The Maldives Police Services arrested an expatriate mango vendor at the Malé local market for “illegal” mango vending, local media have reported.
The man had also set up shop in the parking zone. The police confiscated the vendor’s mango boxes and arrested a man who attempted to stop the expatriate vendor’s arrest.
Expatriate workers brought in on work visas are not allowed to work as vendors, Sun Online said.
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(0)Police have arrested three persons in connection with three different drug related cases.
In a statement issued today the police said a 36 year-old man was arrested from the island of Dhaandhoo Island in Gaafu Alifu Atoll.
Police said the man had thrown away something on seeing police officers on patrol on the street, and when police officers examined the items they found it was a cellophane packed with illegal drugs.
Another 26 year-old man was also arrested from the island on May 6 with five cellophane packets containing illegal drugs.
The third person was arrested in Malé on May 5 with six rubber packets containing illegal drugs. The man had run away from the police when he was stopped on suspicion of possessing illegal drugs.
But police officers managed to arrest him and take him to Maafannu Police Station.
(0)Dislikes(0)President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom has ratified a law raising airport service charge from departing foreign passengers to US$ 25.
The law will come into force in July and is part of the current administration’s revenue raising measures.
The government anticipates over MVR 100 million (US$ 6.4 million) in additional revenue from the increased departure tax.
The People’s Majlis has also approved other revenue raising measures proposed by the government, including hiking import duties, reintroducing the bed tax until the end of November, raising the Tourism Goods and Services Tax (T-GST), and introducing GST for telecommunications services from May 1.
A proposal by the administration of former President Mohamed Waheed to raise the service charge to US$30 was narrowly defeated in April 2013.
The 1978 law imposing the airport service charge on departing passengers was first amended under the Maldivian Democratic Party government and raised to US$18.5 for foreigners.
The imposition of a similar Airport Development Charge (ADC) of US$25 by Indian infrastructure group GMR was previously a major point of contention for the Waheed administration, which terminated the concession agreement with the GMR-led consortium to modernise the airport in December 2012.
(0)Dislikes(0)State prosecutors at the Prosecutor General’s Office have refused to attend hearings in the absence of a Prosecutor General (PG) and a deputy PG.
The office’s leadership is currently vacant with former PG Ahmed Muizz’s resignation in November 2013 and deputy PG Hussein Shameem’s resignation yesterday. Shameem said he was unable to carry out his duties due to the Criminal Court’s “obstruction” of criminal justice.
Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed told local media today the court will continue with criminal trials even in the absence of a PG or Deputy PG unless the Supreme Court indicates otherwise. Mohamed had previously halted all criminal proceedings for three weeks in January citing state failure to appoint a PG within the 30 days,
In response, PG office Spokesperson and lawyer Hussain Nashid told Minivan News state prosecutors were now in a “legal void,” and could not attend court.
“We have sent a letter to all courts where cases were scheduled, informing them we refuse to attend court, due to the legal void we are currently facing in the absence of a PG or a Deputy PG to lead us. We have not yet decided what action we will take in the future, but the general consensus is to wait till a relevant authority decides on the matter,” he said.
Shameem’s resignation and the state prosecutors’ refusal to attend court brings the criminal justice system to a halt.
Extraordinary session
Shameem has called on President Abdulla Yameen to submit a new PG nominee and the 17th People’s Majlis – currently in recess and rapidly nearing the end of its five year term – to approve a candidate immediately. The newly elected 18th People’s Majlis is to take the oath of office in late May.
Chair of the Independent Institutions Oversight Committee Ahmed Sameer has called on the current Majlis to find “a permanent solution” rather than wait on a Supreme Court ruling.
“The solution is to hold another meeting before May 28 and select a PG. I call on the relevant bodies to do so,” he told local media.
But Speaker Abdulla Shahid told Minivan News the Majlis cannot approve a new PG unless Yameen submits a new nominee. The president’s first nominee – his nephew Maumoon Hameed – narrowly failed to garner enough votes in March.
“How can the parliament sit to decide on the matter when there aren’t any submitted nominees?” he said.
