VP tours Thiladhummathi atoll

Vice President Dr Mohamed Waheed participated in Eid celebrations in South Thiladhummathi atoll Kulhudhufushi on Saturday as part of his tour of the atoll.

In the morning, Waheed visited houses on the island and exchanged Eid greetings with residents before visiting the regional hospital where he spoke to health officials about swine flu and their preparedness to address the issue.

The vice president also visited Nolhivaramfaru and observed the house building activities on the island and Nolhivaram where he laid a foundation stone of Huvaas Club, a community development organisation on the island.

Waheed arrived in the atoll on Friday and visited Hanimaadhoo. After Friday prayers, he met with locals and exchanged Eid greetings.

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Educational radio channel to open

Educational radio channel, I-radio, operated by the ministry of education began a test run last week, Miadhu reports.

The channel will be broadcast from 10am to 12pm on weekdays.

The educational development centre at the ministry has advised all those working in education to listen to the channel.

The channel, which will be officially launched on Thursday, is a joint project between the ministry of education, commonwealth of learning and a Malaysian institution.

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Maldives Minister meets Saudi King at Hajj

The Maldivian Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr. Abdul Majeed Abdul Baaree has met with the King of Saudi Arabia Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz.

Miadhu reports that Baaree offered Eid greetings to King Abdulluh of behalf of the Maldivian people and president Mohamed Nasheed.

Baaree is currently attending the Hajj with pilgrims from the Maldives, who are currently in Mina. All the Maldives pilgrims are expected to make it to Arafat, he told Miadhu, and should begin to return next week.

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Swine flu clinic opens

The government has established a temporary hospital in Nassandhura to treat people suspected of having swine flu, after doctors at Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) were swamped with patients, reports Miadhu.

The health ministry said the temporary out patient department, set up in an old hotel, would provide free treatment including the antiviral drug Tamiflu that is believed to be effective in preventing the H1N1 virus.

The Nassadhura facility will also be equipped to test patients for the virus.

The World Health Organisation reports that over 1000 people a week are dying from the virus.

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Gang mugging nets over US$30,000

A man was robbed of over US$30,000 by a gang who attacked him at the Gadiburu roundabout near Orchid Magu on Wednesday evening, Miadhu reports.

Police said the gang severely injured the victim with a sharp object before robbing him of Mrf 4 lakh and escaping.

The incident is the second large robbery to occur recently. Last month a gang of four attacked two men with iron rods, and stole a bag containing MRF 7,62,700 (US$60,000). The four men were arrested following an investigation, including an under age boy.

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Letter on extremism letter

Dear Editor
I am very disturbed by the fact you have published a very inflammatory letter from Ibn Khattab. Clearly the letter encourages for people to commit acts of terrorism. The author’s argument and his justification of jihad is absolutely unacceptable by any standard of morality and common sense.
Do the so-called scholars give news conferences only when someone calls for gay rights? Isn’t it their responsibility to come open and condemn this letter which calls for religious violence and applauds a Maldivian who was reportedly involved in a suicide attack in Pakistan.
Regards
Mao Hussein

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Parliament vows to tackle domestic violence

MPs today signed a declaration supporting the elimination of violence against women, recognising the problem of domestic violence facing the Maldives and undertaking to bear it in mind when legislating.

The signing marked the 10th anniversary of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, a UN-led initiative to encourage countries to create and enforce laws punishing violence against women and girls, increase public awareness and strengthen collection of data on the issue.

“We must demand accountability for the violations, and take concrete steps to end impunity. We must listen to and support the survivors,” said UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon.

Kendhoo MP Ahmed Thasmeen Ali, parliamentary group leader of the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), read the declaration on behalf of parliament this morning, promising that MPs will “take all steps to secure women’s rights, and will not accept sexual, physical and other forms of violence against women. We resolve to ensure that the state implements these measures and condemn all forms of violence against women and girls.”

During the debate, Maduvari MP Visam Ali of the DRP said a survey by the former gender ministry showed that one in five Maldivian women aged 15 to 49 had been sexually or physically abused by their partners.

One in nine suffered physical violence, she said, while one in eight had been sexually abused as a child. “We are stunned when we hear these statistics,” she said. “But the offenders have not been punished to anywhere near these numbers.”

The Maldivian culture of trust was partly to blame, she said, after the signing.

“Maldivian women place a lot of trust in their husbands and relatives, and most often the abuse comes from these people. There is an aspect of Maldivian culture that means because of this trust, women don’t speak about [domestic violence]. I think this is the part that has got to change,” she said.

MP's signing the declaration
MPs signing the declaration

A lack of sensitivity towards the issue among the police force added to women’s reluctance to come forward, she continued, “because police are an institution mostly made up of men, and they don’t feel the pain of this.
It’s only recently that women have become involved in police work.”

Even when domestic violence was reported there was a lack of protection and support for the victims afterwards, with no physical infrastructure and few institutional processes to support the victims.

“Maldivians also lack confidence and trust in social workers and counsellors; many are new and half-baked, so if I go to one and they talk about my problems to other people afterwards, then that’s my life lost,” she said.
Male’s congested living conditions were contributing to the problem of domestic violence, said MDP MP for Galholhu North Eva Abdullah, with cramped living conditions forcing large families to live together in small spaces “with a lack of breathing space.”

“Families and distant relatives are cramped together in small rooms,” she said. “A set up that makes it difficult for women to report [domestic violence].”

