Police release two suspects in Afrasheem murder case

Police have released one man and a minor arrested in connection with the murder of Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP and religious scholar Dr Afrasheem Ali.

Local newspapers have identified the man released as Ali Hashim ‘Smith’. Minivan News understands that a 17 year old boy was also  released last week, on condition that he not talk about the police investigation or face rearrest.

The Criminal Court extended the pretrial detention period of the suspects arrested in the Dr Afrasheem’s murder case.

Afrasheem was killed on October 1. His wife discovered the body lying on the staircase of their home.

Immediately prior to his murder Afrasheem had made his last public appearance on a live talkshow on TVM titled “Islamee Dhiriulhun” (Islamic Living).

In his last words, Afrasheem said that he was deeply saddened and asked for forgiveness from citizens if he had created a misconception in their minds due to his inability to express himself in the right manner.

Minister of Islamic Affairs Sheikh Shaheem Ali Saeed was quoted in local media as saying that the Islamic Ministry had not forced Afrasheem to offer a public apology for anything during his last television appearance and disputed that there was any religious motivation in the death of the moderate scholar.

The Maldives Police Service (MPS) has sought assistance from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Singaporean police to analyse 200 items collected as evidence during the ongoing investigation.

Evidence gathered so far includes recordings of phone conversations, forensic samples and over 300 hours of CCTV footage, which were being analysed at the police forensic laboratory with the help of foreign experts.

Meanwhile, former President Mohamed Nasheed has publicly alleged that the people behind the MP’s murder have fled the country.

He made the remarks during a rally held in Haa Dhaal Atoll Vaikaradhoo Island in Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)’s ongoing campaign trip ‘Vaudhuge Dhathuru’ (Journey of Pledges).

Nasheed said that two foreign intelligence agencies had informed him that the murder of Afrasheem was related to an incident that took place in a neighboring country and that the culprits had fled to a Middle Eastern nation after murdering the Maldivian MP.

“According to information I received, the person who murdered Dr Afrasheem fled the country on the same night the murder took place. This murder is related to an incident that took place in a neighboring country. This is an international issue. I was informed of this by the intelligence agencies of two friendly states,” he said.

Nasheed expressed his disappointment over the senior officials of the current government, including cabinet ministers, who had politicised the case, accusing the MDP of murdering the MP for political gain.

Despite the allegations, Nasheed contended that his party would neither commit such a gruesome act nor use it for political gain. He also said that despite all the false allegations, the party had won twice the number of votes it did in 2009, during the recently held by-election to elect a parliamentarian to the vacant seat.

After rigorous campaigning, PPM candidate Ibrahim Ameen won the by-election 1159 votes in polling held on the islands of Ungoofaaru, Hulhuduffaaru, and Maakurathu, all in Raa Atoll, as well as a special polling station in Male’. He defeated MDP candidate Dr Ahmed Ashraf who had 1078 votes.

The former president meanwhile also alleged that the police were trying to force out a confession from those currently under arrested in connection with the murder. This confession, he said, would be used to hold trials against the suspects to cover up the real case. Nasheed said the suspects should not be tried on confessions extracted in such a manner.

“Trial should not be held based on confessions. I urge the police to properly investigate the case. But even as I say this, I know that [Commissioner of Police] Abdulla Riyaz does not have the capacity to do this. That is because he is busy defending this government that was brought in through a coup, instead of being concerned for the general well being of the public,” he said.

“Highly concerning” – Home Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed

Meanwhile, Home Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed expressed concern over Nasheed’s remarks and said his statements “needed to be included in the investigation”.

Speaking to local newspaper Haveeru, Jameel claimed that Nasheed had been speaking about the murder differently in every island he had been visiting.  The Home Minister said that he felt that public remarks made on a case that is being investigated should be considered a criminal offence that needed to be addressed.

“From the day Afrasheem was murdered, the remarks made by Nasheed have been highly concerning. It is not a good thing for politicians to use the case for political influence. One should always consider the fact that it may involve a hidden motive,” he said.

“This not a practice that would be accepted anywhere in the world,” he added.

Jameel affirmed that Nasheed’s remarks which he claimed to have been following information from foreign intelligence agencies would be included in the murder investigations.  Jameel also called on him not to make  emarks that would hinder the ongoing murder investigations.

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Express ferry suspended after Finnish tourist dies in speedboat collision

A collision between two speed boats on Sunday evening left a Finnish tourist dead and nine other people injured.

