Tag: comment

Comment: Lack of educational opportunity cripples aspirations of young people

With my initiative to make a better day for youth and women of the Maldives, I have travelled across the nation to bring them whatever opportunities I can to open the door for youth to ease the entry into the working world.

I have developed a very large network of communities made up of parents, NGOs, leaders, women groups and youth themselves, engaged aid agencies and institutions that provided funding support, and liaised with resorts to link youth with on-the-job training and employment.

In this article I am giving my experience, my impression and my opinion of youth in the Maldives today. There is no blame or judgment and I hope that readers will be willing to share their experiences and constructive suggestions on how to provide youth a better environment in the Maldives.

Youth across the islands of Maldives are not sheltered from the realities of the adult world because young people leave school early, leaving behind the relative shelter of the school community.

Most of them do not progress to the last couple of years of school, and many leave the final year with hardly any acceptable standard of qualification.

Most early school leavers and secondary graduates (with low grades) are associated with disadvantaged circumstances.

These disadvantages can be defined as lack of choices or opportunities caused by poverty, geographic isolation, community support structures and social alienation and the result of centralised governance that has not catered to the needs of island people.

The lack of ability of teachers (whom also lack resources to support students) and skills to teach young people is a direct cause of student failure and offsets serious personality problems in young people. Whatever few opportunities there are in the islands are further obstructed by the lack of English language skills required for learning.

These disadvantages lead to low school achievement, aggressive and anti-social behavior, poor self-esteem and low expectations, unemployment, feeling powerless or isolated, withdrawal and loss of ability to communicate.

These young people are vulnerable to health problems and prey for illegal activities. Their lifestyle is that of any young person who wants to show a cool personality: smoking, late nights hanging around, cool speech, ‘don’t care’ attitude, cool clothing (if they can afford it). Underneath: extremely sensitive, wanting respect, dignity and direction.

The longer these young people hang around after leaving school without further studies and disciplined activities, the more vulnerable they become.

The gap between 15 and 18 years needs to be filled with schooling towards further or higher education. Presently the life of a young Maldivian in the islands is often aimless and lacks the stimulating environment that young people need to thrive.

The Labor Law of the Maldives does not make it any easier for the young Maldivian, although I am not advocating or criticising the Law.

Young people who leave school in the islands at the age of 15 years do not have much choice to continue their education. In principle they cannot be employed either.

While our programs provide an opportunity for young people to acquire skills for entry level jobs, potential employers are hesitant (and understandably so) to take under-age trainees as apprentices.

The conditions affect young women just as much as young men, however the outcomes are slightly different in my opinion.

While a young man is aggressively judged for his low performance, low achievement of a young woman is less of an issue. Young women joining our vocational training classes indicate their will to learn and interestingly are better achievers compared to their male colleagues, but are often stopped by parents and brothers.

Beliefs and attitude play a big role in this, and in the confusion of what is possible and what is right, the prevailing norms and insecurities take over resulting in young women’s opportunities being compromised.

Many young men join our classes because it is the only opportunity to walk through an open door. Young men and women’s motivation to get married early is evidently the results of nothing else to do in the community.

Boys are expected to have future employment and young women have limited aspirations for their future lives and work. With such limited personal aspirations and goals, marriage may appear to be an attractive option for these young women. Being a wife gives a young woman a role and often a deceptive one. Unfortunately being a husband does not change much for a young man who has not understood the responsibilities and commitments that go along with marriage.

The fact is that young people cross the threshold to adult life without having experienced youth.

Aminath Arif is the founder of SALAAM School.

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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Comment: Political parties will not resolve current conflicts

The killer headlines these days are about the standstill to Maldives political party peace talks.

The UN has spent more than US$40,000 to recruit a peace negotiator, and the resources allocated towards this are justifiable. There have to be efforts made to resolve the bickering and barking of the political parties.

In my graduate studies in human rights and peace studies, I was asked in one course to research a paper on how to connect human rights and peace. It was challenging as these were two varied disciplines and the advocates of both notions have different discourses.

