Month: April 2012

Govt will pay “special attention” to small populations: Dr Waheed

President Mohamed Waheed said his administration will pay “special attention” to small populations when addressing the needs of the people, according to the President’s Office.

Dr Waheed made the remarks on Friday while speaking to the inhabitants of Gaadhoo island in Laamu atoll. He expressed regret that a senior government official had not visited Gaadhoo for years, and said even if it was not possible for him personally to visit all the islands, he would try to send at least one of his ministers to each of the islands during this year.

“We must visit the islands and see for ourselves the well-being of our people. It is our duty to fulfill the needs of the people as much as possible,” Dr. Waheed observed.

According to 2006 census Gaadhoo has only 231 inhabitants. The island has access to primary education, a healthcare post and ferry connections to other islands of Laamu atoll.

Dr. Waheed meanwhile added that regardless of the size of the population, basic services must be provided to all citizens equally – however, acknowledged that “providing those services and improving the quality of services remained a challenge”.

The complex population distribution in Maldives has been identified as a great concern for the future of Maldives as it poses major challenges to the economic development.

The total population of nearly 350,000 is dispersed over 196 inhabited islands spread over a distance of more than 600 miles – making this one of the world’s most dispersed countries.

Around 130 islands have populations less than a 1000, and others between 1000-6000 while Male’ accounts for one third of the total population.

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MNCCI waits on Adeeb parliamentary backing before appointing new president

The Maldives National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI) will wait for current president Ahmed Adeeb to receive parliamentary approval for his appointment as Minister of Tourism Arts and Culture before replacing him in the organisation.

Speaking to Haveeru, current MNCCI Vice President Ismail Asif said the organisation was in the process of setting out an election process to appoint a new president.

However, Asif stressed that no decision would be taken until Adheeb received parliamentary approval to become the country’s new tourism minister – a decision requiring him to step down from holding the chamber of commerce’s presidency.

Should parliamentary backing be obtained for Adheeb to succeed Dr Mariyam Zulfa as the nation’s tourism head, Asif was quoted as saying that a general meeting would then be held to find a new MNCCI head.

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Minivan News team wins Earth Hour Quiz

Minivan News journalists won first place in the Earth Hour Quiz organised by the global logistics service provider Federal Express Corporation (FedEx), in collaboration with Maldives Youth Climate Action Network (MYCN).

“We were lucky enough to have a very diverse group of environmental enthusiasts from surfers to shippers, accountants, couriers, journalists, cameramen as participants,” said Grant Baxter, Sales and Marketing Manager of the Holidayland Maldives, the new FedEx Licensee in Maldives.

Nearly 30 participants were divided into groups of three, and asked questions relating to the local background, environment, history and entertainment.

Minivan News journalists Daniel Bosley, Zaheena Rasheed and Hawwa Lubna won the first round and achieved highest overall score, winning a surfing lesson and a sponsored fishing trip.

During the Earth Hour, 8:30pm and 9:30pm, the lights at FedEx office were switched off while inside the participants were briefed on the increasing menace of plastic waste in the country.

According to Baxter, the event marks the relaunch of FedEx services in the Maldives under the new local partner Holidayland, which replaced Universal Enterprises as the local FedEx agent on February 15.

Baxter observed that the company aims to be more localised and sensitive to the needs of the local market while it promotes the brand through events such as the Earth Hour quiz gathering, boat trips and community upliftment projects.

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Police promote one thousand officers, recruiting further 200

In a ceremony to celebrate the 79th year of the police service, Police Commissioner Abdullah Riyaz and Minister of Home Affairs Dr Abdullah Jameel announced the promotion of around 1000 police officers – approximately a third of the force.

The appointment of four new Assistant Commissioners was also announced, more than doubling the previous number holding this rank – the third highest position in the service.

Additionally, the police have revealed plans to recruit 200 new officers to the force this year.

Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef said that these promotions were in line with normal police regulations, and were awarded “based on performance, merit, and number of years served.”

The weekend’s celebrations continued as President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan announced plans to allocate 74,000 square feet of land to develop homes for police personnel.

