Month: May 2013

Maldives’ sovereignty threatened by “economic slavery”: President Waheed

President Dr Mohamed Waheed has said talk of the Maldives’ independence or sovereignty will be pointless if the country falls into “economic slavery”, following the passing out parade of the second Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) Officer Candidate Course.

The comments were said to have been made in relation to the importance of “safeguarding” national security, according to the President’s Office.

Speaking after commissioning new officers from the course yesterday (May 25), President Waheed – in his capacity of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces – said it was not just the MNDF and police who were required to protect national security.

He therefore called on every individual in the country to prioritise “national interests”.

The President’s Office website quoted Dr Waheed as stating that the government was committed to having a diplomatic policy said to protect the Maldives’ interests, as well as those of “other friendly nations”.

Yesterday’s parade was held at the Girifushi training facility.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Media Council asks Criminal Court to stop obstructing press freedom

The Maldives Media Council (MMC) has requested the Criminal Court halt unconstitutional efforts to obstruct press freedom, reports local media.

The MMC sent a letter to the Criminal Court yesterday (May 26), addressed to Chief Judge of Criminal Court Abdulla Mohamed, in response to the court’s request that local media outlet Sun Online reveal a source related to a recently published article.

“The council believes that this impedes the protection guaranteed to journalists in article 28 of the Constitution, and also obstructs journalists’ freedom in carrying out their duties. We urge all groups to refrain from repeating such acts,” the letter stated.

Investigations by the MMC in regard to the article in question – for which the Criminal Court requested the source of information – revealed that the Ali Shifan murder case report was delayed due to an administrative error of the court.

The MMC also highlighted that Sun Online was the only media outlet requested to reveal their source(s), despite other local media groups reporting the incident in the same manner.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Police summon JSC member over gang link allegations

Police have summoned the president’s appointed member to the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), Mohamed ‘Reynis’ Saleem, for questioning regarding allegations he commissioned gang activities.

Saleem reported to police headquarters in Male’ yesterday (May 25) to answer questions related to an ongoing police investigation.

He has been accused of “exploiting a gang to commit crimes, including mugging,” according to local media. Saleem allegedly enlisted a gang to recover money owed to him.

The case under investigation is not related to the Dr Afrasheem Ali murder, a police media official told Minivan News today (May 26).

“As the investigation is ongoing, I am not able to provide any further details. We are facing difficulties now,” the official said.

The police do not have any plans to arrest Saleem or forward charges to the Prosecutor General’s Office at this time.

Meanwhile, Saleem has refuted the allegations, claiming he has no links to gang members, or anyone affiliated with gangs, and he did not enlist gangs to conduct criminal activities.

“The first thing I want to make clear is that I don’t have any links with gangs, or links with any person connected with gangs,” Saleem told local media.

“The question the police asked was whether I had sent a group to collect some money owed to me by someone. I said that I never sent any group to collect any money for me. So if someone owed me money, I would go to court. I shouldn’t have to involve a group,” explained Saleem.

Saleem also denied allegations he had links to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) officer Azleef Rauf, who was accused of planning the murder of MP Dr Afrasheem Ali by suspect Hussein Humam, and was subsequently arrested on May 23.

“A serious question is being raised, about a person named Azleef. When I read the papers today, there were reports about a person named Azleef. Right now is a very critical moment, and they have associated my name with his name. I don’t want any newspaper writing in this manner,” said Saleem.

Saleem claimed that his police summons was politically motivated and related to his current JSC responsibilities, but that he would “disclose details [about the allegation] when the right time comes.”

“It’s a personal issue”: JSC

“We believe the issue is unrelated to the JSC or JSC work,” JSC Secretary General Aboobakuru Mohamed told Minivan News today.

“It is a personal issue [of Saleem’s] and the commission is not going to do anything or comment,” said Mohamed.

“We don’t appoint members, the President or Majlis (parliament) does, and should take up the matter,” he added.

Former President’s Member on the JSC Aishath Velezinee told Minivan News that JSC members under police investigation should not participate in the commission while this was ongoing.

“When any JSC member is being investigated they should not be participating in the commission. It reflects on the commission and the status of the judiciary,” she said.

“The JSC should be above criticism. How can the public trust judges if JSC members are under question?” she asked.

“Saleem should refrain from participating in the JSC voluntarily, that would be the best course of action,” she added.

Velezinee explained that because “Maldivians do not think like that,” parliament should suspend Saleem from the JSC until the investigation is complete, as was the course of action taken with the Civil Service Commission (CSC) President Mohamed Fahmy.