The collision occurred between an express speedboat service to the island of Hulhumale’ – which is located near to the capital of Male’ – and another vessel belonging to the Bandos Island Resort and Spa property.

Police Spokesperson Hassan Haneef told Minivan News that a Finnish national had died following the collision, while eight Maldivians also received minor injuries. A 29-year old local woman was also injured in the incident, receiving what police described as severe head injuries. Authorities said her condition was now improving.

Haneef claimed that the matter was being treated as an accident until the exact cause of the incident could be identified. He added that existing transport regulations remained in place for all speed boat services following the incident.

However, a spokesperson for the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) said it had temporarily suspended its express speedboat service between Hulhumale’ and Male’ while it reviewed guest safety procedures.

“We believe we need to do some work on safety,” a company spokesperson told Minivan News. “We will be working with transport authorities, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and the police on the matter and will resume the services after that.”

Dhoni services will continue to run between Male’ and Hulhumale’ as normal, the MTCC added.

Asked to clarify its view on the collision, the state-owned company declined to comment on the incident until investigations were carried out both by itself and police.

Bandos Island Resort and Spa, which operated the other speedboat involved in the collision, said it did not wish to comment on the issue at the time when contacted by Minivan News.

“We are not in a situation to discuss the incident,” a spokesperson for the resort said today. “We are waiting for police to complete their investigations.”

The incident occurred around 8:25pm near the island of Dhoonidhoo in Kaafu Atoll.

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Police covered-up involvement in death of bystander, suggests leaked CCTV footage

Leaked CCTV footage has thrown into dispute an official police account of 43 year-old Abdulla Gasim Ibrahim’s death in a motorcycle accident on August 17.

Reporting the accident at the time, newspaper Haveeru stated that that according to police, two individuals on a motorbike had stolen a mobile phone from a foreigner on Majeedhee Magu and sped away on a motorcycle. Police had then ordered them to stop, but the two men had ignored the orders and fled from the scene at high speed.

Police said the speeding motorcycle hit the 43 year-old who was sitting on a parked motorcycle in front of the Justice Building, who was subsequently transferred to hospital with head injuries. The other two men were taken into police custody and charged with theft and speeding to avoid arrest, and the stolen phone was retrieved and returned to its rightful owner.

At the time of the accident, police told local media the accident had occurred due to the speeding motorcycle’s collision with Ibrahim’s motorcycle. They had made no mention of any police involvement in the collision aside from ordering the motorcycle to stop.

However, footage leaked on social media – which appears to be from a camera on the wall of the Presidential residence of Hileaage – shows a police officer stepping in front of the speeding motorcycle and appearing to hit the driver on the head with a baton as he rides past.

The driver loses control and collides with Ibrahim sitting on his motorcycle just in front of the Justice Building entry, causing both to fly off their vehicles. The police officer retrieves an object from the ground and wanders away, as other police and a military officer rush to the scene.

Ibrahim’s widow Naseema Khaleel at the time of the collision shared details of his condition with the media: “Doctor says he is 99 percent braindead. He has been kept on the ventilator from day one. The doctor said they’ll turn off the machine at 7:00pm tonight.”

Ibrahim was taken off the ventilator and died on August 20.

Letter to PIC

In a letter to the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) dated September 24 and obtained by Minivan News, Ibrahim’s wife expresses regret that police failed to reveal details of the incident.

“The ‘accident’ occurred due to a policeman standing in front of Hilaaleege using his baton to hit the head of the driver on a motorcycle which had two people fleeing after stealing, which caused the motorcycle to lose control and drive into Abdulla Gasim Ibrahim’s motorcycle,” Naseema writes.

She calls on the PIC to investigate the incident in depth and look into whether the police, either as an institution or as individuals, acted in breach of the law.

Article 41(c) of the Police Act states that Maldives Police Service should inform the PIC upon the occurrence of death or infliction of grave bodily injury to a person due to the use of force by a police officer.

Naseema refers to the Act in her letter and suggests that if the PIC had not been informed of the incident by police, it proved they were violating the law. She states that she intends to file the matter in court.

A police source told Minivan News that law enforcement officials were required to assess whether the application of force was justifiable, adding that the officer’s use of his baton on the fleeing suspect was “total negligence on his part”.

“They could have let them go and found them afterwards. They had the number plate, they could easily make out who it was, and there looks to have been plenty of eyewitnesses. What he did was totally stupid,” the source said. “There was also danger for the officer involved.”

