Dear Maldives,
I would like to share my story with you guys, to reflect on the prospect of freedom in the Malsdives.
In July 2001, as a student of Humanities at Curtin University in Western Australia, I met, fell in love with and married a Maldivian woman, an ‘overseas student’ from my Political Sciences class.
Due to certain painful complications, although pregnant with my first ever child, the Australian government was threatening to send my wife back to the Maldives.
Preparing myself to live and work in the Maldives to be with my wife and baby, I looked up the Maldives on the net. I wanted to learn something about the ‘culture’ of the Maldives so that I had an idea of how to go about fitting in.
Guess what came up.
The Maldives Culture website and its terrifying tales of a nation run by a murderous dictator who brutally imposed a rigid, mental strait jacket on his people through the control of the religious thought of his people enraged me.
Images of murder and torture imposed on any who dared to think with their own minds, or exercise an ounce of independent thought, religious free thinking or existential creativity caused me to tremble with indignation that a people could be so repressed. I felt this with a particularly fierce intensity seems I have always deeply cherished creative religious thought. My own background involved personal rebellion against the church I had been brought up in, so I was an individualistic oddball even by post-modern western standards, you might say.
Yet, still believing that for love, the sacrifice of self was noble, I decided I would be conformed to whatever I had to be to make sure I could be with my wife and child-to-be. I would allow this Maumoon to control my mind if it meant I was given a visa to be with my family in the Maldives, as it seemed at that stage they had to go back to Maldives. I felt I had no choice.
The next set of complications started when it became difficult to get our marriage registered in the Maldives. Although one particularly kind Maldivian gentleman tried hard to submit our marriage registration papers to Maldivian authorities and get our marriage validated so that I could get a visa, we kept on getting feedback such as, how can I prove my conversion to Islam was not just for marriage purposes? I received letters from the Imam to verify my revert status, certificates, yet the Maldivian Government still was not satisfied that I was genuine.
I began to panic.
I had nightmares of my wife being whipped for adultery and my son being brought up as a half-caste, illegitimate, ostracised nobody in the Maldives, a “bastard’ to use the term in its technical sense. I was told that this was a particularly grave shame in the Maldives. My hatred of Maumoon, who I believed would do this to my family, my fear of him became so intense, that I nearly had a nervous breakdown.
For the sake of my wife’s health, I put on a brave face as though nothing was wrong. When my son was finally born, my wife fell unconscious. I held my newborn baby son in my arms, loving him, so protective. Not knowing if I would keep him or lose him, I clung to him like a desperate madman. In front of everyone, I broke down and wept all over him, I loved him so much; I could not hold my pain inside me any longer. He was so beautiful, and here was I, his Daddy, who loved him so much, yet felt so completely helpless and afraid, so utterly powerless, and the grief was tearing my soul apart.
It took another six difficult years to have this issue resolved. I was in hell, not knowing whether Australian immigration or Maldivian immigration were going to come through. These were years of panic and immense stress. In that time, we had another child, and my interest in Maldivian politics became deep and personal.
The problem became harder when Abdullah Yameen Abdul-Gayoom came to Perth for a week to settle his son into studies. Trying all I could to get things done in the Maldives, I met up with him and tried to patronise him to use him to get some help for me. Sadly, that plan backfired on me viciously.
During these years, I found myself inspired and encouraged by reading about one particularly brave hero, Mohammed ‘Anni’ Nasheed, and the sufferings and the torture he went through fighting a non-violent struggle against this ruthless dictator Maumoon. This Nasheed character was embedded into my imagination as the archetype of courage, freedom, strength, justice, compassion and liberty.
Though I had never met him, he became something like a cult figure to me. I believed that he was suffering so that all oppressed Maldivians could be free. I believed that he was suffering for me. In my confused, anxious, distressed mind, I felt a deep spiritual bond with this guy, although, at that time he would not have known that I even existed.
Just as the endurance, the non-violence and the suffering of Mohammed Nasheed became the hope of oppressed Maldivians, he became my hope as well.
When my issue was finally resolved, I went to the Maldives for three months. The first thing I did was march into the MDP office wishing to offer my support. Anni and a host of other high profile MDP characters were there as there was some important MDP conference coming up. It was about a year before Anni became President. So I met Anni, and the most embarrassing thing happened. All my stress and anger at Maumoon and Yameen flew out of my mouth in that second. I exploded with rage, sadness, I was trembling. Years of pent up pressure, fear, confusion and anger was released onto Anni. I have no doubt he thought I was a total mad man, and he would have been right. Before I could explain myself to him calmly and plainly, I was whisked out of that MDP office as I had a sea plane to catch. Though I tried desperately hard to meet with Anni again to explain myself clearly, it was never meant to be.
Although my hero ‘Anni’ no doubt remembers me as a mad man, to this day, I still revere him for the sacrifices he made to oust a dictator.
