Tag: human rights

HRCM gathering government institutions and political parties for human rights forum

Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) has called on the president, independent institutions and all the political parties to come together and discuss issues around human rights in the Maldives and express their ideas.

President of HRCM Ahmed Saleem said the commission had sent letters to President Mohamed Nasheed, Speaker of Parliament Abdulla Shahid, Attorney General Husnu Suood and to representatives of all the political parties.

”We want to hear the voice of political parties and government institutions,” he said.

He said the commission intended to draft a report on human rights in the country and visit the atolls after meeting with government institutions and political parties.

”We advise everyone in connection with human rights including the media to cooperate with us,” he said.

Press Secretary of the President Mohamed Zuhair said the president had not decided whether he would attend, but that he would undoubtedly support the assembly.

Secretary General of the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) Abdulla Mausoom said the party would decide to what to do after discussing it.

He said he do not believe a survey of human rights was necessary, “as for instance is there any use to a survey to find out whether people like to eat?”

He claimed the government had abused the rights of freedom of opinion by threatening private media.

Recently inducted Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Alhan Fahmy said the party would support the gathering, noting that while human rights in the Maldives was progressing day by day, ” there are things to be corrected.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Prisoners at Gan “living in cages”

Prisoners in the Seenu Gan temporary jail, run by the MNDF, are being deprived of basic human rights according to an anonymous source claiming familiarity with the matter.

“[Inmates] are kept in small cages, four per block, they have to urinate in small water bottles, and if they want to use the toilet they are blindfolded, handcuffed and escorted by two guards,” the source told Minivan News.

Around 40 inmates were transfered to the temporary jail last October, after a fire caused by the inmates led to congestion in Maafushi jail.

When the prisoners were first transferred to the MNDF-run prison in Gan they were kept blindfolded and restrained for 72 hours, the source claimed.

“They have been here for three months now. It’s difficult to contact the outside world, and it was a long time before their families even heard from them. Inmates are being deprived of even the most basic necessities, even little things like soap, toothpaste and clothes are scarce. They feel they are not being given their rights.”

Contact with the outside world was minimal, “and they can’t see their parents, wives or children.”

The prisoners had previously gone on a hunger strike in protest at their treatment, the source claimed, and in response four were allegedly taken into a nearby wood and tied up for three days.

In addition, the source said the proximity to a military base meant the prisoners “hear gunshots all the time and can’t sleep at night.”

A prison cage at Gan
A prison cage at Gan

Most of the 40 inmates transferred to the prison were serving time for “small” convictions, “around five years”, the source claimed, and felt they should be treated as civilian rather than military prisoners as their court sentences had dictated.

Response

Minivan News attempted to contact the Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Services (DPRS) to confirm the allegations but was referred to the MNDF.

Brigadier General Ibrahim Mohamed Didi, in charge of the Gan MNDF base, said “the reason they are here is because they burnt the jail [at Maafushi], and a place was needed to keep them temporarily. This place was chosen,” he said.

“This is a military training base, not a proper jail. We can’t provide facilities to the inmates for things such as family visits. As for matters such as toilets, we are doing the best we can, but they have to remember this is a military base and we can’t give them five star service.”

Asked how he felt about being given the prisoners to look after, Didi said “it is not an issue of us being burdened with prisoners. That there was no place for the prisoners after the jail was burned is a national issue, and the government asked us to look after them.”

Didi said the prisoners were monitored by the military “to ensure there isn’t any violence going on. We also have to keep in mind the safety of the people of Addu and international airport. The Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) recently came and did a report.”

Ahmed Saleem, president of the HRCM said the organisation had been made aware of a problem at Gan jail.

“We have recently received reports of this as well, and we are investigating the case,” he said.

“We have no problem with the MNDF guarding the perimeter [of the prison], but direct contact with the inmates should be by civil authorities. MNDF personnel will treat the inmates like prisoners-of-war, not criminals.”

Saleem added that the prisoners were at the temporary prison because some inmates set fire to the Maafushi jail, and “there wasn’t enough space there. We don’t want to release them, but they needed to be treated humanely.”

