We will uphold the constitution and rights of the people: Supreme Court

Regarding the political chaos that has developed in the Maldives, the Supreme court has issued a statement assuring the people that the judicial system will maintain the power of the constitution and rights of the people for every individual without discrimination.

The judicial system is one of the basic elements of democracy and the most important institution for maintaining freedom and rights, says the Supreme Court.

”We appeal to the beloved people to maintain law and order,” said the statement. ”We are one nation, we speak one language, and our religion is Islam.”

The people had established a democratic policy to obtain economic development and a better life, says the Court.

”The basis of this policy is for the people, the executive and the institutions to obey the constitution and laws, and for the three powers of state to fulfil their obligations within the law,” the statement said. ”and for those powers to co-operate together to achieve national goals without impeding each other.”

However, former attorney-general Husnu Suood has said recently that he did not believe that the Supreme Court can make judgments fairly.

The government could not resort to the Supreme Court to overturn parliamentary decisions, “because we filed two cases in the Supreme Court, and they ruled it was not the right of the government to file such cases.”

State institutions had failed, Suood said, and senior officials of the judiciary were “irresponsible”, and the independent commissions were operating like “small governments”. “All this has brought the government to a standstill,” he said.

Meanwhile, opposition MP Ali Waheed has claimed that the government is trying to declare a state of emergency to gain more powers.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Criminal court order not unlawful, rules High Court

The Maldivian High Court has ruled that the criminal court order for People’s Alliance party leader and MP Yameen Abdul Gayyoom and Jumhoory Party leader and MP Gasim ‘Buruma’ Ibrahim to be brought before the court within one hour, was not unlawful.

The ruling was given in response to an appeal by the police against the criminal court order.

”Maldives Police Services understand that the criminal court order was contrary to the law,” said the prosecution lawyer Dheebanaz Fahmy yesterday.

The legislation states that police can keep a person in custody without a court appearance for 24 hours. The two MPs were arrested around 6.30 p.m. and around 9.30 p.m. Yameen’s lawyer Azima Shukoor requested the criminal court to determine on what grounds Yamin was arrested.

The order was issued around 12.15 a.m. that same night, less than six hours after the arrest. The police claimed the court order was unlawful and against judicial procedure.

Last night the criminal court ruled both MPs were to be placed under house arrest for three days while the investigation continues, and that they would be free to attend parliamentary sittings and committee meetings. The police also appealed to the High Court against this ruling.

DRP deputy leader and MP Ali Waheed meanwhile condemned the actions of the police for arresting the two MPs. “The government is trying to gain a majority in the Majlis by force,” said Ali Waheed. ”That’s why they are threatening the opposition MPs.”

Waheed claimed that the police were influenced by the government. ”I have been repeatedly trying to contact Commissioner of Police Ahmed Faseeh to hold a meeting to discuss this issue,” Waheed said. ”He has not responded.”

Waheed also said that the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) was active in Male’ although there was no civil unrest.

“The government is trying to declare a state of emergency,” he said. ”Then the executive will gain a lot of powers.”

He claimed that the former minister of defence Ameen Faisal (who resigned two days ago along with the entire cabinet) was attending MNDF headquarters. Waheed said this was a threat to national security.

”After he resigned, he had no authority to enter MNDF headquarters,” Waheed said. ”He is a person who also had some connection with November 3rd attack.”

The judicial system of the Maldives is not impartial, says the secretary-general of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Ibrahim Shareef.

He said that the MDP might include that issue in their ongoing protests against opposition party actions in the Majlis which the MDP claims are an attempt to undermine the constitutional powers of the executive branch of government.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Letter on ex-Billabong teacher

Dear Editor,

I am writing to bring to your attention and to express my disgust at the fact that my son and countless other children who attend Billabong International School in Male’ was potentially exposed and endangered when the school last year appointed Alexis Valoran Reich aka John Mark Karr as the schools head teacher.

It was today brought to my attention that Alexis Valoran Reich is a suspected murderer and pedophile in his native United States of America.