“Parliament should put Saleem on leave, not as a punishment but until the investigation is over,” stated Velezinee.

“It doesn’t matter who it is, [allegations of] involvement in serious crime require a full investigation by the police,” she noted.

She further detailed that the appropriate course of action requires police to inform the Prosecutor General, who should then inform Parliament so they can take action.

“I welcome the police to investigate, although the police are not without question themselves,” said Velezinee.

“The government itself is in question, anything that happens at this moment will be politicised,” she added.

President’s Office Spokespersons Masood Imad and Mohamed Thaufeeq, as well as Parliament Speaker MP Abdulla Shahid were not responding to calls at time of press.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Government to obtain medical supplies via UNOPS agreement

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) will procure medical supplies for the Maldives government, local media has reported.

The government of Maldives will spend MVR 67 million (US$4,370,544) to obtain pharmaceuticals and other medical equipment for state-run hospitals and health centres through UNOPS, Health Ministry Director General Dr Sheeza Ali has said.

“Getting pharmaceuticals and equipment through a UN-agency like UNOPS will ensure quality, as they only buy high-quality, best-value goods from suppliers that meet their standards,” Sheeza was quoted by local newspaper Haveeru as saying.

“An analysis we did before signing the agreement showed that the cost of obtaining pharmaceuticals and other equipment would decrease by 20-30 percent,” she added.

UNOPS will procure the medical goods through its extensive network of suppliers in four phases. The two year contract, signed April 15, 2013, requires the Maldives’ government to pay the UN agency on a twice yearly basis.

The current project will help to build the government’s procurement capacity to obtain medical supplies, according to Ali.

Once the UNOPS contract expires, the Maldives’ government will independently acquire medical goods, she added. Previously the government secured pharmaceuticals through individual suppliers.

The decision to contract with UNOPS was made by the cabinet, while the attorney general and Finance Ministry approved the project, according to Ali.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Government agrees to US$454,000 waste management funding; councillors warn situation a “disaster”

The Ministry of Finance has agreed to provide Male’ City Council (MCC) with an estimated MVR 7 million (US$454,000) in funding this month to try and alleviate a build up of waste in and around the capital that local councillors and MPs claim poses a “national disaster”.

Finance Minister Abdulla Jihad told Minivan News today that amid concerns about a build-up of waste in the capital, funding was being granted to the MCC to deal with the situation following an ongoing dispute over responsibility for managing garbage.  The Finance Minister said he was unaware of the exact amount of funding provided to the municipal council at time of press.

The funding was announced as the MCC continues to accuse some state officials within the current government of having failed to provide it with a budget to deal with waste management for over a year in an attempt to discredit the work of its councillors. The majority of the MCC’s councillors are represented by members of the opposition Maldivan Democratic Party (MDP).

State funding

According to Jihad, funding will be provided to the MCC ahead of the expected signing over the next three weeks of a renegotiated waste management contract with India-based Tatva Global Renewable Energy. Once the deal is agreed, Tatva will take over handling of waste in the capital, as well as from nearby inhabited islands and resorts properties.

The previous government of former president Mohamed Nasheed had signed an agreement with Tatva in May 2011 as part of efforts to generate power from recycling waste gathered from Male’, as well as surrounding inhabited and resort islands.

By December last year, President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s administration had announced it was in the process of renegotiating Tatva’s agreement in a bid to replace the deal with what Environment Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela at the time called a “mutually beneficial” agreement.

Minister Jihad has said that although the new agreement with Tatva has yet to be signed, a deal was expected to be finalised this week, while funding would also be given to the MCC to try and alleviate the waste issue in the meantime.

State Environment Minister Abdul Matheen Mohamed said that while his department was not directly involved with dealing with the waste management issue, it had tried to “help” find a solution by meeting with the MCC and the Finance Ministry.

Matheen added that the ministry had informed the MCC that if it was unable to handle the capital’s waste management, the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) could take responsibility for the matter until the new Tatva contract was expected to come into place on June 15 this year.

However, following discussions with the MCC, he claimed that a lack of finance has been identified as the key issue preventing processing of the waste.

According to Matheen, the Finance Ministry last week agreed to provide MVR 6.8 million (US$441,000) in funding to the MCC, with the council in return giving “confirmation” that a clean-up operation would be undertaken.

“The MCC have said they will be able to clean up the waste if we can provide finance. However, we are still seeing things are not going well,” he claimed.

