Addu City Council denies disagreement over stadium lights

The Addu City Council has denied President Abdulla Yameen’s claim that a project to install lights at the Feydhoo stadium was stalled due to disagreements within the council.

Newspaper Haveeru quoted Deputy Mayor Abdulla Thoyyib as saying that contrary to Yameen’s remarks in Feydhoo last week, the project to upgrade stadiums in the southernmost atoll was financed out of the city council’s budget.

The project was awarded to the Hithadhoo Southern Maldives Contracting and Trading Company, Thoyyib explained, and remained stalled due to disagreements among youth in the island.

Four youth associations met the council last month and presented plans for installing the lights, he added.

Final preparations were underway to install the lights in accordance with the wishes of the youth groups, Thoyyib said.

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Vice President Dr Jameel in midnight meeting with former Health Minister Dr Shakeela

Vice President Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed met former Health Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela at the latter’s residence on Thursday night (September 11), reports local media.

Opposition-aligned private broadcaster Raajje TV reported eyewitnesses as saying that Shakeela greeted the vice president upon his arrival at the Manaam building around 9pm.

With the press gathered outside, Dr Jameel reportedly left the building in his official state car around 3:10am in the early hours of Friday.

Reporters spotted the vice president and his wife in the car with bodyguards.

The Ministry of Health has been headed by Defence Minister Colonel (Retired) Ahmed Nazim after Shakeela’s renomination was rejected by the Majlis last month.

In an interview with Haveeru last week, Dr Shakeela alleged death threats and intimidation prior to her departure, suggesting that political opponents wished to remove her in order to benefit from corrupt development deals.

“When I was given the post, some people said this can’t be done by bringing in someone from far outside after we worked hard to bring this government,” she was quoted as saying.

“So from the start there were some people who were bent on showing that I was a failure.”

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Chinese President Xi Jinping due to visit Maldives

Chinese President Xi Jinping is due to arrive in the Maldives on an official state visit next week in the first ever trip to the country by a Chinese head of state.

“During his stay in the Maldives, President Xi will be officially ‎meeting President [Abdulla] Yameen one-on-one,” the President’s Office revealed in a statement.

“The two leaders will chair official talks between high-level delegations of the respective countries.‎”

A number of bilateral agreements “on advancing developmental corporation in various identified ‎fields” would be signed during the visit, the President’s Office said.

“Furthermore, two development projects in the Maldives that are ‎funded by the Chinese Government and implemented by Chinese ‎corporations will also be launched jointly by the two presidents,” the statement added.

President Yameen extended an invitation to visit the Maldives to Xi Jinping during official talks held in Nanjing last month.

A 200-strong delegation, including representatives from major Chinese companies, is expected to accompany the Chinese president.

Speaking at a Progressive Party of Maldives event on Thursday, President Yameen reportedly said that the imminent visit of one of the most influential world leaders was an honour for the Maldives.

China was a global economic powerhouse with one of the fastest growing economies in the world, Yameen noted.

“[Xi Jinping] is beginning his Asian tour in the Maldives. He is arriving one month to the day after I returned to the Maldives after visiting China,” Yameen was quoted as saying by newspaper Haveeru.

“We will use the visit to bring development for the people. During the Chinese president’s visit, [he] will agree to do many things for the Maldives.”

China bridge

Upon returning from a visit to China last month, Yameen said the Chinese government has pledged assistance in building a bridge connecting the capital Malé and Hulhumalé.

According to the President’s Office, President Yameen expressed his desire for the bridge to be known as the ‘China Bridge’ “to symbolise the friendly ties between the two countries” during a meeting with Xi Jinping.

Speaking to the press, Yameen revealed that the Chinese president recommended forming a high-level China-Maldives joint commission to oversee the project.

The Chinese president was also briefed about other ‘mega projects’ the government plans to commence, Yameen said, adding that “major Chinese contractors” would undertake the projects.

The Chinese government could ensure that loan facilities sought from the Chinese EXIM bank would be provided at a very low interest rate, he explained.

Meetings also took place between the Maldivian delegation and “large Chinese civil works companies,” Yameen noted.

Based on assurances from Xi Jinping, Yameen expressed confidence of receiving significant assistance from the Chinese government for the bridge project.

The Chinese government also provided MVR250 million (US$16 million) as grant aid during the president’s trip.

Discussions also focused on “important matters for China in international diplomacy,” Yameen revealed, referring to the the Chinese ‘New Silk Road’ project, which he said was intended to foster economic relations and increase trade between China and Asia-Pacific nations.

