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PPM will address Maldives’ strained relationship with India: Gayoom

Former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has pledged during a visit to India that the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) will repair strained relations between the two countries should it come to power in September, local media has reported.

The three day visit, which concluded Thursday (June 6), saw the former president meet with dignitaries including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to discuss bilateral relations and the impact of the Maldives government’s decision to last year cancel a US$511 million airport deal with India-based infrastructure giant GMR.

In interviews with Indian media, Gayoom expressed sadness that the Maldives’ relationship with India had been impacted by President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s administration deciding to evict GMR from the country with seven days notice.

Gayoom blamed Nasheed for not obtaining parliamentary approval and “consulting all political parties” before signing the deal with the GMR-Malaysian Airports consortium.

“This was a mistake. Had he consulted all political parties, the public would not have formed the impression that corruption had taken place. Then we told the next President Mr Waheed that he should hold discussions with the GMR Group and the Indian government to arrive at an acceptable solution, after which the government was free to act on its own. Unfortunately, this was not done and suddenly there was this unhappy ending,” Gayoom was reported as saying in the Hindu.

Waheed’s government late last year declared the contract between GMR and the Nasheed government, which was vetted by the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), as ‘void ad initio’, or invalid from the outset. It is currently disputing its obligation to compensate the company in arbitration proceedings, arguing that the termination clause could not be applied to a contract it had deemed invalid.

Gayoom told Indian media that former President Mohamed Nasheed – whose government was controversially replaced in February last year – had to take the majority of blame for the GMR contract dispute, despite not being in office at the time of its cancellation.

“The GMR experience was not a very good one for us. It began badly with [Nasheed] not informing parliament,” Gayoom was reported as saying in the Indian Express.

“By law, he should have had it passed by parliament. Some may even say it had an illegal beginning. [The cancellation] was a very populist move at the time as the public had a perception that the contract was bad for the country. The way it was handled was not good. I am sad that this has somehow affected our bilateral relations. We want to overcome that and restore our relationship with India to its former level,” Gayoom told the paper.

The government’s sudden eviction of the Indian investor did not however appear on a list of 11 grievances handed to all senior Maldivian reporters by the Indian High Commission in January, which instead included concerns such as discrimination against Indian expatriates and the confiscation of passports by Maldivian employers.

The list’s release was followed by the Indian High Commission issuing a statement in early February slamming local media in the Maldives for “misrepresentation and twisting of issues”.

Gayoom nonetheless told the Hindustan Times publication this week that he would endeavor to maintain strong bilateral relations with India, claiming that people who were “anti-GMR” were not “anti-India”.

The PPM is presently part of the coalition government backing President Waheed, whom Gayoom said had been requested to find an “acceptable solution” for both GMR and the Indian government that addressed concerns about the airport deal.

Fierce criticism

Among the most fierce critics of the GMR airport deal before its cancellation last year were the now government-aligned Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP ), led by President Waheed’s Special Advisor Dr Hassan Saeed.

Saeed in November last year appealed to Prime Minister Singh to terminate the GMR deal, writing that “GMR and India ‘bashing’ is becoming popular politics”.

While in opposition in December 2011, the DQP also released a 24 page pamphlet alleging that allowing GMR to develop Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) was “paving the way for the enslavement of Maldivians in our beloved land”, and warning that “Indian people are especially devious”.

Former Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, the DQP’s Deputy Leader at the time of the pamphlet’s publication, was recently unveiled as the running mate of PPM Presidential candidate Abdulla Yameen – Gayoom’s half brother.

SOFA a concern: Gayoom

Gayoom – described in the Hindu as a “sprightly 76 year-old” – also expressed concern about the Status of Forces (SOFA) agreement being negotiated between Waheed’s government and the United States.

“I am not happy. I didn’t want that to happen,” he said, warning that such a move risked upsetting the balance of power in the Indian Ocean.

A source within the PPM said former President Gayoom, during his 30 years as head of state had forged strong relations with various regional powers such as India and Sri Lanka.

The source said that while the handling of the GMR contract remained a controversial issue, the recent strain in the relationship between India and the Maldives was the result of a number of factors, including “certain difficulties” facing expatriate workers from India living in the country.

“We have a large number of professional expatriates from India working here in health, education and accountancy. The [Indian] embassy here in Male’ has aired some of the issues with us,” the party source claimed, adding that the Maldives also had grievances over obtaining visas to travel to India that needed to be resolved.

The party official claimed that Indian authorities had raised these issues not only with the PPM, but all other stakeholders both in government and the country’s political opposition, presently represented by the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).

Highs and lows

Despite admitting that every country has high and lows in their bilateral relations with neighbours, Indian High Commissioner to the Maldives Rajeev Shahare has previously emphasised what he called the country’s “unshakable” long-standing relationship with the Maldives.

