officers followed us when we left home after the meeting, we noticed their actions and realized that they have been haunting us,” he claimed.

The spokesperson additionally expressed concern that the phone interview given to Minivan News, as well as other incoming and outgoing calls to his mobile were being listened to by police.

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Sareer nominated for UN ambassador role

Ahmed Sareer, current Maldives ambassador to the United States, has been nominated as a potential successor to Abdul Gafoor Mohamed as the country’s ambassador to the United Nations.

Sareer’s name has this week been forwarded to the parliament as a replacement for Gafoor, who resigned from the UN post earlier this year over concerns about February’s transfer of power, local newspaper Haveeru has reported.

Gafoor announced his intention to resign from the post live on Al Jazeera’s ‘The Stream’ programme shortly after the resignation of President Mohamed Nasheed.

“I believe the new president should have the opportunity to have his views and policies presented to the world community through representatives who serve him without equivocation or reservation,” Gafoor told Al Jazeera.

Sareer has previously served as the Maldives’ High Commissioner to Bangladesh. His nomination has been forwarded to the National Security Committee.

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Missing five year-old boy found dead in Lhaviyani Atoll

Police have said that a five year-old boy reported missing from Naifaru in Lhaviyani Atoll has been found dead this morning as investigations continue into the exact cause of death.

The Maldives Police Service said that the child’s body was discovered at 1:20am today in the lagoon of Naifaru. The boy has since been identified by law enforcement officials as Hassan Javid Ibrahim of Muleeha house in Naifaru.

Officers from the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and the police joined islanders in searching for the boy after his family reported that he had gone missing at 1:30pm.

Search teams began searching the island’s lagoon for the boy after the child’s slippers were discovered drifting in the local waters at about 4:15pm, police have said.

An islander from Naifaru who spoke to Minivan News on condition of anonymity said that the boy’s mother was believed to have sent the child to the island’s harbour to see if his dad returned from fishing.  The islander said that the boy did not return.

According to the source, the child was last seen at 3pm the same day near the harbour area of the island, where it had been raining at the time.

The islander said they believed that the person who had saw the child may not have known at the time that he was missing, or perhaps did not understand the severity of the situation.

The same source claimed that once the body of the child had been recovered, there appeared to be no visible injuries.

With investigations into the case continuing, Police  Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef today told Minivan News that it was not yet possible to speculate on the potential cause of death.

“We will inform the media after concluding the investigation,’’ said Haneef.

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MMPRC targets social media push to bolster online presence

The Maldives Marketing and PR Corporation (MMPRC) has pledged to more than double the number of users currently subscribed to its official Facebook and Twitter services in a greater focus on incorporating social media into its marketing efforts.

As part of a new campaign designed to try and specifically target the growing importance of internet users to the travel industry, the MMPRC said it hoped by May 31 to increase the number of Facebook fans from just over 4,000 to 10,000 users. Over the same period of time, the local marketing body said it aims to boost its current tally of 458 followers on Twitter to 2000 people.

The pledges are part of the MMPRC’s wider ambitions in 2012 to accrue over 50,000 “likes” on its Facebook services, 14,000 followers on Twitter and to also sign up 10,000 people to its official newsletter.

As part of the plans to achieve these aims, the MMPRC has said it will be adopting real time updates on its Twitter service in order to establish it as a key source for breaking industry news for the travellers.

From the perspective of Facebook, the marketing body added that it would attempt to provide timely communication with tourists and industry stakeholders like airlines, PR agents and journalists to deal with queries and questions about the destination.

Earlier this month, the MMPRC said it was aiming to record one million tourist arrivals into the country during 2012 as it reverted to its long-standing “Sunny side of life” branding.

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Palestine President visits Maldives: “Strong Palestine would enable Israel security,” Dr.Waheed

Palestine President Dr Mahmoud Abbas arrived in the Maldives Tuesday, marking the highest-level visit to the Maldives by an official from the Middle Eastern state for 28 years.

Former Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat had previously visited the Maldives in 1984.

The Maldives Foreign Ministry described the visit today as a “historic moment for Maldives-Palestine relations” and a “time for us to reaffirm the close brotherly bonds which bind our peoples together and to reassert our support for Palestinian statehood.”

As part of the visit, Abbas met with President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik this afternoon at the President’s Office.  Following official talks between the two leaders, a joint statement was given to the media in which Abbas expressed hope that the visit would “enhance the historic relations that already exist between our two countries and peoples”.