This is why it is so hard for me to mentally digest it if it seems that Anni may have been involved in shady deals (bribing MP’s for example) even if they were deals done in desperation to secure the common good of the Maldives. My education and rational mind tells me, Ben, you know what politics is, don’t be so damned naïve. My rational mind is screaming, you know the way that reality works Ben, get the hell over it, power corrupts, and the path to power is corrupt.
My rational mind knows that the MDP is not entirely a bunch of humanitarian martyrs. I know that MDP has the support of both the liberal thinkers and the previously disgruntled businessmen whose motives may not be national interest. Yet my imagination, my creative mind says NO, not Anni, not he, my hero. It hurts me to digest the truth, but, I am a man, so I am digesting the truth, as unsettling as it is. I went through this same painful loss of faith when I left my church, and I am doing it again. I will be less naïve with my comments from now on.
However, if ever I met Anni again, I would like to remind him, that he is still the hope of many Maldivians for freedom and justice.
President Mohammed Anni Nasheed, I would like to remind you, that for many painful years, you were the hope of the freedom of the people of the Maldives. Your people were lead to believe, through Sandhaanu, through the Maldives Culture website, through Dhivehi Observer website and through Minivan Daily and later through Minivan News, that you would free the people of the Maldives from fear.
This includes the freedom from the fear of being used by corrupt politicians, freedom from the fear of gangsters, freedom from the fear of homelessness, freedom from the fear of hunger and want, freedom from the fear of mind control, and freedom from the fear of the loss of freedom of speech.
For the liberties that you have already given, I am deeply grateful, thank you very much. I am appreciative for all that you have done, and I am sure many of your people are as well.
Again, thank you.
But please keep in mind dear President, that many Maldivians still live in a state of fear, and that it seems that when you made the people believe there would be no more fear of the type they experience, you still have a lot of work to do to fulfill what you have allowed people to believe you would do.
It is less painful to have not hoped, than to have hoped and to have been disappointed, dear President. It seems you have been the source of that hope, you will also be targeted as the source of the pain should the people’s hopes remain unfulfilled. I am sure that you are aware of what that means. You will be punished by the electorate, and in how you will go down in memory, if the hopes of the people are betrayed.
So please, from now on, do everything in your power, to realise your people’s hope, dear President. Put all unnecessary things aside; waste no money on non-essentials, and just GO FOR IT!
Despite the recent disappointments, we still believe in you. Our love and our prayers will help you.
Your Sincerely,
Ben Plewright
All letters are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write a letter, please submit it to [email protected]
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Dear Ben, your letter started as a letter to all Maldivians and ended as one only for the president. I am complaining. 🙂
Ben, this is such an anti-climax.
It made me think that you are throwing a straw to a drowning man. I only hope the drowning man sees your straw and tries to catch it.
Oh it did too, sorry, well can I get away with it saying it was for all Maldivians? Wrote it in a rush, as a knee jerk reaction to another comment, sorry. Also, when my wife fell unconscious, I was weeping for her as well, but I was not allowed to touch her, Doctors all over her. The Nurse gave me my Son, so I wept and held him tight, the Nurse tried to take him from me, fearing I would drop him and I scolded her. No one was going to touch my family.
@Confused, a part of me wanted to end this letter by telling Anni he has failed miserably and broken his people’s hopes and should let go, but after what he had been through I am trying to, um, yeah, throw him a straw of hope...only for the sake what all Maldivians have been through for democracy I want it to work, only FOR ALL
yet another letter by a foreigner and their views on how maldives was so backward and how Anni is their hero.....hehehe, typical minivan style "independent" news...maldives culture website had their own agenda to potray maldives in a certain light and we all know what their agenda was.
Ben you sound a bit of a plonker (and a loser to boot!)
And i doubt you are the Aussie you profess to be.
Jimii: Get off it man, it's bad for you...
????? what ???…
I wish I was a maldivian sometimes of course because I love the big families Maldivians have and I love, I LOVE the culture. Only last night I was listening to an elderly Dhivehi Gentleman (on YOUTUBE) playing an accordion on the ground with two gys sitting beside him, playing Bodu Beru whilst he sung beautiful, Sufi like songs. His songs were SSOO beautiful and poetic, his seep sense of connectedness to the land and the weather (he sang about the love life in terms of the weather and about tears being pearls, typical, beautiful, traditional Dhivehi Sufi culture… What was that guys name someone help me out, big thickrimmed glasses, oh come on, someone help me remember his name…since deceased I think
Anyway, love true Dhivehi culture such as that, hate NEW Dhivehi culture which is fundamentalism.
But, sadly, I am just a Westerner, brought up in a culture which is individualistic, and though I have tried hard to find belonging by trying to attach myself your culture in the past, I am still cursed by being, at the end, a westerner, and because of that an individual, and because of that, I am often LONELY!
Loneliness is the cruel price we pay for the freedom we try to push onto everybody else.
I honestly wish I could have been born a Maldivian so I would have a sense of belonging, I’d give up my freedom ina second. But my cursed temperament won’t allow it.
The age of fear is ending.
Your tears will not be in vain.
Dear Ben plewright your story so sad hope& pray that you live after ever very happily take care of your self& family have a good life & trie to forget all the problems in the past & don't west your time with such a letters nobody is going to take your advise ....