Oftentimes during conflicts, the human rights advocators desire to settle scores with the human rights violators and bring justice. If the human rights violators are the past regime or the government, the government will reject all peace talks.

At the same time, peace keepers may show some indifference to human rights violators as their main aim is to resolve disputes and conflicts so that peace processes and peace talks can resume. When you study the history of peace negotiations in conflicting countries, each country has undergone dissimilar transformations.

We can consider the examples of good peace negotiations and try to adapt a workable methodology that may be appropriate to Maldives.

No external expert can resolve the case without internal and domestic willingness to resolve the political differences to accord peace to the citizens of the Maldives.

Maldivian context

The international community has been adamant that the Maldivian politicians would be able to settle their differences for the sake of the Maldivian people. I was skeptical and shared my views with the international diplomatic missions, statesmen or whoever came during the past few months to influence the Maldives politicians to resolve our domestic political affairs.

At the beginning there were reservations by Maldivians and politicians that the good name of the peace talks could be stolen by external experts and foreign countries. When Assistant Secretary of US State Robert Blakes met us in July, I was critical and open.

I shook my head negatively at his hypothesis that political parties will resolve the conflict.

There was a series of successive visits by foreign diplomats before his visit and afterwards. Another visit was a mission from UN Department of Political Affairs who met stakeholders but kept nodding off through nearly all the meetings.

I predicted at the time that the peace talks will be boycotted sequentially. I predicted that the sudden quick agreements will stall if there are no international negotiation facilitations. I suggested having an international negotiation facilitation team of 2-3 members with local consultants.

It will be a costly affair but I felt it has to be done.

Psychological warfare

Do you know what happens when two kids starts fighting over a toy? Each kid will tug at the toy, trying to gain control and power. The stronger kid will always win.

A smart kid knows how to cajole, and sweet talk will win over the other kid. Nice is manipulative and always wins. We need this kind of approach in the resolution of politics in the Maldives.

Nobody wins at all rounds, some lose and some win. We have to learn to accept defeat sometimes.

Immature political games

The deadlock in parliament’s deliberations has been challenged several times, at a cost in public spending of Rf400,000 a day. When the deadlocks are at climax, the pressure rises from the public. The general public starts calling for the resignation of MPs through radio and television channels, which are their only outlet.

Local television polls have shown that the public believes the MPs are not doing their jobs, although the political parties do not take these polls seriously are claim this is work of the opposition or government.

Again, are there any laws where the public, ultimately the highest authority in the Maldives, can make the MPs accountable?

Unfortunately, there seems to be no such laws and the MPs seem to be above law. They have failed many times to pass the required laws as per the Constitution. The public has witnessed the MPs name-calling on the parliament floor, accusing everybody of corruption without citing credible sources, accusing each other of fraud, vulgarity and theft.

Many times we have seen the MPs committing criminal offenses in parliament by hitting each other, but none of these cases have been put to trial.

Each MP – not to be outdone – presents that he talks on behalf of the public. This is an old story we are sick of hearing.

How many MPs can truly say that they have talked and understood the voices of the public? The general public elected the MPs with high expectations and hopes for a better democracy.

Way forward

Dialogue, dialogue and more dialogue.  We understand the Maldivian context, we are going through a democratising process and there will be many political hurdles, but not at the cost of public spending, our public life, and political peace.

The MPs are paid large amounts of public money for their salaries and they have to fulfill their obligations. How can, the ruling Government, the opposition or the independent candidates say that they are not ready for dialogue or peace talks?

The only way forward to any political solution in the Maldives is to keep up the dialogue. Ask any Maldivian citizen and you will hear same thing: we need the politicians to talk and bring solutions to the political conflicts.

Also, the peace expert should climb down from his chair and talk to the average citizens to hear our grievances. To the politicians, if you are not ready to dialogue, please resign from the political scenario and give peace to average citizens.

We have bigger issues in trying to make ends meet and earn a living, what with the high rents, spike in food prices and living costs. In addition to this, we have to deal with drug and gang warlords, fear, and sadly a society disintegrating moral values.