President Office Spokesperson Ibrahim Muaz Ali was not responding to calls at the time of press.
Shahid also added that he is not authorized to call an extraordinary session unless the President declares a state of emergency or one-third of the MPs request an extraordinary session.
“If a minimum of 26 members sign a motion asking for a special meeting to be held to decide on a matter in the parliament agenda, then it can be done. The government coalition has over 26 parliament members, so they will be able to do this if they so wish,” he said.
Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP Ahmed Nihan said the governing coalition has not held any discussion on the matter as many MPs belonging to the coalition government are out of capital city Malé.
“This matter had not risen back when the last meeting of the parliament was held. At the time, there was no indication that the Deputy PG would resign. So we haven’t really discussed the matter yet. I believe that we might be having an internal meeting relevant to the matter tonight,” he said.
Obstruction of justice
In his resignation statement yesterday, Shameem highlighted the Criminal Court’s failure to prosecute foreigners involved in drug trafficking, delays in issuing rulings on drug related offenses and “unreasonable obstacles” in filing cases at the court.
The Criminal Court and PG office have been at loggerheads since January, with the court agreeing to proceed with criminal cases only after two Supreme Court orders in three weeks. However, the court formulated new procedures to delay and impede the PG office’s ability to submit criminal cases, Shameem has previously said.
“These issues obstruct the proper functioning of the criminal justice system. I am deeply saddened to note the extreme delay on the part of those who have the power to address these issues,” he said yesterday.
MP Sameer contended Shameem cannot resign in the absence of a PG. It is the PG who appoints a deputy and hence the deputy cannot resign if there is no PG, he argued.
“Surely, the President cannot accept this resignation. That is something that can be done by a Prosecutor General. There is no one at the moment to accept the Deputy PG’s resignation. However, if Shameem is not getting the necessary cooperation and is unable to fulfill his duties, then he can stop serving for the time being. I do not see any other possibilities in this matter,” Sameer told Haveeru.
But lawyers have told Minivan News no person can be “forced” to remain in any particular position.
“The Deputy PG can most definitely resign. A person cannot be forced to stay in a position based on the possible outcomes of a resignation. If the PG can resign, then the Deputy PG can resign too. If the law does not define a course of action in the instance that the country is lacking a PG and a Deputy, it is the lawmakers who must come up with a solution. It cannot be reason to force someone to remain in a position against his will,” lawyer Mohamed Shafaz Wajeeh said.
Another lawyer – on condition of anonymity – echoed Wajeeh’s views, adding “in the instance that we did not have a PG, it was the Deputy who was answerable to the oversight committee in parliament. Under that same logic, he can also resign if the PG can. The law must be interpreted in such a way that it does not allow for anyone to be in any position under force.”
(1)Dislikes(0)Fauzan Mohamed, a suspect arrested in connection to the murder of 76 year-old Ali Hassan ‘Ayyube’ has denied the charges levied against him in the Criminal Court and has said he did not want the state to appoint him a lawyer.
According to online newspaper ‘Haveeru’, a hearing in to the case was yesterday held at the Criminal Court where the Judge repeatedly asked Fauzan if he wanted the state to appoint him a lawyer. But, he replied that he will continue the trial without a lawyer and said he will not need a lawyer at any point of the trial.
During yesterday’s hearing, the state presented four witnesses, a DNA report, Ayyube’s death certificate and a crime scene report.
Fauzan also presented two witnesses for his defense but he did not have the full name and permanent address of the two witnesses. The judge asked him to provide a written document including the full names and the permanent address of the witnesses.
Ayyube’s body was discovered with multiple stab wounds in an abandoned house on Kudahuvadhoo on January 8, 2013. Police arrested six individuals in connection to the case.
The victim had previously been accused of using sorcery on Fauzan’s 37 year-old mother. She was reported missing at 2:00am on December 4, 2011 and her body was found floating in Kudahuvadhoo lagoon later that morning.
Island Council President of Kudahuvadhoo Ibrahim Fikry at the time told Minivan News that the islanders were all frightened after Ayyube’s death.
