Category: News in Brief

President meets with major human rights NGOs in Geneva

President Mohamed Nasheed met with officials from major human rights NGOs in Geneva as part of his European tour.

The meeting was attended by Mark Thompson from the Association for the Prevention of Torture; Julie De Reveiro from Human Rights Watch; Jan Borgen from Amnesty International; Wilbur Taylor from International Commission of Jurists; and Mohamed Mustapha Kabbaj from Nord-Sud XXI, a Swiss-based NGO aiming to “provide a voice…to people not normally represented in international forums”.

The meeting focused mainly on extending NGO support in the Maldives and strengthening the role of civil society in their respective areas, especially those dealing with protecting and promoting human rights.

President Nasheed said the country was undergoing major changes and said strengthening the role of civil society in Maldives is a priority for the government.

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President meets Vice President of Swiss Confederation

President Mohamed Nasheed met with Vice President of the Swiss Confederation, Mortiz Leunberger, yesterday afternoon at the Federal House in Bern.

The meeting focused on establishing stronger bilateral relations between the two countries and possible areas of further cooperation.

President Nasheed noted that there is already a well established relationship in the tourism sector.

The president also expressed his interest in working with Switzerland to secure a legally binding agreement at COP16 climate change summit in Mexico later this year.

President Nasheed thanked Vice President Leunberger for Switzerland’s support in a Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) waste management project in the Maldives, and hoped this would be the first of many Swiss-Maldives development initiatives.

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US Ambassador speaks on the current government’s practices

US Ambassador to the Maldives Patricia Butenis has said that because the current government is open to listening to the international community the country is improving, reports Miadhu.

Butenis said she understands the challenges the government is facing. She added that the previous government had not showed as much commitment as the current government in addressing major issues.

The ambassador said however the current government needs to address some issues urgently, specifically copyright laws, labour rights, and standarising current laws and regulations with international practices.

Vice President Dr Mohamed Waheed also met with Butenis yesterday morning at the President’s Office.

They spoke about strengthening bilateral relations between the US and Maldives, and discussed the upcoming Donor Conference (Maldives Partnership Forum) which is to be held at the end of March.

Dr Waheed thanked the ambassador for facilitating the Investment Incentive Agreement (IIA) signed yesterday by Ambassador Butenis and Minister for Economic Development Mohamed Rasheed.

The IIA will allow preferential investment opportunities for US firms wanting to finance projects in the Maldives.

Ambassador Butenis expressed interest in expanding the American Corner at the National Library.

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Maldives to attend Moscow travel exhibition

The Maldives Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB) has announced the Maldives’ participation in the 17th Moscow International Exhibition Travel and Tourism Fair (MITT) beginning on 17 March, reports Miadhu.

MTPB has said it will promote the Maldives as one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

The fair, known as Russia’s number one travel exhibition, will be attended by tourism experts, members of the tourism industry and potential tourists.

The Russian market has been a growing and important market to the Maldives. The MTPB says Russian tourists look to take long holidays and approximately 40,000 Russian tourists visited the Maldives in 2009.

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President gives lecture on climate change at University of Iceland

President Mohamed Nasheed delivered a public lecture at the University of Iceland in Reykjavik on the effects and ways to combat climate change.

He said climate change was a very real threat, and “climate deniers” were trying to continue with “business as usual.”

“A handful of e-mails don’t disprove overwhelming body of science,” President Nasheed said.

The president added that cutting down carbon emissions would not compromise the development of a nation, stating that “we need development but we do not need carbon.”

He used Iceland as an example of a country developing without large amounts of carbon emissions. He said Iceland could be seen as a great example by other developing countries.

The president also spoke of the urgent need for a legally binding climate change treaty.

President of Iceland Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson was present at the lecture. In his introduction he said President Nasheed is “a champion of democracy” and congratulated him on his efforts to highlight the issues of climate change.

The president also visited the University’s Natural Science Building and sought information on geological and climactic change.

President Nasheed concluded his visit in Iceland and left for Switzerland yesterday.

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President meets with Icelandic ministers

On his last day in Iceland, President Mohamed Nasheed met with both the Minister for Fisheries and Agriculture, Jón Bjarnsason, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Össur Skarphéðinsson.

President Nasheed met with Minister Bjarnsason at Iceland’s Marine Research Institute, where they discussed the development of a mutually beneficial cooperative framework between the Maldives and Iceland in the area of fisheries and fishing technologies.

They agreed that both countries could benefit from sharing their experiences in the fishing industry.

President Nasheed said Maldivian fisheries industry could benefit from Iceland’s experience in practices and fishing technologies and Minister Bjarnsason said Iceland wanted to work with small fishing island nation such as the Maldives.

President Nasheed and Icelandic President Ólafur Grímsson visited Iceland’s Marine Research Institute, where President Nasheed was briefed on marine research and mechanisms to monitor and control fishing activities.

President Nasheed then met with Minister Skarphéðinsson at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where they discussed ways of further strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries.

They mainly focused on the areas of fishing, renewable energy and climate change adaptation.

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Ban on blue fin tuna could put pressure on Maldivian waters

Minister for State Economic Development Adhil Saleem has told Miadhu that the EU’s decision to back the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) ban on blue fin tuna would increase pressure on Maldivian waters.

Saleem warned Coastguards needed to be careful in monitoring illegal foreign fishing vessels that might enter Maldivian waters to catch the blue fin tuna.

He said some fish which are common in the Maldives could face extinction if outer seas were not patrolled carefully.

Bunyaameen, Chairman of the Maldives Sea Product Processors Association, told Miadhu that the decrease in blue fin tuna would increase the value of Maldivian yellow fin tuna.

CITES has proposed a temporary ban on international sale of Atlantic blue fin tuna due to over-fishing and the low numbers of this species. The USA has also backed the ban, but Japan, where most blue fin tuna is eaten according to the BBC, is opposing the ban.

The motion needs a two-thirds majority to pass.

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Counterfeit dollars circulating in the country: MMA

The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has warned there are counterfeit US dollars circulating in the country, reports Miadhu.

The MMA said Police had recently discovered counterfeit 100 dollar notes printed on good quality paper. There are also lower quality fake prints of 20 and 50 dollar notes, according to MMA.

Police said the counterfeit notes are worth around US$400,000 and are printed under eleven serial numbers, making it difficult to determine their authenticity.

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MJA criticises MDP for not allowing pluralism in the media

The Maldives Journalists Association (MJA) has criticised the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) after opposition-leaning DhiTV cameras were not allowed to cover an MDP general meeting, reports Miadhu.

The MDP meeting was being held at Lale International School in Hulhumalé, where DhiTV journalists were forced to leave the meeting.

“It is worrying that ruling party members do not understand that pluralism is the essence of democracy,” said the MJA, adding that “such threats against the independence and diversity of the media only serve to blatantly expose the lack of democratic credentials in senior ruling party members.”

The MJA also expressed concern over the intimidation of private media by MDP senior officials.

The MJA condemed “all such acts by ruling party officials and members against democracy and press freedom in Maldives.”

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