April 2015 – Page 14 – Minivan News

Power bill deadline extended amid protests

Fenaka Corporation, the main electricity provider in the atolls, has extended the deadline for businesses to pay their March electricity bills after widespread protests over a subsidy cut.

Businesses and shops in several islands shut down in protest this week after electricity bills for March doubled and in some cases tripled following the removal of government subsidies.

Some have said they will not pay their bills until a new agreement is reached with the state-owned utility company.

Fenaka said in an announcement today that the new deadline is April 30, and businesses who pay by then will not face fines for late payment or disconnection.

However, the announcement warned that businesses will face fines or disconnection of services after May 1.

Businesses in Haa Dhaal Kulhdhuffushi, Gaafu Dhaal Thinadhoo, and Addu City have set up committees to negotiate with the government.

Businesses in Fuvahmulah and Vaikaradhoo are planning to submit a petition to the president demanding a fair price for electricity.

Gahdhoo in Gaaf Dhaal and Thulhaadhoo in Baa atoll meanwhile asked state electricity company Fenaka to pay the island councils for plots of land rented to the company.

Electricity prices are up to 72 percent higher in northern Haa Alif , Haa Dhaal, and Shaviyani Atolls and up to 37 percent higher in Addu City and Fuvahmulah than in Malé City, according to figures from Fenaka.

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Opposition to field single candidate for vacant Majlis seat

The opposition coalition is holding talks to field a single candidate for a vacant parliament seat after the incumbent MP was sentenced to life in jail on corruption charges.

The Elections Commission has scheduled the by-election for the Dhiggaru constituency for June 13. The call for applications will be open from April 15 – 25.

Though the “Maldivians Against Brutality” coalition is made up of parties with vastly different ideologies, they are confident of fielding a single candidate against the ruling Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM).

Former PPM partners, the Adhaalath Party and the Jumhooree Party, allied with the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party following what they called a government crackdown on opposition politicians including former President Mohamed Nasheed and former defence minister Mohamed Nazim.

The two were sentenced last month to 13 years and 11 years in jail for terrorism and weapons smuggling, respectively.

Meanwhile, JP leader Gasim Ibrahim is facing a US$100million fine that may bankrupt his Villa Group.

Adhaalath spokesperson Ali Zahir and a PPM councilor for of Meemu atoll council Moosa Naseer have expressed interest in standing for the vacant seat.

The former Dhiggaru MP Ahmed Nazim lost his seat on Monday after the Supreme Court convicted him of defrauding the former atolls ministry.

Ex-MP Nazim, a former deputy speaker of the Peoples Majlis was convicted of defrauding the state of MVR 1.4 million (US $91,400) by submitting bids on behalf of non-existent companies to supply 15,000 national flags to the now-defunct atolls ministry.

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Tax authority collects MVR1.2bn in March

The country’s tax authority collected MVR1.27 billion (US$82 million) in March, up 29 percent from the same period last year.

The Maldives Inland Revenue Authority noted that revenue was 18.8 percent above forecasts thanks to higher tourism goods and services tax (T-GST) receipts following a hike from eight to 12 percent in November.

Revenue also rose from tourist lease rent and the general GST.

A portion of GST payments from February was also collected in March as February 28 fell on a weekend and the deadline was moved to March 1.

Fines collected last month were also nine times higher than March 2014, while payments for resort lease period extension fees also contributed to the revenue growth.

The extension fees were not collected in the corresponding period last year.

GST payments accounted for 58 percent of total revenue collected in March 2015, followed by tourism land rent (22.3 percent), airport service charge (4.2 percent), business profit tax (3.9 percent), and lease period extension fees (3.6 percent).

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Gasim’s Villa denied stay order in court battle

The Villa Group has been denied a stay order on the tourism ministry’s seizure of two lagoons in a court battle that could bankrupt one of the Maldives’ largest companies.

The civil court yesterday rejected a request by Villa, which is owned by opposition Jumhooree Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim, for the stay order, paving the way for the tourism ministry to take control of the lagoons.

Villa Group is currently locked in a series of lawsuits against the state over the seizure of several leased properties as well as a notice to pay US$100 million allegedly owed as unpaid rent and fines.

The opposition claims the government is unfairly targeting Gasim’s business interests following the JP’s split from the ruling coalition. The government denies any political motivation behind the moves.

Villa has filed ten cases at the civil court contesting the tourism ministry’s termination of amended lease agreements as well as the US$100million notice.