Upon obtaining this information, a group of concerned parents, today, made an appointment with the owner of Billabong International School Maldives Mr Absy and went to the appointment at 2.45pm only to be told
by the school that Mr. Absy will not be able to keep his appointment with the parents due to the fact that Mr. Absy was out of the country (it is believed that Mr. Absy found out why the parents had requested for an appointment)

The parents where then met by the principal of the school who informed the parents that the school was aware of Mr. Alexis Reich’s past history and his employment was subsequently terminated due to this fact.

Although I am relieved today that Mr. Alexis Reich no longer works in in Billabong International School, I would like to know;

1) If he is currently still in the Maldives?

2) Why was he employed in the first place?

3) Were any children harmed by him while he was a teacher in the Maldives, if so what was done by the school to address the matter and to help the children in question?

4) What are the guidelines of the Ministry of Education on hiring teachers in Maldivian Schools? and if these guidelines are different to private schools and public schools in the Maldives and if so, how?

5) What is the concerned authorities in the country going to be doing in the future to avoid unfortunate and avoidable instances like these in the future?

I would very much appreciate if my concerns had a venue to be made public through your reputed news agency.

Yours Sincerely,

Muzaffar Naeem (Muju)
Concerned Parent

Likes(4)Dislikes(2)

Sex change disguised infamous JonBenét murder suspect as transsexual Billabong teacher

A teacher who worked at Billabong High School in Male’ from Feburary until June 2009, Alexis Valoran Reich, has been revealed as the transsexual alter-ego of John Mark Karr, a man who falsely confessed to murdering JonBenét Ramsey in the United States and has been investigated for possession of child pornography.

The JonBenét case remains one of the most high-profile unsolved murder cases in the US. The six year old was discovered dead in the basement of her parent’s house in Boulder Colorado in 1996, apparently strangled with a garrote made from a length of cord and the broken handle of a paintbrush.

The case initially focused on Ramsey’s parents as the murder suspects, attracting extensive media coverage, which often remarked on her participation in child beauty pageants.

Karr, who was on the run in Thailand after being charged in the US for possession of child pornography, confessed to the killing in 2006 and was extradited to the US to await trial. He was eventually acquitted because his DNA did not match that discovered on Ramsay’s body. The five charges of possession of child pornography were also dropped after investigators reportedly lost the computer they seized from him in 2001, containing the images.

Boulder police reopened the case February 2009, although the case remains unsolved despite the unmatched DNA evidence.

Karr disappeared from the public stage and reportedly began working as a teacher in countries across Europe and Asia. He arrived in the Maldives on January 20 last year as a woman, ‘Alexis Valoran Reich’, and was employed at Billabong school as a preschool and grade one English teacher.

Karr/Reich left the school in June after “personal differences” with then-Principal Kevin Dillow, explained Billabong board member Ahmed Adhly Rasheed.

“Reich was employed through a reputable English teacher recruitment agency, which provided us a [clean] Seattle City police report in his name,” Rasheed said.

“We did several checks – the immigration check when [the staff member] enters the country, the check when the work permit issued, and we checked the referral letters from places where he had worked before. We also do our own checks, and were in the process of doing that when Alexis left. He arrived on January 20 and left four and a half months later.”

The connection between Karr and Reich only became public knowledge in March-May 2010, following news reports in the US on his sex change that led to an update of Karr’s entry on Wikipedia.

The photo of Reich in Billabong’s personnel file is unmistakably a feminine likeness of Karr, and his passport details – birthdate December 11, 1964, issued December 2008 in his hometown of Georgia – match Karr’s details exactly.

“We had the police in the school this morning asking where this person was,” Rasheed said, emphasising that Reich had left the school over a year ago, destination unknown.

During her time at the Billabong there were no allegations made against him or any evidence of impropriety, Rasheed said. Reich was by all accounts an excellent teacher – “he was in fact the most popular teacher at the school.”

“He left because of a conflict with the principal Kevin. I don’t mean to defend this guy, but he was actually very popular among the parents. When he left and parents found out it was to do with a conflict with management, some parents approached us and expressed disappointment that he was leaving, and desire that he [remain at the school].”

A Billabong teacher who worked alongside Reich concurred: “Sure he was a bit strange, but he was really good with all the kids. They all liked him – there was no seediness,” the teacher said. “I think he pulled a runner because he wasn’t enjoying the work. He used to complain, but just about normal work things. There were no issues.”