The source said it was “very concerning” that police had not released to the public the true account of the circumstances which had led to the death of the bystander.

“There should be a thorough inquiry into police procedure and training in the proper application of force,” the source suggested.

After the footage began to circulate on social media, Police Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef told Minivan News that police could not respond to allegations that officers were involved in Ibrahim’s death.  Haneef said it was unable to respond as the letter of complaint was addressed to the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) and not the Maldives Police Service.

“The PIC will investigate and take necessary steps if any police or the institution is found to have committed such an act. The investigation is still ongoing,” he claimed.

Warning – some viewers may find the following footage disturbing

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UN delegation to assess environment for 2013 elections

The United Nations is sending a delegation to the Maldives to conduct an electoral needs assessment ahead of the 2013 elections, and determine what UN assistance should be provided.

During the mission to the Maldives from December 3-5, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs Oscar Fernández-Taranco “will meet with senior officials of the government and
political parties, as well as representatives of civil society, to discuss the current situation
and identify opportunities to support the country’s process of democratic consolidation,” the organisation said in a statement.

“A group of electoral experts from the Department of Political Affairs and UNDP will conduct an electoral needs assessment mission (NAM) for possible UN assistance to the country’s next elections expected for 2013,” the UN statement added.

The visit from the UN delegation follows accusations from the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) that the UN Resident Coordinator and Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights had remained “shamefully silent regarding the widespread human rights violations taking place.”

While “the IPU, CMAG, Canada, the Human Rights Committee, the EU and certain international NGOs such as Amnesty International and the International Federation for Human Rights have expressed varying degrees of alarm at the Maldives’ backsliding on democracy and human rights, others including the UN Resident Coordinator and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights have remained shamefully silent,” said the party’s spokesperson, MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor, said in a recent statement.

“Since February’s overthrow of the Maldives’ democratically-elected government, key parts of the international community have remained silent regarding the widespread human rights violations taking place. To remain silent in the face of injustice is to be an accomplice to that injustice,” he added.

The UN released a subsequent statement defending its activity in the Maldives and reiterating its “strict impartiality toward political parties”.

In the statement, the UN said it “continues to be concerned that the current situation in the country may have an impact on the country’s development”, and noted examples of the international organisation’s activities in the Maldives.

“As a trusted partner, the UN has spoken repeatedly in public and in private over the course of several years and three governments on democracy, development, and human rights. Most recently, the Secretary-General spoke of the need for political dialogue, national reconciliation, and respect for the constitution. He called on all parties to exercise maximum cooperation and restraint,” the UN stated.

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Jumhoree Party MP Abdulla Jabir jumps back to MDP, pledges to oust President Waheed

Ousted Jumhoree Party (JP) Deputy leader and MP Abdulla Jabir has rejoined the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), pledging to oust President Mohamed Waheed Hassan.

The MP for Kaashidhoo signed with MDP last night during the party’s ‘Vaudhuge Dhathuru’ (Journey of pledges) campaign tour near the island of Hulhudhufaaru in Raa Atoll.

After joining the MDP, Jabir told the local press that he had joined the party because he believed it was with MDP that he saw progress in politics. He also said that he would spend all his time committed to MDP and its success.

Jabir added that despite the MDP candidate losing the weekend’s by-election to a Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) candidate, his joining the party meant an addition of one more parliamentary seat to MDP.

Meanwhile, MDP Parliamentary Group Leader MP Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said the party was working to remove President Waheed and hold early elections, adding that the addition of MP Jabir to the parliamentary group would further this goal.

Jabir’s signing to MDP comes shortly after he was removed from the position of Deputy Leader of the JP in what he described as “a coup” within JP. All members aside from two voted in favor of Jabir’s removal from his position following the vote taken by the JP council.

Previously speaking during an MDP rally held on Ungoofaaru during by-election campaigning, Jabir announced his support for MDP’s campaign to oust President Waheed, and promised to contribute in his personal and financial capacity.

Speaking to Minivan News, Jabir said that he joined the MDP to support its fight against torture and police brutality and to support its democracy movement. He alleged that current government was indulging in acts of corruption and nepotism.

“What we see today is that Waheed’s government is resorting to brutality and torture is run like a corrupt and nepotistic regime that dishonors business agreements,” he said.

Asked why he had left MDP previously, Jabir stated that there was “no need to talk about the past”.

“What happened in the past should stay in the past. This is a new chapter. I look forward to work with the MDP parliamentary group to liberate this country from Waheed’s brutality and his corrupt government,” he said.