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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Comment: Real democracy is when barriers to women’s participation come down

If democracy is to function, barriers to women’s participation have to come down. If the citizens of Maldives are to improve their lives, women voices need to be heard at the political level and the obstructions removed.

Any politician or citizen of good will in the country who wants democracy will need to be honest and understand this aspect, and promote it willingly and without any reservations.

When women who have worked their way up the career ladder are able to be in the front line of the country’s development, can take ownership and are acknowledged for their achievement by political leaders and considered an asset, then it is an indication of a democratic government.

The barrier to this opportunity has not come down in the Maldives. Presently women in the front line are players selected to those positions by the government’s political agenda.

On the broader horizon, the change starts with women. Women need to see that they can do something about improving the quality of their lives, and those of their families and communities, by reaching for political leadership or becoming involved in political and civil activities. Women need to have the will to share and enjoy the privileges and the benefits of a democratic constitution.

How do women think?

The outcome of a woman’s thought is influenced by the role she plays in life. Women’s leadership may not bring all the solutions but then neither does men’s leadership. What makes the difference is the process of decision making and the outcomes when women voice their issues and express what they see as significant to a better environment for living. That is an important difference and must be taken seriously for good governance.

The difference can also be seen as the gender difference. The difference in thinking may be defined in this manner because the woman may have been a mother, or have cared for elderly people, or have experienced marginalisation or exposure to various forms of abuse, etc.

How could a viable political environment be formed without the views, advocacy and judgments that include women’s perspective? Women’s perspective in the Maldives especially is important as it presents grass root advocacy.

Beyond traditional spheres

Being politically active means to reach out to leadership positions and taking a stand for the values of democracy. It means moving into positions that are critical to attain social justice, raising public awareness and accessing visible positions of authority. It means venturing beyond traditional sphere of home and family. It means promoting fairness and no allowance for partiality.

Political engagement does not necessarily mean having a political career, campaigning, and getting into the parliament or the government’s leading positions. You can work up to leadership on the job so that you can implement fair and equal working conditions in your own work environment, you can be socially responsible, you can support people’s development and high-quality resources management.

If you choose to move onto the benches or go into law, you go beyond simply taking voting as your only civic engagement and civic participation, but pursue civil rights for the people and are in a position to advocate for and against implementation of legislative initiatives.

Your political activity may take the form of collective action, by forming associations to reach out to larger groups and transform your society. You would create a common vision, define common goals, invite people with similar aspirations and reinforce each other thus linking individual empowerment to group empowerment.

Moving beyond traditional spheres means change. Today people identify change with empowerment.

Empowerment can be defined as claiming the right by an individual to choose freely and control their own lives. Broadly defined it is the woman’s right to her own body and sexuality including protection against any form of violence, the right to her own income and equal opportunity to earning, power over her resources and fair inheritance, her rights to justice and position in a legal system (including impartiality in the Constitution).

The organisation and political aspects are self-help groups and collective action to bring change. Fundamental to change is the access to information and know-how.

Although this article focuses strongly on women, the content is applicable to men and can help them to become aware of their own disadvantageous position. Without this awareness, neither men nor women can seek empowerment. Empowerment means more than an adequate comfortable adjustment. On a personal level and the community level, it is redistribution of power that does justice to the opportunities and members of the society, does not compromise freedom and does not take happen at the expense of others.

Aminath Arif is the founder of SALAAM School.

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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Comment: From the perils of presidentialism to deliberative politics

The argument, which was most famously advanced by the political scientist Juan Linz, that presidentialism is more prone to executive-legislative deadlocks is by now well established. Deadlocks are bad because they can break down democracy as they did in Latin America.

In fact, when we contemplate on the political events unfolding over the past months, and more dramatically in the past few days, what we see is a textbook diagnosis and explanation of the ‘perils of presidentialism’.

With the parliament delaying crucial legislation such as tax bills which are necessary to ensure distributive social justice (and, of course, urged by the International Monetary Fund); consistently encroaching on the democratic mandate of the president such as messing up the decentralisation policies in president’s manifesto; blocking government administration through unwarranted no-confidence attempts; hampering government’s key policy programme of privatisation and public-private partnerships; and attempting to block a number of state welfare provisions, the country now is in a fierce executive-legislative conflict.