Treatment of prisoners in the Maldives had changed over the last few years, he said, “and the police have a very positive policy now. But there are always going to be individuals [involved in mistreatment].”

Fathmath Afiya from the Society for Women Against Drugs (SWAD) said “we have received information about this as well,  and recently sent a letter to the parliament asking that the conditions in the Gan jail be improved.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Torture Victims Association to seek justice over human rights abuses

Frustrated with the performance of government institutions, a new NGO founded by MDP members, the ‘Torture Victims Association’ (TVA) has vowed to gather cases and take them to international courts in the pursuit of justice, if necessary.

On Saturday night at the first of a series of rallies calling for justice for human rights abuses committed under the former government, TVA founding member and parliamentary group leader of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik said those who suffered grievously had waited “long enough”.

“But today I’m announcing, everyone stand up for your rights,” he said.

The rallies were attended by senior officials of the government as well as senior MDP members who spoke of their experiences in jail.

The first gathering on Saturday followed remarks by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom on a live radio show where he denied ordering the torture of political opponents.

“No Maldivian citizen was unjustly punished that I was aware of or on my orders,” he said.

At a press conference yesterday, Moosa said the objective of the new NGO was to seek redress for injustices.

“Our main purpose is to bring an end to the torture that has gone on in this country for most of its history,” he said.

Former governments established “a culture of torture” in order to remain in power and suppress dissent, he said.

Moosa said the society was distinct from MDP as it was “100 per cent” comprised of victims and appealed to the media not to “twist” the association to portray it as a political endeavor.

The association plans to contact and enlist the help of international human rights organizations and the UN Human Rights agencies.

A team comprising of “Maizan” Ali Manik, Ahmed Naseem, state minister for foreign affairs, Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad, tourism minister and Dr Ahmed Shaheed, foreign minister, were working towards this end, he said.

At the press conference, Naseem said the impetus for forming MDP came from the unjust practices of Gayoom’s government.

Naseem characterised the work of the society as a “national task”because victims of torture have been incapable of speaking about their
experiences.

Torture was “institutionalised” by the former government, he said,and families were destroyed when dissidents were targeted.

“If you walk down the road and meet 100 people, 40 of them would have been tortured at some point,” he said.

Naseem said if Maldivian courts fail to provide redress for injustices, the association would take the cases to international courts.

“Maizan” Ali Manik said the association would gather information and records and find a way to make the history of torture in the Maldives available to the public.

Not political

Naseem also emphasised that the new NGO was not political.

“The idea is to make sure these things do not happen again in the Maldives,” he said. “It’s nothing to do with what the government is doing. Today, young people have no idea what stocks are. At the turn of the century it was commonplace to use these things in the Maldives – they don’t know about medieval torture devices that were banned in 14th century Europe being used very recently in the Maldives.”

Government institutions such as the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) had proven unsatisfactory and had made a lot of excuses, he said.

“I don’t know if it is a lack of passion, a lack of efficiency or a lack of will,” Naseem said. “Few such government institutions work very well in any country. A government offical will often just work for a salary; they may not have the same passion for their job as a private non government organisation.”

The NGO was “just one way” of addressing the situation, he said, noting that there were “various ways” including court settlements and the proposed Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).

“But there are criminals here who need to be brought to justice,” he said. “People can’t move ahead without justice.”

It was “amazing”, he said, “how people who were tortured by the regime still support it. It’s like Stockholm Syndrome – it’s very difficult for many people to talk about how they were abused. Some are very ashamed. I myself find it hard to speak about what happened to me. Women were raped and will not talk about it public. But many people have said they will speak in recordings, or without their face revealed. Many want [the process] to remain confidential.”

Naseem insisted the investigations “will not turn into a witch hunt. We are just trying to gather information.”

The NGO would seek international assistance and funding, he said, as “we don’t know how to go about these things in the Maldives.”

Opposition reaction

Gayoom’s spokesman Mohamed Hussein ‘Mundhu’ Shareef denounced the TVA as “another voodoo NGO in the Maldives.”

“We’ve seen this before: Moosa gets on a platform to do what he does best – level accusations at Gayoom. His sell by date is up.”