“After the death of the woman the islanders were scared, and then this incident occurred and now the islanders are worse,” he said adding that no one walked the streets after the sun went down.
“The injuries sustained were horrific,” Fikry told Minivan News at the time. He said that the victim’s forehead was slashed and that his neck was slit. “There were deep stab wounds to the chest and back, revealing the bones. The intestines were visible from a slash to the stomach,” he recalled.
In March, 2013, two minors charged with Ayyube’s murder pleaded guilty to aiding the murder in court. The two minors were charged with spying on Ayyube before the murder, and assisting the assailants to hide the weapons they used to murder him.
The step-grandson of Hassan was also summoned to the Criminal Court for his involvement in the case.
He told the court that he believed Fauzan murdered Ayyube because he was rumored to have killed Fauzan’s mother.
If found guilty, Fauzan will be sentenced to death. The death penalty will be implemented if the Supreme Court upholds the sentence and if all of Ayyube’s heirs desire the death sentence.
Before the trial ends, the court will take statements from all heirs of the victim to determine if they had any objection to passing death sentence on Fauzan.
On April 27, 2014, Home Minister Umar Naseer has said that death penalty will be implemented in the Maldives from that day onwards with the publication of procedural regulations concerning death penalty and its implementation in the government gazette.
Maldives has been maintaining an unofficial moratorium on the death penalty since 1953. After 1953, the heads of state have always commuted death sentences to life imprisonment through powers vested in him in the Clemency Act.
The last person to be judicially executed in the Maldives was Hakim Didi, who was executed by firing squad in 1953 after being found guilty of conspiracy to murder using black magic.
(3)Dislikes(0)Indian infrastructure giant GMR is only owed reimbursement for expenses, not compensation for the abrupt termination of the concession agreement to develop Malé International Airport (INIA), Attorney General Mohamed Anil has said.
Clarifying President Abdulla Yameen’s previous statement that GMR is owed a payment, Anil said the government believes the company is only owed reimbursement for a US$ 78 million upfront concession fee and any other expenses.
“When the agreement was first signed, US$78 million was given to the Maldivian government. In addition to that, we can see that they have spent some amount. So in the worst case scenario, if we are to revert to the state before the agreement was signed, everyone believes that they are owed [what they spent]. That is not as compensation for losses caused by the cancellation of the agreement,” he said.
GMR has said it will stick to a US$ 1.4 billion compensation claim – an amount that exceeds the annual state budget.
“The forceful takeover of the airport by Maldives government amounts to repudiation of a valid contract and therefore damages, including loss of future profit has to paid,” the company said in a statement on April 26.
Anil said GMR’s claim is unclear, as the company had not submitted documents detailing the assertion.
In response, GMR’s legal team member Uz. Fayyaz Ismail told Minivan News details of how GMR arrived at the figure will only be revealed in the second part of the arbitration process.
The arbitration tribunal in August 2013 had acceded to GMR’s request to split the proceedings in two – firstly determining liability, before quantifying the amount of compensation to be paid separately.
“GMR is claiming it to be a wrongful termination, and if the tribunal awards a verdict for that during the first part of this bifurcation arbitration [two part arbitration process] only then would the [compensation] amount be decided through second part of the arbitration. We are very confident the rightful compensation would be received,” Ismail said, adding that the figure may be subject to minor variations.
Yameen in early April said the Maldives government will not be able to pay GMR’s claim, but conceded “some sort of financial compensation must be paid.” He estimates the figure to be a “manageable” US$ 300 million.
The GMR in consortium with Malaysia Airports (MAHB) narrowly won the International Finance Corporation (IFC)-managed bid for the airport in 2010, and signed the agreement with MACL under the former government of Mohamed Nasheed. The opposition at the time, including Yameen’s Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM), then began a vitriolic nationalist campaign to evict GMR.
Following Nasheed’s ouster in 2012, President Mohamed Waheed’s administration terminated the agreement claiming it was ‘void ab initio’- invalid from the outset.
When the Singaporean High Court’s injunction blocking the Maldivian government from voiding the agreement was overturned by the Supreme Court in Singapore in June 2013, GMR initiated an arbitration process.