The company is seeking stay orders halting the enforcement of the notices until the court decides on its legality.

But in yesterday’s ruling over the termination of lease agreements for the Maadhihgaru and Kanuhuraa lagoons in Kaafu atoll, the court ruled that Villa Hotels will not suffer “irrevocable losses” if the stay order is not granted as the state could compensate the company if the case is concluded in its favour.

The tourism ministry had also terminated lease agreements with Villa for three more islands shortly after the JP formed an alliance with the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) in early February.

Requests for stay orders in the other cases are still pending. Former Prosecutor General Ahmed Muiz is representing Villa in the lawsuits against the tourism ministry and the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA).

MIRA had initially asked Villa to pay US$100million by late March, but extended the period until mid April.

Gasim has said the government is planning to freeze Villa’s accounts if the company is unable to pay the amount, warning that it would bankrupt the company and leave his 5,000 employees jobless.

In early February, the civil court granted a stay order halting the seizure of the five properties in separate litigation. However, on February 24, the High Court overturned the stay order.

Gasim meanwhile met Supreme Court Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed yesterday following the apex court’s refusal to accept an appeal for the High Court decision.

Gasim told reporters after the meeting that he expressed displeasure with the Supreme Court registrar rejecting the appeal without offering a reason.

The chief justice told him to submit a letter and that matters cannot be settled verbally, Gasim said.

Villa Group is one of the largest companies in the Maldives with the holding company Villa Shipping and Trading Pvt Ltd conglomerate operating businesses in shipping, import and export, retail, tourism, fishing, media, communications, transport, and education.

The three islands and two lagoons at stake in this case were leased as part of a settlement agreement signed with the government in December 2013 after the Supreme Court ordered the state to pay Villa over US$9 million as compensation.

Lagoons are generally leased for purposes of land reclamation for either industrial or tourism purposes.

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Immigration department denies migrant worker fraud

The immigration department has denied accusations by the former high commissioner from Bangladesh that its officers are involved in fraud against low-paid migrant workers.

Selina Mohsin, former high commissioner to the Maldives, in an article for the Dhaka Tribune accused staff in the Maldivian immigration department of helping to to defraud migrants from Bangladesh by making false promises of well-paid jobs.

The Department of Immigration and Emigration denied Mohsin’s claims in a press statement yesterday.

The department said: “The institution gives approval to any worker who has been certified for employment abroad – within the limits of its quota and in adherence to its guidelines.”

It said that the department is not involved in selecting which overseas workers come to work in the Maldives, and therefore would not be in a position to commit such a fraud.

In her article published on Saturday, Mohsin, who served as high commissioner between 2008 and 2010, said that Bangladeshi workers pay as much as $2,500 to come to the Maldives but find on arrival that these promises are not fulfilled.

She said the workers are abandoned by the companies that sponsor their work permits and forced to find other work, which is often dangerous and badly paid.

“Questionable immigration officers and Bangladeshi brokers work in collusion to bring innocent people from Bangladesh. They are forced to work over 14 hours [per day] with little food and less security,” Mohsin wrote.

“On average, the writer found that one Bangladeshi worker died every week when she was high commissioner.”

Mohsin said that most Bangladeshis find themselves working in construction with no certainty of a salary, living in “inhuman, cramped quarters” without their passports and money.

Her article follows a series of attacks on expatriate workers in the Maldives.

A 25-year old Bangladeshi national, Shaheen Mia, was stabbed to death in a Malé café in March, and a day later another Bangladeshi national identified as Bilal was found dead on the island of Alif Alif atoll Thoddoo, naked with a piece of cloth tied around his neck. Further reports followed of stabbings targeting expatriate workers.

Transparency Maldives, an anti-corruption organisation, has called police to expedite their investigation into Mia’s murder.

Mohsin said that Maldivians “need to be better educated with appreciation of the contribution of expatriate labourers who keep their economy alive. Instead, innocent workers are stabbed and killed.

“Their families in Bangladesh are devastated with indelible tragedy — death of husbands, brothers, and sons.”

The Human Rights Commission of the Maldives has also repeatedly noted prejudice, discrimination, and violence faced by expatriates in the Maldives, calling on authorities to take action.

The current Bangladesh High Commissioner to the Maldives, Kazi Sarvar, on Tuesday met with immigration department heads and said the article was purely Mohsin’s own opinion, not the view of the Bangladeshi government, the department said.