Again, the context for this gridlock is explained in political literature: a minority government, multipartism and poorly disciplined parliamentarians, and dual democratic legitimacy given to the president and the parliament.

Vain actions and reactions

The main recommendations from such comparative politics literature in the face of political impasse – such as shifting to a parliamentary or semi-presidential system and/or changing electoral rules to encourage a two-party system – seem to be difficult if not impossible in the short run.

No person in this country will be more frustrated than President Nasheed when his policy programmes get blocked or hampered. This frustration will be compounded in our competitive political environment, where public expectations are so high, when the country is in an austerity period, and while the imperative for delivery overshoots as the dates when voters can sanction politicians draw close.

As there is no easy mechanism (such as dissolving the parliament) to resolve such conflicts in presidentialism unlike parliamentarianism, the government has resorted to one of the few means left to a president in a deadlock situation.

The president had been resisting calls for arresting culprits responsible for past injustices citing good arguments such as an incompetent judiciary which itself is implicated in sustaining an autocracy. Tuesday’s arrests, however, I believe will only escalate the political rifts.

Gridlocks have often plagued crucial legislation in the US and continue to frustrate even President Obama, who has over 100 job nominations and crucial legislation yet to be even voted in the Congress. What Ted Kennedy called the ‘great unfinished business’ of health care reform – a basic ingredient of social justice – was repeatedly blocked in the US, which had led to thousands of unnecessary deaths in the most opulent nation on earth. In what has been one of the most serious deadlocks, the budget crisis of 1995 forced government agencies to shutdown when Clinton administration was a minority.

The Majlis has no doubt gone against the spirit of the constitution (for instance, delaying or passing legislation with implications for basic social and economic rights while wasting time and public money over petty business), but it is unconvincing to claim they have clearly contravened the letter of it.

It may be true that arresting two opposition MPs is not necessarily unwelcome based on ‘substance’ but was so based on ‘process’. While ‘substance’ does matter, ‘processes’ also matter because they contribute to the hard-won, delicate democratic and liberal legitimacy of the government.

The ‘great game of politics’, therefore, must be by the rules of the game.

Why and way forward?

While well-intended and solid policy programmes of the government are delayed and hampered, the idea I want to float is that a minority government too can mobilise the public sphere, and play the great game of politics within rule of law through deliberative politics.

That is, while deliberative democracy is usually justified on its potential for more just and legitimate policy-making, I want to conjecture that deliberative democracy can also have instrumental benefits for a minority government.

If one looks through all controversial policy changes of the government, one thing is unchanged: there is no effective pre-crisis public communication and deliberations programme.

From decentralisation to the alcohol regulation to Islam/Divehi teaching, and to airport privatisation – which otherwise are all solid and beneficial policies – the government did a miserable public communication and deliberations job, if any. Again, it is a ‘process’ failure that have led to ‘substance’ failures.

The meeting with the business sector stakeholders on airport privatisation, the press conferences, news releases, television programmes, and the photographs of the new airport all came too late and too inadequately. And even when all this came, the government appeared messy and contradictory. There was simply no pre-crisis public communication and deliberation programme in this.

Sceptics would say that this suggestion is utopian and politics is too power-ridden and unalterable to public opinion. I concede to an extent, but, as the most prominent proponent of deliberative democracy, Jürgen Habermas, argues in Popular Sovereignty as Procedure:

“[R]epresentatives normally do not want to expose themselves to the criticism of their voters. After all, voters can sanction their representatives at the next opportunity, but representatives do not have any comparable way of sanctioning voters.”

The wealthy politicians in the parliament can indeed publicly buy parliamentarians, but they too cannot publicly buy public opinion.

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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Comment: Speak freely, Dr Waheed

I write this letter with the passion of one who has not heard enough from the man who holds the second leading position in the government of the Maldives.

As Dr. Waheed says, “It is [high] time to get rid of that fear of speaking out.”