Rasheed said the school received no allegations about Reich while he was working at the school.

“Nothing of any concern happened while he was here – there were no allegations,” Rasheed said. “Our concern is the talk around town that this is somebody who is still working at the school.”

Reich’s passport identified her as male – it had been issued the month before he arrived, Rasheed explained.

“He spoke with a deep voice. I don’t know the extent of his sex change operation,” Rasheed said. “He was known as a man to co-workers, teachers and students while he was in the Maldives.”

Billabong’s unwitting employment of an infamous transsexual teacher acquitted of murdering a six year old beauty queen – a saga somewhat at odds with the conservative nature of modern Maldivian society – together with the allegations of child abuse facing the (former) Principal of the Maldives’ other private school, Lale Youth International – has raised questions among parents and the Education Ministry as to the efficacy of the country’s vetting procedures.

In a letter to Minivan News, concerned parent Muzaffar Naeem said that while he “was relieved that Mr Alexis Reich no longer works at the school”, he questioned the Education Ministry’s guidelines on the employment teachers, and whether the rules were as stringent for privately-owned schools as they were for government institutions.

Deputy Education Minister Shifa Mohamed said the same proceedures were required to be in place at private schools as those in government-owned schools.

“The Ministry expects all schools to follow the same proceedures and obtain police clearance before employing teachers,” she said. “It is also the responsibility of each school to take the initiative and check that teachers are of good quality.”

Rasheed reiterated that the identity of Alexis Reich was only revealed a month ago: “we followed our proceedures but of course in this case there was no connection between the two individuals.”

Current Principal of Billabong David Key, who took over from Dillow in November, observed that Reich’s Seattle City police record would have been clear if his history of charges was kept in another US county.

“It’s similar if you ask the London Metropolitan police for a police record check – they won’t check the rest of the country,” said Key.

“This school is putting in proceedures that are stock standard in every international school in the world – get records, references, call referees first, all these kind of things. Police records should not only come from the country where they were born, but should come country the person was last living in. This is very important – you can have a teacher who has worked for five years in Thailand but hands in a UK police report. They been in Thailand last five years, how do we not know anything [happened]?”

Most important, Key said, was the need for schools to interview teachers “face to face, person to person.”

“I think we need to actually meet people, because that gives you a better idea of nature of a person than Skype or a phone call. The teachers I would like to employ [at Billabong] are people I know would fit into this society and have an agreement with the way of life here – rather than necessarily having the best educational qualifications. Those are important, but it’s more important that the teachers we get fit into the Islamic culture here and the nature of the Maldives.”

Correction: Reich’s passport, issued December 2008, identified him as male, not female as previously stated.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

DRP ‘State of the Nation’ rally tonight: Thasmeen

The opposition DRP will hold a rally tonight (Thursday) ‘to clear some of the misinformation’ coming from the government regarding the current political crisis, reports Miadhu.

The DRP has decided to provide its own information to the international community, says the party’s leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali. The DRP will be sending a delegation to Colombo to meet with foreign ambassadors accredited to Maldives, he said.

The DRP council has passed a resolution condemning the imprisonment of the Gasim Ibrahim and Abdulla Yameen, the respective leaders of the opposition Jumhooree and People’s Alliance parties, and calling for immediate release of the two MPs.

Likes(1)Dislikes(0)

Police confirm charges against Yameen and Gasim include bribery, treason

The Maldives Police Service (MPS) has revealed that charges against People’s Alliance (PA) leader Abdulla Yameen and Jumhoory Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim include treason and bribery.

The court ruled just before midnight on Wednesday that both MPs would be confined to house arrest for three days while the investigation continues, and would be free to attend any parliamentary meetings.

Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said the case was being heard this evening, and confirmed the charge sheet included bribery and “attempting to topple the government illegally.”

This afternoon police appealed in the High Court against a warrant issued by the criminal court shortly after midnight on Tuesday evening, requiring that Yameen and Gasim be brought to court in one hour.

Yameen’s legal team, led former attorney general Azima Shukoor, filed in the criminal court to determine on what grounds Yameen was arrested.