The insightful comments have made me realize something so important. The whole thrust of the last part of my letter was absolutely foolish and I should have known so much better, I actually do so what was I thinking? Your comments have made me realize that the following SHOULD have been the conclusion of my letter. It does not matter now, we leave our mistakes as they are to learn from them, but the conclusion should have been something more along the lines of…
I realized, that No man, not President Nasheed, not anybody, can GIVE anybody else freedom. President cannot give you, or me, or anybody freedom. I was deluded to believe that another man could give you or I freedom!
Freedom is TAKEN through sacrifice, through struggle, through tears and bloodshed, it is won through pain. Any freedom GIVEN by anybody else, will, in the end, not be freedom at all. It will be your, our slavery.
The cost of the defiance which brings freedom is rejection, loneliness, physical hardship, soul destroying alienation, economic hardship. One needs to have tremendous inner strength to become free.
Figures like President Nasheed and his heroics, stories of suffering, and not only him but ALL you who have suffered are needed to inspire the rest of us to have the courage needed. So we are deeply grateful forever for Anni’s inspiration. He, and the suffering of all of you, was necessary to bring about the first stage of democratic transition, Thank you.
Thank you so much.
Also, each of you needs to read this, the suffering unnoticed by man is most precious to Your Creator, so YOU, the unsung heroes will be more rewarded by the Divine than Nasheed– Nasheed has already had a lot of his reward so to speak.
But the next phase of liberation has to come through the struggles, bloodshed of those NOT in power, who have supported freedom all the time.
Nasheed and the Maldivian people’s heroics (most especially those killed, tortured in prison or for standing up for what they believe) was necessary, and must be remembered daily as inspiration in the next phase of the struggle.
President Nasheed was right in struggling for democracy, and because of his struggles it is only fitting that he became the first Democratically Elected President of the Maldives. But, he was wrong in thinking he could give Maldivians freedom as a President, because, he cannot GIVE freedom. Nobody can. Anyway, he needed to become the President so we all could learn that.
So, with fundamentalism and hatred, religious bigotry repressing the beautiful Sufi culture of the Maldives (as it has been doing since the time of Maumoon) it is paramount that before creative thought, hope and freedom is lost forever, that we all, you, I, all of us ARISE, and brace ourselves for the next phase of the challenge.
The inspiration is there, in your culture, in the stories of the heroes, the modern heroes and the heroes of legend must be remembered. The old tombstones also must remind all of the heroes of legend, their struggles, and should be visited to derive inspiration and courage (Thakurafaanu etc…) The mystical, beautiful, Sufi spirit of the Dhivehin, as most beautifully expressed in the music of figures such as Naifaru Dhohokkho, must be revived. It is your soul!
So, Dhivehin, with all the Divine help and inspiration at your disposal, YOU WILL WIN!
.
Its kind of difficult to respond to this since we Maldivians are so not used to dealing with direct emotional messages. Right now a critical examination feels like an attempt to hurt your feelings..
You misunderstand "Ben". It is obvious that "you" lack the emotional detachment and value-free observations of a student of humanities (hence you did not learn much in school).
So-called "revolutionary" struggles have been hijacked by tribes agitating for power since time immemorial. Cult figures have been built upon carefully planned and executed PR strategies as well. Please refer to Stalin-communism, Al Gore-climate change, Qayyoom-religious values, Bush-conservative values for more recent examples.
A student of the humanities (at least not a good student) would never debase himself to soak historical events with personal trauma and emotional codswallop.
President Nasheed is the latest figure in an ongoing struggle by contenders for power. The opposing tribe has almost certainly come up with their figurehead. The fight will go on. The Maldivian people lack the power and freedom from State influence to say or do anything for their own emancipation. The State machinery will never truly allow the people to join the private sector and reduce the civil service or so-called "social-protection schemes" as that goes against political theory.
"President Nasheed is the latest figure in an ongoing struggle by contenders for power. The opposing tribe has almost certainly come up with their figurehead. The fight will go on. The Maldivian people lack the power and freedom from State influence to say or do anything for their own emancipation. The State machinery will never truly allow the people to join the private sector and reduce the civil service or so-called “social-protection schemes” as that goes against political theory."
Now that's codswallop alright. There has never been a time in our history as today, when the people have had the power to make a change in the way they govern themselves. The state machinery of the current govt has thus far been barely capable of keeping themselves afloat, much less strategize the evil plan you describe. The emancipation of the people today is incomplete only by the proclivity of a part of our population to solely depend on modern day prophets of doom, to make decisions for them, to their detriment, effectively digging their own graves. You have arrived at your conclusions through fallacious analogies, creating illusions of conspiracies where none exist.
Looks like you are here with an agenda to promote current brutal regime. Good luck!
@ peasant:
Let me elaborate my argument before you conclude that I am entirely wrong.
From a purely legal viewpoint, yes, the Constitutional structures formed by the 2008 Constitution allows for separation of powers, fundamental freedoms and judicial review of state conduct.