“During my tenure, I will endeavour to further strengthen the relationship between India and the Maldives, which is already very strong with an unshakable foundation,” he said on April 10, shortly after his appointment.

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Gayoom meets Indian PM

Former President of 30 years, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, met Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday.

“His visit to Delhi is part of India’s outreach to all sections of Maldivian polity. It may be recollected that former President, Nasheed, has visited India twice and President Waheed was in India in May last year,” said Indian government sources, according to the Times of India (TOI).

“He discussed issues relating to the current situation in Maldives and bilateral relations with India. He said that he looked forward to India’s continued assistance,” an official told TOI.

“As someone who was instrumental in bringing about democracy to the Maldives, former President Gayoom felt that it was his legacy and that democracy should take firm roots in Maldives and there should be understanding amongst all political parties in this regard,” the official added.

Sacked Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel, who was one of the main opponents of Indian infrastructure giant GMR’s development of Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA), was recently announced the running mate of Gayoom’s Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM).

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Four MTCC harbour projects stalled over lack of construction material

The Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) has suspended harbour projects on four islands over the lack of construction material.

The government-owned public company said in a press release today that construction has stalled in Noonu Manadhoo, Shaviyani Komandoo, Raa Ungoofaru and Faafu Feeali as the remaining work required reinforcement rock boulders or conglomerate.

“Continuing such large projects while conglomerate is not available from India has resulted in a more than 100 percent increase in the price of materials as well as many logistical difficulties,” the press release stated.

It added that the company won the bids for the harbour projects based on the prices of construction material available from India at the time.

“In the past three months, the company has tried in various ways to purchase aggregate. At the same time, the company is also working with all the institutions involved in this matter to speedily resolve this issue,” the press release concluded.

On February 15 this year, the Indian government revoked a special quota afforded to the Maldives for the import of aggregate and river sand. The move led to a shortage of the supply of construction material and subsequent rising costs for construction companies.

The Indian government’s decision followed a diplomatic row with Maldives over the current administration’s termination of a concession agreement with Indian infrastructure GMR to upgrade and develop the Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA).

In December last year, Indian authorities also tightened visa restrictions for providing medical visas to Maldivians, leading to people queuing outside the Indian High Commission to obtain visas to travel for medical treatment.

In some instances, local people complained of queuing for over 24 hours outside the High Commission’s building in Male’ to try and get a limited number of daily tokens.

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Indian teacher working at Eydhafushi School found dead in suspected suicide

An Indian computer teacher working at Baa Atoll School on the island of Eydhafushi has been found dead in a suspected suicide.

The Eydhafushi Times, an online newspaper based on the island, identified the teacher as 27 year-old Shathis Raj.

Eydhafushi Island Councilor Mohamed Riza told Minivan News that he was called by the council and informed of the incident at 9:30 am this morning.

‘’I went [to the victim’s house] 10 minutes later and the body had already been taken to the hospital. But I waited and took a look at the scene,’’ Riza said.

Riza said he went to the hospital where he received news that the teacher had been dead for eight hours.

‘’We do not know why he had committed suicide, there are lots of rumors spreading around but I do not wish to say those things because they might not be true,’’ he said.

‘’He was a very friendly teacher and hangs out with islanders,’’ he said. ‘’He has been working on this island for three years and five months.’’

According to Riza, the teacher was admitted to the hospital last week after he attempted suicide by eating some pills.

The Head of Eydhafushi Hospital Ahmed Waheed said the body was brought to the hospital this morning around 10:00am, where doctors pronounced him dead. The body was sent to Dharavandhoo island [in Baa Atoll] to be sent to Male’.’’

Waheed said there were rumors going around saying that the teacher’s suicide was related to his relationship with a woman.

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Indian teachers request transfer, quit posts after Kumundhoo school attack

Almost a dozen Indian teachers on Kumundhoo in Haa Dhaalu Atoll have either resigned from their posts or requested transfers to another island following the assault of a colleague on school premises last week, diplomatic officials have confirmed.

Diplomatic sources said Indian High Commissioner Rajeev Shahare was meanwhile in the process of arranging talks with Maldivian education authorities to discuss the issue of teacher safety.

The Indian High Commission in the Maldives told Minivan News it received requests from eight Indian nationals currently working as teachers on Kumundhoo to be transferred to another island over concerns about their safety.

According to the commission, two other expatriate teachers on the island have also handed in their resignation after physics teacher Neelakantan Pappukutty Subash Kumar was assaulted in the school on May 14 by an angry mob accusing him of hitting a student in the chest.

One expatriate teacher on the island, who has since handed in their resignation, was also claimed to have received minor injuries trying to prevent the assault, an Indian diplomatic official told Minivan News this week.