Whilst speaking on the current political situation in Palestine and in the Middle-East, Abbas noted that the “peace process in the Middle-East is facing many obstacles because of the Israeli rejection of its obligations according to the international law and quartet statements”.

“In spite of that we are confirming our dedication for negotiations as the best way to implement the two state solution – Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and prosperity according to Arab peace initiatives and quartet statements,” Abbas observed.

Meanwhile, briefing the media on discussions with the Palestinian delegation, President Waheed stated that he had “reassured President Abbas of our strong support for the peace process” and that the “Maldives endorses Palestine’s stand that direct peace talks with Israel can only be fruitful when Israel suspends the building of settlements in the West Bank.”

The president also added that Maldives would support Palestine’s application for membership of the United Nations and any other international organisations, while noting that Maldives has been a strong supporter of Palestine at the UN Human Rights Council and had utilised every opportunity at the Council to advocate the rights of the Palestinian people.

Even though there is broad support for these calls in Human Rights Council, Waheed stated that the “world has to realise that without a Palestinian State, there can never be Palestinian rights”.

“International recognition of the State of Palestine is no barrier to the continuation of the peace talks. Rather, it helps to bring a sense of equality to both sides in the negotiations,” Waheed continued.

“The security of Israel is equally important. It is also in the best interest of Israel to see the emergence of a viable and strong Palestine. Only a viable and strong Palestine would enable Israel to achieve its own security,” he contended.

“It is therefore profoundly important, and indeed, necessary that a strong and thriving Palestinian State is established on the lands occupied by Israel since 1967. An independent Palestinian state is necessary for achieving durable peace in the region. Most of all, it is necessary for healing the wounds of the past, and achieving reconciliation based on the principles of justice and equality. These are challenging yet attainable objectives. Given the President’s own extra-ordinary life story, I am confident that these objectives can be achieved under the President’s leadership,” Waheed noted.

The floor was closed for questions from reporters and President Abbas was immediately escorted to the jetty to leave for Kurumba Resort.  Upon arriving at the resort, the Palestinian leader met with Former President and Leader of the pro-government Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and Abduallah Shahid, Speaker of the Parliament.

“Grievances”

Following the talks with Abbas, Maumoon told local media that Abbas had aired grievances over the Maldives absence in a vote taken in October 2011 to grant Palestine full membership to the the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

He claimed that Palestinian delegation had noted that Maldives did not vote in the UNESCO meeting and it was a “big shock” to Palestine and it had “deeply upset” them.  The former president noted: “I was very embarrassed to hear that. Maldives should not have done something like that. I told the [delegation] the Maldives did it [not vote] because of the government at the time was under overwhelming foreign influence. But in future, it will not be repeated.”

Minivan News asked whether Abbas had shared any concerns over the former Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) government’s ties with the Isreali government.

Whilst in power, the MDP were repeatedly criticised by the then-opposition claiming the government was conspiring with “Christian missionaries” and “Jews” to “wipe out Islam” from Maldives.  The former government has continued to deny the charges, adding that it held the same diplomatic and business relations with Israel that it has with countless other nations around the world.

The Maldives was amongst the nations that were openly critical of the Israeli military response in 2010 to a so-called “Freedom Flotilla” bound for Palestine that reportedly led to nine people being killed aboard the MV Mavi Marmara vessel during an assault in international waters. An estimated 60 activists and 10 Israeli soldiers were also injured in the scuffles that the Maldives’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned “in the strongest possible terms”.

However, Gayoom also said that he had been informed by the visiting Palestinian delegation that they do not want Maldives to establish ties with Isreal.

“They do not want Maldives to do something like that. Because Palestine is still a country which has not acheived its people’s rights and Isreal is the one blocking it. Therefore, the Palestinian government does not want at all for Maldivian government to foster relations with them [Isreal]. Neither do the Maldivians want that,” Gayoom further claimed.

The former president contended that Maldives had always shared good relations with Palestine apart from the last three years of Mohamed Nasheed’s rule, which he described as having “supported Isreal”.

However, Nasheed’s administration contended such claims were “slanderous allegations” and in a visit to Palestine last year, then Foreign Minister Ahmed Naseem announced that the Maldives would work towards the establishment of a sovereign state of Palestine by garnering international support.

According to foreign ministry officials, discussions were held over the opening of a Palestinian Embassy in the Maldives, as well as the creation of a joint Ministerial Action Group to further develop multi-sectoral relationships betwen the two countries.