However, legal pronouncements stay on paper, it is how things work in practice that defines what a State really is.
I am not making judgments about the MDP or whatever P that springs up out of the ether. The Maldives is a country of uniformity where pluralism and difference of opinion is not well understood and rarely tolerated. The majority of the population directly or indirectly depends on the State for their livelihoods. This situation has somehow come about through whatever natural dispensations the "people" of the Maldives have and somewhat due to the engineering done by individual actors and the whole system of governance in this country.
The Maldivian people decided to remove Qayyoom from power, for a host of reasons. Democracy and human rights being the least understood and furthest down on the list of priorities.
I fear I might have to go on for centuries if I were to fully put forward an argument regarding the Maldivian people's economic and social dependency on the State. Yet I am sure you can put your mind to it and see some examples yourself.
@ peasant
"The state machinery of the current govt has thus far been barely capable of keeping themselves afloat, much less strategize the evil plan you describe."
This is because no one in the top government positions knows how to use the state machinery in an effective manner. Few in the government has the qualification or the experience of using state machinery to keep a government afloat. How then, can you expect such a lot to strategize a plan, evil or not?
@ tsk tsk
"The Maldivian people decided to remove Qayyoom from power, for a host of reasons. Democracy and human rights being the least understood and furthest down on the list of priorities."
Tell this to Ben Plewright
He still thinks these things were and are on the top of the list.
Tsk tsk - I agree to an extent, the State is still the largest employer but that's where the similarity with all previous regimes end. We never had a Civil Service separate from the govt. Never had such vocal opposing voices. I will also agree that we are far from a proper functioning democracy, but we do have an electoral democracy and an opposition "no" campaign is not illegal, unlike before. Whatever consolidation of power takes place now, can easily be overturned in 2013, which was what the MDP did in 2008, against much bigger odds.
"The Maldivian people decided to remove Qayyoom from power, for a host of reasons. Democracy and human rights being the least understood and furthest down on the list of priorities."
That's open for debate, maybe you're right that it is the least understood. People seem to cheer for their respective football teams, not everyone though. A basic human desire for self determination does not automatically have to translate to a demand for democracy as theorized in a political science text book, not immediately anyway. My expectations were and are apparently much lower than yours, two steps forward and one step back is fine by me. The first spontaneous public uprising against Gayyoom was for a human rights issue, can't relegate that to the bottom of the list either.
I'm not saying the current President and the MDP are saints and will deliver only good if left to their own devices; I'm only saying what we have today will survive not because of them, but despite them.
I respect your optimism and accept that I am biased in a negative manner.
However, I accept your argument that some gains have been made towards the self-determination of the Maldivian people.
I am not one to hope but we will all see what the results of this experiment is.
Interesting things to observe might be.
- 2011-2015 is a period of debt-service. A large portion of the State budget will have to be dedicated in this manner.
- The U.S. State department has already indicated to their MNCs that the time is nigh for FDI influx to the Maldives. India and China are already prepared for the same.
- The Maldives has yet to ensure MDG goals of furthering the quality of education. Cambridge IGCSE is one of those backward steps you make mention of. We shall see what we have wrought by our "results-based" system of education upon the local working populace of tomorrow (again with the negatives huh?).
- The Maldivian judiciary is to be seized by the majority party in Parliament. How shall they react? Will they adapt accordingly or cause a stir?
i am proud of my fellow Maldivians,who are refuting this imposter "ben"..if ben is from aussie than i am from minikaarajje...Ben is probably being payed by Anni..Dont worry ben if you ever come to Maldives Anni will make you maldivian ambassador in Aussie...I believe Ben is a simple liar.
MDP government is corrupt...they have so many foreign employes pretty soon we will be slaves in our country and will be rules over by "White" masters , our trade controlled by Indians..our defense by the Chinese...Anni and MDP will be filthy rich, they will stay in power for another 5oo years...the rest of us will just rot in the dark..we see it happening already the islands are losing electricity..we are being taxed brutally..our future is being stolen..We need to get rid of this government and bring true people rule to this country....
Recently, I wrote a letter to you guys with the intention of sharing with you, in as graphic detail as possible, the pain an innocent person goes through when persecuted for having independent thought and being told how and who to love by a culture which represses this basest of drives of thought and love.
I wanted you to feel my pain to birth a spirit of humanity in you guys, to awaken compassion, sorrow for the oppressed. This is because my pain, is the pain of perhaps hundreds of your own people who feel repressed by needing to think, act, believe, love in a certain way. If you could feel that, the suffering of one so oppressed, if you could feel it so deeply it scolds you, it would light a fire in your own souls, a fire of sorrow, which would become rage, and that fire would move you to fight, sacrifice yourself in a non-violent struggle for full human rights in your nation!