“We requested participation in the Silk Road initiative and were immediately welcomed,” he said.

Yameen said the Maldives would back China in the international arena as the two countries shared “the same principles on a number of issues, especially concerning the Indian Ocean region, human rights and many such matters.”

Asked if closer ties with China would adversely impact relations with India or Japan, Yameen said Sino-Maldives economic cooperation would not affect “the very friendly, close relations with India”.

“All these projects are also open to India and we are doing a lot of diplomatic work with India,” he said, referring to his administration’s decision not to sign a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with the United States as an example of cooperation.

“No country has expressed concern so far and I don’t believe they will either,” he said.

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National football team captain Ashfaq awarded green passport

The government has awarded national football team captain Ali Ashfaq a green passport on Thursday (September 11), reports local media, becoming the first sportsman to receive the green passport privilege.

Defence Minister Colonel (Retired) Mohamed Nazim presented the passport to Ashfaq at a ceremony held at the department of immigration and emigration.

Green passports are used by senior government officials above the rank of director general during official overseas visits.

In May, Ashfaq was also appointed the country’s first sports ambassador by the Maldives Olympic Committee.

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Viral fever, dengue, diarrhoea speading, warns health protection agency

Viral fever, dengue, common cold, and diarrhoea is spreading across the Maldives at an alarming rate, the health protection agency (HPA) has warned.

In a health alert issued yesterday (September 12), the agency revealed that 2,000 cases of common cold, 500 cases of diarrhoea, 800 cases of viral fever, and 500 cases of dengue fever were reported across the country during the past week.

The HPA cautioned that common cold and viral fever were highly contagious diseases and advised those affected to drink lots of liquids.

The agency also advised taking precautionary measures to prevent breeding of mosquitos during rainy weather.

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National bureau of classification’s website hacked

The website of the national bureau of classification was hacked yesterday following publication of a controversial regulation that subjects prose and poetry published in the Maldives to the bureau’s approval.

The site has, however, been fixed today. “We are here to deliver a message,” read the hacked ‘mission page of the website.

“This is our world now. The world of the electron and the switch, the beauty of the baud. We exist without nationality or skin colour. You wage wars, murder, cheat, lie to us and try to make us believe it’s for our good,” read the message.

“I am a criminal. My crime is that of curiosity. I am a hacker and this is my manifesto. Huh, right, manifesto? You may stop me, but you can’t stop us all.”

The hackers signed off as ‘Invaded by Anonymous Maldives.’

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MDP warns of a census boycott if authorities fail to find missing journalist

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has said it will consider a boycott of the overdue national census if authorities fail to find missing Minivan News journalist Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla.

Newly elected Vice President Mohamed Shifaz said the motion would require endorsement by the party’s National Council.

Rilwan – believed to have been abducted – has now been missing for 34 days. The Maldives Police Services has been criticised for its failure to reveal information regarding the investigation.

“President Abdulla Yameen’s government has been negligent towards a Maldivian citizen. We will stand up against that negligence. So we [will ask the National Council] to endorse a boycott of a census held without Rilwan,” Shifaz told the press at a briefing this morning.

“I do want to note the importance of a census. But when we do not know what happens to Maldivians, when citizens have been disappeared, I do not believe we should proceed with a census.”

The census – scheduled to take place between September 20 and 27 – will be the first time such national data has been collected since 2006.

Locals from the island of Vilufushi in Thaa Atoll have also announced that they will be boycotting the census, due to the failure to provide permanent residents for those left homeless after the 2004 tsunami.

Department of National Planning’s Assistant Director Fathimath Riyaza has appealed to all parties to support the census, and called on the public to refrain from connecting the census to Rilwan’s disappearance.

“We, too, are extremely concerned and saddened by the journalist’s disappearance. However, it is not our job to look for and find any particular person. I call on the people to refrain from connecting these two things and to give us information about themselves.”

Accountability

MDP chairperson Ali Waheed said party members had suggested the boycott and said some felt Rilwan’s disappearance was an act of terrorism by the state.

The MDP has remained quiet on the matter following a request by Rilwan’s family not to politicise the issue, but “MDP cannot remain quiet, he is a citizen just like us,” Waheed said.

Criticising President Yameen’s silence on the disappearance, Waheed said the Maldives had “gone off the tracks” since the new government assumed power.

“People are afraid. People are disappearing, and the government does not care. The truth is the government is failing. It’s been a month since a journalist has gone missing, and it does not seem to be a big deal to the government. The truth is we have regressed 30 years,” he said.

