Month: January 2013

“We have been off the streets for some time – now we are back”: MDP

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) supporters marched through Male’ on Tuesday (January 22) for the first time in several months to protest against the current coalition government.

The protest was the first large-scale march through the city since the Freedom of Assembly Bill was ratified by President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik earlier this month. The party claimed over three thousand attended.

MDP Spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor told Minivan News that the party plans to hold more assemblies and protests in next coming months around Male’.

“The MDP have been off the streets some time, we had taken a break. Now we are back. We have too many options and ideas opening up and people need to know what’s going on,” Ghafoor added.

The demonstration took place the same day former President Mohamed Nasheed called on parliament to create an interim, caretaker administration following a week in which senior members of the defence and military gave evidence alleging the transfer of power on February 7 “had all the hallmarks of a coup d’etat.”

Minivan News observed the protest as it moved down through Majeedhee Magu at around 5:00pm on Tuesday evening.

Despite the large turnout of protesters and disruption caused to traffic, Minivan News witnessed only four police officers observing the march from down a side street off Majeedhee Magu.

Asked as to why police presence had been limited during the protest, Maldives Police Service (MPS) Spokesman Hassan Haneef said police had been “observing the protest”.

“Under the Freedom of Assembly Bill there are guidelines for protests. We made no arrests and I do not see why there should be a problem if there is no trouble caused,” Haneef added.

Minivan News witnessed only one incident of confrontation when a protester threw a handful of Maldivian rufiya notes at the face of a police officer – who did not react.

As protesters walked passed two police stations on Ameene Magu they began to chant “Baghee” to officers watching from outside.

“When you compare to how the police have reacted to us in the past, it was very different today. I still do not believe that the whole of police and Maldivian National Defence Force were involved in the coup,” Ghafoor said yesterday.

“In the past there is only trouble from police when we move into areas where they get nervous. They do not confront us as long as we keep away from those areas,” he added.

President’s Office Spokesperson Masood Imad and Police Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz were not responding to calls from Minivan News at time of press.

Usfasgandu handover

The protest took place a day after Male’ City Council (MCC) Mayor ‘Maizan’ Ali Manik appealed to High Court to suspend a Civil Court ruling ordering it to hand over the MDP protest site – Usfasgandu – to the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure.

“The government want the MDP to go onto the streets, that way they can say there is no stability in the country and preventearlyelections from being held,” Manik alleged to Minivan News on Monday.

Responding to the Mayor’s allegations, President’s Office Spokesperson Masood Imad claimed the mayor needs to be more “Male’ mayor” than “MDP mayor”.

“Who is to say the MDP will start protesting on the streets if Usfasgandu is handed over? Why do some people think the [MDP] always protest?

“Contrary to what Mayor Manik thinks, I don’t think they go around making protests, I think the MDP are good guys,” Imad said.

Freedom of Assembly

The recently ratified Freedom of Assembly Bill imposes a number of restrictions on protesting from both protesters and police alike.

Among the key features of the Freedom of Assembly bill is the outlawing of demonstrations outside private residences and government buildings, limitations on media covering protests not accredited with the state and defining “gatherings” as a group of more than a single person.

One of the main stated objectives of the legislation is to try and minimise restrictions on peaceful gatherings, which it claims remain a fundamental right.

Under the legislation, demonstrations will be outlawed within a certain distance of the residences of the president and vice president, tourist resorts, harbours utilized for economic purposes, airports, the President’s Office, the courts of law, the Parliament, mosques, schools, hospitals and buildings housing diplomatic missions.

Earlier this month Ghafoor told Minivan News that the MDP stood against the principles of the Freedom of Assembly Bill, alleging its ratification is a response to the ‘Ingilaab’ proposed by former President Mohamed Nasheed last month.

Speaking at yesterday’s protest, Ghafoor said that the MDP had obtained permission from Male’ City Council to protest. MCC Mayor ‘Maizan’ Ali Manik also took part in the protest.

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Two Pakistani nationals arrested for carrying forged passports

Customs authorities in the Maldives have arrested two Pakistan nationals for carrying two forged passports.

The two men arrived on an Emirates flight to the Maldives and were arrested based on information provided by the Immigration Department, local media reported.

Upon a security check, three more passports including two Pakistan passports and one Belgian passport were found in their luggage.

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Land leased by Jabir’s company revoked due to outstanding rent payments

Land leased on Kaashidhoo in Kaafu Atoll to Maldivian Democratic Party MP Abdulla Jabir’s J Hotels and Resorts has been revoked by the government due to failure to pay rent.

According to local media, Kaashidhoo Council President Ali Sulthan said the land – leased for the construction of an 80-bed guest house – had been leased for the past ten months, of which only three months’ rent had been paid, local media reported.