Dr Waheed also expressed his gratitude for the police’s actions on February 7. “I state that the police worked on February 7 to uphold the constitution of Maldives,” he said.

The anniversary of the police service comes after months of intense scrutiny in which it the service been accused of brutality, human rights abuses and complicity in the downfall of former President Mohamed Nasheed.

On Saturday, Commissioner Riyaz stated that he did not intend to pursue an internal investigation into the alleged events of February 7 and 8, citing the lack of credibility that such an investigation was likely to have.

The unrest on February 8 saw a Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) protest swiftly suppressed by the security forces while the footage of police aggression was beamed around the world.

Instead, Riyaz declared his decision to focus on repairing the organisational damage done to the institution.

“I can’t just come in here and investigate the alleged police brutality as the first order of business. It is essential to establish who was occupying which post first by assessing the organizational structure. The whole institution had been politically influenced,” the Commissioner told Haveeru.

“We all know that the positions within the police institutions had not been assigned in accordance with police regulations and had functioned in violation of the police system. Hence, I am compelled to drag the institution back into its proper system,” said Riyaz.

He also stated that he had discussed any potential investigation with the President and the Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) shortly after taking up his post, requesting that the HRCM take up the responsibility.

Amnesty International had last week criticised this method of investigation after having spoken to HRCM regarding the investigation of alleged sexual abuse of female detainees.

“HRCM has told Amnesty International that they have serious limitations in terms of trained investigative staff and dealing with human rights issues in a highly politicised environment is an overwhelming challenge for them,” said Amnesty’s representative in Male’, Abbas Faiz.

“By referring cases of police abuse of power to the HRCM, when it is clear that such investigations are beyond its capacity, the government is in effect forfeiting its own responsibility to enforce respect for human rights within the police force,” said Faiz.

President Waheed’s speech at the anniversary’s official function event focussed on the difficult environment the police had found themselves since the upheavals of February.

Waheed called on public to show respect for and cooperation with the police while urging all officers to respect human rights and human dignity in the course of their duties.

The strong public discontent with the police’s role in, and its reaction to, the events of February 7 and 8 has led to simmering tensions which have erupted in sporadic violence.

The President also expressed his sadness at the physical and emotional distress suffered by the police in recent weeks.

The opening of the people’s Majlis on March 19 was accompanied by clashes which saw the police suffer multiple casualties. This was followed by a series of attacks which saw four police officers hospitalised in five days.

Popular discontent also saw the staging of a large rally on March 15 in support of the International Day Against Police Brutality.

Both Commissioner Riyaz and President Waheed have been reported expressing concerns that people in the media were attempting to defame the image of the police force, expressing concern that this was damaging the country.

“I am aware of their contempt towards the institution. I will try to resolve the matter. The biggest challenge would be to win back their trust and confidence,” Riyaz told Haveeru.

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High Court upholds Civil Court injunction against investigation of Judge Abdulla by judicial watchdog

The High Court today upheld a Civil Court injunction against the Judicial Services Commission (JSC)’s investigation of Chief Judge of the Criminal Court, Abdulla Mohamed.

Abdulla Mohamed was a central figure in the downfall of former President Mohamed Nasheed, following the military’s detention of the judge after the government accused him of political bias, obstructing police, stalling cases, links with organised crime and “taking the entire criminal justice system in his fist” to protect key figures of the former dictatorship from human rights and corruption cases.

Abdulla Mohamed obtained the Civil Court injunction against his investigation by the judicial watchdog in September 2011, after it produced a report stating that he had violated the Judge’s Code of Conduct by making a politically biased statement in an interview he gave to private broadcaster DhiTV.

The JSC appealed the injunction on January 24, claiming that the Civil Court had disregarded the commission’s constitutional mandate which allowed it to take action against judges, and argued that the court did not have the jurisdiction to overrule a decision of its own watchdog body.

The commission further argued the Judge Mohamed did not have the authority to seek the injunction preemptively as the commission had not yet taken action against him.

The JSC had therefore requested the High Court to terminate the injunction, citing contradictions to legal and court procedures.

However presiding High Court Judge Dr Azmiralda Zahir contended that the commission had not provided the court “any reason to terminate the injunction”.