Mundhu accused the MDP of orchestrating the new NGO.

“The MDP needs to boost motivation among hardcore supporters to bring them out of the yellow haruge, and the thing that unites the MDP is Gayoom,” he said. “If you go to the root you’ll find it’s at the second floor of the president’s office.”

If the government wanted to investigate corruption, Mundhu said, “there is a constitutionally empowered body. If the police are overstepping their boundaries, what is the point of funding a body like the police integrity commission if it’s not going to be used? And how can they appoint a state minister like Mohamed Aswan to investigate police reform and expect him to be impartial?”

The DRP “has never had a problem with the police”, Mundhu added. “We’re not the ones complaining and sending letters. When one of our activists was recently arrested for defacing municipality property, when he came out he told me that while the food was not very good, the police treated him very well.”

Mundhu appeared less opposed to the prospect of a TRC, “but I do not believe any mistreatment happened with the direct knowledge of the previous executive.”

Disruption

Organisers of the TVA rally accused the DRP of attempting to disrupt the association’s event on Saturday night, an action Naseem condemned as “disgusting”.

Mundhu rejected the claim.

“We’re not MDP, we don’t attack and disrupt [rallies],” he said. “At the same time, why is the MDP holding its gathering right outside the DRP office every night – is it designed to stop us holding our own rallies?”

The DRP was also concerned about state broadcaster TVM’s coverage of the event, he added.

“When we saw the live TVM coverage we rang to ask why the giving away airtime, and they said it was a new formula and they would be happy to sell us an hour of airtime for Rf22,000. We don’t have the money for that, but it was nice to know.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

‘Truth and Reconciliation’ Commission proposed for the Maldives

A South African-style Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) has been put forward as a means of mending political and social divides in the Maldives, following President Mohamed Nasheed’s radio address last week calling for the investigation of past injustices.

“I am saying this as a person who has seen these things very closely. Many people have died. Many people were killed. The lives of many were ruined. Many people’s lives were destroyed to the point where they had no future,” Nasheed said, calling on the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) to look to the past and become “a commission that properly works for human rights in this country.”

In an interview today with Minivan News, President of HRCM Ahmed Saleem said while he agreed “that while the violations of the past need to be looked into, I also think that right now the country is divided and facing problems of politics and religion. I’m very concerned – we’re a small country of 300,000 people and we can’t afford to have such divisions,” he said.

An investigation spanning the time of the former government risked “setting a precedent for a witch-hunt whenever there is a change of government.”

“Personally, I don’t think the president wants to dig into the past,” Saleem said. “But he is under a lot of pressure from others in his government who suffered greatly under the former regime. He is a politician and he is doing what he has to do.”

An alternative to HRCM’s involvement, he suggested, was to create a separate commission “to look into the past with the intention to unify, rather than punish.”

Such a commission would not undermine HRCM “because our mandate states that we must send matters to the courts, and we [rarely] investigate anything that occurred before 2000. We try to mediate and find solutions.”

In contrast, the new commission would “allow those who were abused to ask for forgiveness, and those who were abused to forgive,” he said.

“It would need the approval of the People’s Majlis and the major political parties; such a set up would need the power to convict, the power to forgive, and also a lot of money, because the process would have to last at least two years.”

While the South African TRC had the power to convict following the abolition of apartheid, in practice many perpetrators of human rights abuses were given civil and criminal amnesty in exchange in return for truthful testimony. The project was widely considered successful and a key component of South Africa’s transition to a free democracy.

A similar commission in the Maldives would have to be agreed upon by major parties and protected from becoming a political weapon, Saleem suggested, questioning the wisdom of limiting the mandate of such a commission to 30 years.

“We need a strong opposition to keep the government accountable,” he said. “It’s very important for the president, the government and the Majilis to unite the country, and the opposition [DRP] will not agree to any investigation of less than 30 years.”

This would place Ibrahim Nasir’s government within the mandate of the TRC, including his brutal 1962 suppression of the United Suvadive Republic and destruction of Havaru Thinadhoo.