Antagonism towards Waheed’s government

Jabir became an outspoken critic of President Waheed after he was arrested from the inhabited island Hodaidhoo and alleged police brutality.

Those arrested included MDP MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor – also the party’s international spokesperson – along with former SAARC Secretary General and Special Envoy to the former President, Ibrahim Hussain Zaki, former Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair and his wife Mariyam Faiz.

Police claimed they found large amounts of “suspected” drugs and alcohol upon searching the island with a court warrant. The arrests were made “based on information received by police intelligence,” police said.

Recently, resorts owned by Jabir were issued with final warning notices for non-payment of rent. The move came days after he turned against the government, and was described by Jabir as the government’s effort to destroy a political opponent.

“I know following the recent political developments and due to my new opposition to the current government, [President] Waheed has now ordered the tourism minister to issue the repayment notice so as to threaten his political opponents,” declared Jabir.

“This is highly politically motivated. He knew I was the one behind submitting the amendment to parliamentary regulations to make the impeachment vote a secret ballot. It was I who in the first place drafted that amendment and gave it to MP Ahmed Amir. They know this but I will still continue to work for that,” he explained.

Since then, Jabir openly declared his support to MDP’s efforts to make parliamentary impeachment votes a secret ballot.

The first amendment proposed to the parliamentary regulations to bring the change by MDP was defeated on the parliament floor. However, a second amendment has been proposed and the parliament is to take a vote on the amendment on Monday.

Defection history

Jabir is well known for his frequent defections from party to party. His first political party was Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) during the presidency of Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom. He then joined former party of PPM Parliamentary Group leader MP Yameen Abdul Gayoom, the People’s Alliance (PA).

Jabir defected to the JP ahead of the 2008 presidential elections and backed JP leader and business tycoon Gasim Ibrahim.  Jabir was appointed as the party’s deputy leader.

He then went on to join the MDP and hold senior positions within the party. He also announced his intention to contest for the MDP chairmanship.

However, during the protests following the detention of Chief Judge of Criminal Court Abdulla Mohamed, Jabir once again declared that he had defected from MDP back to the JP.

In the meantime Jabir’s wife, former SAARC Secretary General Dhiyana Saeed, also resigned from her position in SAARC and joined the opposition movement against former President Mohamed Nasheed.

Jabir became an MP after winning the by-election held to elect an MP to the vacant seat of Kaashidhoo constituency on a JP ticket. He was backed by President Waheed and a coalition of parties supporting his government.

THe PPM who initially had its own candidate for the election also backed Jabir.

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DNA testing reveals child sex offender

DNA testing has revealed that a 37 year-old man impregnated a 11 year-old girl in the Feydhoo ward of Addu City, police have said, after concluding investigation of a case that prompted shock and public outrage last month.

The 11 year-old victim in Seenu Feydhoo gave birth two months prematurely on November 1 after being taken to hospital complaining of stomach pains.

The infant died in the early hours of the following morning (November 2).

On November 4, police confirmed that a 37 year-old male suspect had been taken into custody in connection to the case.

In a press briefing on Thursday, Inspector Hassan Shifau, acting head of the Family and Child Protection Department, explained that DNA samples from the infant matched the 37 year-old suspect, Mohamed Javid of Maradhoo-Feydhoo Gulfamge.

Shifau said police obtained DNA samples from all males in the household of the 11 year-old victim.

Javid was a friend of the girl’s parents and visited the house every night, Shifau explained.

Police discovered during the investigation that Javid had been sexually abusing the victim since early 2012, he added.

The second suspect, Adam Saeed, 45, had been living in the girl’s house. Both suspects had previously been arrested on drug-related charges.

The victim meanwhile told police that she did not tell anyone about the abuse she suffered.

Family members and school mates questioned during the investigation said they were unaware that the girl was pregnant as it did not show on her body.

The girl was said to be of a “quiet” and reserved nature.

An official from the Feydhoo health centre told local media last month that “the girl admitted that she got pregnant after someone had sexually molested her.”

In the press briefing, Inspector Shifau appealed to parents to have a closer relationship with their children to ensure that they would be able to share accounts of abuse.

Upon conclusion of the investigation by a team of the Family and Child Protection Department working with the Seenu Gan police station, Shifau said police were in the process of forwarding the case for prosecution.

Child abuse in the Maldives

The case of the 11 year-old giving birth prompted a wider public debate on child sexual abuse in the Maldives, while politicians and NGOs called for a swift investigation.