This is a new freedom we have as a nation that is clearly not being utilised enough.

This letter begins my own attempt to follow his example. This letter is also a plea that he continue to speak publicly, namely about the recent injustice to the Minister of Trade and Economic Development of the Maldives.

The government’s administration of injustice on Rasheed due to the call for freedom of speech led by Dr Waheed is discrimination. There was no reason given for Rasheed’s dismissal. I urge Dr Waheed to speak freely on what is going on in our government.

Dr Waheed brings up a grave concern. The gravity of the situation can clearly be seen now, as we know that even a Minister holds no safety in his position. Is this not just another autocratic government that does as it pleases with the power it holds? Who was involved in Rasheed’s firing?

Yet Dr Waheed is hopeful. He says in a recent article, “there is ‘nothing that can’t be fixed'”, as the government “is going through a learning process.”

Despite the hindrance on his job, he says, “I don’t see why we should be hiding our feelings now. We did not bring about this change to work in despair.”

In my view this is a man of courage and integrity. He is clearly working for the people. He speaks his mind and faces in the process public scrutiny and even ridicule. In my opinion, he needs to do more of this. If the government is not hearing your advice, tell it to us, the public. Continue the open line of communication you have started by beginning to voice your concerns.

If you are for the people, Allah’s power is with you. We did witness a miracle when we elected our current government into power, but the abuse of power can never reign without the intervention of Allah’s force. Dr. Waheed has not responded publicly to Rasheed’s loss at the hands of the government.

Please do not be silent for the sake of avoiding confrontation. Sometimes, difficult things need to be voiced, as you have suggested. Anything can be said in the spirit of compassion. Allah shows us this. This must be what is meant by freedom of speech.

As far as the claim that he is angling for the presidential seat in the next election, how is this even relevant to the concerns of governance of the people now, and the obvious unrest in the current government? As a self respecting citizen, I will not buy into this line of inquiry nor comment on what I think the VP is going to do, or is trying to do.

The question we should be more concerned with revolves around the unclear governance of our nation now, the very question Dr Waheed points us towards. The tyranny of the government has gone too far. The Vice President is being left in the dark. A minister has been fired for no reason. How can the people feel safe and secure under such a government?

Power is a dangerous mechanism and can be used too easily for harm. Dr Waheed speaks the truth that it should never be in the hands of a few. This always leads to the subjugation of others, just look at the history of governance of every nation in the world.

As a side note, when a voice of governance speaks publicly in any nation, he or she is speaking in his or her role, the role that this individual was elected into, especially if s/he makes it clear that s/he is speaking from this capacity! May Dr Waheed use his power for the benefit of the people. Speak to us, for us.

Dr. Waheed played a lead role in the reconstruction of a war torn country, Afghanistan, where he led an organisation of 250 Afghans and an international staff from 20 different countries. His early biography is brief, but mentioned he came from a low income family, and we all know what a low income family in Male was like in the early 1950’s.

Regardless of how he is able to serve us as a country, in my mind, this man has earned our respect for his very impressive track record abroad. As much I am giving Dr Waheed the benefit of doubt, I also think he needs to step up, and be more vocal about policies he would implement and the injustice being conducted by the government he is a part of. If you are working for the people Dr. Waheed, be the voice that gives us the power of information. Give the power that is being taken from us, back to us, where it belongs.

We as a country cannot forget the past that we come from. This man represents that past. If we are to move forward into the future with dignity and continued growth, we have to face the suffering of our past in unity, as well as the suffering we face today though of a very different form than it was only a few years prior.

I plead our honorable president to take heed of the words of a man who should be his best, his right hand man. Having read of Dr Waheed’s accomplishments abroad, I feel eager for some of this good work at home.

May Dr. Waheed continue the process of speaking his mind that he has only just begun. I challenge him to be even more transparent. What is the point of bringing his dissatisfaction to the public if he will not continue that process through, and keep us informed as to what he feels our country needs, as well as what is happening behind the curtains of the powers that be? You have the chance Dr Waheed, to use the power of words for our benefit.