The first part of the arbitration took place in Singapore from April 10 – 16. Minivan News understands the arbitration tribunal considered GMR’s claim of wrongful termination, parallel claim for loss of profits over the lifespan of the agreement, and the Maldive’s counter-claim for restitution.
A verdict is expected soon, at the latest by mid- June. Depending on the verdict, the second process of arbitration will begin on a mutually agreed upon date.
Although Anil said the second half could take months to begin or even year for a ruling, Ismail has refuted the claim.
Despite the pending arbitration decision, expansion and development of INIA was among the five mega-projects for which the government was seeking investors at the Maldives Investment Forum held in Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands in late April.
Meanwhile, Nasheed has warned of a sovereign debt crisis if the Maldives is forced to pay the full US$ 1.4 billion and reiterated his Maldivian Democratic Party’s (MDP) call to reverse the decision to cancel the contract.
In a press release last week, Nasheed insisted that international best practices were followed in the bidding process – which was overseen by the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) – while the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has since ruled out corruption in the airport deal.
“The Maldives is now known around the world as a country that doesn’t keep its promises or honour the contracts. The airport fiasco will hit each and every Maldivian because banks won’t lend money and companies won’t invest in our country without demanding much higher rates of interest,” Nasheed said.
“By now, Maldivians should have been looking forward to a world-class, new airport, to rival Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Instead we have nothing but an abandoned building site. The actions of President [Abdulla] Yameen and [Dr Mohamed] Waheed have caused this crisis and Maldivians will be paying for their recklessness for decades to come” he added.
(3)Dislikes(0)A motorcycle belonging to MP elect for Inhavandhoo constituency, Mohamed ‘Muhamma’ Abdulla, was set of fire last night, CNM has reported.
While Abdulla’s bike was reported to be badly damaged, two other bikes near it also sustained damages. The incident took place on Chaandhanee Magu last night around 1:30 am. Police and locals put the fire out within twenty five minues, CNM reported.
Initial police investigations has revealed it was a pre-planned arson attack. No one has been arrested in connection to the incident.
Abdulla, who is also a popular comedian and film producer, won the Ihavandhoo seat on a Jumhooree Party (JP) ticket in the parliamentary elections held in March.
He has recently expressed dissatisfaction with a meeting between JP Leader Gasim Ibrahim and opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed and spoke out against any alliance between the two parties.
(0)Dislikes(0)New guidelines on preventing the transfer of HIV from mother to child will come into effect from Wednesday (May 7 2014), Ministry of Health and Gender has said.
The national guideline on prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV is underpinned by a need to equip the Maldives for what the Health Protection Agency has termed an HIV “time bomb.”
Programme Coordinator for the Reproductive Health Unit Naseera Nazeed has urged all pregnant women to get tested in their first semester.
“There is very high chance of saving the baby – 90% – if they are checked,” she said.
The guidelines aim to protect women of childbearing age from HIV, advise women with HIV against pregnancy, protect HIV positive mothers from infecting their children and providing support to HIV positive mothers and their families.
The Maldives identified the first infant with HIV in 2012. In February this year, the Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) transfused a pregnant women with HIV positive blood due to a technical error. Meanwhile, local media have alleged a 19-year-old HIV patient had given birth at IGMH in early April.
Programme Manager for the National HIV AIDS programme Abdul Hameed said the spate of HIV incidents this year had raised awareness on HIV and provided a boost to healthcare efforts.
“We are sending out the public a clear message, always to be sure of their status. HIV is everywhere, you don’t have to give your name, you just have to go and get tested. The result will be in 10 minutes,” he urged.
Not prepared
Lack of prevention programmes and specialized care for population groups at risk facilitate an HIV outbreak in the Maldives, Hameed said. Sex workers, gay men and intravenous drug users are particularly at risk, he said.
“We are sitting on a time bomb. We know those key populations exist [in Maldives],” stated Hameed. “At any time it can explode.”
The Maldives does not offer prevention services for gay men or sex workers, he said.