An amount of MVR 166,000 (US$10,758) is apparently due from the company, which was contracted to pay a sum of MVR 15,000 (US$972) per month.

“The land was leased to a company owned by our constituent member Jabir. We have revoked the land because they were not paying the rent at all,” Sulthan was quoted as saying by Sun Online.

J Hotels and Resorts is operated under Jabir’s Yacht Tours Maldives.

Executive Director of J Hotels and Resorts Ibrahim Rasheed confirmed to local media that that the company does own a land in Kaashidhoo, but it does not have land with outstanding rent payments.

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Child support payments increased to MVR 1000

Child support payments are to increase to MVR 1,000 (US$64) after the Parliament Regulation Committee decided the previous amount of MVR 450 (US$29) was too small, local media reported.

The amendment to article 65 of the Family Regulation now states that a father who has more than one child is required to pay MVR 1,000 per child, per month until the child reaches 18 years of age, local media stated.

A father who has one child is required to pay MVR 2,000 (US$129) per month until that child reaches 18.

The amendment further states that MVR 2,000 must be provided to a woman during iddah – the period of waiting after a divorce, local media reported.

The amendment to the Family Regulation was proposed by Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Rozaina Adam.

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Foreign Ministry stalls return of 8000 “ownerless” passports

The Foreign Ministry has stalled attempts to hand over almost 8000 foreign passports to their respective High Commissions, claiming details regarding the owners whereabouts still needed to obtained by immigration authorities, local media has reported.

State Foreign Minister Hassan Saeed said the Foreign Ministry will only deliver the passports to the respective consular authorities once immigration clarifies the location of the owners, a task described as “huge” and “difficult” by Immigration Controller Dr Mohamed Ali.

Saeed claimed the number of foreigners who had not left the Maldives while on temporary travel documents was close to the number of ownerless passports held at immigration, local media reported.

“We have a number of foreigners who have left the Maldives on temporary travel documents. But if that number does not match with the passports and if we try to hand over the passports there will be complaints, and questions asked over the quantity of the passports and the whereabouts of the holders,” Saeed was quoted as telling local newspaper Haveeru.

Dr Ali told Minivan News on Tuesday that it would be a “huge task” to obtain the details needed before the passports could be handed over to the respective High Commissions.

Asked if it was realistic to expect immigration to find the whereabouts and details of the owners of all 8000 passports, Ali said such feat would be a “difficult task”.

According to local media the exact number of expatriates in the Maldives is unknown. However immigration statistics show there are 120,000 registered expatriates who regularly pay their visa fees and a further 40,000 illegal immigrants.

Ali told local media that the majority of the passports are from Bangladesh, however there were passports from India and Sri Lanka as well.

An official from the Indian High Commission said the passports should be returned to the respective governments, as they posed a security risk.

The official condemned the practice of Maldivian employers – including some government departments – withholding the passports of their employees: “Keeping someone’s passport is a threat on a private level.

“Passports should belong to the person and no one else. It is a security risk for individuals to not have their passport in their possession,” the official said.

Earlier this month, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs inaugurated an initiative targeted at raising awareness of the issue of human trafficking in the Maldives.

The Maldives has come under strong criticism internationally in recent years over its lack of effort to prevent people trafficking, with the country appearing on the US State Department’s Tier Two Watch List for Human Trafficking three years in a row.

Speaking at the recent inauguration of the Blue Ribbon Campaign Against Human Trafficking, Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Abdul Samad Abdulla stated the initiative formed part of a larger plan to try and addressing human trafficking in the Maldives.

“We have been conducting a lot of work to deal with the issue, though it may be generally a little known fact,” Samad claimed. “Our intention now is to work together with local media outlets and create more awareness about the issue. I would like to request media cooperate in this initiative.”

The Foreign Ministry also announced it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with multiple local media outlets in the country to conduct the Blue Ribbon Campaign.

Minivan News was awaiting a response from the Foreign Ministry at time of press.

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Committee to visit Maafushi Prison and Villingili orphanage to investigate arrest of minors

Parliament’s National Security Committee will visit Maafushi prison and the Villingili to complete their investigation into the arrest of two minors from the Villingili orphanage.

Speaking at a press conference held last night at the committee meeting room, chair of the committee, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik, said the committee’s decision followed questioning of the Ministry of Gender Family and Human Rights, the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), the Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Services (DPRS) and the Villingili Orphanage.

Heads of the ministries and institutions were summoned last night for questioning over the arrest of two underage females from the orphanage. The meeting started as an open meeting but was later turned into a closed meeting.

Moosa told the media the committee had learned that all concerning authorities had neglected their duties and responsibilities to protect the rights of children.

According to Moosa, DPRS officials told the committee members the two minors were being imprisoned alongside criminals undergoing their sentences.