The prosecution claimed the court warrant issued by the criminal court was unlawful and against judicial procedure.

”Maldives Police Services understand that the court warrant which ordered police to summon Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom was against the law,” the prosecution stated. ”The criminal court unlawfully ordered police to summon Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.”

She said that there was no law forbidding police from arresting Yameen as there were criminal charges against him.

”Everyone is equal in front of the law,” the prosecution stated. “The court order does not mention that the police abused any of the rights on arrest guaranteed by the constitution.”

She said the time limit on the court warrant was also an issue.

The Chief Judge queried the prosecution lawyer as to whether there was a law specifying a time limit to conduct trials.

”Arrests made abruptly should be brought before judges between 7:30pm to 9:30pm on working days and from 4pm to 9:30pm on other days,” she replied.

Yameen’s defence lawyer Azima Shukoor, said police had no reasonable grounds on which to arrest Yameen.

”Yameen was not told what charges he was being arrested for at the time of  him arrest,” Shukoor said, noting that this was a legal right as guaranteed by article number 48(a) of the Constitution.

The article states that everyone has the right on arrest or detention to (a) be informed immediately of the reasons therefore, and in writing within at least twenty four hours.

”He was arrested at 6:30pm and at 9:45pm he knew the cause of his arrest – that is three hours after he was arrested.” she said.

Azmia said that the Maldives Police Service entered Yameen’s house without his permission, and claimed this violated article 47(b) of the constitution, which states that ‘residential property shall be inviolable, and shall not be entered without the consent of the resident, except to prevent immediate and serious harm to life or property, or under the express authorisation of an order of the Court.’

Addressing the High Court, Yameen explained how he was arrested.

”Police officers came to my house at around 630pm, I do not remember the exact time, and they said they had something to tell me,” Yameen recounted. ”They ordered me to go to the police station immediately.”

Yameen said he asked the police officers whether they had a court warrant and why he was being arrested.

”They said that when I arrived at the police station I would know why,” Yameen said. ”I asked whether they had a document from the Maldives Police Service (MPS), and they did not have that.”

Yameen said he then refused to accompany the officers.

”A police star force squad came and cruelly and without any respect tried to take me [forcibly],” he said. ”I then said I would go.”

Yameen said he asked the police officers to show him a court warrant authorising his arrest.

”They replied that I did not have that opportunity,” he said. ”I said I would go in my own vehicle, and they replied that I did not have that opportunity also.”

Yameen said when the police vehicle went near the police headquaters, they pretended to wait and then drove at high speed.

”I asked them what they were doing,” he said. ”They replied that they were taking me to Dhoonidhoo [police custodial], and said they also had a police station there.”

Gasim’s hearing followed Yameen’s. The MP was defended by Dhivehi Qaumy Party (DQP) leader Dr Hassan Saeed, who also claimed that Gasim was arrested unlawfully.

The High Court will rule on the case tomorrow.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Parliament is corrupt, alleges government

Former Attorney General Husnu Suood, who resigned yesterday together with the rest of President Nasheed’s cabinet in protest against the supposed “scorched earth” politics of opposition MPs, has confirmed that the government has arrested two MPs on charges of corruption relating to vote buying in parliament.

When asked if the government has solid evidence to substantiate these allegations, Suood replied that “there are reasons to believe that some corrupt activities have taken place.”

Suood said “there are statements given by certain individuals that these activities have taken place. Based on those statements, and complaints, there are reasons to believe that corrupt activities have taken place. On that basis the government is proceeding.”

Jumhooree Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim, also the MP of Maamigili, and leader of the People’s Alliance (PA) Abdulla Yaameen, the MP for Mulaku, were arrested last night.

“If there is an allegation [of bribery] it could lead to loss of confidence in a state institution,” Suood said on TVM last night. “Selling votes for money is something the president has to investigate. Otherwise there will be no respect for the Majlis (parliament),” he said.

Suood said he was confident the government’s evidence would stand up to scrutiny: “I think the evidence will stand,” he said.

Gasim and Yameen appeared at the high court today following a police appeal against the conditions of the warrant issued last night by the criminal court.