Speaking to Minivan News at the time, Islamic Affairs Minister Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed labelled it “a very big crime,” adding that the young girl should not herself take any blame or punishment.

“Personally I can’t say any word to punish a small girl in grade six. This may be a rape or sexual abuse case,” he said.

Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Rozaina Adam said the case was “unacceptable” and “shocking”, demanding on social media that police make the case a high priority.

“An 11 year-old doesn’t get pregnant by herself! This is child abuse we are talking about here n authorities need  to find out who is responsible,” she wrote on Twitter.

However, Ali Rameez, a famous singer who gave up music and now heads the Islamic NGO Jamiyyathul Salaf, tweeted: “All you people who claim to be Muslims! In Allah’s Shariah [law], a child grows up when he or she reaches puberty. Not when they turn 16, 18, 25.”

Rameez, who also hosts a religious program on private radio station SunFM, tweeted earlier that he was “not aware that children could get pregnant.”

The comments were criticised by some social media users including former Environment Minister Mohamed Aslam, who tweeted: “Where are the children’s right groups… Where is HRCM.. Horrified with the preaching of people like Ali Rameez.”

Local NGO Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) meanwhile issued a statement calling on the government, civil society organisations and the general public to step up efforts to combat child abuse in society.

“It is an obligation for us as responsible citizens to protect our children, and it is the Maldivian government’s obligation as a signatory to the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC) that all international commitments to protect the rights of all children are adhered to fully,” ARC noted.

Almost one in seven children of secondary school age in the Maldives have been sexually abused at some time in their lives, according to an unpublished 2009 study on violence against minors.

Rates of sexual abuse for girls are almost twice as high than for boys at 20 percent – one in five girls have been sexually abused – while the figure for boys was 11 percent. Girls are particularly at risk in the capital Male’, the report found.

In recent years, local authorities and NGOs have released a number of findings trying to detail the extent of child abuse and wider sexual assaults within society.

The state-run Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital’s (IGMH’s) Family Protection Unit reported in 2010 that the centre was notified of 42 cases of rape between 2005-2010. Most of these cases were found to involve minors.

According to the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives, 13 rape cases were reported last year alone, the majority of which most were gang rapes or assaults involving minors.

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High Court upholds decision to fine man MVR 50,000 for porn possession

The High Court has upheld a decision by the Criminal Court to fine a man MVR 50,000 (US$3242) for possessing pornographic materials.

The man was identified by the High Court as Ahmed Anwar of Foakiadhoo in Shaviyani Atoll.

The ruling said that according to the Criminal Court ruling, the pornographic materials were discovered inside a laptop bag in Ahmed Anwar’s house when police searched the residence, after he was accused of cashing MVR 600,000 (US$38,910) out of Lily Shipping and Trading Private Limited’s account at the Bank of Maldives (BML) using a fraudulent bank note.

The High Court back the Criminal Court ruling stating that there were 22 DVDs, one CD and one pen drive containing 227 pornographic video and eight pictures.

In the statement Anwar gave to police he confessed that the pen drive belonged to him but denied that the DVDs and CDs were his.

However, the High Court ruled that the things were discovered inside Ahmed Anwar’s house and that since no one else had claimed those materials, Anwar had to take responsibility for them.

The Court also said that the files on the pen drive were created and modified before the police searched his house on September 1, 2010.

The High Court endorsed the lower court’s ruling that found Anwar guilty of violating Act number 4/75 List of Contraband’s article 4[c] and article 13[d].

The court ruled that there was no lawful reason to change the lower court’s ruling on the matter.

The appeal case was filed at the High Court last year in November and was concluded last Wednesday.

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Comment: India’s inconsistent commitment to Maldivian democracy cost the GMR deal

The Maldives and India have always shared strong bilateral relations in terms of strategic, economical and military cooperation. The diplomatic bond has remained firm despite the vast difference between the two states in size, population and economy. India remains a major destination for many Maldivians who travel abroad for education, medical and business purposes.

A significant number of Maldivians reside in Indian cities such as Bangalore, Thiruvananthapuram, Mysore and several others. Similarly, a large portion of the Maldives’ expatriate workforce including teachers, doctors, engineers and other technical expertise are Indians, who have contributed to the country’s economy.

If not for the timely decision by the Indian government to intervene, the 1988 terrorist attack on the Maldives’ national defense force base by the mercenaries of the Sri Lanka-based terrorist organisation People’s Liberation of Tamil Elam (PLOTE), would have cost the Maldivian people their civilian government.