Thulusdhoo MP Rozaina Adam emphasised the importance of raising awareness of women’s rights, arguing that many Maldivian men used religion to justify discrimination against women.

“Girls need to be taught about equal opportunity,” she said, as many are told they are inferior to men.

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Bill on banning sale of alcohol “unconstitutional”

A bill to ban the sale of alcohol in inhabited islands and airports was contrary to the principles of Islam, MPs argued today.

The bill was unconstitutional as it indirectly authorised the use of alcohol in places not specified in the draft legislation, MPs said.

Article 10(b) of the constitution states, “No law contrary to any tenet of Islam shall be enacted in the Maldives.”

Presenting the legislation yesterday, Fares-Maathoda MP Ibrahim Muttalib said he proposed it because the government had revised the regulations to allow the sale of alcohol in tourist hotels in inhabited islands.

“We are not trying to stop the guests who visit the country from drinking alcohol. What we want to do is ban the sale of alcohol in inhabited islands, places that Maldivians frequent and especially airports and airport restaurants and picnic islands,” he said.

Muttalib said he hoped the law would revoke liquor permits given to expatriates and as well as those of yachts and safari vessels.

Under the bill, the sale of alcohol in inhabited islands, airports and uninhabited islands leased for purposes other than tourism will be prohibited.

If passed, those in violation of the law will be either sentenced to one to three years in jail or fined between Rf12,000 (US$944) and Rf36,000 (US$2,800).

During the debate, MPs said if alcohol was to be banned it should be done wholesale along with interest from banks and pork in the resorts.

Feydhoo MP Alhan Fahmy of the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), who has been suspended for voting against the party line, said banning alcohol in some places and authorising it in other was against Islamic sharia.

Alcohol has been sold in tourist resorts for the past 30 years, he said, and there was consensus that the industry was “the chicken that lays golden eggs”.

“My question is if some people drink alcohol, should we as Muslims be affected by it?” he said. “Or is alcohol being available for sale somewhere a reason for us Maldivians as Muslims to buy and consume it?”

Instead of laws banning its sale, he continued, legislation was needed to regulate the sale of alcohol to ensure that it was not sold to Maldivians or make it an offence.

Vilufushi MP Riyaz Rasheed of the Dhivehi Qaumee Party argued the law would be tantamount to allowing adultery in the bedroom and banning it in the sitting room.

Fuahmulah South MP Mohamed Rafeeq Hassan of the DRP said the bill had significant flaws and needed amendments.

Thulhaadhoo MP Nazim Rashad, an independent, said Islamic sharia was higher than the constitution and parliament should not pass a bill to authorise the sale of anything banned in Islam.

Thulusdhoo MP Rozaina Adam of the DRP said the flaws in the bill could be corrected in committee and were not a good enough reason to vote against it.

Hulhu-Henveiru MP “Reeko” Moosa Manik, parliamentary group leader of the MDP, said the bill was politically motivated and was intended to publicly accuse the government of authorising the sale of alcohol.

The government has revised regulations to revoke liquor permits in favour of authorising tourist hotels to sell alcohol to foreigners under strict supervision.

The revised regulations published by the economic development ministry were withdrawn following public pressure.

Under the regulations, tourist hotels in inhabited islands with 100 beds would be authorised to sell alcohol to foreigners.

But, the hotel bar should not be visible from outside or employ Maldivians.

Further, an inventory of the alcohol in storage and daily sales must be maintained and made available to police on their request, while CCTV cameras must be mounted at the storage room at hotel.

Alcohol could not be kept at mini-bars in the hotel rooms and expatriate employees at the bar would be subject to police clearance.

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Serial paedophile sentenced to six years

Convicted paedophile Hussain Fazeel has been sentenced to six years’ imprisonment for 39 counts of child sexual abuse, the highest sentence for such a crime in the Maldives and a landmark decision for the country.

Fazeel was initially arrested in February for smuggling alcohol in Male, but when police searched his home they discovered a hard drive containing a large quantity of images and videos of Fazeel having sex with young boys, some as young as 10. In other videos, the boys were made to had sex with each other.

Inspector Ismail Athif of Maldives Police Service said at the time that many of the boys appeared to have aged in the material, suggesting the abuse had been occurring for some time.

He also noted that the material was of a sufficient resolution to be used for commercial purposes, and that it was possible Fazeel was part of a larger ring.
Assistant Public Prosecutor Mahmoud Saleem said that while Fazeel had committed the crimes before the recent Child Sexual Abuse (Special Provisions) Act was ratified this month, which carries penalties of up to 25 years, six years was the highest sentence recorded for the crime.

In particular, “the statements made by the victims carried great weight,” he said.
Police sergeant Ahmed Shiyam said Fazeel’s sentencing was only the beginning “and there will be more of the same”, adding that two other child sex offenders currently being investigated by police had been linked to some of the same boys abused by Fazeel.

“When we investigated Fazeel we found some boys involved in both cases,” Shiyam said.
As for the sentence given today, “I don’t know why it was only six years, it should have been more than that.”

Mohamed Shihab from Child Abuse Watch Maldives said while the sentence was not administered under the harsher laws only recent enacted, as a first step it promised “a very positive future.”

“We have not seen anything like this ever before; I’ve already called the prosecutor general to thank him for this very important first step,” Shihab said. “We can look at it very happily that justice has finally been done for the children.”

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