Despite the concerns about teacher safety, the high commission said yesterday (May 19) that the response of the education ministry had so far been “positive” in terms of their handling of the attack on the Indian national.

Kumundhoo Island Councilor Ali Anwar claimed on May 15 that islanders had destroyed a a power distribution unit outside the school to cut off its electricity, before then entering and attacking the teacher, despite efforts by staff to try and prevent the assault.

So far eight suspects are being held in police custody over the attack, police confirmed today.

After being initially hospitalised after the assault, Kumar’s condition is not thought to be critical. The high commission has claimed the teacher was now waiting for the Education Ministry to renew his work visa that expired last month, so that he can be returned to India for treatment.

A “mutual time” was also being sought for High Commissioner Shahare to meet with the country’s education officials to discuss the issue of “better security” for expatriate teachers.

Minivan News was awaiting a response from the Ministry of Education at time of press.

Ongoing concerns

Despite the high commission’s praise for the education ministry this week, one Indian diplomatic source said following the attack that the injured teacher’s treatment continued to highlight ongoing concerns over the Maldives’ treatment of foreign workers.

These concerns were said to be based around issues such as the retention of passports and travel documents by private and state employers.

“The fact remains that [Kumar’s] work permit has not been renewed. He was a government employee – they should have renewed his documents before they expired, not afterwards,” the diplomatic source said last week. ”This [issue] has been going on for over one and a half years now.”

A senior Indian doctor in the Maldives has also previously alleged that expatriate professionals regullarly face intimidation and fraud in the country from employers and the public.

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Maldives potential US “lilypad”: Russia & India report

The US is acquiring some very valuable real estate in the Indian Ocean by exploiting the perceived insecurity of the political elites who usurped power and currently matter in Malé, writes M K Bhadrakumar for the Russia & India Report.

The American diplomats on the South Asia beat maintain that there are “no plans for US base in Maldives.” The US stance is that their Status of Forces Agreement [SOFA] under negotiation with the government of Maldives is a “normal practice.”

They argue, the US has signed SOFAs with over 100 countries, so what’s the big deal. The Maldives Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim says that as per his understanding, the SOFA would facilitate “joint military training exercises” that the US has proposed. Meanwhile, Chinese newspaper Global Times has carried on Monday a Xinhua agency report appropriately entitled “Maldives could allow increased US military presence.”

Do these reports contradict each other? To my mind, the reports are variations of a single theme. Consider the following: The current US policy disfavours the setting up of old-fashioned military bases abroad, which would be wasteful and unwarranted in the post-Cold War era. Clearly, Okinawa in Japan or Yongsan in Seoul are a thing of the past.

The United States is currently negotiating a SOFA with Afghanistan. But Washington maintains that it has no intentions of setting up military bases in Afghanistan – although the intention is quite obviously to establish open-ended American military presence in the region.

No one can take exception to such diplomatic sophistry. The former US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld who had a way with words conjured up a brilliant expression to describe the post-modern American military bases abroad. He called them “lily-pads” and embedded the label in a new military doctrine signifying a fundamental shift in how the US forces are deployed worldwide in the 21st century.

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Military consolidation expected to dominate Defence Minister Nazim’s India visit

Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim is expected to commence talks today with his Indian counterpart on strengthening military ties between the two nations. The talks will be the most senior meeting of ministers between the two countries since reports of bilateral tensions earlier this year, according to the Times of India.

As part of his visit to India, Nazim is expected to meet with Indian Defence Minister Shri A K Anthony to discuss establishing further defence collaboration, as well as the possibility of extending Indian coastal radar systems across the Maldives.

Nazim’s visit comes after Defence Minister Anthony travelled to the Maldives last year to open the ‘SenaHiya’ Military Hospital in Male’, where he spoke of expanding cooperation on naval security and preventing drug trafficking.

The ceremony in September 2012, was held at a time when international media was playing up a perceived strengthening of relations between the Maldives and China, drawing attention to the potential geopolitical implications for neighbouring India.

According to the Times of India, Nazim is the first senior government minister to visit the India since the country was accused of becoming embroiled in the Maldives’ domestic politics earlier this year.

Both Nazim and President’s Office Media Secretary Masood Imad were not responding to calls from Minivan News as time of press.

Reported tensions

Back in February, Maldives political figures from several government-aligned parties criticised the Indian High Commission after former President Nasheed was allowed to seek refuge on its premises from police seeking to present him to the Hulhumale’ Magistrate Court.

Nasheed remained in the high commission’s chancery building on Sosun Magu in Male’ for 11 consecutive days, maintaining that charges against him for detaining a chief Criminal Court Judge were a politically motivated attempt to prevent him from contesting in presidential elections scheduled for this year.