Bangladesh and Maldives will meanwhile assemble a technical team to improve the immigration systems of both countries, the statement added.

Migrant workers had planned a protest following the murders last month, but the department of immigration warned them against participating in protests and threatened to cancel work visas if they did so.

The Bangladeshi High Commission in Malé also opened a 24-hour help line for Bangladeshi migrant workers in the Maldives.

There are over 50,000 expatriate workers in the Maldives, according to the 2014 national census.

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Defence minister acquitted of terrorism

The criminal court has acquitted defence minister Moosa Ali Jaleel of terrorism charges related to the detention of a judge, an incident over which former president Mohamed Nasheed has been jailed for 13 years.

The court said there was insufficient evidence to prove Jaleel’s involvement.

Jaleel, who headed the army during the 2012 military detention of criminal court chief judge Abdulla Mohamed, maintains he had no role or influence in the arrest. He said the post of chief of defence forces had been reduced to a ceremonial position.

Five senior state officials were charged with terrorism and tried separately over the judge’s arrest.

The criminal court on March 13 sentenced Nasheed to 13 years in jail in a trial widely condemned for a lack of due process.

Verdicts in the trials of ex-defence minister Tholhath Ibrahim Kaleyfaanu, ex-colonel Mohamed Ziyad and MP Ibrahim Mohamed Didi, who was the Malé area military commander at the time, are still pending.

Judge Abdulla’s arrest sparked 22 nights of violent anti-government protests, culminating in a police and army mutiny on February 7, 2012. Nasheed resigned on the same day, but later said it was under duress.

Jaleel also resigned as chief of the defence forces then, but in 2014 joined the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives and took on the role of Maldives Ambassador to Pakistan. He was appointed as defence minister in January.

Verdicts in Tholhath, Jaleel and Ziyad’s trials were initially scheduled to be delivered at the same time, but were repeatedly cancelled, and the criminal court finally delivered a verdict only in Jaleel’s trial last night.

Opposition MP Didi’s case did not progress beyond a few hearings as he had to be flown abroad for medical treatment half-way through the trial. He has not yet returned.

The criminal court last night said despite Nasheed’s conviction, there was no evidence to suggest Jaleel’s involvement in the arrest.

During past hearings, Jaleel said he had taken part in meetings between the heads of the police and military at which they discussed challenges posed to law enforcement and domestic security by the criminal court’s alleged release of dangerous criminals and refusal to grant search and arrest warrants to police.

However, Jaleel said that the issue of arresting the chief judge of the criminal court was not raised during any of the meetings.

He also admitted to attending a meeting to discuss the issue with the Supreme Court.

President Abdulla Yameen appointed Jaleel to the cabinet on January 20 shortly after sacking former defence minister Colonel (Retired) Mohamed Nazim, who was recently sentenced to 11 years in jail over weapons smuggling.

On March 8, Jaleel led a motorcycle rally by the PPM calling for a speedy judgment in Nasheed’s case.

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Police to break up “unauthorised” protests

Police have announced they will break up protests which have not received authorisation in advance, in an apparent attempt to clamp down on daily demonstrations over the jailing of ex-president Mohamed Nasheed.

The opposition said its daily protests would continue, while decrying the move as a violation of the right to peaceful assembly guaranteed in the constitution. A member of the human rights commission also said the police plan was unconstitutional.

Police said last night that regular protests using “unusually loud” sound systems have been disrupting schools, businesses and are not in the public interest.

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and allied parties have been holding daily protests throughout the country to demand the release of Nasheed, who was sentenced last month to 13 years in jail on terrorism charges. Protesters in the capital Malé have been marching through the streets every night, often through its main thoroughfare Majedhee Magu and through its narrow alleys.

Police said that demonstrators must apply for authorisation in advance for any “pre-planned” protests , as required by article 13 of the Freedom of Peaceful Assembly Act.

The act was passed in 2013 but police have not so far enforced the authorisation requirement, although hundreds of protesters have been arrested on other charges.

Police last night warned they will break up any unauthorized protests after one warning, and will confiscate loud sound systems.

The police announcement was deemed “unconstitutional” by Human Rights Commission member Ahmed Tholal.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Tholal said that freedom to assemble peacefully without permission from the state is a fundamental right granted by article 32 of the constitution.