Finally, as a Maldivian woman, I have been disappointed with the slow pace of progression when it comes to women’s rights and leadership. What does it take to right a patriarchal system that finds roots in the entrenched world patriarchal culture that we still live in?

I would like the women in power to speak to these issues. I implore the women in power to do so. For such an educated man as Dr Waheed, I find myself questioning how far he would go to uphold the rights of the people in this country, so many of whom are women.

This is a very high standard that I hold him to above others of his standing because of his background and experience. The task of reconstructing our patriarchal system is one I would like to see someone with power in our government tackle. When we look at the history of subjugation of women, we see how subtle and how permeable is the assault inflicted by those that hold power.

Every major power in the world that has found great success has not been able to do so without its women empowered to hold their own on equal footing with men, and add their wisdom to the process of growth.

Women have been given positions of power in the Maldives, but we are underrepresented and so our voices cannot be heard loudly enough. As a feminist, I am extremely sensitive to the power differentials among the sexes. Perhaps the task of addressing this issue in my country is one that I as an educated woman need to begin to tackle for myself. Perhaps I need to take my own advice around using the power of words and freedom of speech, being that I have it.

What I have learned as a feminist is that we each cannot hold anyone but ourselves responsible for speaking to the suffering in our own hearts. May the might of words bring power of justice back to the people where it belongs. May this letter be a start for me, in the name of our most Merciful and Compassionate.

With Best Intentions,

Mirani Bhava

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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Comment: Resort life – it’s all about pretence… lots of it.

In resort life everyone tries to be what he or she is not, according to circumstances. Sometimes this behaviour is required as part of the profession and sometimes it happens out of inclination. For example:

Managers

They come in all shapes and sizes. Some come with a perpetual frown on their faces whilst others hide their true expressions behind an engaging smile. But they all share in the pretence.

The guests

Most guests are also notorious at deception. It is an ingrained cultural habit to smile and make light of everything, however annoying.

However there are those who are exactly the opposite – the realists and the con-guests who will complain at the smallest inconvenience to get a free bottle of champagne or a discount on their stay.

Human resources

HR used to play God until the arrival of the dreaded labour laws. Now that the mantle of power to terminate staff indiscriminately on HR’s whims and wishes can at last be challenged in the labour tribunal, things are thankfully a little bit more even handed.

Reservations

Together with ’sales and marketing’, reservations would have everyone else believe that if not for them the resort is a few days from closing down and going out of business.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is that most tourists just choose to come to our resorts after hearing about our beaches and small islands from the internet, mostly through tour operators.

Tour operators do not necessarily depend on reservations but sometimes they have an agreement with the resort for the allocation of rooms, which is ‘handled’ by these pompous people. In technical terms they are just clerks and data entry staff making a big fuss over their work.

Of course there are some sweet, down-to-earth reservations people who do not aggrandize their work but in resort life such humbleness is the exception rather than the norm.

Maintenance

The maintenance people generally include the engineers and the unseen crowd. They are happiest when something really major breaks down like an engine or a water plant, because that’s the only time they can shine and their work will be valued or respected by their superiors.

They are prone to making the smallest issue as big as possible just to get the attention of the managers, because that’s the only way up the corporate ladder from their level.

Waiters and room boys and girls

Generally honest and hard-working, these gentle people have a tendency to make a purely service task into a
technical one, which at a certain extent can be comical.

Launch section guys

Perhaps the most realistic in appearance and attitude are found in the ‘launch section’ team. They have a reason for that too – extended periods of time spent in monotonous journeys between islands and airports wear them down which makes them difficult to either please or irritate.

The IT guys

The IT guys are all smiles and kindness until a computer terminal is said to be terminally ill and the IT guy is called in. From that moment the IT guy is bossy, unfriendly, talks in jargon and generally looks down on the rest of humanity.

However a by-product of Moore’s Law is that advances in technology will soon make them redundant, as networks, computers and devices become more and more user friendly and intelligent. They had their day in the era of Windows 3.2 and dot matrix printers, when being an IT guy was not for the faint of
heart.