I was trying to make you FEEL the pain of all children in Maldives who are considered outcasts because they were born out of wedlock! I wanted you to feel the savage pain of all Women, who, in a moment of desperation, succumbed to a moment of need, fell pregnant and were then outcast, persecuted and whipped for it! This is extremely cruel because these women were never lusty, most were simply desperate for acceptance in a society which makes them feel alienated. They made themselves vulnerable, not for sex, but sex was what they believed they had to give to be loved! Promiscuous women are rarely lusty! They have a low self esteem, they are extremely broken! They are angry, maybe, jealous, maybe, but they are BROKEN! They need caring, self esteem building, and learn they can only get it through sex! For their desperate need for love, you buggers whip them for it!
Can’t you feel the pain of such a woman!
What is wrong with you, that you have not fought with all your blood, to stop women from being flogged, to stop people from being repressed!
Repression of independent thought and love, done in the name of unifying the people of the Maldives, has the opposite effect to unification! It creates tension, fear, aggression, hypocrisy, suspicion, social alienation. Repression only creates an atmosphere of fear and hate, it represses expressions of disunity, but creates a schism in the heart! It makes hearts of hatred, teaches people that to survive, you have to be the best at being dishonest!
Until we feel the pain of the oppressed with a fierce enough intensity to hurt ourselves trying to alleviate that pain, we will NEVER be free, we will never experience the pinnacle of human experience, that wonder called TRUE LOVE!
Change, revolution does not come from the mind only, it also comes from the heart! Philosophy and critical analysis comes along and philosophizes about it later, when the blood has been spilt by real reformers! Yes, motives are always mixed! I know that! Greed gives power to idealism, and revolutions are always supported and empowered by those who want only power, of course! But without the true hearts, change would not win! Change is fuelled by tribalism, power hunger, evil, true! Yet, without goodness mixed in, revolution would not succeed, and this is the paradox. Goodness needs evil to manifest, and vice versa.
I understand that it is a great sacrifice to have true compassion in the Maldives, because if you make a stand for the oppressed, you may go down and be tortured yourself. The Dhivehin have been so brutally oppressed, that it is life preserving to limit compassion. If you care too much, you’ll hurt too much! So most live in fear of true compassion. Life becomes vein, painful, aggressive, narcissistic because of the repression of compassion by the cruel culture of the leadership styles of the past!
But the social, political cycle of revenge, torture, fear, revenge, torture, fear, social alienation, MUST be broken by a sacrifice of self for compassion, heroic vulnerability of LOVE!
Perhaps, if people are violent, they may need to be repressed, I mean, I am of the opinion that gangsterism needs to be repressed. Yet, repression is no cure, it is only a short term emergency necessity. But whilst the state represses, somebody has to truly CARE for the gangsters.
The unity that your repression creates is artificial unity, but true, heart unity is not realized through social repression, but through genuine, self sacrificial caring!!
Hearts of the Maldives, arise and burn for the freedom of your nation!
Ben, I think you are worrying too much about things you cannot really help. Take it easy, man. Life is not a bed of roses for anyone. But many live their lves happily. Try and be included in this group. 🙂
"...the pain of perhaps hundreds of your own people who feel repressed..."
Ah-ha.
Ben, we may not be as free as Australians but I think your view is a bit exaggerated.
We are not that "repressed" or "oppressed." And we are probably less depressed than many others who are more free. So its not too bad. We cherish the "little freedom" we have and are happy.
Ben is delusional...he even replies to comments on his own article...i dont know what country you are taking about..maybe Afghanistan under Thaliban....You should liberate your fellow aussis from the heavy tax burden..careful another flooding may come your way and you will have to pay more flood tax...pathetic..MDP is trying to introduce such a system in Maldives..it doesn't empower us rather makes us poorer and more dependent on MDP and its corrupt government.
@nars: I did not know this was unconventional (replying to comments on my own letter or article...) as before I got on minivan I never blogged or submitted internet articles, so I don't know these conventions I am learning.
But I would have felt that if I submitted a comment or an idea in response to an article, that it would be encouraging if the author spent a second to take it in and showed me such by adknowledging it? So perhaps the convention should be done away with.
But I am encouraged that you know what is happening in my country, thankyou for that, it is really moving. It actually makes me feel sorry I had exchganged abuses with you, as you apparently have a good side which you show me here for the first time. Yes, my land speaks to me, it is part of my soul, I feel it, it is the voice of God and the heart of God if you learn to listen to it with your spirit. It is dry, lonely country, and when it burns, it floods it hurts us all.
Nars, if you want me, or anybody else to sympathize with your anti-Anni views, you have to explain them without abusing a person. When you abuse me, or anybody, we are simply going to abuse each other, no-one is going to learn anything. Why don't you try to present your ideas in a way that I would feel empathy with them, please do that. because, if you and your insulting behaviour are the typical blue supporter, I understand why the Maldivian people got rid of Maumoon at the electorate.
@Rocket: Thanks for the little smily face... It made me feel all warm and fuzy.
Maybe you are right...I guess, freedom can also be freedom to do BAD things, maybe, for me, compassion and understanding are more important than freedom.