Speaking at a press conference this morning at the President’s Office, Suood expressed strong concern at the amendments to the Financial Bill proposed by the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), highlighting article 7: “Any state asset should be given, sold or leased or any subsidy or aid to any person only under legislation approved by the parliament”, and article 10(a): “any aid given by the state to any persons or to a specific person should only be given under legislation approved by the parliament.”

If the Financial Bill was ratified and parliament gained the authority to dictate aid and subsidies, “it will [jeopardise] all sorts of subsidies and aid the government provides to people, except for the elderly allowance,” Suood claimed.

Former Minister for Fisheries and Agriculture Dr Ibrahim Didi said that the bill would also jeapordise subsidies for fisherman, which was ”unacceptable.”

”We do not want salaries from the people if we cannot provide the services we want to provide them.” said Dr Didi.

Suood added that the government could not resort to the Supreme Court to overturn parliamentary rulings, “because we filed two cases in the Supreme Court, and they ruled it was not the position of the government to file cases in the Supreme Court.”

”I do not believe that the Supreme Court can rule fairly.”

State institutions had failed, Suood said, senior officials of the judiciary were “irresponsible”, and the independent commissions were operating like “small governments.”

“All of this has brought the government to a standstill,” he said.

Parliament deadlocks over detained MPs

Meanwhile, parliament this morning was also brought to a standstill after DRP MPs insisted that parliament could not go ahead without the presence of the two arrested MPs, as legally mandated.

Speaker Abdullah Shahid read out a letter to parliament from Police Commissioner Ahmed Faseeh, which stated that the MPs could not be released for the sitting or to attend committee meetings as required by parliamentary rules due to “security concerns”.

DRP MP Ali Waheed said there was “no rule of law” remaining in the country after police refused to comply with the court order to bring the MPs before court.

That court order was issued after midnight after a request by former Attorney General Azima Shukoor, lawyer representing the two opposition leaders.

The Attorney General’s Office has appealed the court order at the High Court this morning.

Speaker Shahid was unable to finish reading the as the chamber erupted in acrimonious arguments between MPs of the opposing parties. He briefly appealed to Ali Waheed and DRP MP Ahmed Nihan to sit down, before calling the sitting to a halt.

The mood in parliament  today was “very nervous,” said Independent MP Mohamed Nasheed.

“I don’t think the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and DRP were even able to talk to each other. I was very frustrated that people we are normally quite jovial with – such as [MDP MPs] Mariya Didi and Eva Abdulla – are not even able to make eye contact.”

He said the letter from Commissioner Faseeh and a second from the Chief of Defense had angered the opposition MPs, who argued that the Chief of Defense “should not be dictating when parliament should be held – it is not his business and we are not under ministerial rule.”

On the subject of the vote-buying allegations against MPs Yameen and Gasim, Nasheed said he did not know “why the Attorney General is singling them out with allegations of vote buying.”

Nasheed said many parliamentarians were aware of past discussions concerning situations where “independent MPs had been approached by sources related to the government in a bid to increase their strength and try to gain a majority.”

He confirmed that parliament has a standing order preventing an MP from being arrested “while a no confidence motion is in place against the President, the Vice President, a cabinet member, head of an independent institution or the Speaker. But the arrests happened after cabinet has resigned, cancelling the no-confidence motion,” he explained.

“I think there is a political strategy behind all this – it is to direct attention away from GMR-Malaysia Airport Holdings [signing to manage] Male’ International Airport, an issue of serious national concern,” Nasheed suggested.

“I have also heard from a highly reliable source that the president has been considering a cabinet reshuffle and will use this opportunity to appoint new ministers, and remove non-MDP cabinet ministers in the new arrangement. That, and threats and intimidation.”

Nasheed said he hoped parliament would be able to resume next week when the matter of Gasim and Yameen’s detention had been resolved.

“Much will depend on whether the court rules for the detention [of Gasim and Yameen] be extended,” he said.

“I think this is a serious impasse caused by an overly dramatic and excessive reaction from the cabinet,” Nasheed said.

“It is a very sad development. If Nasheed felt so strongly about the Financial Bill, he could have returned it to parliament and his party could have prevented it from being passed. The President has the power to veto bills, and parliament could have tried to override his veto.