19 Maldivians lost their lives, but if not for the successful ‘Operation Cactus’ led by the Indian armed forces, the death toll could have been more, and a possible military junta could have taken control over the affairs of the state. Neither the Maldives nor its history will forget this brotherly act by India that symbolised the strong bilateral bond between the two states.

However, India’s decision to recognise the regime that took charge of the country after it toppled the Maldives’ first democratically elected government on February 7 shocked many. Of course, it would have been completely irrational to expect another ‘Operation Cactus’, but on diplomatic grounds India could have done better.

Having had a diplomatic office established in the Maldives and the rebellion broadcast live on television, the decision showed India’s failure in grasping the local political environment of the country, despite it being a base to large Indian investments worth millions. This failure did not only bring dismay to the local populace, but to international spectators as well.

For instance, Indian journalist Sumon K Chakrabarti in his article in the South Asia Monitor described the misstep as India losing “the mango as well as the sack”.

“With lost credibility and a history of dumping friends – from Burma to Bangladesh and now Maldives, the reality is stark – India has, as the saying goes, lost the mango as well as the sack in the Maldives,” he wrote.

Another journalist, B Raman for the Eurasia Review, put it as “badly damaging” to India’s “traditional position as the sole arbiter of political fortunes”.

He writes – “the government of India’s traditional position as the sole arbiter of political fortunes in the Maldives has been badly damaged and a number of international actors from the UK, the US, the European Union and the United Nations have rushed to the Maldives to try their hand in internal peace-making, thereby marginalising the traditional role of India. Only China and Pakistan have not yet entered the political fray in the Maldives. If they do, that will be ultimate humiliation for Indian diplomacy at its southern door-step.”

For a regime installed through illegitimate means, an assent from the region’s major player would obviously be the perfect gift. A gift that took the country back three years  in terms democratic progress it achieved following the transition from a remorseless dictatorship. A gift that brought back the culture of state-sponsored torture, intimidation and harassment.

The accession of Vice-president Waheed Hassan resulted in a rudderless, clueless and mandate-less regime which neither entertained the popular support of the people nor had a contemplated plan to run the affairs of the state.

The unprecedented alteration to the dynamics of local politics saw the return of elements of past dictatorship back to power, which had previously been voted out in the country’s first free and fair presidential election in 2008.

Cabinet portfolios were divided among political parties with diverse political thinking, each of which had its own ambitions to come to power. Most of them do not carry any political weight or have any representation in parliament, including those with an religious element such as the Adhaalath Party.

Similarly ex-president Gayoom had his daughter and son appointed as state-minister level positions in the regime, much to the disappointment of those who had voted him out in 2008. But in Waheed’s words this was a “national unity government”.

A national unity government, whose elements while in opposition had made their antagonism towards Indian investments public, especially against infrastructure giant GMR, which was awarded a concession agreement to manage and develop Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) but was declared an economic enslaver.

India should have foreseen the consequences its investments would later face in endorsing a regime consisting of elements that had previously shown its disapproval towards major Indian investments. India should have taken its time to assess the political situation of the country and should have confirmed the legitimacy of the controversial regime before accepting it.

However, failure to do so resulted in the scrapping of its single largest investment by the very government it had recognised.

India’s concerns over the Maldives should have come earlier. Not when senior officials of the regime it give assent to nine months previously mocked, insulted and even accused its High Commissioner of indulging in bribery. Not when its largest investment in the country was evicted. None of which would have taken place had India taken a ‘prevention than cure’ approach towards the Maldives.

One must hesitantly agree to the point raised by the very ambitious Special Advisor to Waheed, Dr Hassan Saeed in his ‘candid’ letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

He observes: “The Indian Foreign Secretary’s visit to our country in February [2012] failed to resolve the political crisis largely because India is no longer seen as a friendly and fair neighbour who could broker an honest and fair deal.”

Hailed as the world’s largest democracy, India’s inconsistency in its commitment towards democracy in the Maldives not only cost the eviction of its single largest investment in the country, but also gave rise to noisy anti-India rhetoric led by religious fundamentalists and politicians sided with the current regime.

In nine months time, the Maldives will hold its second multi-party presidential elections. Perhaps it these will be the country’s last chance in the near future to overcome what it lost in terms of democracy. It might also be a golden opportunity for India to reassure its commitment towards the democratic process of the country, by pressuring Waheed’s regime towards a free and fair ballot.

All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]

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