“They [police] cannot withhold constitutional rights by referring to a provision in the [assembly] act. If there are problems with regards to the provisions in the act, they should address it without limiting constitutional rights,” said Tholal.

Police have arrested over 100 people at recent opposition protests. While some of them have been released without detention, several were barred by the criminal court from going to further protests for 60 days.

Elsewhere, the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure wrote to the MDP on April 1 saying that the ministry would not be able to provide any plot of land for political activity because of the political situation in the country.

However, Minivan News understands that ruling Progressive Party of Maldives will be holding a rally at the artificial beach tonight (April 9).

MDP MP Eva Abdulla described the government actions as an attempt to “harass the opposition by attempting to obstruct peaceful assembly.”

“This is a coordinated attack by the government on our constitutionally stipulated rights to freedom of assembly and yet another example of how far this regime is willing to go in its harassment and persecution of the opposition,” Eva said.

“There is no longer any pretence of the government upholding our laws and our constitution,” she continued.

Minivan News was unable to obtain any comment from the Housing Ministry about the letter at the time of going to press.

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Power subsidy deadline extended amid public anger

The government today extended a deadline for households to seek subsidies for electricity by a month as hundreds queued up for hours to submit forms.

Shops in Haa Dhaal Vaikaradhoo shut down today to join growing protests against the government’s decision to cut subsidies for businesses, and Gaaf Dhaal Gahdhoo council said it will now seek rent on lands leased to the state owned electricity company.

The government says the current blanket electricity subsidy benefits the affluent over the needy, and targeting subsidies will rein in expenditure and increase aid to the poor.

But many who queued up to submit forms today were unsure whether they would receive the subsidy as the government has not yet revealed the criteria for a successful application.

“I really don’t know if I will get subsidies. But I’m applying in the hope the government will be fair about it,” applicant Abdul Latheef said.

In an interview with Haveeru last week, the chief executive of the National Social Protection Agency, Mujthaba Jaleel, said that “everyone who applies for subsidy will get it.” But yesterday he said that “the criteria have not yet been set”.

Mujthaba was unavailable for comment today.

People in queues today complained of the extensive documentation required for the application, which includes rent contracts, wage details, and the number of household appliances that use power.

“This application form is a hazard. We have to get a lot of unnecessary documents. It would have been better if they set up an online system instead of making us wait in queues for hours, only to later reject my application,” Mohamed Yoosuf said as he waited in a queue.

The new deadline for form submission has been moved from April 9 to May 9, Ahmed Nihan, an MP for the ruling Progressive Party of the Maldives, said in a tweet.

However, the government has stood by its decision to cut subsidies for businesses, despite critics claiming the move would destroy small and medium-sized enterprises on rural islands. Some businesses say their bills have doubled or tripled.

After closing shops earlier this week, businesses in Haa Dhaal Kulhdhuffushi, Gaafu Dhaal Thinadhoo, and Addu City have set up committees to negotiate with the government.

Gahdhoo in Gaaf Dhaal asked state electricity company Fenaka to pay the council MVR 506,840 (US $39,585) for plots of land rented to the company.

“Fenaka has never cooperated with us. Once we got lights to put in the harbour area but Fenaka refused to give power. Then this issue has come up with subsidies. So we have also severed ties with them,” councilor Mohamed Shujau said.

Businesses in Vaikaradhoo are also preparing a petition after a one day shop shut down, while those on southern Fuvahmulah have already submitted a petition demanding a fair price for electricity.

Shop owners have also taken issue with the higher electricity prices in the atolls as compared to Malé City.

Electricity prices are up to 72 percent higher in northern Haa Alif , Haa Dhaal, and Shaviyani Atolls and up to 37 percent higher in Addu City and Fuvahmulaku than in Male’ City, according to figures from Fenaka.

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Permanent water crisis for Maldives islanders

Every January, councillors on the central Maldivian island of Baa Atoll Goidhoo switch on the island’s water desalination plant in preparation for the dry season.

In doing so, the council hopes to scrape through the blistering heat of the four-month-long northeastern monsoon without having to rely on others to provide its 700 inhabitants with clean water.

However, this year the council was not able to fire up the plant because of severe budget constraints and maintenance issues.

“The government is not giving us money to repair it. How can we fix and run the plant while we can’t afford its electricity bill?” asked council president Mohamed Amir.

“The households have now run out of water,” Amir said.

“Every dry season we have the same problem.”