If that had happened, the President could have challenged it in a court of law. For cabinet to resign saying the bill is unconstitutional is unreasonable.

Coalition collapse

While Gasim and Yameen were taken before the criminal court last night, the MDP Council resolved to to terminate its coalition agreement with Gasim’s Jumhooree Party.

The MDP Council claimed that “Gasim Ibrahim, without cooperating with the government, has prioritised his personal agenda over national agenda and has collaborated with the opposition, and has appeared in the media [with the intention] of objecting to the implementation of the national agenda,” according to newspaper Miadhu.

Protests

Sporadic and small-scale protests against the detention of Gasim and Yameen broke out last night across the city, but rain, roadblocks and the World Cup kept the crowds thinned.

This morning police dispersed a group of protesters who had gathered in a secure zone outside parliament, clutching hastily-written signs with slogans such as ‘Save us from the robbers’.

This afternoon there were reports of MDP-led protests against parliament near the tourist street of Chandanee Magu, the crowd including a number of former ministers as MPs Eva Abdulla and ‘Reeko’ Moosa. The opposition is reportedly planning a protest later this evening.

Likes(1)Dislikes(0)

Knife misses boy’s heart by millimetres, says doctor

A 16 year-old boy has been stabbed in the chest in a gang fight between two groups on the island of Baarah in Haa Dhaalu Atoll.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said two boys in connection with the case were under arrest.

”The injured boy has been admitted to Kulhudhufushi regional hospital,” said Shiyam.

Dr Ali Hakim who attended to the injured boy first, when he was admitted to Baarah health centre said that the boy was stabbed ”just a little bit below the heart.”

Dr Hakim said that the boy was still in hospital’s intensive care unit.

”This condition is progressing now,” said Dr Hakim, adding that he expected the boy to recover.

He said that the boy had internal bleeding and that he was stabbed “very deep”.

Councilor of Baarah, Ali Shameem, said the two groups involved were school students.

”They had some problem between them and fought in school also that morning,” Shameem said. ”It heated and they continued the fight that evening.”

Shameem said two boys were injured during the incident.

”One had a cut in his forehead,” he said. ”He was not badly injured but the other boy who was stabbed in the chest was very seriously injured.”

He said police were still investigating the case.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Airport opposition seeks injunction over GMR deal

The opposition parties campaigning against the awarding of Male’ International Airport on Monday took the issue to the civil court, requesting a court order delaying the implementation of the agreement signed between the government and the GMR-Malaysia Airport Holdings consortium.

The case was filed hours before President Mohamed Nasheed announced that his entire cabinet was resigning due to the “scorched earth” tactics of opposition MPs.

Spokesperson for the joint opposition committee, Imad Solih, said on Monday that the parties had sought an injunction against the agreement proceeding “because it contains suspicious [elements] and issues relating to corruption.”

”When the People’s Alliance (PA)  presented the issue to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) they replied that many of their members were away at the moment, and that they would investigate the case as soon as they return,” said Imad.

”That’s why we felt it might take some time, so we decided to request the court give out an order to hold the transaction till ACC finishes their investigation.”

Former Minister for Civil Aviation and Chairperson of Privatisation Committee Mahmood Razee said the agreement was an international agreement which “contained ways to deal with any kind of situation.”

”In the contract there are ways of responding to issues like these,” he suggested.

Secretary General of the PA, Ahmed Shareef, said there were “many issues of concern” which pointed to corruption in the deal.

”The GMR company was not a prequalified party in the bidding process, and neither was another of the companies that expressed interest,” said Shareef. ”There was no criteria for the bidders announced, and none of the bidders even knew the criteria.”

Shareef also accused the government of not consulting the Maldives Airports Company board members when making the deal.

”That is why some of the MACL board members resigned at the last minute,” Shareef said. “They did not agree with the deal. The government’s close relationship with GMR is one of the issues we presented to the ACC.”

He said these issued indicated that there were other concerning issues the party believed could potentially suggest corruption.

”The four opposition parties are against this deal,” he said. ”We will do anything that we could to stop this from happening.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)