Zahir further observed that the High Court would be violating the court procedures if it decided on the injunction before the Civil Court had reached its own verdict in the case.

She also added that that JSC could not establish a connection between the Civil Court’s injunction and jurisdiction of the court, and concluded it is not a reasonable argument to terminate the injunction.

Therefore, she ruled that the judges who evaluated the case had found no grounds to change the civil court’s injunction.

Former President’s member on the JSC and whistleblower Aishath Velezinee for several years contended that Abdulla Mohamed was a central, controlling “father figure” in the lower courts, answerable to former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and a key figure responsible for scuttling the independence of the judiciary under the new constitution.

“When Abdulla Mohamed [was arrested by Nasheed’s government] I believe the opposition feared they were losing control over the judiciary, and that is why they came out on the streets. If you look at the so called public protests, it was opposition leaders and gang members. We did not see the so-called public joining them – they were a public nuisance really,” Velezinee observed, in a recent interview with Minivan News.

“For nearly three weeks they were going around destroying public property and creating disturbances. It wasn’t a people thing – we can say that. We locals – we know who was there on the streets. There is footage and evidence available of it. We’ve seen the destruction they were causing in Male’ every day.”

Following the arrest of the judge, Nasheed’s government appealed to the international community – in particular the Commonwealth, the International Committee of Jurists (ICJ) and the UN – for assistance in resolving the spiralling judicial crisis. A Commonwealth team arrived in the Maldives the day before Nasheed’s government was overthrown after a group of police sided with opposition demonstrators, attacking the military headquarters and seizing control of the state broadcaster.

Velezinee bemoaned the local and international focus on the arrest of the judge rather than the decline of the institution that led Nasheed’s government to such desperate interference in the judiciary.

“To the international community [the protesters] were a crowd of people – and to them that’s the public. It’s a public protest to them. But it was not. We need to consider who was involved in the free Abdulla Mohamed campaign. These are the same people I have previously accused of covering up and being conspirators in the silent coup,” Velezinee told Minivan News in an interview in February.

The first complaints against Abdulla Mohamed were filed in July 2005 by then Attorney General Dr Hassan Saeed – now Dr Waheed’s political advisor – and included allegations of misogyny, sexual deviancy, and throwing out an assault case despite the confession of the accused.

Asked in February this year whether he was satisfied with the investigation into the judge’s conduct and the action taken since his complaints in 2005, Dr Saeed replied that “under that constitution [President Gayoom] was the head of the judiciary. So it was my legal and moral obligation to raised that issue with him, which I did.

“I did not know if it was followed up. Obviously if there are issues it has to be resolved in accordance with the established laws and institutions.”

During the same interview, President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan said it was “for the judiciary to decide what to do with him, not for me.”

“I don’t want to interfere in the judiciary. I want our constitution to be respected, and work with everybody to make our constitution work. This is a new constitution, and it is the first time we are trying it out. And so there are difficulties in it. We need to find ways of solving it. It is time for us to work together, and if there are problems with the judiciary we need to work together to solve them – they are intelligent good people in the judiciary and the Judicial Services Commission (JSC).”

The Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) last week summoned former President Mohamed Nasheed, former Home Minister Hassan Afeef, and former Defence Minister Tholath Ibrahim for questioning over their detention of the judge. It had promised to conclude the investigation by April.

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MDP refuses to cooperate with CNI citing concerns over impartiality

The ousted Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has said it does not recognise the Committee of National Inquiry (CNI), in response to the committee’s call for cooperation on Thursday.

President Mohamed Waheed Hassan charged the CNI with looking into the legality and legitimacy of the transfer of presidential power on February 7. The MDP alleges former President Mohamed Nasheed was deposed in a coup d’état and have called for early elections.

The CNI told local media all political parties have complied with request for statements except for the MDP. But the committee said it believed MDP may cooperate if the CNI addressed the party’s concerns, local media reported.

The MDP has raised concerns over the committee’s composition. The CNI is chaired by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s Defence Minister Ismail Shafeeu. The MDP has also called for strong international presence on the commission. The EU and the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) have supported the call.

The CNI did not appear to commit to addressing MDP concerns, but instead requested dialogue.