Nowadays the IT guy is pretty much only still alive thanks to Microsoft Windows and the uncommonness of common sense.

Chefs and the kitchen crowd

There is an unending war between the restaurant guys and the kitchen folk because all the hard work is done
in the kitchen but all the tips are received at the restaurant.

However as most resorts are mindful of this war, generally their salary is higher than the rest which is some solace to the animosity. The kitchen guys generally do not subscribe to false smiles and half-hearted greetings, because their life is hectic and hard.

Gardeners, labourers and the like

At the bottom of the ladder, these people are resigned to their fate or position and automatically have the rubbery smile and artificial greetings for all guests and superiors.

No such smiles for their peers and others, however – ambition is not lacking in this department, as gardeners are frequently fond of watering the plants around the GMs office hoping that he or she will take notice of the effort…

There is much hypocrisy to go around in resort life, but its worth it for the the fun. If all resort folk, including the guests, were to be expressionless die-hard realists, life in a resort would be tough indeed.

Republished with permission from MaldivesResortWorkers, a site for resort staff to anonymously discuss the industry, their employers, and the realities of resort work.

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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Comment: Why some people like DRP and hate the MDP

My first assignment at university, back in 1997, asked me to look into why people voted the way they do.

I remember feeling quite ill-prepared to answer this question because I had never experienced voting in its true democratic form. After all I grew up in the Maldives.

However, I came to realise that it boils down to a combination of personal characteristics, particular circumstances and the choice of leaders, as well as the image of these leaders put across to the public.

In 2008, faced with a choice between the DRP and the MDP, it is not difficult to see who someone such as I would pick.

I am (relatively) young, and as such I am prone to taking risks. I feel comfortable with a changing world. I have a tertiary education from a western institution. I am starting off in life, have no family who relies on me to provide for them, have no business that I have poured my heart and soul into, and feel confident that I have the skills to make it in life. My philosophy to change is summed up by the other iconic saying of our time: “Yes we can!”.

You don’t have to be Don Draper to realize which product I’m buying.

But what continues to fascinate me is the support that the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party still holds among the people. It also fascinates me just how much hatred some people have for the MDP.

I refuse to believe that these people are all crazy. After all, some of these people are intelligent, educated and perfectly reasonable people.

So let me try and outline some categories of people who may find it ‘logical’ to support DRP and what you may feel if you belonged to any of these categories:

  • Direct beneficiary of DRP in power:

You are someone (or are a family member of someone) who was a direct recipient of benefits under the DRP.

This does not mean that these benefits were through corruption – but just run-of-the-mill influence or power that came to you because you believed in the vision and message of the party and supported it since its inception. And let’s face it, this is the same reason why a generation of people who are in places of influence because of the MDP now may support MDP in the future.

  • Democracy ain’t so hot after all:

You simply prefer the harmony that existed when democracy was not around. You are not necessarily taken in by all this talk of democracy and human rights because it has meant the disintegration of the social harmony and fabric that existed under Gayyoom. Now, every other day, there are demonstrations, strikes, and some kind of nuisance on the street.

These days people are just so angry at each other. Families, friendships, sports-clubs, marriages, relationships have all been affected quite adversely by the rise of democracy in the country.

I mean things were just so much better when people didn’t talk politics and talked about the movies or joked about their families or something equally harmless. Life was hard enough without all these politics on the street.

Worse of all, democracy has not delivered the instant benefits that it promised. You just want things back the way they were, and to go on with your life leaving the government to do what it did, even if it was doing it badly.

However, now that democracy (in all its messiness) is around, who do you blame for this? Why, the people who started doing these demonstration on the streets after all – the MDP.

After all, if it wasn’t for the MDP we wouldn’t have protests on the street. We would have a serene parliament that never debates. In fact we wouldn’t have parliament at all, especially on our TV screens. We would have songs and movies and entertainment, interrupted occasionally by a ‘riddle’ we can answer by SMS.

  • MDP are incompetent:

You do not believe the capabilities of the existing government are sufficient for leadership. You question the leadership ability of President Nasheed and his team. You regard them as those, who even with good intentions, simply do not have the intellectual firepower to pull all this off.