That reminds me, I read a book about the making of freedom in the Western culture, written by an African American Sociologist. Wish I could find it...The point of it was, our Western freedom is dependant on the enslavement of other's, as 'freedom' was used in Ancient Greece to mean you were not a slave, and freedom was another word for eploitative tyrant, as the slaves did the work.
Yes, often, our Western freedom has depended on the oppression of the rest of the world.
Ben, so did Australian government never gave a visa for your Maldivian wife to settle their with you? If so I must say thats very dissapointing too from your own country's visa policy side. I think you and your family could have a much better life in Australia than here. Having said that its your own right to chose where you want to live. What happened to you when you were trying to settle down here was really bad and shouldn't have happened. The previous government should have given you the right visa and right to live here freely when you had a maldivian wife. But what I didn't like from you article was you complained about the Maldvian authorities so much when you own australian government hasn't given your wife to stay in Australia when she was legally married to you, an australian citizen. Why didn't you go in to some australian immigration office and shout like a mad man just like the way you blew up infront of Anni when you met him for the first time?
Regarding Anni, I see you praise him much like if he is a God. Even we had a lot of hopes on him when he was campaigning and thats why we voted for him. But it seems he has changed and not lived up to the promises he made. He has turned out to be nothing but a big fat liar. Its infact now hard to trust any polititian in this country. Neither from the MDP or DRP. They all seem to be interested in their own craze to become the president. No one cares for the ordinary maldivian who has gone done from been poor to the poorest. The daily life has become a hardship now. Salries cut down, cost of living is high, no safety on our streets etc etc.
@Ziyan: Please, I am angrier with Australian Government alright, damned well FURIOUS! Especially seems our Government claims to promote human rights etc...And I HAVE blasted many ppl...
Well then Ben, why didn't you talk about how dealt with your Australian Immigration authorities regarding your wife? Whay don't you write it here on Minivan about them with the same words of anger and hatred which you have used again the Qayyoom regime? May be we will know how honest of an write you are and how good are the australian immigration system for their own nationals who decide to marry a brown skin asian lady? We all know how the australians treat the indian students there, they have been quite racist that the indian government had to intervene at one point regarding the issue. so tell us your story from the australian side too, make a bilateral story rather than a biased unilateral one which you have posted here now. I just think you don't see the world with your two eyes and think from both your cerebral hemispheres. I feel you are mental and have some personality disorder. May be you should seek some help from a psychiatrist...just an advice for you.
"I understand that itis a great sacrifice to have compassion in the maldives"
"the dhivehin have been so brutally opressed that it is life preserving to limit compassion"
"beautiful sufi culture of maldives"
delusional, or a troll of MDP
@Ziyan: Yes. As I have said before, I have worked towards fighting racism in this country for years. I lived, worked in an Indigenous community in my teens and twenties, and fought hard for, with Indigenous Australians to get justice. When my Wife was struggling to get a visa here, I wrote things against some of our Politicians, against racism, I spoke to the Leader of the ALP personally (Carmen Lawrence). So, thankyou for that criticism, you are correct, the evil was on Both sides.
It just so happened that writing this letter, I was writing for a Maldivian audience and did not think that it would mean anything to express my anger towards John Howard, Phillip Ruddock as I did not think any Maldivian would know what I was talking about it. But, if you think that would help, I shall do that, express my rage against my own Government.
But what if I did happen to suffer from a mental illness Ziyan? Would it be very mature of you, big hearted of you to insult a person using their defects against them? Have some compassion and understanding.
@aharen: just because you do not have the intelligence to even understand what I am getting at, or else you are too heartless to admit it, does not mean I am delusional or wrong...
"Ben" or whoever you are,
There's really no point in conducting this patronizing program where you harp on like a hippie on hash about love, compassion and altruism while alternatively drooling on President Nasheed or throwing him "backhanded" insults when you feel that would be popular.
Get a feel for the country you have been supposedly resident in and especially the capital city. Understand the demographics before you try to turn Goebbels for the MDP.
Those who read Minivan are usually from the educated elite who truly understand the English language (as opposed to studying it at O'level). These people often come from comfortable social backgrounds and tend to be less impressionable when it comes to speechifying zealots. We have our faults, but the above letter, emotional though it may be, only shows that;
- As a foreign national, you do not have the decency to refrain from making extremely biased and personal comments about our domestic affairs.
- You lack the capacity, or have intentionally foregone the necessity, to communicate in a rational manner.
- Your purported bias against the Qayyoom regime is extremely personal and is based mainly on one isolated incident.
- Your attempts at "criticizing" President Nasheed sounds just about as sincere as any criticism that the Dalai Lama might make about Buddha.
Ben why do I feel that you are a person who has been actually kicked in the butt by both the governments of Maldives and Australia? I feel non one really wants to listen to you ! Surely something must be wrong in the way you come up with your ideas and proposes or may be something is just seriously wrong with your personality which is why both the countries have let you down badly. Finally you found one platform to bring out all your frustrations, which unfortunately is MN.