Abbas is scheduled to depart tomorrow afternoon following a State Luncheon hosted by Dr Waheed.

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MDP eyes mediation as next step forward following CMAG recommendations

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has said third party mediation -possibly from India – may be needed to help resolve the present stalemate between itself and the coalition government as the Commonwealth steps up pressure for early elections.

Party spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor today claimed that such mediation was needed as the government of President Mohamed Waheed Hassan had continued “dragging its feet” in committing to international calls to hold early elections before 2013.  He also criticised what he claimed was a government failure to establish a suitably independent inquiry into the nature of February’s transfer of power.

The comments were made as the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) yesterday met to discuss developments within the Maldives.  The meeting came one month after the Commonwealth body, which is charged with dealing with human rights issues, called for polls to be held as soon as possible to remove any doubts over the legitimacy of President Waheed’s government.

Following yesterday’s meeting, CMAG set a deadline of four weeks for President Waheed’s government to address concerns relating to a perceived lack of impartiality in the Committee of National Inquiry (CNI).  The CNI is the body established by the president to conduct an independent inquiry into the transfer of power that saw him take office.

Following yesterday’s meeting , CMAG continued to push for early elections to be called by the end of 2012 at the latest, whilst also committing to strengthening democratic institutions like the judiciary in the country by working with international partners like the UN.

The Commonwealth body, which consists of foreign ministers from a number of member states including Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, Jamaica and Tanzania, said yesterday that failure by the government to amend the CNI would result in the organisation taking “further and stronger measures”.

When contacted by Minivan News today, a spokesperson for the CNI said that it was aware of the latest statement released by the CMAG, but added the commission was itself unable to enact changes to its composition.

“The CNI was set up by the president, so it will be for the government to discuss this [CMAG’s findings],” the spokesperson said.

President’s Office spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza said that with the official visit of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the country today, the government had not yet drafted its official response to CMAG’s statement.

Abbas said he expected an official government response to be released during the next 24 hours.

Opposition perspective

In addressing CMAG’s concluding statement yesterday from an opposition perspective, MDP spokesperson Ghafoor welcomed the Commonwealth’s continued calls for early elections, as well as the organisations concerns about the impartial structure of the CNI.

However, Ghafoor believed that foreign assistance may be needed on the basis of mediation in going forward to resolve questions it held over the democratic mandate of President Mohamed Waheed’s government.

“The government has continued dragging its feet on both holding meaningful road map talks towards securing early elections and in ensuring the independence of the CNI,” he said.  “The next step now could be in third party mediation.”

Ghafoor claimed that mediation could be provided by asking a nation like India to try and help facilitate fresh talks.  All party roadmap discussions have already taken place with Indian assistance, but have stalled on several occasions owing to disagreements between the MDP and several parties in Dr Waheed’s national unity government.

“In the next four weeks, we are willing to engage with the government on CMAG’s recommendations,” he claimed. “We resumed [roadmap] talks but there are eight pro-government representatives compared to just one of us wanting to make decisions on a vote basis. Obviously we have a problem on how to move ahead right now.”

During an session of all-party roadmap on April 7, MDP representative and former Home Minister Hassan Afeef called the day’s meeting a “farce” after questioning the likelihood of a successful outcome during the talks.

However, representatives from other parties during the day’s talks told local media that the stalemate during the session had resulted from the MDP failing to notify other representatives that it would be calling for greater inclusion of all the country’s political parties beyond those in the government.

The talks had previously stalled last month over the MDP’s decision to block President Waheed’s constitutionally mandated address to the People’s Majlis on March 1. This led at the time to the withdrawal from the talks of the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), the Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM), Adhaalath Party and the Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP).

However, Ghafoor claimed that the MDP was still committed to using the talks to outline a program of measures to facilitate early elections – something the government had said this week might not be needed this year following the weekend success of two of its coalition partners in parliamentary by-elections.

“We have participated at talks and we accepted the way forward at the talks put forward by India and its mediator Ahmed Mujuthaba,” the MDP spokesperson said. “We actually agreed to the plan outlined by India in the talks, they [coalition government parties] disagreed.”

Meanwhile, former High Commissioner Dr Farahanaz Faizal, who represented Mohamed Nasheed at the CMAG meeting yesterday, said that the party was “delighted” with the meeting’s outcome.  She stressed that the party particularly welcomed calls from the Commonwealth for greater impartiality in the investigation regarding February’s transfer of power, as well as the need for early elections in the country.