Indian officials at the time rejected accusations of taking sides in the country’s domestic affairs, maintaining that India only favoured “inclusive elections”.

After Nasheed was allowed into the building, Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel implied through social media that India was meddling in the Maldives’ internal affairs, stating at the time: “What’s happening now gives us an indication of the extent and level of interest some countries prepared to take in our internal matters”.

“I would strongly urge everyone to let our institutions deal with the challenges, allow Maldives to uphold rule of law,” he tweeted.

Just a month before Nasheed went into the high commission building, Maldivian authorities denied that the country’s foreign minister had been snubbed by the Indian government after it rejected an official request to meet.

The reported snub came as Maldivian local media were issued a list of 11 grievances from the Indian High Commission concerning the treatment of Indian nationals in the country.

“Unshakable” relationship

However, the new Indian High Commissioner to the Maldives Rajeev Shahare last week emphasised the “unshakable” long-standing relationship between between both countries during a meeting with local media (April 10).

Shahare at the time stressed there had been no change in the relationship between the Maldives and India, despite media reports of increased tension between both nations.

“In any relationship there are highs and lows, but the relationship carries on its course normally,” he said. “Engagement between the Maldives and India has been constant. We are pretty much on course.”

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India’s influence in the Indian Ocean not weakening: The Nation

Is India’s influence declining in the ocean named after the country? That seems to be the conclusion of some analysts after the Maldives’ cancellation of an airport development contract with an Indian company in November, writes Nilanthi Samaranayake for India’s The Nation.

These concerns are elevated by China’s increased engagement with smaller states in the Indian Ocean, including the Maldives.

Given the legacy of the 1962 war between China and India and ongoing competition for influence, New Delhi is right to have suspicions about Beijing’s intentions in its neighbourhood and whether smaller Indian Ocean countries are playing the two sides off each other. But the fact is that India’s position in the region remains strong due to longstanding and growing security cooperation with smaller neighbours as well as the Indian Navy’s expanding capabilities. New Delhi’s influence has been underscored by former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed’s decision to seek refuge in the Indian High Commission in Male after a Maldivian court ordered his arrest.

India is a rising naval power and has the natural advantage of geography in the surrounding ocean. Moreover, India is connected to smaller countries in the region through entrenched ethnic and historical ties. President Mohamed Waheed has discussed the Maldives’ “preferential relationship” with India, and a former Maldivian foreign minister has stated that “nothing will change the fact that we are only 200 miles from Trivandrum”, referring to the Maldives’ proximity to the Indian city. India feels security obligations to regional states and has displayed its operational reach through campaigns in Sri Lanka and Maldives. In 1987, it intervened in the Sri Lankan civil war through the Indian Peace Keeping Force. Likewise, Indian armed forces intervened in the Maldives in 1988 following a coup, and after the 2004 tsunami the Indian Navy was first to provide critical disaster relief to Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Indonesia.

Still, New Delhi should not take for granted its dominant position in the Indian Ocean. The rejection in Maldives, though its significance should not be overstated, serves as a wake-up call for India to invest more in developing its backyard. Scholar Rani Mullen finds that India’s provision of aid lacks a cohesive strategy. India’s intelligence organisation Research and Analysis Wing recently called on the government to provide more economic investment and technological expertise in the Maldives and Nepal, following analysis of China’s IT and telecom industries’ interest in these countries.

Also, a Jane’s Defence Weekly article reported last July that National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon called on Indian envoys in neighbouring countries to discuss ways to facilitate often delayed infrastructure assistance through the new Development Partnership Agency. Officials conceded that New Delhi’s assistance projects carried on “interminably” and that ties to regional states were “limited and haphazard.”

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India needs to re-examine relationship with neighbours: Hindustan Times

Recent developments in the Maldives and Sri Lanka suggest a need for a re-examination of India’s relations with its neighbours, write Charan Singh and Arvind Virmani for the Hindustan Times.

Some political pundits have expressed concern about China’s build-up on the Tibetan plateau, its plans to build numerous dams on the Brahmaputra and takeover of the management of Gwadar, a commercial port in Pakistan. China’s growing defence expenditures ($119 billion in 2013) — three times that of India’s $40 billion (2013-14) — have allowed it to extend its naval presence into the Indian Ocean, making it imperative for us to use our limited resources more efficiently.

Military and political strategy are generally intertwined, and sometimes buried inside a commercial one. The world respects power. India’s growth acceleration in the 1980s and 1990s created the conditions for a greater role in global politics, but it was Pokhran II that catapulted India onto the world stage. China’s military might, focused mission and astute diplomacy have been successful in resolving many border issues and fostering strategic economic relations with its immediate neighbours.

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