Category: News in Brief

Stricter safety measures to ensure tourist safety: Tourism Minister Adheeb

Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Gafoor has reiterated the importance of ensuring the safety of tourists in the Maldives through stricter safety measures.

In light of the recent suspected snorkelling incidents whereby one tourist died and another is still missing, Adheeb revealed to local media that efforts are underway to strengthen existing regulations to ensure such incidents are not repeated.

As of next month, Adheeb stated that preparations will be undertaken to initiate various activities in relation to tourist safety.

According the tourism minister, the industry had so far been based on the European market, where he said tourists were generally much more adept swimmers. However, he claimed that east Asians who were now dominating tourism numbers in the Maldives market were not so familiar with the ocean.

“Europeans are generally strong swimmers. But the ocean is a whole new experience for the Chinese. The level of excitement for them is very different. We have to take that into account and be more aware of it when we make arrangements,” Adheeb said.

Adheeb also stated that the tourism industry must evolve and adapt to the changing market, whilst also increasing ocean awareness for tourists. Additionally, existing regulations must be monitored and strengthened.

“If such incidents keep repeating it is a major concern. It will adversely affect our tourism. We need to change the services being provided with the market,” Adheeb told local media.

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Fault in Laamu Kadhdhoo aiport’s only fire truck causes operations to halt

The only fire truck at Laamu Kadhdhoo airport failed to start this morning causing airport operations to come to a halt.

Due to a fault in the fire truck, Ahmed Ali, who is currently in charge of the airport, said it had not been possible for any aircraft to land at the airport since 9:30am.

Operations were also suspended yesterday due to the same problem.

“We only have one fire truck. The truck has failed to start, so operations have been suspended,” Ali told local media.

While efforts to repair the truck were underway, Ali said that some of the equipment required to repair the truck was not at the airport.

According to Ali, airport operations are to resume by 8:00pm tonight (December 17).

Aviation law prohibits airplanes from landing at an airport without the presence of an operational fire truck.

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Sick Indian prisoners in the Maldives denied treatment: The Hindu

More than a year after India and the Maldives signed an agreement on transfer of convicted prisoners, as many as 14 Indian inmates in the archipelago are losing hope of being transferred to prisons in their country, reports Indian newspaper The Hindu.

“We have no problems. From our side, there is no delay. We welcome India taking back sentenced prisoners,” a Maldivian official told The Hindu last week, when asked about the delay in paperwork.

Just as in the case of 33 Indian prisoners in Sri Lanka, the Indians in Maldives prisons are also at the receiving end of Indian bureaucracy. But unlike in the case of Indian prisoners in Sri Lanka, most of the 14 prisoners in the Maldives are ill and have almost no access to treatment. Access to treatment for most islanders in the Maldives consumes time, energy and money. Vacancies for specialist-doctors exist even in the country’s main hospital, the Indian-built Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital, Male.

“I do not know what my disease is,” said a woman prisoner who has been jailed in the Central North province of Maafushi, in Kaafu Atoll. “After I have been brought to Maafushi, I have never met a doctor. Every month, they take me to Male and bring me back. Soon after that they take a signature of mine in a paper with something written in Dhivehi [the official language of the Maldives],” said the woman, in a letter to the Indian High Commissioner in the Maldives.

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Man sentenced to one year imprisonment for refusing urine sample

The Criminal Court on Sunday sentenced a man to one year imprisonment for refusing to submit a urine sample to police.

The verdict marks the first time a person was convicted for the offence since the new drug law came into force on December 31, 2011.

Ali Abdulla, of Hulhumale’ flat 10g 4, was arrested in a drug-related case on May 14 and refused to submit a urine sample to police.

He was sentenced under article 123(b) of the Drug Act (Dhivehi), which states that refusing to submit a urine sample when arrested on drug-related charges is a crime punishable by a one year jail term.

Following a police special operation in November that saw two MPs arrested from an uninhabited island in Haa Dhaal atoll on suspicion of drug use and alcohol consumption, police said individuals who refused to undergo a urine examination could face prosecution.

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP for Kaashidhoo Abdullah Jabir and MP for Henveiru-South Haamid Abdul Ghafoor, former President Nasheed’s Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair, his wife Mariyam Faiza, and former President Nasheed’s Chief Advisor Ibrahim Hussain Zaki, allegedly refused to cooperate with police in the urine testing procedure.