Amir had no choice but to notify the National Disaster Management Centre of severe water shortages, becoming one of over 69 islands to have reported droughts this year alone.

Since its inception in 2004 after the Indian Ocean tsunami, the centre has been providing water to about 80 of the Maldives’ 200 inhabited islands each dry season for the last ten years, says Hisaan Hassan, a spokesman for the centre.

The tsunami severely contaminated groundwater in several islands, forcing inhabitants to look up to the skies for rainwater instead.

When a fire in the capital, Malé, cut off water supplies last year, the crisis drew global media attention and prompted the public to ask how prepared the government is for an emergency water cutoff.

However, islanders who face the same problem every year remain hopeless, with no permanent solution in sight.

Environmental consultant and water expert Fathimath Saeedha says that the government needs to immediately come up with strategic, yet island-specific solutions.

Contaminated groundwater

Unlike in Malé, where the groundwater is heavily polluted due to over-consumption, islanders in atolls used to rely on groundwater for consumption.

However, thanks to a rapid population increase and the arrival of appliances such as washing machines, groundwater consumption in the islands has increased above the rate at which groundwater is naturally replenished, said the environment ministry.

In addition, the ministry points the finger towards the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which heavily polluted many islands’ fresh water table, lying one to 1.5 meters below the soil surface. The tsunami killed at least 82 people in the Maldives and caused $470m of damage.

However, a United Nations Environmental Programme tsunami impact study in 2005 estimated that only 39 islands’ groundwater had been suitable for drinking even before the tsunami.

Water expert Saeedha also pointed out that poorly constructed septic tanks in the islands have contributed to water contamination.

“People built septic tanks on their own, which led to domestic waste leaking into the water table,” said Saeedha.

With the groundwater contaminated, inhabitants then had to rely on rainwater for consumption. In 2005, the government provided islands with large numbers of storage tanks to store rainwater.

However, with low average rainfall during the dry season, numerous islands are left in a drought every year, forced to rely on the disaster centre for drinking water.

Ready for droughts

Umar Fikry, another spokesman for the disaster centre, says that it has urged all island councils to inform the centre of water shortages in advance.

“We are prepared and ready for the water shortages every year,” Umar said.

He says that islands usually report water shortages to the centre when they are down to one month’s supply.

However, the National Disaster Management Centre is among those questioning whether the centre should be called upon to deal with shortages every year.

“We spend an average of MVR 5 million (US$ 330,000) on delivering water to the islands [each year]. The problem cannot be solved by the disaster centre alone,” said the centre’s Hisan Hassan.

Hisan believes it is time for everyone from the environment ministry to island councils and the general public to get involved in looking for a permanent solution.

Individuals have to keep in mind this happens every year and focus on better water usage, while councils should work on getting better storage systems in place for the dry season, said Hisaan.

The Environment Ministry meanwhile is running a water programme aiming to create an integrated network of island water storage containers in 30 strategic locations.

Three of the island storage locations have been completed, while seven are undergoing construction. Furthermore the ministry has secured finance to build 14 new desalination plants, it said.

Unsuitable emergency plans

With the disaster centre called upon to provide large quantities of water, some islands have criticised the quality of the water that arrives.

“People did not use the water because there was a pungent smell in it. We should be provided with good quality water,” complained Baa Atoll Dharavandhoo council president Hussein Nazim.

Dharavandhoo is home to one of the busiest regional airports in the country, bringing in tourists from the capital to the atoll’s eight resorts.

Nazim said that he was told that the water arrived from nearby Dhuvaafaru in the storage area of a fishing boat.

Some islanders had to resort to pumping water from households lucky enough to have clean well water, he added.

A resident of nearby Goidhoo said that it is “immensely difficult” to fulfill essential water needs during the dry season.

“Every house has a water tank which runs out during the dry season. Now we have to go to the water plant on the beach through the boiling sun,” she complained.

“Tailor made solutions”

Water expert Faathimath Saeedha says there is no one overall solution to the annual water crisis, with different areas instead needing a “tailor-made solution”.

“Every island has very specific needs which need to be addressed,” she said. “Then only can we reach a permanent solution.”

It is important for the government to come up with a strategic plan to address the root cause of the issues for each island, she said.

Back in Goidhoo, council president Amir has been able to fire up the desalination plant with a “temporary fix which will last the current dry season”.

He believes that the situation will repeat itself again next year, with the councillors forced to resort to the barely functioning water plant, hoping for the best.

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