“The toppling of a former political prisoner, human rights campaigner and environmental activist – and the Maldives’ first freely-elected president – in a February coup by an austere, military-backed and increasingly Islamist regime was not the disaster for tourism one might have expected,” writes a Male-based columnist for UK-based current affairs magazine, Private Eye.
“For last July, our soon to be overthrown President Nasheed has sent four bills to parliament, including income and corporate tax legislation. These would have required those earning more than 6,000 in our tourism industry (which accounts for a third of the entire economy) to pay tax for the very first time. Previously our 100 or so resorts had paid a nominal fee for each night a bed was occupied, submitting the details to the government themselves, with no verification.
“Since the coup these bills have been buried and the new government shows no interest in pushing them through. Nasheed was deposed by his deputy Mohamed Waheed Hassan, who joined with Islamists uneasy at the president’s liberal credentials.
“Less well publicised are Waheed’s links to the tourism tycoons. His (unelected) deputy, Waheed Deen, who has never held political office, owns the Bandos Island Resort & Spa. Another Baron, Sonu Shivdasani, owns The Sixth Sense Resorts, a small exclusive chain that boasts the highest eco credentials.
“No fan of Nasheed’s tax proposals, Sonu was keen to help the new administration spruce up its image. In April he e-mailed Britain’s well known PR guru Matthew Freud, saying: ‘I just spoke to President Waheed. He is happy to engage your services (for tourism PR) on a barter basis whereby Reethi Rah and Soneva Fushi would offer accommodation at our resorts in lieu of the barter. Did you manage to speak to Alan Leibman from One and Only?’
“Freud initially appeared thrilled at the prospect of free holidays: ‘We greatly look forward to working with you and the president.’ But by the time President Waheed had got in on the act later in the month, writing to Freud: ‘We had discussed along with Sonu that a contract will be signed first among SixSenses, One and Only and Matthew to assist us with tourism promotion in the UK. Matthew will send us an outline a proposed activities as discussed’ – the legendary PR guru had developed cold feet: ‘I am sorry that the adverse political climate prevents us from being more directly involved but going to a doctor who will make you sicker is rarely a good idea.'”
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Nasheed had infect reduced the resort rents for the benefit of some his close buddies and family members.
This article mislead the public saying that before GST resorts were paying only " nominal fee for each night occupied" . This is called the bed tax and this is on top of the bed rent that resorts are paying regardless of whether the bed is occupied or not. These rents ranges from USD 4000.00 per bed to USD 45,000.00 per bed which Anni had reduce drastically after the introduction of GST.
Infect Anni should have kept the rent as it is and then introduce the GST and then the money received from Resorts would have not dropped but would have fine high.
Minivan need to do better research on these issues before publishing the wrong information for spreading the Nasheed propaganda and do more responsible journalism .
Journalism is infect one of the pillar of the true democracy and you have moral responsibility to educate and create awareness among the people.
Dear Sonu Shivdasani,
what a double crosser you turned out to be, I remember you at our co. making pledges to President Nasheed. You got rich and what you are today by selling holidays packages at beautiful Maldives, and this is how you treat the local population of Maldives. For years and years we have yearned for democracy and freedom in this country. And when we achieved finally in 2008, you helped to destroy it in 2012. You are no longer welcome in the Maldives, go pack your bags open shop in some other third world oppressed sith-hole. We democrats will make sure that you and your slimy business leaves Maldives once this dictatorship is over.
@ mody: you are infecting us by commenting here!!
on a nicer note ...i believe you mean 'in fact' ...bwahahaha!
These Baaghee Nasheed and his cronies will not accept anyone who does not blindly agrees with him.
When Sonu was pampering Nasheed, he was the best man on the earth and when he tried to do things which are not in favor of Anni, he had become a traitor. What a double standard ? This is really double standard ?
Anni is not a God and majority of Maldivian do not like him and only MDP hard core members who had got huge finical benefits in the last three years are behind him. I agree there are is decent crowd under his wings who are considering Anni as God too.
We have over 200,000 eligible voters in this country and out of this 40,000 MDP voters will vote him but the rest of the people will not vote him.
Baaghee Anni got a good opportunity to rule this country if he had the guts to rule within the constitution and could have been the best leader. But his arrogance and stubborn attitudes had ruined his presidency.
Now I guess he had to move all his supporters to selected places and then declare independence at those places and then call himself as the president of Republic of MDP.
Once again, either the MDP or Minivan acting independently (which is highly unlikely) has forgotten the rules of engagement in politics and started acting more like an advocacy group.
There is advice implicit in your writers criticism of Matthew Freud. Nasheed should take it as well.
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.