Matheen also rejected allegations by the MCC that the government had sought to purposefully undermine the council and its work by not providing funding to oversee waste in the capital.

“The ministry respects local councils and we will help them when needed. So far we haven’t received any additional requests for help [from the MCC],” he said.

Clean up challenges

Male’ councillor Mohamed Abdul Kareem today confirmed that the Finance Ministry had agreed to provide funding to cover the MCC’s outstanding debts for equipment hire and other costs related to handling waste.

However, he alleged that following the initial signing of the Tatva waste management deal under the previous government in May 2011, the MCC had not been provided with a budget for waste management – even after the deal was stalled by the present administration.

“As the MCC does not have its own bank account, we are required to deposit our revenue to the government’s own finances,” Kareem said. “While we are collecting revenue from resorts for dealing with waste, we are not directly receiving the funds.”

Kareem claimed that the issue of waste around the capital had become increasingly severe in the last three to four weeks as a result of both ongoing financial limitations and recent adverse weather that prevented barges being able to transport waste.

Kareem added that with the council’s waste areas filling up rapidly in the capital and a limited access to heavy equipment to process garbage, the situation had escalated into a “disaster”.

He said that following meetings with the finance ministry this month, funding had now been obtained, with the majority of the money expected to cover outstanding debts resulting from having to hire specialised equipment to process and transport the waste.

Kareem told Minivan New that efforts were now underway to secure the services of special dhotis to try and shift waste over to the nearby island of Thilafushi, which serves as the country’s key site for processing and burning garbage.

“We are discussing at present hiring a number of 100 foot-long dhonis to try and transfer the waste as it has been there so long, which makes things more difficult. Just last night we transferred 29 truck loads [of garbage] to Thilafushi.”

Councillor Kareem said he did accept that there were some parties within President Waheed’s coalition that had shown an interest in trying to resolve the waste management problem, but accused other representatives in the current administration of lacking sincerity in their commitments.

Kareem said the MCC presently understood that Tatva Global Renewable Energy was now expected to take over responsibility for waste management later next month at part of a deal with the government that would require the council to hand over all its facilities to the company “free of charge”.

“They will have to clean up the capital’s waste, though we will be expected to provide our facilities to them as part of the concession agreement,” he said. “It’s not an ideal situation, but we don’t have any other options at present.”

Protest

With funding now agreed, Ahmed Nihan, Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP for Vili-Male’, said residents on the island remained concerned this week about the potential health implications of a build up of garbage on a barge near to the island.

Nihan joined an estimated 50 residents from the island on Friday to protest about a perceived lack of action from both the state and the MCC to try and resolve the issue.

Before leaving Male’ for campaigning purposes yesterday, he believed there had been little change in the situation, despite being informed of efforts by the MCC to try and secure the services of dhonis to try and ship the waste away from the island to Thilafushi.

“I have been asked to host a conference called between the finance Ministry and the MCC on my return to find a solution to the issue,” Nihan said. “It’s all a big mess.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Coalition coy over timeline to unveil President Waheed’s election running mate

A date has been set to unveil President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s running mate for September’s presidential election, Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Dr Abdulla Mausoom has said, with details to be “disclosed at a later stage.”

Following an inaugural rally of President Waheed’s coalition on Friday night (May 24), local media reported that DRP Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali was likely to become Dr Waheed’s running mate.

A senior member of the coalition told local news website CNM that Thasmeen’s appointment was “almost finalised” and other coalition parties had no objections.

Earlier this month, the government-aligned DRP announced it would be joining the religious conservative Adhaalath Party and the Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) in a coalition backing President Waheed.

Both the DQP and GIP are small political parties currently facing potential dissolution for lacking the minimum requirement of 10,000 members as stipulated in the recently passed Political Parties Act.

Dr Waheed’s Gaumee Ithihaad Party (GIP) currently has 3,930 registered members while the DRP has 21,411 members, according to the Elections Commission (EC). The DRP is also the third largest party in parliament while the GIP has no representation in either the legislature or local councils.

Speaking at the inaugural rally on Friday night, DRP Leader Thasmeen praised President Waheed for taking office at a “very tense” time for the country – referring to the controversial transfer of power on February 7, 2012.

Thasmeen was quoted by local newspaper Haveeru as praising the president’s coalition, which he said had the professionals and academics capable of “saving the nation”.

Contacted for comment, DRP Parliamentary Group Leader Dr Mausoom requested Minivan News contact the coalition’s media team.

The media team in turn forwarded all media requests to spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza. Abbas, also spokesperson for President Waheed’s GIP, was not responding to call at time of press.