HIV patients prefer treatment abroad due to high levels of stigma and discrimination, he said, adding: “Even in the healthcare system itself there is ingrained discriminations.”
The healthcare system is ready for an outbreak, Hameed claimed, but said there are deficiencies that could hinder response to a crisis.
“The health system is ready, but we don’t have the civil society or organization networks. We may not be prepared,” he said.
A prevention workshop—the second of its kind—is underway from Tuesday to Wednesday (May 4 to May 6) to train health professionals on the new guidelines. A total of 31 participants from regional hospitals, populous atolls, Malé, Villimalé and Hulhumalé are taking part.
The Ministry also plans to hold a series of phone conferences to all atolls to further disseminate the information.
Former Minister of Health Dr Ahmed Jamsheed Mohamed said it was only through “incredible luck” the HIV virus had not spread throughout the country.
“All the habits that may lead to the spread of HIV is excessively in practice,” he claimed referring to sexual promiscuity and intravenous drug use in the Maldives.
Since the first case of HIV was detected in the country in 1991, 19 cases of HIV have been reported among Maldivians. However, the Health Ministry estimates numbers of HIV positive persons could be between 70 and 100.
(0)Dislikes(0)Deputy Prosecutor General Hussein Shameem has resigned today, slamming the Criminal Court’s obstruction of criminal justice.
In a resignation statement, Shameem highlighted the Criminal Court’s failure to prosecute foreigners involved in drug trafficking, delays in issuing rulings on drug related offenses and “unreasonable obstacles” in filing cases at the court.
“These issues obstruct the proper functioning of the criminal justice system. I am deeply saddened to note the extreme delay on the part of those who have the power to address these issues,” he said.
Former Prosecutor General (PG) Ahmed Muizz appointed Shameem to the position shortly before he resigned ahead of a no confidence motion in November 2013. Shameem had previously held the position from 2009 – 2012.
The deputy PG’s resignation effectively brings the criminal justice system to a halt. The vacancy in the PG Office leadership means the state can no longer raise criminal charges.
Shameem has called on President Abdulla Yameen and the People’s Majlis to appoint a new PG immediately. The 17th People’s Majlis is in recess until the newly elected 18th People’s Majlis take the oath of office in June. But extraordinary sessions can still be held.
Yameen had nominated his nephew Maumoon Hameed for the position in December, but the Majlis narrowly voted to reject Hameed in March.
At loggerheads
The Prosecutor General Act states a new PG must be appointed within 30 days of vacancy. However, Shameem noted five months have passed since Muizz’s resignation and noted “severe difficulties” in carrying out the PG office’s duties.
The Criminal Court and PG office have been at loggerheads since January, with the court announcing it would not proceed with any criminal charges until the Majlis appointed a new PG.
Shameem sought Supreme Court assistance in late January, claiming the lower court’s failure to accept cases lead to a backlog and violated the rights of those held in pre-trial detention.
On the Supreme Court’s orders, the Criminal Court in early February announced it would resume hearings in ongoing cases, but would not accept new cases.
Shameem successfully sought a second order from the Supreme Court, and said the Criminal Court’s actions had lead to a backlog of over 500 cases. With the new order in late February, the court formulated new procedures the PG office must follow in filing cases.
In April, Shameem said the Criminal Court had rejected over 30 percent of cases filed, including serious offenses related to drugs, corruption and sexual abuse of children.
Recently, the Criminal Court requested the PG office to resend case documents related to corruption allegations against Supreme Court Justice Ali Hameed. The court claimed documents had been damaged in a coffee spill.
Shameem said he had notified President Abdulla Yameen, the People’s Majlis and the Supreme Court of the difficulties the PG office faces, but said, “to this day, no office has addressed any of the issues I have raised.”
The Criminal Court’s delays brings the effectiveness of a joint effort by the Maldives Police Service and PG office to expedite cases involving serious criminal offenses into question, Shameem said.
Judge Abdulla Mohamed, whose controversial detention in January 2012 triggered President Mohamed Nasheed’s ouster, heads the Criminal Court.
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