The case was initially submitted to the National Security Committee by MDP MP for Madaveli, Mohamed Nazim.

Nazim contended that there was public concern regarding the arrest of the two minors and asked the committee to publish the details of its investigation on completion.

On January 17, HRCM called for the immediate release of the two underage females living in the Villingili orphanage, who were arrested and sent to Maafushi prison.

Local media alleged the two girls, aged 15 and 16, were arrested on December 28, 2012, after escaping the orphanage in the middle of the night to fraternise with boys.

HRCM asked the Ministry of Gender, Family and Human Rights to return the girls to the Villingili orphanage immediately, noting that their incarceration in Maafushi prison violated chapter 2, article 35[a] of the constitution.

Meanwhile, sources familiar with Maafushi prison confirmed to Minivan News that the two underage females had been moved to a separate area of the prison, but were being kept with two other underage female inmates completing their sentences.

According to the sources, at least one man was arrested in connection with the same case.

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JSC discusses probing bribery allegations against two judges by former Adhaalath Party President

Members of the state’s judiciary watchdog the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) have discussed probing allegations of bribery levied against two sitting judges by former President of the Adhaalath Party, Sheikh Hussain Rasheed.

During an opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) rally held last Thursday, Sheikh Rasheed said that last year he had met a Maldivian businessman in Saudi Arabia who had alleged to him that two Maldivian judges had accepted a sum of MVR 12.3 million (US$ 797,148.41).

A JSC spokesperson told Minivan News that after the allegations were made public, members of the commission had discussed an investigation.

“The matter was discussed during the last JSC meeting,” the spokesperson said. Asked whether a decision was reached, he replied “there were many items on the agenda.”

Rasheed alleged the businessman had paid one judge a sum of US$700,000 while other was paid US$50,000 on two different occasions.

The businessman gave the money to prevent his rights being harmed by the other party in the case, whom he alleged had also bribed the judges, Rasheed said.

Rasheed was not available for a comment when contacted.

President of the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) Hassan Luthfee said he had also heard of Rasheed’s allegations and would giving the matter a high priority.

“The ACC will for sure look into any cases of corruption, regardless of whom it involves. We too have heard of the allegations through the media. We will in the coming days look into this,” he said.

Luthfee said there were no legal barriers to the ACC’s investigation of judicial misconduct, and that the ACC had the jurisdiction to look into any corruption matter even if it involved judges.

“The case will officially be investigated by the ACC,” he said.

Former President’s Member on the JSC, Aishath Velezinee in her book The Failed Silent Coup: in Defeat They Reached for the Gun extensively highlighted the watchdog body’s undermining of judicial independence, and complicity in sabotaging the separation of powers.

In her book, she recounted her experience as the outspoken whistleblower as she attempted to stop the commission from re-appointing unqualified and ethically-suspect judges loyal to former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, after it dismissed the professional and ethical standards demanded by Article 285 of the constitution as “symbolic”.

That moment at the conclusion of the constitutional interim period marked the collapse of the new constitution and resulted in the appointment of a illegitimate judiciary, Velezinee contended, and set in motion a chain of events that ultimately led to President Mohamed Nasheed’s arrest of Chief Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed two years later.

Current Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed – himself a former judge and Justice Minister – has admitted the quality of services delivered by the judiciary remains disappointingly gloomy while writing in an op-ed article in Haveeru.

“Our judiciary has some bright minds, but that does not exempt it from scrutiny; the judiciary in the Maldives, with the exception of few courts and judges, the judiciary as a whole has earned a deservedly bad reputation for its inconsistent judgments, lack of leadership, lack of competency and being out of touch with modern laws and views of the society,” he wrote.

In 2004, a report by judicial expert Professor Paul Robinson assessed the country’s criminal justice system, and found in his report that “serious efforts” were required to increase the quality of judges.

“Serious efforts must be made to provide substantial training to current judges in order to ensure that all have the background they need in both law and Shari’a. Perhaps more importantly, no judge should be hired who does not already have the needed training,” he wrote.

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UN Resident Coordinator departs Maldives

UN Resident Coordinator Andrew Cox has left the Maldives following the conclusion of his tour of duty.

In a departure statement, Cox expressed “gratitude for the excellent cooperation he received from the government, state institutions, civil society organisations and the media during his time as the UN Resident Coordinator in the Maldives.”

Cox also paid a farewell call on President Dr Mohamed Waheed. According to the President’s Office, “Waheed expressed his gratitude for the enormous contribution made, and the support received towards the development of the Maldives, during Mr Andrew Cox’s tenure as the UN Resident Coordinator.”

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Union raises job security fears following strike action at Kanuhura resort

The job security of almost 100 staff at the Kanuhura resort in Lhaviyani Atoll is in doubt after they participated in strike action at the property this week, the Tourism Employees Association of Maldives (TEAM) has alleged.