Meanwhile, Minister of Gender, Family and Human Rights Azima Shukoor called for more parties to back President Waheed’s coalition to ensure former President Mohamed Nasheed did not return to office, according to local media reports.

Shukoor, former Attorney General under both Dr Waheed and former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, and a founding member of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), was noticeably present at Friday night’s coalition rally, where she declared her support for President Waheed’s bid for the presidency.

Shukoor requested that other government-aligned parties who had not joined the coalition so so far opt to side with President Waheed in order to secure a first round win.

“Today, I think that the best thing to do would be to support the broad coalition and ensure its success in the election. We can’t let Nasheed become president. What we can do is be united, work together, and make sure that the broad coalition wins the election,” she was quoted as saying by Sun Online.

Shukoor was not responding to calls from Minivan News at time of press.

In his speech at the inaugural rally, President Dr Mohamed Waheed meanwhile contended that only the coalition could foster national unity and overcome divisions in society.

“Only this coalition can create fraternity and unity among the people. Only this coalition can create unity out of different opinions,” he was quoted as saying.

Referring to the murder of moderate religious scholar and MP Dr Afrasheem Ali, President Waheed vowed that “no stone will be left unturned” to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Dr Afrasheem’s murder was “an atrocity that only happens in extreme political societies like Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said.

“The man who slew him has confessed in front of judges. But the people who were said to have paid him to do it are still free. The fact that they are the cronies of the presidential candidate of the party that claims to be the largest in the country is something that all citizens should be concerned about,” he said.

Broad coalition

The government-aligned Jumhoree Party (JP) meanwhile announced last week that no decision has been made on whether to join a coalition backing President Dr Mohamed Waheed in September’s election, as it prepares to officially choose it presidential candidate and leader.

Fellow government-aligned PPM – the country’s second largest party – back in March elected MP Abdulla Yameen to stand as its presidential candidate and has continued to reject calls to join a coalition against the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) ahead of elections.

PPM Leader Gayoom previously told local media that Dr Waheed’s coalition presented no threat to the election bid of its own candidate MP Yameen.

Former Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, who was sacked from the post after becoming Yameen’s running mate, strongly criticised President Waheed’s coalition at a campaign rally on the island of Villingili in Gaaf Alif atoll last night (May 25).

Coalition parties were more concerned about their share in the government – in terms of cabinet posts and positions in state-owned enterprises – than serving the public, Dr Jameel reportedly said.

Meanwhile, MDP presidential candidate Mohamed Nasheed contended during an interview with state broadcaster Television Maldives (TVM) on May 16 that President Waheed and the DRP had been forced to form a coalition out of necessity.

Nasheed questioned the coalition’s claims that it presented a “third way” for voters as opposed to the policies of the MDP and PPM and reiterated his belief that power-sharing coalitions were not compatible with a presidential system of government.

“I do not see a citizen who wants ‘another way.’ What is the path to deliver this way [to development]? We do not hear [political parties] talking about that,” he said. “We are presenting one path to that [development]. We believe MDP’s policies will bring prosperity to the people. I do not see this third way you referred to as ‘a way.’ I see it as two men with no other way. That is not a political philosophy,” he said at the time.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Maldives targets hosting flagship WTA event in 2014 as part of event tourism ambitions

The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture has expressed interest in the Maldives hosting the World Travel Awards (WTA) main international event next year – a move said to reflect the destination’s aim of expanding into event-based tourism, reports Minivan News’ spin-off travel site, Dhonisaurus.

After hosting the Indian Ocean regional WTA ceremony at the Paradise Island Resort and Spa earlier this month, Deputy Tourism Minister Mohamed Maleeh Jamal has since confirmed that discussions had commenced on the Maldives potentially hosting the WTA’s flagship event in 2014.

The Maldives dominated this year’s WTA Indian Ocean ceremony held on may 12, with local operators and resort groups among the main winners on the night.=

Responding to the country’s award success, one senior tourism industry figure present at the ceremony this month raised concerns over the credibility of the wider WTA voting process – pointing to the high number of collaborators and sponsors for the Indian Ocean event that received accolades.

However, local authorities have maintained that this month’s ceremony will provide a major boost to the reputation of the Maldives resorts for meetings, incentives, conferencing and exhibitions (MICE) tourism in the long-term.

Deputy Minister Maleeh stressed authorities were already working to play up the destination’s potential to businesses travellers.