Meanwhile, police sent cases of two individuals aged 23 and 39 who refused to provide urine samples to the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) in December.

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More than 150 searched in police special operation

Police stopped and searched 153 people during a 24-hour special operation launched on Saturday (December 15) to curb crime rates in the capital Male’.

Police said officers on patrol “questioned people out on the street late at night without a purpose” and monitored groups of people in various locations.

Article 47(a) of the constitution however states, “No person shall be subject to search or seizure unless there is reasonable cause.”

Police meanwhile said the operation is set to continue in the future to “make Male’ secure.”

At a press briefing in October, Assistant Commissioner of Police revealed that officers on patrol after midnight questioned 2,930 individuals in a few weeks and prepared their profiles.

The Head of Central Operations Command explained that police have been “questioning people awake and out on the street without a purpose after midnight” as part of the ongoing operation to curb crime in the capital.

Saudhi also claimed that the government’s decision to revoke licenses of businesses to operate 24-hours has led to a decrease in the crime rate.

In October, police requested the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) press criminal charges against a pair of 18 year-olds for refusing to submit to a search by officers on patrol.

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PPM win island council seats in Vashafaru, Innamadhoo

The government-aligned Progressive Party of Malidves (PPM) won two by-elections held yesterday for vacant island council seats in Haa Alif Vashafaru and Raa Innamadhoo.

In Vashafaru, PPM candidate Mohamed Waheed Hassan won with 251 votes against Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Ahmed Mujathaba with 123 votes and Jumhooree Party (JP) candidate Ibrahim Nadir with 53 votes.

In the island of Innamadhoo in Raa atoll, PPM candidate Ibrahim Nuhan won with 228 votes against MDP candidate Hussain Shafiu with 177 votes.

In the February 2011 local council elections, all five island council seats of Vashafaru were won by then-opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) with the first placed candidate receiving 300 votes.

The MDP candidate in sixth place received 175 votes.

In Innamadhoo meanwhile, two independent candidates and three MDP candidates were elected to the five-member island council. The third-placed MDP candidate received 194 votes.

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Visa applications to travel India now take longer to process

Visas to travel to India will now take one week to process, the High Commission of India in Maldives has announced.

Previously the process would take two to three days, however a notice from the high commission has now advised people to apply for their visas well in advance to avoid inconvenience.

The high commission has also announced that visa free travel facilities to India available to Maldivian citizens are only valid for tourism purposes.

Citizens wishing to travel to India for a purpose other than tourism are advised to obtain the appropriate visas before travelling to the country.

According to local media, the high commission said that these changes are solely due to technical reasons.

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Police launch investigation into sinking of Hivvaru boat

Police have launched an investigation into the sinking of ‘Hivvaru’ boat which was found about 10 days after it went missing.

Out of the ten crew members aboard the vessel, a 76-year-old Maldivian man and a Bangladeshi national both died after the boat capsized due to rough seas.

A police media official said that a marine police team is presently active in Addu City for the investigation, local media reported.

The Hivvaru boat was found by a Sri Lankan Fishing vessel, before the coast guard travelled to bring the survivors back to Addu City last Tuesday (December 11).

Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) told how the boat captain had said the Bangladeshi and Maldivian died while they were on-board a dinghy after Hivvaru began to sink, and that their bodies were disposed of into the sea, Sun Online reported.

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Down and out in the Maldives: Business Standard

The Maldives offers a range of thrills — all you need is time to kill and dollars to burn, writes N Sundaresha Subramanian for the Business Standard.

But I have neither the time nor the dollars. So I go looking for ways to get to Kandooma. Most of my fellow passengers are honeymooning couples or Maldivians returning home with families. I am the odd one out, a realisation that makes me a little jittery.

I ask an elderly security guard. “Kandooma…err.” he searches the sea and says, “Sorry I don’t know.” No one else seems to either. Finally, hidden in the arrival area, I find a counter with the name of my resort on it. I run to the frail receptionist in orange shirt and khaki pants. “A boat is leaving in 10 minutes, sir, please take a seat.” Thank god. How far is Kandooma from here? “Forty-five minutes by speed boat.”

But I need to come back to the airport for the ceremony at night. What time does the boat leave from there? “There is a boat at 8 pm. But they will charge you.” “That’s ok,” I say feeling the five 20-dollar bills in my shirt pocket. I am a little worried as the only other passengers to Kandooma are an elderly white couple. As the boat arrives I am relieved to see some more men join the crew of three.

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