“The mandate must be to learn from past mistakes so as to avoid them in the future, and in the process unite the country and strengthen democracy,” Saleem proposed. “Democracy alone will not unite the country.”

Departure from promise

Shortly after his election, President Mohamed Nasheed famously asked Maldivians “to follow my example and leave Gayoom to grow old here”, a reconcillatory statement many interpreted as a mark of the new president’s forward-looking approach to governing the country. In this sense, Nasheed’s request last week that HRCM to investigate the previous government’s alleged human rights abuses appeared to reflect a change of heart.

“What he said was that he was not going to go after Gayoom,” speculated Shahindha Ismail, of the Police Integrity Commission and former head of the Maldivian Detainee Network.

“If we were to get technical, it could mean he was not going to file a case against him individually,” she said, suggesting Nasheed’s comment was not a reference to institutions with a mandate to investigate human rights abuses like HRCM.

“Now, I think [Nasheed] is plainly not happy with HCRM and the way they’ve been working.”

Shahindha said while she is not sure “we should go back to the time of the kings and dig up all these graves again”, she believes a TRC “would at least acknowledge what people have been through and at give others a chance to take responsbilitity for what they have done – a kind of self-remedy.”

In her experience working for the Police Integrity Commission, Shahindha observed that “many people report an incident in a fit of passion, but when it comes time to carry out the investigation they withdraw their complaints.”

“If I was going to explain [the concept of a TRC] I would describe it as ‘putting it all on the table so you can get on with your life,'” she said, suggesting that simply the process of being listened to might be curative.

But gaining political consensus for the idea would be a challenge, she thought, particuarly since “the DRP will jump to conclusions that this is about undermining their time in government.”

That much proved accurate: when Minivan News raised the idea with Secretary General of the DRP Dr Mohamed Mausoom, he said he suspected the President would use the opportunity to continue “passing all the blame for failure to the former government.”

“There are better things the government should be doing. People elected the them to govern the country, and in a democracy [the MDP] should listen to the people and deliver. Give HRCM enough money to do their job,” he added.

However Shahindha speculated that a TRC “would also likely see senior MDP people appear on the table.”

“It doesn’t have to be a replica [of the South African TRC], but the general concept has been tried and proven. I do think it would be quite effective. However there is likely to be an initial negative reaction from the public. It was the same in South Africa, it took them a while to understand the concept.”

If former police commissioner Adam Zahir, “who is accused of more human rights violations than anyone else in the Maldives”, could sit in open cafes in Male, Shahindha said, “I’m very sure Gayoom could walk down the street without facing any problems. If people come out I don’t think there will be a lot of people running after them. Maldivians might not forgive and forget, but I do think they let go.”

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Art and human rights merge in Sugar Coated Bright Colours

‘Sew mouths that object, blind eyes that might see’ are the powerful words that confront you when you stand in front of the ‘Three dead monkeys’ piece at the Sugar Coated Bright Colours art exhibition.

The photo is intriguing and disturbing at the same time. The faces are painted white giving them a theatrical feel, a girl with her head thrown back and blood pouring from her eyes, the man in the middle with a devilish grin, a finger to his lips, as if saying ‘don’t talk about this’. A second girl with her mouth sewn shut.

It’s not only art on display – it’s the crucial issue of human rights viewed through the eyes of nine aspiring artists.

The exhibition was planned by local NGO Transparency Maldives to celebrate World Human Rights Day, with funding from Ausaid, UNDP and the EU.

“We planned this as part of our project: ‘I choose to know my rights’,” says Mohamed Thoriq Hamid, project coordinator of Transparency Maldives, an NGO working to improve governance and eliminate corruption from people’s daily lives.

 

The aspiring artists used different mediums to convey their messages
The aspiring artists used different mediums to convey their messages

Human Rights through Art

The exhibition follows two weeks of multi-media workshops. In line with the unusual theme, the venue for the launch was also unorthodox: Masveringe (Fisherman’s) park.

“We started the workshop with a presentation on Human Rights,” says Thoriq, who believes artists should be at the vanguard of the topic.

Speaking at the launching, chief guest Ahmed Wajeeh said “artists should reflect on issues, and we should open opportunities for creative ideas in society and respect them – even elders like us – as this will in make our society better.”