However, MDP spokesperson Hamid Abdul Gafoor said, “We do not recognise the CNI. How can the people who instigated a coup investigate the coup? There is no validity in the process. How can we give any weight to it?”

Gafoor also noted that the CNI had not requested for statements from officials of Nasheed’s administration.

Dialogue

According to local media Sun Online, committee head Ismail Shafeeu said, “[The MDP] have told media that they are dissatisfied with the commission. They have said the same to us.”

Further, CNI member Mohamed Fawaz Shareef had said he believed the MDP may cooperate if the CNI addressed the party’s complaints. The CNI have now requested for dialogue with the party, reports Sun Online.

According to Sun Online, the CNI also said although the UN had assured the committee of assistance, the committee had not heard back from the UN. The CMAG has offered assistance to the investigation, but the government said it favors UN assistance over that of the Commonwealth.

The CNI have requested for statements or videos to be uploaded to its website if witnesses are uncomfortable with submitting statements in person.

The CNI has said its inquiry is not a criminal investigation, but that the final report will consist of the three members’ opinions on the events of February 7.

Minivan News tried to contact the CNI for further comment, but the committee said it did not speak to the media except during its biweekly press briefings.

The committee is expected to complete its inquiry by May 31.

Dr Waheed Hassan told local television station Villa TV (VTV) he would resign and reinstate ousted President Nasheed if the CNI established the February 7 transfer of power to be illegitimate.

“Flawed”

The MDP has criticised the lack of cross-party consultation in compiling the committee and the lack of international experts on the committee.

“It has been conceived and imposed by those parties allied to Dr  Waheed without any consultation with MDP. It does not include any eminent international experts. And the inclusion of individuals who held Cabinet posts during the autocratic government of former President Gayoom, including the appointment of a Chair – Mr. Ismail Shafeeu – who had held various ministerial posts under former President Gayoom including the position of Defense Minister at a time of widespread human rights abuses in the country, suggests that no effort has been made to ensure independence and impartiality,” the MDP said in February.

The EU, Commonwealth, India, UK and the US have called for an impartial investigation.

Local NGOs Transparency Maldives, Maldivian Democracy Network, Maldives NGO Federation and Democracy House have called on the CNI to seek cross-party support, international assistance and have asked for observer status.

According to the CNI’s website, its members held meetings with the Adhaalath Party, the Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP), Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) and the Maldives Reform Movement (MRM). The CNI has also met Commonwealth Special Envoy Sir Donald McKinnon, the UN’s Mediation Expert, and three NGOs. These are the Maldives Democracy Network, Transparency Maldives, and Democracy House.

It has also met with media outlets, the Attorney General’s Office, the Foreign Ministry, Communication Authority of Maldives, Police Integrity Commission, Human Rights Commission of the Maldives, the Civil Service Commission and the Prosecutor General’s Office.

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“Democracy must be restored in the Maldives,” Nasheed tells US media

Former President Mohamed Nasheed’s promotional tour of the US media for the Island President continued over the weekend, including interviews with the Washington Post, Salon, and the Huffington Post, among others.

The interviews follow Nasheed’s appearance last week on the Late Show with David Letterman, and address to Colombia University. The recent political instability in the Maldives has been as much a topic in many of the interviews as the wider environmental threat highlighted in the Island President, and the media has been quick to draw parallels.

The first half of the film gives a political backdrop to Nasheed’s own political rise – and imprisonment.

“It is very important that democracy be restored in the Maldives, and we hope that friendly governments understand the necessity and the need for it,” Nasheed said, in a Q&A with Salon. “As we see it now, I’m afraid the government there is going to all sorts of places. Certainly it’s not going democratically, and we need to bring it back.”

Asked by Salon if he believed Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan’s government would pursue tackling climate change to the same degree, Nasheed said “They can’t. You must have a high moral authority to address climate change. Every time you start speaking, you know, you can’t be answering back to the skeletons in your own closet. So it’s not going to be possible for them to articulate in the same manner as a democratic government. I don’t see it happening.”

There was, Nasheed told the magazine, no policies or political ideology behind Gayoom and the former opposition coalition.