Dr Faizal said that, from her understanding, the nature of the “stronger measures” proposed by CMAG against the government could potentially have serious ramifications for the Maldives ongoing membership in the Commonwealth.

Though she was not present herself at the time, Dr Faizal was led to understand that, when questioned about the possible nature of further action against the government, the meeting’s chair was reported to have suggested that  suspension of the Maldives from the Commonwealth was an option on the table.

Dr Faizal did not wish to speculate on what such an action could mean for the Maldives, but she said that the ramifications for the country could be quite counter-productive for its future international standing.

“The Comonwealth is an institution made of a wide and varied selection of member states,” she said.

Speaking to Minivan News before yesterday’s CMAG meeting, President’s Office spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza said that the government felt the success of its coalition partners in three out of four by-elections over the weekend was an indication of its “mandate” amongst the Maldivian people.

Abbas therefore called on international bodies such as CMAG to take the results of the weekend’s polls into consideration when reflecting on the need for early presidential elections before the ones already scheduled for 2013.

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Dharubaaruge “unlawfully” closed, Housing Ministry claims

The doors to the Dharubaaruge conference centre in Male’ appeared open again this evening after its employees were  sent home earlier today and the building locked.

Minister for Housing and Environment Dr Mohamed Muiz has claimed the centre was  “unlawfully” closed by Male’ City Council amidst a dispute between the two bodies.

Minivan News this evening witnessed the doors to the centre once again open and a police presence outside.

According to the housing minister,  control of the conference centre had recently been transferred from Male’ City Council (MCC) to his ministry.

“As far as we are concerned someone locked the doors and unlawfully asked employees to leave,” said Dr Muiz.

Speaking with Minivan News this afternoon, City Councillor Mohamed Abdul Kareem confirmed that the centre had been locked up, as authorities were expected to make their way to the building.

“We hear they will be breaking the locks and entering the premises, but we don’t know what will happen,” he said.

After hearing reports that police had moved in to forcefully re-open the building, Minivan News witnessed around twenty police officers outside the centre at around 5:30pm.  As they waited outside the open doors, nearby crowds could be heared shouting ‘baaghee’.

The Dharubaaruge conference centre was originally built for the 5th SAARC summit in 1990 and is rented out for events, press conferences and private functions. President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan appeared at an event celebrating high academic achievers just last night.

Kareem said that a letter was received from the Civil Service Commission (CSC) yesterday informing the council that all 17 staff at the centre had been transferred to the Housing Ministry.

“The CSC has taken the staff and may be thinking that the whole premises belong to the Housing Ministry. But it is already handed over to the MCC. I believe our legal team has submitted the case to court,” said Kareem.

The Chairman of the CSC Mohamed Fahmy Hassan, countered this view, arguing that the local government laws allowed for the removal of state land from city councils.

“Institutions and land belonging to central government can be changed by cabinet decision according to the rules.  The cabinet has decided that Dharubaaruge is to move from the MCC to the Housing Ministry,” Fahmy informed Minivan.

He also argued that staff at the conference centre could only be ordered home by the CSC itself: “Staff should not be sent home. This has to be worked out in the courts between the MCC and the Housing Ministry.”

Both sides expressed concern that despite the dispute, the provision of services at the conference centre should not be affected.

Kareem therefore argued that the centre needed to re-opened quickly for pre-booked events. Fahmy added that the CSC always made efforts to ensure that services were not impeded in these situations.

Land tussle

In another tussle over the jurisdiction of land in the capital, the Housing Ministry last week issued a letter to the MCC stating that it intended to claim the area immediately behind Dharubaaruge, known as Usfangandu.

The reasons given by the ministry were that the presence of the new Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) demonstration area on the land violated the regulations concerning the use of public space. The MCC disputed these allegations.

The issue of MCC jurisdiction over the Tsunami monument area also arose recently after the case of the dismantling by security forces of the MDP’s ‘Justice Square’ was submitted to legal process.

A number of justifications for the camp’s removal were posited, but the case was dismissed by the Civil Court on a technicality. The court alleged that MDP interim chairperson Mooosa ‘Reeko’ Manik had exceeded his authority when submitting the case. The case has since been re-submitted by party President Dr Ibrahim Didi.

When asked about any possible connection between the Usfangandu and Dharubaaruge incidents, Dr Muiz said that he believed there was no link.

However, Councillor Kareem believed the two were linked to recent political tensions.

Last week, the Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) criticised the MCC’s allocation of land for political uses, arguing that the council’s policies violated decentralisation laws.

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