TEAM Secretary General Mauroof Zakir claimed the job security of about 90 members of staff who took part in industrial action at the resort on Monday was uncertain after they were requested to take paid leave away from the site next week.

Legal representatives for Kanuhura’s parent company, the Sun Resorts Group, told Minivan News that the company was attempting to resolve a salary dispute with its staff and had sought assistance from both the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture and the Labour Relations Authority (LRA) to liaise on the issue.  The company added that with salary negotiations ongoing it was also trying to maintain operations at the resort, which had been impacted by a number of employees failing to report to duty over the last two days.

Team Secretary General Maurouf claimed that staff at Kanuhura staff last month gathered at the property to demand a rise in monthly wages to US$250 per month – an amount he claimed to be in line with other nearby resorts. Minivan News understands that staff also requested an increase in service charge payments, which was currently being considered by Sun Resorts Group management.

According to TEAM, staff at Kanuhura were earning an average basic wage of between US$175 – US$200 per month.  Staff had been told by company officials they would be receiving an increase in salary by January 20.

The proposed salary increase of between US$25 to US$30 was however deemed insufficient by the majority of staff who had demanded a wage increase, Mauroof claimed.

“Most do not want to accept this increment and there was a work stoppage involving an estimated 95 staff,” he said.

Mauroof added that resort management had since requested that staff involved in this week’s strike action take paid leave of seven days – a request he claimed had been met with suspicion by employees.

“Right now [the resort] does not have accommodation to hire new staff. I do not think they will reinstate the existing workers once they leave,” he claimed.

While not organised by TEAM, Mauroof said the union backed the stance taken by staff in the pay dispute.

“Staff have done everything according to regulations. They raised their concerns last month and wrote to management about the matter,” he said.

Mauroof said there had also been an isolated incident in which a fire had occurred at two guest bungalows on the property, an incident he said was thought to have been an accident.

Replacement allegations

Hussain Rasheed, a senior butler who claims to have worked at the resort for eight and a half years, told Minivan News that some 30 to 40 staff who had taken part in strikes at the resort this week had decided against continuing their employment. He claimed these staff, who were promised a package of three months in wages and a month in service charge payments by cheque, were instead requesting cash payments before leaving the property.

Rasheed also alleged that while remaining staff had apologised for their role in the strike action and wished to stay in their positions, all staff who had taken part in the week’s protests had been requested to take paid leave for at least four days. However, he claimed that no assurances were given that staff would be able to return to their jobs at a later date.

Rasheed alleged that resort management were already in the process of bringing expatriate workers to the island over the last two days to take up roles at the resort.

“They have brought 35 expatriates to the resort from Male’, and they have told me [the imported staff] are being given a basic salary of US$200,” he said.

Rasheed claimed that after having spoken with the new workers, they had admitted to not knowing where their passports or documentation were, and questioned the legality of their employment status.

He claimed that issues had been raised with the Maldives Police Service and the Department of Immigration and Emigration.

Kanuhura response

Speaking to Minivan News today, a legal representative for Sun Resorts Group – who asked not to be named – said workers have taken part in industrial action at the resort last month over calls for a review of wages and service charges.

The representative said that officials from both the Tourism Ministry and the LRA were once again being invited to oversee discussions between both parties.

“The had demanded an increase in salary and service charge payments. The company agreed by January 20 to implement a wage increase. On the matter of service charge payments, we said we would respond to staff by March [2013],” the source said.

“The company’s HR Manager who was here yesterday spoke with staff, who did not accept the proposal offered. They once again went on strike and we have asked the LRA and Tourism Ministry [for assistance].”

While negotiations with state officials and staff ongoing, the legal spokesperson said the company did not wish to discuss the numbers of staff involved in the strikes or the wage rises being offered.

The source also declined to comment on individual accusations raised by staff concerning attempts to employ expatriate staff to take their roles.

“In cases such as this there are likely to be a number of allegations raised. We do not wish to comment on them individually,” the source claimed. “Right now we are trying to manage the resort with what we have. There are about 30 to 50 staff not reporting to work.”

The legal source said that despite efforts to try and manage with reduced staff some operations had been adversely affected as a result of the strikes.

“Some guests have registered complaints with us,” the company representative added.

Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Gafoor nad Deputy tourist head Mohamed Maleeh Jamal  were not respong to calls from Minvan News at the time of press.

Freedom of assembly

Under the new ‘Freedom of Assembly Bill’ recently passed by parliament, demonstrations outside a number of public places including resorts and airports, have been outlawed.

The regulation also states that although demonstrators do not need to seek authorisation ahead of a gathering, police must be then notified of any pre-planned demonstrations before they commence.

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