He reflected upon the importance of civil society and said Maldivians should be thankful to those who take initiative to improve society without taking sides.

The exhibit ‘Give me a chance’ seems to be crying out for that opportunity. Photos of basketball players accompany the plea. The text by Saadha Ahmed highlights an issue that a lot of youth face now – lamenting the fact that most do not have the opportunity to follow careers that interest them.

artex4
The artworks aim to challenge perceptions of human rights

“I want the visitor to interpret what this means,” says Shafaath Ibrahim, 18. Displayed in a dark room, the image of a swing is projected on the screen. It seems to change in rhythm, but one can never be sure as a distorted mirror image obscures the swing from time to time.

It could be a depiction of your mood swings, the pace of your life, or how obstacles at times obscure your view of your goals.

“I learned a lot about human rights from that one session,” Shafaath says. As a student of CHSE (Centre for Higher Secondary Education) she feels there needs to be more awareness placed on human rights in secondary schools. She admits that human rights are not yet fully implemented fully in the Maldives, and says it is still a new concept.

Her fellow student Laesha Mohamed, 18, created a sculpture. Made using a mix of wire, clay, paper, nylon and rubber bands, she replicates to perfection the contours of human face with wire.

The face is suspended, while below two hands jut out manipulating items below.

“This piece blurs the line between sculpture and installation,” says Umair Badeeu, facilitator of the workshop along with Mohamed Khayyam Adam (Hassa).

“We asked artists to derive works from information they got the first day.”

Umair is a firm believer in giving creative freedom to artists, and letting them choose their own projects.

The end result he says is impressive for such a short working time: “Here there are space limitations, material limitations; yet each artist has overcome those hurdles to achieve what they wanted,” he says.

Creative freedom is something Moosa Mamdooh Ahmed, 24, holds dear.

“Freedom to create what you want is also a human right,” he says.

Gallery-goers admire the artworks
Gallery-goers admire the artworks

His life-size drawing of a dervish is arresting. The figure is still, with his eyes closed, and at his feet lies a giant snake, coiled and eating its own tail.

“The piece has to do with free will,” he explains. “Animals are stuck in a cycle. Only human beings have the choice to getting out of it: a human can choose to evolve, to learn new things, but the moment he decides he knows, he seals off his mind from learning.”

He questions what he describes as a current lack of spirituality, and says his drawing is about a person’s endeavor to seek answers.

Twenty-four year old Ahmed Afazil questions the futility of war with a series of drawings using watercolor, charcoal and stencil. Kane and Abel, Polpot and Hitler jostle for space with drawings depicting reality and utopia. The wording of utopia is hazy: “I don’t know what the ideal utopia is, but humans have not achieved it yet. There are always wars, people die, and a time of relative peace and again a war for some reason.”

Thoriq sums up the relationship between art and human rights: “Freedom of expression is crucial to artists. They should stay at the forefront of the battle for human rights.”

Sugarcoated Bright Colours can be viewed at H.Merryside,1st Floor (former Cyprea Building), weekdays from 8pm to 10pm, and weekends from 4pm to 6pm and 8pm to 10pm

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

HRCM called to investigate past injustices

President Mohamed Nasheed has called upon the Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) to investigate and uncover the injustices of the past to fulfill its mandate.

In his weekly radio address yesterday, President Nasheed said although the commission’s regulations stated that it could only investigate incidents dating from two years before its formation, the law gave HRCM the authority to conduct investigations before 2001.

“Until past injustices are investigated, the Human Rights Commission of Maldives will not be a commission that properly works for human rights in the country,” he said.

The president said grievous injury was done and serious injustices were perpetrated upon many citizens in the past 30 years.

“I am saying this as a person who has seen these things very closely. Many people have died. Many people were killed. The lives of many were ruined. A lot of people’s property was appropriated. Many people’s lives were destroyed to the point where they had no future,” he said.

“In truth, there is no way to find justice for these things. The time that was lost to them cannot be given back, the wrongs done to them cannot be set right. But, we have to carry out full investigations into these things to find out how it happened in order to ensure that it is not repeated.”