“[The] ideology is xenophobia and racism. All the rhetoric against Israel and the West, calling everyone a heathen. It’s really narrow-minded and intolerant and nationalistic. This is an island mentality as well, but it’s possible to change that. It’s not the people who have that mentality but the ruling elite, who want to suppress the people through that narrative, that rhetoric,” Nasheed explained.

Nasheed also met with the US State Department. Recounting the meeting to the Washington Post, Nasheed said: “the whole issue centred around the restoration of democracy in the Maldives, and how it was very important to get the country back on track, and how the US government may assist in doing that.”

“We were encouraged that the US government willing to listen and see how they may be of assistance to democratic progress in the Maldives,” Nasheed said, adding that the State Department had shown a willingness to reassess the situation as new information emerged.

“The US government was of the view that elections were necessary – they had reservations in the past, but main focus of conversation was that whatever their viewpoint in the past, they were willing to assess situation on the ground as it is now.”

Gayoom denies allegations

Former president Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom has meanwhile brushed off the allegations made by his successor regarding his involvement in the coup.

Gayyoom in a press statement released yesterday after Nasheed had made remarks to the US media, stated that he had not attempted nor took part in any type of attempts to unlawfully topple the government of Nasheed.

However he acknowledged that his party, the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), had participated with thousands of people who raised concerns over Nasheed’s unlawful and unconstitutional actions and his efforts to distance the Maldivian people from their Islamic faith.

“For that purpose, PPM had participated in the protests that were organised by several political parties and NGOs. That [protesting] is a legal and a democratic right for the people to ensure accountability of the president and senior officials of his government. It is also an obligation on the citizens as well,” Gayoom claimed..

Gayoom also expressed his confidence that the events that unfolded on February 7 was not a coup d’état: “Therefore I can confidently say that the allegations that Nasheed is making, regarding the transfer of power that took place on February 7 was a coup d’état or a revolution, and that I was involved in it, are completely absurd.”

Gayoom issued the press statement in particular response to Nasheed’s appearance on Letterman.

During the show, Nasheed said Dr Waheed’s regime, is the “old dictatorship that we voted out of office”.

“Gayyoom is back in the country, his children are in cabinet, he is in power. Dr Waheed is just a facade.” Nasheed said.

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Defence Minister visits India seeking military cooperation

Minister of Defence Mohamed Nazim has asked India for assistance in developing the capacity and human resources of the MNDF.

During an official trip Nazim visited the Indian military’s DEFEXPO exhibition-2012 in New Delhi, and also met military officials from Malaysia and Nepal.

Nazim met with his Indian counterpart A K Anthony, speaking about potential opportunities for Maldives’ military personnel to gain experience and training in India.

The Defence Minister was accompanied by Commandant of the Coast Guard and Director General of Intelligence Brigadier General Ahmed Shahid, and Principal Director International Defence Corporation Lieutenant Colonel Ibrahim Hilmee.

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Former President Nasheed schedules India visit for mid-April: Zee News

Former President Mohamed Nasheed is set to visit India later this month as part of an international tour to try and garner support for early elections in the Maldives amidst allegations that he was removed from office in a “coup d’etat”, Zee News has reported.

The proposed visit has been announced as Nasheed finishes up a visit to the US where he has been speaking to students, diplomats and popular talk shot host David Letterman about his views on the state of democracy in the country.  He has also been using the trip to promote the documentary film “The Island President”:

44-year-old Nasheed, who became Maldives’ first democratically-elected president following multi-party polls in October 2008, had resigned on February 7 in what he claims was a coup.

He said he was shocked at the US and Indian governments’ rapid move to recognise the new regime headed by Mohammaed Waheed Hassan after he was ousted from power.

“I will go to India in the middle of next month and plan to meet as many political leaders as possible,” including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Nasheed said.

“I would like to ask the people of India to be with us and to not let go (of their support for us). They should not let dictatorship return to Maldives. We have to have early elections. We can come back on track again. We definitely need the support of India,” he said.
Nasheed, who is in the US for the release of a documentary on climate change, said he hopes India will “come around” and support him even though it had moved quickly to recognise the new regime in Maldives.

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