The Maldives, known for $2,000-a-night white-sand-and-turquoise-ocean atoll retreats, is hoping to build a more affordable tourism industry. But it’s facing a challenge from the country’s more religiously conservative population, writes Tom Wright for the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
“Former Tourism Minister Mariyam Zulfa, who lost her job last week as the national government was ousted, had a plan to develop mid-range accommodation on some of the Indian Ocean nation’s lesser-developed islands. There are about 1,200 islands in all, although only 200 of them are inhabited.
The plan also called for a job-creating entertainment complex of bars, nightclubs and even a casino on an island close to Male, the capital, modeled on Singapore’s Sentosa island development.
Even before the plan got off the ground, it ran into opposition from Islamist leaders. They rejected what they viewed as the encroachment of Western cultural imports – like alcohol and scantily-clad women – into local communities.
Since 1972, conservative Maldivians have acquiesced in the country’s development of luxury resorts. They were restricted to uninhabited atolls, to which hotel managers fly in Spanish chorizo and French champagne, as a way of minimizing contact with locals. That’s why the plan to bring mid-market tourism to inhabited islands became a rallying point for Islamists late last year.
The fight over the tourism plan played a significant role in the downfall of former President Mohamed Nasheed, who says he was ejected in an armed coup last week.
In the weeks leading up to Mr Nasheed’s ouster, Islamist leaders staged daily street protests which painted his government as un-Islamic, focusing on its plans for tourism. His political adversaries, including some big resort owners, joined the protests.”
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yes but what happens when people like Deen, Gasim, Sun Travel Siyam, Lolly Jabir, Champa Afeef and the rest of the tourism cartel gets upset about this?
They are the people who funded this coup and when their business interests get harmed would they also take out the Mullahs?
Now this is clearing up. This was a coup supported by Gayoom for his own ends but funded by the tourism cartel due to the taxation of the tourism industry.
Maldives is now a government of the rich, for the rich and by the rich. It is us poor folks who are the cannon fodder in the fight.
Maybe it is time another party gets formed in Maldives. A party that would serve the common people instead of their rich pay masters.
@Manik
I believe what your trying to say is, Maldives is a oligarchy backed Kleptocracy
Bin Naufal, of course it is and has been for sometime since the years from Gayoom. Now Nasir was a different case as he was all powerful and he did not need others. It was all for him.
I think even MDP should be accused of this to a certain extent. Otherwise how can Reeko Moosa etc can become that rich and get all the contracts etc?
But this new regime really takes the biscuit. It is really a Kleptocracy now with the backing of the oligarchy and it is not only the tourism industry but others are also involved in funding this coup. The funding was used to buy key people including foreigners who could influence this. Now mark my words, this visiting Commonwealth team would be approached by vested interests and even now the Indian Government has approached the Commonwealth requesting to meet this team.