Since Yameen’s Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) holds a majority in the parliament, the president cannot throw off responsibility for the state of the nation, he added.

The government’s actions intimidate the press, he said and criticised the government for its failure to provide security for MPs who have also received death threats.

The MDP will embark on a series of actions to hold the government accountable, starting with a rally at the Alimas Carnival in Malé on Thursday, activating internal party committees on government accountability and preparations for upcoming local council by-elections.

The party has also set up a desk to improve relationship between the MDP leadership and councilors, he said.

Disappearance

Arguing there is room to believe Rilwan has been disappeared, Waheed also appealed to the government to clarify the nature of Rilwan’s disappearance.

“The government’s actions are unlike any other in a case of disappearance. Comments made by senior government officials in press conferences suggest he has been abducted. Instead of commenting directly on the matter, every one is suggested he will be found alive,” he said.

Defense Minister Mohamed Nazim last week said he had hope Rilwan would be found safe and sound.

The PPM dominated parliamentary committee on independent institutions oversight in August rejected a motion to summon and question the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) and Police Integrity Commission (PIC) on Rilwan’s disappearance.

MDP MP Rozaina Adam said the party would table the same request once again.

Rilwan’s family has previously submitted a petition to the Majlis with 5000 signatures calling on MPs to find answers to questions as yet unanswered by police. Local NGO Maldives Democracy Network has also released an open letter raising a number of issues regarding the cases’s progress.

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Fisheries ministry denies granting permission for Sri Lankan vessels to cross Maldivian waters

The fisheries ministry has denied rumours that the government has granted permission for Sri Lankan vessels to cross Maldivian territorial waters without prior authorisation.

In a press statement yesterday, the ministry assured that the government would not grant any request that could “have an adverse effect on Maldivian fishermen or the fisheries industry, the country’s independence and sovereignty, or the economy.”

Sri Lanka reportedly made the request at the sixth meeting of the Maldives-Sri Lanka Joint Commission on Tuesday (September 9). A delegation including Foreign Minister Dunya Maumoon, Fisheries and Agriculture Minister Dr Mohamed Shiny, Education Minister Dr Aishath Shiham, as well as senior officials from various government ministries departed to Colombo earlier this week to attend the meeting.

During an official state visit in January, President Abdulla Yameen agreed to “explore the possibility” of giving innocent passage to Sri Lankan fishing vessels through Maldivian waters under the UN Law of the Sea.

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President Yameen announces land reclamation project for Addu Feydhoo

President Abdulla Yameen announced last night that a land reclamation project would commence next year in the Feydhoo ward of Addu City.

Speaking at a ceremony held in Feydhoo to inaugurate a road construction project, President Yameen said construction of the Rahdhebai Magu “will greatly assist the island’s residents, while paving the way for further development projects in Feydhoo,” according to the President’s Office.

President Yameen was accompanied by First Lady Fathmath Ibrahim and Tourism Minister Ahmed Adeeb during his visit to the southernmost atoll.

A by-election for a vacant seat in the six-member Addu City Council is meanwhile scheduled to take place on September 20.

The election comes after Addu City councillor for the Feydhoo constituency, Abdulla Aswan, died of a heart attack on July 8.

All six seats of the city council were won by opposition Maldivian Democratic Party candidates in January’s local council elections.

Speaking at a meeting in Feydhoo last night, President Yameen reportedly criticised the city council over a stalled project to install lights at the Feydhoo football stadium.

The project remained stalled due to a disagreement between councillors, Yameen claimed, calling on the council to cooperate with the government’s development efforts despite political differences.

“If something else is beneficial [to the public], they don’t have to consider the ideology of a political party. They should do it the way the public wants,” he was quoted as saying by newspaper Haveeru.

Yameen urged the people of Feydhoo to vote for ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) candidate for the Feydhoo council seat, Ena Naseer.

The Feydhoo branch of PPM handed over membership forms of 100 new members to First Lady Fathmath Ibrahim at last night’s meeting.

The opposition MDP meanwhile selected Ali Fahmy Ahmed as its candidate to face the by-election in a primary last month.

Speaking at a press conference today, MDP MP for Addu Meedhoo, Rozaina Adam, accused President Yameen of attempting to unduly influence the upcoming by-election by launching or announcing development projects in Feydhoo.

Referring to pro-government MPs rejecting an urgent motion in parliament over power outages in Addu City, Rozaina questioned the president’s sincerity and commitment to develop the city.

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