The president’s office continues to receive complaints from citizens about injustices done to them by the previous government.

Many senior officials of the government and MPs of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) had “endured serious inhumane treatment”.

“I would like to note the harm done to MDP parliamentary group leader Reeko Moosa Manik,” he said. “The former government destroyed his life when he was very young.”

In 1983, Moosa was sentenced to death on charges of conspiring to overthrow the government.

In the run-up to last year’s presidential election and beyond, Moosa spoke extensively about his experiences in jail and how he was tortured.

The president said he was not asking the commission to investigate such cases based on a desire for vengeance on the part of either Moosa Manik or other MDP members. “We don’t wish for this to happen again to our children. Therefore, I believe that understanding how things happened in the past will give us the opportunity for us to stay clear of these things.”

Opening his address, the president said the biggest obstacle to progress and development of the country was the failure to secure human rights for citizens and the suppression of free expression.

Nasheed said the former government lost its way because people were not allowed to criticise or oppose its policies.

“It is very important for citizens to have their rights to keep the government on the right track; for everyone to know that they have certain rights,” he said.

The president said he wanted to assure citizens that anyone whose rights were violated in the past year of the first democratically elected government had the opportunity to seek redress for injustices.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Female circumcision occurring in Addu atoll, reveals AG

Attorney General Husnu Suood has said the practice of female circumcision in the name of Islam has been revived in Addu atoll.

Speaking at a human rights function last night, Suood said although there have been significant successes in human rights in the past six years new problems and violations were emerging, “especially atrocities against women and children”.

Suood said “false scholars” were promoting anti-Islamic activities that also violated human rights principles.

“I will note one thing I learned in the past two weeks: religious scholars are going around to midwives giving fatwas that girls have to be circumcised. They’re giving fatwas saying it is religiously compulsory. According to my information, the circumcising of girls has started and is going on with a new spirit.”

He added it had to be stopped and “cannot be tolerated.”

“This is not something we can just stand by and watch. In the recent past, I would say this had ceased almost completely. But today in Addu atoll, the circumcision of girls is going on at some speed. I call upon the relevant authorities to stop this.”

Suood said one of violation the authorities have been alerted to was violence against women in the name of Islam.

“Violence against women and children in the name of Islam, or in the name of promoting Islam, is something we should be concerned about,” he said.

Suood said Islam is a religion that protects the dignity of human beings, and referred to the efforts to put an end to the practice of female infanticide during the early days of Islam.

Attorney General Husnu Suood
Attorney General Husnu Suood

“Robbing people of their human rights or burying their rights in the name of religion is not acceptable,” he said. “I believe it is in defiance of our religion.”

He added there were cases of husbands forcing their wives to sleep on the floor “in the name of religion, saying, ‘this is how it is in Islam’.”

Further, some families were refusing to send girls to school or let them find employment across the country.

Another growing concern was the rise of human trafficking, he said, with a number of under-age girls recently brought to the country for sex trafficking.

“Human trafficking was certainly not something we have heard of in the Maldives in our recent history, especially the trafficking of women for sexual purposes,” Suood said, adding that the growth of the problem was something the government had to take immediate action against.

He further noted the rise of child abuse, referring to the recently passed law on special provisions for sex offenders as a step forward.

The attorney general also said that harassment and abuse of expatriate workers remained a serious problem.

A report by the Human Rights Commission revealed the dire situation of some expatriates in the country, who endure cramped and unsuitable living quarters and the non-payment of wages.

Opening his remarks, Suood said it was essential for Maldivians to change their mentality and ways of thinking to make progress on human rights issues.

The most important task at hand was to identify the areas where special measures were needed, he urged.

“Six years ago, our attention was mainly focused on political freedom and political rights, and how those rights could be won,” he said, adding there has been significant development in that area with the ratification of the new constitution.

But, he added, writing down rights on a piece of paper does not secure them. A bill of rights could not guarantee essential liberty unless Maldivians changed their “mentality and attitude”, he said, proposing human rights be taught as a school subject from pre-school to higher education.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)