Your worst have suspicions come true because the MDP have rewarded positions of power to cronies and activists. For every qualified person in the administration, you see two hacks who had more talent at throwing stones than conducting policy. You secretly feel that the leader of our country and the majority of his cabinet should at least have a PhD, but may not quite say this out loud for the sake of being accused of elitism.

  • MDP are liars selling false hope for the sake of power:

You think that the MDP are peddlers of populist dreams who have promised things that they (or anyone without divine help) cannot actually deliver, simply for the sake of coming to power.

Inter-island transport network? This has never been done in the Maldives so why should it work now?

A modern real-estate market in the outer islands of the Maldives? These seem like wishful thinking to many people – even to reasonable people.

A carbon-neutral Maldives when 100% of our existing power-plants are diesel?

US$1 billion in aid in 2010? That’s seem like a little too much – especially if you fall into the category above.

  • The MDP leadership is dictatorial and undemocratic themselves:

Deep down you are a democrat at heart and feel strongly about the ideals of representative government. You feel that President Nasheed is pushing things in the wrong direction and acting in direct conflict with the constitution of the country.

This is a completely reasonable opinion to have, but you cannot also hold this and support DRP. That would be a tad bit hypocritical and downright silly. This however is completely justifiable if you are an ‘independent’ follower of democracy in its true forms espoused by the great political philosophers of time.

  • The MDP philosophy is wrong:

You oppose the center-right philosophy of the government. Rather than a free-market state that makes you responsible for your own well-being, you feel (deep-down) that the government should take care of its people – it should provide jobs in a protected public sector so that everyone has a decent guaranteed salary. You don’t care, nor do you want to care, about how the state gets its money. It should just provide us with healthcare, schooling, housing, jobs, TVs… the whole shebang if possible.

If probed a little deeper, you would say that the economic vision of the country should be that the tourism sector of the economy – just like the oil and gas sector is in Saudi Arabia – and the state should play the role in distributing the benefits of that tourism sector to the public.

Our tourism market has functioned well enough even with a few people getting very rich – and the ‘benefits’ this country has seen in the last 30 years are because of this economic model. Sure you would like change, but that change should be gradual and planned – like on a roadmap. Evolution, not revolution, is what you would have preferred.

In a sense, it is the strangely soothing tale of the state playing a truly paternalistic role in its most literal sense – acting like a benevolent father.

He/it rewards those who accept his/its wisdom and vision, while punishing those who misbehave and question its/his authority.

While this is old-fashioned, we must admit that like all fathers, there is a genuine appeal in having someone to look over us. This I believe is the reason why (in some mass pseudo-oedipal complex) the support of DRP is stronger among women of a certain generation.

My point in conducting this analysis is primarily to take the level of discussion in our political sphere to a more intelligent and hopefully beneficial level.

Firstly, I hope it gives those on the yellow-side (MDP) of the political divide something to think about on how to successfully challenge those who oppose them. No doubt, those in the first category cannot really be converted because they are the unwinnable masses, but the concerns of those in the other categories can and should be addressed.

The MDP must show these people that they are capable, that their ideology of self-help center-right compassionate economic conservatism (borrowed from their friends at the ‘New’ UK Conservative party) is a winning philosophy. They must turn their dreams into a reality.

However, for those on the blue-side (opposition and DRP side) of the divide, I hope it gives you a moment of reflection to see quite why it is that you hate the MDP so. If you fall into the first category – perhaps its time you looked into ways in which you fashion your life around having a beneficial outcome irrespective of whoever is in power.

However, for those of you who fall into the other categories – I hope it sheds light on quite why you hate the MDP so, and ask yourself how you can help your party (the DRP) to outline a better vision for our country.

The MDP claim they are center-right – so what is the philosophy of the DRP? Surely it cannot be that of a paternalistic state, which is outdated and unsustainable.

I say this because before you know it, we will once again be asked to choose our leaders. And when you do, I hope you will at least take a minute to ask yourself why it is that you are inclined to vote in a certain way. You will do this country a world of good by that small act.

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