One more to say, Maldives been finally the only place who has granted you and your family to live together (eventhough you had problems in getting the visa), I think should probably try and make your heart believe more in the good things which this country offers you than those the bad ones. In other words, its not right you have a love and hate feeling towards Maldives. If you are living here you better try yourself love this country more than the hate fraction, afterall you are married to a Maldivian and your child has half maldivian genes. You won't find any country where you will get everything presented to you in a gold plate. So if there are non such moments in here to for you, better get used to it than going mental inside a political party's office.
@tsk Tsk: You think that because I am so emotional, that I don't understand, but, it is you who does not understand. Yes, on issues such as "Anni's Government is really tribalism presented as human rights, democracy to FOOL the ppl into supporting it etc..." you understand everything...
So, if that is true, then that just makes what I was actually tring to achieve more relevant.
You see, I spent five years researching political events and political philosophy as a uni student, so I know how to use reason, I know how to present a well researched, thorough, objective argument.
Yet, what I think you have not understood is that, to stand up for full human rights in the Maldives, it does not take a huge mind, it takes a huge HEART. It takes courage, it takes love, and these things are inspired through emotional inspiration so THIS is what I was struggling to achieve, was generating EMOTION. I am very sad to see it did not work, but at least I can say I had a try at it.
What I am afraid of is Islamic extremism growing in your nation, because I have seen the fact that repression of a person's human rights, repression of a person's need for self relaization, rejection of a person's ability to be true to themselves leads to ppl feeling ANGRY, and they turn to gangsterism or Islamic extremism to channel that anger. So, I am trying to help, and it is not through intellectual arguments that one can help, but through inspiration, as Maldivians are the wisest, most intelligent people I have ever met, yet full human rights are still lacking.
I am trying to prevent the spread of gangsterism and Islamic extremism by fighting the route causes of it, so it could be combatted without repressing it, I hoped I could.
he is right, i guess he was really grateful for anni to have done the impossible, and now today we have a greater threat to our country if we dont take it seriously.
its the big question
why can't we have religious freedom in the maldives?
there are people who is trying to establish islamic sharia in the maldives, most muslims says yes cos they feel its their islamic duty to agree with sharia, but it dont have to be like that.
these people know what islam is, and are not shy of admitting it, when i told them about ibrahim fauzee they knew he was a terrorist and was a hero among them, and said that terrorism is in islam and they will kill the infidels and the apostates.
if this so, say good bye to our tourism, they will attack the infidel tourist who is drinking on a muslim soil, it has been their agenda for sometime now.
we maldivian need to realize that cases like this is increasing, you cant stop people from falling in love with other people, regardless of the religion, (love has no boundary)
MALDIVIAN'S CAN BE NON MUSLIMS.
we have no problem having an "infidel" working for us. they share our food and live in our country, do we have a problem with that? so why are we maldivian's so taken back by the idea that a maldivian can be a non muslim?
i ask do we really wanna be like afgan or pakistan? malaysia is an islamic state, but other religions live side by side, and they are growing, why cant we look at positive impacts of cultural diversities and try to adapt from it for the greater good?
@ Ben
"just because you do not have the intelligence to even understand what I am getting at, ... "
Umm, Ben, I am not 'Aharen' but I am probably as confused as he is after reading lines and lines of your letter and the additions you made later on as comments.
If you do not mind, please, can you tell me in one sentence what you are getting at?
@Confused: My one sentence would be: Many Maldivians are hurting because other maldivians are too selfish to allow them to be true to themselves, LET THEM BE!
@Bjorn: Thankyou.
I just should make one point etremely clear just in case my Wige gets acused of being a Kafr. My Wife is a dedicated Muslim, always has been. She is bringing my Kids up as good Moslems, going To Qur'an school etc... When I married mt Wife, I was also a good Muslim who believed Maldives should be 100 percent Muslim. The pain I went through after that, and the fact that my being a Muslim was doubted, was part of what caused me to be confused and resent repression of human rights.
That is true.
Ben, thanks for your one sentence summarisation. That helped me to understand your frustrations.
"Maldivians are hurting because other maldivians are too selfish to allow them to be true to themselves, LET THEM BE!"
As an individual, I am more than happy to stick to "Live and let live" slogan.
But I think this might be a little controversial if this is supposed to be the rule of a nation or a people.
If we can say (or shout, for that matter 🙂 ) "LET THEM BE," why have a constitution, why have laws, why have rules or anything else that might not make this possible for everyone?
As you will very well understand, every country has a different constitution. Every country has a different set of laws. There might be some laws common to many but I would not say any two country will have the same set of laws.
Australia, for example is under the British Monarchy. So is New Zealand. But their constitution is very different from each others and also from that of England.
We might have something called universal declaration of human rights, but because human rights are defined in different ways by different people, it is hard to make this declaration acceptable universally.
What I am trying to convince you of is that culture plays a vital role in shaping an individual or a people. So it might be culture that cannot completely allow a people to be what they are. But, instead of getting frustrated that this is so, I would for example, live and let them live.
And if you think a country's culture or the constitution, for example, prohibits its people to be what they are, I think there is little that any outsider can complain about it. If the people are happy with what they have, why should an outsider decide that their culture or constitution needs fixing.