“We are quite clear on our aim of trying to attract MICE tourism here.  In this regard we have already been in touch with management companies.  The WTA has said it was happy with how the [Indian Ocean ceremony] went and we have already started discussing hosting the international event, hopefully this can be arranged,” he said.

Read more.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Government-owned company ceases Club Faru resort operations

The Maldives Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) decided to cease operating the Club Faru resort as of May 15 this year, according to local media.

In January, the Tourism Ministry took control of the resort from the site’s previous owners following the expiry of their lease agreement.  The ministry handed control of the resort to the government-owned MTDC until phase two of the Hulhumale’ reclamation project was completed.

MTDC Managing Director Mohamed Matheen told local media that the Tourism Ministry had been notified to take over resort’s operations.

“There are no tourists on the island right now. We stopped the operation of the island, and have been temporarily taking care of the island until a decision is made,” Matheen said.

The MTDC previously requested an extension from the Tourism Ministry to the time period during which the company could operate the resort.

“We wanted to operate the island until the reclamation of Hulhumale’ begins. Even though we let tourists come to the resort, our plan was to empty and hand over the island by giving one month’s notice,” said Matheen.

“But we still don’t know when the reclamation will begin. But we have to keep some staff there to monitor the island until the government takes over,” he added.

Currently, the number of staff on Club Faru has been reduced to “about twenty”, according to Matheen.

Discussions with two foreign companies regarding phase two of the Hulhumale’ reclamation project – which includes Club Faru resort – are ongoing, according to the Housing Development Corporation (HDC).  The HDC is in charge of the Hulhumale’ development.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Two fishermen lost at sea for three weeks found near Sumatra

Two fishermen lost at sea for three weeks were found early this morning by an oil tanker off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.

The men, 39 year-old Hassan Rasheed from Maamigili Island in Alif Dhaalu Atoll and 32 year-old Abdulla Waheed from Maavashu Island in Laamu Atoll, went missing May 4 aboard the fishing vessel “Azum”. The two crewmen and the 40 foot light-green fishing boat disappeared after departing from Mulak Island in Meemu Atoll en route to Maavah Island in Laamu Atoll.

“An oil tanker registered in the Marshall Islands, travelling to China, found the two men,” Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) Spokesperson Colonel Abdul Raheem told Minivan News today (May 25).

“They were 987 miles away from the Maldives, 300 miles off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia,” said Raheem.

The Coast Guard was contacted early this morning at 6:10am and spoke to Hassan Rasheed, explained Raheem.

“After so many days they are in good condition, a bit weak, but OK. It is very good news, we are happy they have been found in good health,” he added.

Raheem was unsure of the reason for the Azum dhoni to drift so far off course.

“I don’t believe their boat would have had fuel after such a long period of time, there also could have been problems with the engine,” he speculated.

“The oil tanker will be stopping in Singapore on May 28 and we’ll try to get them while it’s docked,” said Raheem.

Jaufar Rasheed, Hassan Rasheed’s brother, told local media that he spoke with Hassan today after he called from a Singaporean number.

“He called and said that they had been picked up by a Singapore boat. He could not say how the other was doing. He managed to say that the dhoni sank and the two were castaways on the sea for a long time. He then asked how his wife and child were doing and started crying. Then the call got disconnected,” Jaufar said.

Lost at sea

Earlier this week, a Maldivian national reported missing May 9 after he departed Fares-Maathoda Island in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll via dinghy was discovered by a foreign vessel 900 miles from Maldivian waters.

The MNDF confirmed Mohamed Falah, a 30 year-old man from Fares-Maathoda had been found in “good condition” by the crew of a foreign vessel travelling to Malaysia.

The MNDF recently “downgraded” search and rescue efforts, by halting aerial operations, to locate four individuals missing at sea.

Although three of the four missing men have now been found, the search continues for Mohamed Sammoon, a 21 year-old surfer from Kolamaafushi Island in Gaafu Alif Atoll.

Sammoon was reported missing around 4:30pm on May 4 after being swept away from the island by the current.

“Still we haven’t given up hope, but this person was different because he was not in a vessel,” said Raheem.

“We recovered his surfboard the first day he went missing, so he will not have anything [to stay afloat] like the others,” he noted.

“His chances are less, but you never know. Even after so long, we are still hoping for the best,” he added.

Government authorities continue to advise members of the public to take precautions during sea travel – particularly over long distances – following the “extreme weather” reported across the Maldives this month.

The MNDF Coast Guard can be contacted through the toll free number 191, 339-8898, 339-5981, or via fax 339-1665, with any information regarding Sammoon.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)