This is probably what is happening in Iraq. The Americans thought that democracy can be exported and they are trying their might to import it to Iraq.
Before i get completely lost in this: what I am trying to say is that "LET THEM BE" cannot be a boundless thing but limited to a sphere. And Maldivians are no exception. We have our own sphere in which we do let people be themselves. Its just that our shpere is not an exact copy of someone else's sphere. But this is no exception. So why complain?
2confused: Universal Human rights are above so called cultural rights.
I went through all this working up North Western Australia. So many Australians turned a blind eye to violent murder in Australian Aboriginal Communities, as it was their culture. To speak up for the oppressed victims, you were accused as a racist, and that was at a time that Australia was desparately trying to live down its racist past and reputatiojn for racism, so, the Aboriginals suffered.
Why complain?
Two little catchy phrases I heard elsewhere, plus a little one I scratched ouy myself, probably defines why I complain.
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere (MLK)
The person who trembles when he sees injustice is a friend of mine (Che')
Every human being is created with something that makes them special, and if one human being is robbed by greed or injustice of what makes them special, humanity is robbed of its collective treasures (My own)
Seriously this Ben guy is a mental. Someone please remove him from the Maldives. We don't want such people here in our country. Bloody racist.
I made a remark, in hurt and anger, relating to an article I read a few months back which shocked me, we know what that article was about. My comment was not about Maldivians but about religious leaders, whom I was hurt because of their hurt to me, so I imagined it was them in the article I speak of, and commented as such. I made a mistake, for which I am deeply sorry. My mistake was interpreted as racist, but it was not about Maldivians but about a few Maldivians, the Mullah's who rejected me, for no good reason. It was not racist, as I did not have Maldivians, as a race, in my mind, but I had, Mullah's in my mind. I never meant it for Maldivians! I apologized sincerely, and again, I am deeply deeply sorry.
Yet for my mistake, Ziyan would willingly punish not only me, but punish my Wife and Kids, who quite frankly, are totally innocent, and are horrified by my writings because my Wife and Kids are very spiritual Muslims, unlike myself who is a confused Muslim, yet still a Muslim.
Yet Ziyan would deprive my Wife and children of a father, which reveals, the so called JUSTICE which horrifies me about Maldivian leadership styles, it is disproportionate, vengeful, not JUST...
I am not in Maldives, but when I return, I will happily present myself to the Islamic Ministry, request to be punished, but ME punished only!If you were just, you would recommend whipping me, torturing me for a few months, which, I deserve! I would take it!
But robbing my wife and kids of a Daddy FOREVER! That is inhumane, and that is the attitude I am against.
Yes, I yielded to hate, and said something stupid, I made a huge mistake, I am willing to pay for it, but please, punish ME, have JUSTICE< not vengeance!
He is fictional.
Australia has the most immaculate System of genocide , systematically wiping out the aborigines , Ben while you talk of rights tell me why do aborigines live in a set out ghetto far from the view of every life. I was appalled to see how they have been driven into submission to live that life and whats more the administrative genocide of these is so perfect that the aborogines believe that the Aussy government is doing them a favor just as the Maldivian once believed that Gayoom was doing them a favor
@Valkyrie: When I first learnt about Aboriginals and their plight, I was a teenager, and I bowed my head in deep shame and guilt for what us English settlers had done to the Aboriginal people, and I went up North and worked for many year with Aboriginal people, I can speak an Australian Aboriginal dialect, and I did a lot of damned hard work to change white people's racist perspective. You must contact the Yamaji Language centre and ask for a book called Malgana Wangnyinna, I am listed as one of the contributors. I lived with Aboriginal people and to this day my Aboriginal family are stll a very deep part of me.
I did not, when being attacked over my human rights abuses, try and justify my abusive nature by pointing out that my attacker was just as abusive.
I took responsibilty for my actions, I did not try and avoid my moral duty to promote humanity by saying, who are you to talk.
So, Valkyrie, what you say is so true, yet their is a lot of work to be done with Aboriginal people, I continue to do that.
IF you are trying to evade your moral duties to help your ppl by pointing out that I am just as bad, that is an extremely selfish, extremely cowardly cop out and excuse.
But if you are working hard to help your ppl, then, well done, you are a hero.
Ben i was ooiting out that we have much work to do and that the situation for the aborogines are much worse than it ever was for maldivians .
i am glad you have worked for their beterment and do feel for your plight as a person who was involved with your perticular problem and nowing the arguments that went through i am sorry that you had to go through what you had to , but the picture painted by maldives culture is far too exegerated because i believe Majid is driven by anger towards maumoon for abolishing the sultanate system and his loss of title during gayooms time, he is purely a blue blooded sad man who wishes that aristocracy and the sultanates still carried thier titles of royalty
you are a good man Ben and you should always keep the faith that good is not the work of an individual by the collective desire for good
@VALKYRIE
WOW.. a bit speechless... not used to being told i am good
but you are also very good valkyrie to be patient with me,,, yeah you are right