Tag: maldives

Sri Lanka must take cue from Maldives’ tourism tactic: Sunday Times

Sri Lanka’s The Sunday Times reviews successes and risks in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, highlighting the Maldives as an example of successful marketing in a tight economy.

“Sri Lanka could take a cue from the Maldives where active promotion in going on to promote the destination, additionally now as a mid-market destination, from a high-end location. Resorts in the Maldives charges rates from US$200-300 upwards to over $1000 per night, and the authorities are now looking to attract the mid-market clientele which is also Sri Lanka’s market – though the two markets have different attractions.”

Adverse publicity is a weakness for Sri Lankan tourism, the Times noted, citing the Maldives as an example of proactive marketing in a time of change.

“[The Maldives] islands are attracting thousands of Chinese, which has made China the biggest source market for the Maldives in the past two years. According to one travel agent in the Maldives, ‘every agent is scrambling to get a slice of the Chinese market.’ The Chinese are seen as the biggest tourism source market of the world while India is also becoming a huge travel market. Sri Lankan hotels are still western-oriented with a few frills to meet the needs of other travellers.”

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Indonesia joins Maldives in withdrawing from New7Wonders competition

Following in the footsteps of the Maldives, Indonesia has officially withdrawn the Komodo National Park from the New7Wonders competition citing doubts about the credibility of the organisers.

During a press conference last week, Indonesia’s Tourism Minister Jero Wacik announced that the decision was taken “because the organisers – the New7Wonders Foundation – have taken actions that are not professional, consistent and transparent.”

According to reports in the Jakarta Post, Wacik said the New7Wonders Foundation was“unprofessional”, “unaccountable” and were “not credible”.

“We have spent around Rp 10 billion (US$1.1 million) on campaign activities over the past three years,” Wacik told the newspaper, claiming that the foundation had subsequently demanded a US$10 million licensing fee and a US$35 million fee to host a ceremony celebrating the competition’s winners.

Also speaking during the press conference, Indonesia’s tourism marketing director Sapta Nirwandar claimed that the New7Wonders foundation did not have an office.

“We sent a letter to the office address in Zurich, but the letter came back to us because the address was not clear,” the Post reported Nirwandar as saying, adding that it was “very strange” for an international organisation involved in million-dollar transactions “not to have a real office”.

New7Wonders has meanwhile announced the launch of a text voting service in Indonesia, allowing locals to vote for Komodo at US$0.12 per text.

The Maldives cabinet withdrew the country from the New7Wonders campaign in May, claiming similar demands for increasingly high fees in order for the Maldives to compete meaningfully for the remainder of the competition.

State Minister for Tourism Thoyyib Mohamed said at the time that the Maldives was withdrawing from the competition “because of the unexpected demands for large sums of money from the New7Wonders organisers. We no longer feel that continued participation is in the economic interests of the Maldives.”

The Maldives had invested substantially less in the campaign than Indonesia – a total of US$12,000 on banners and voting terminals – before the company behind New7Wonders, the ‘New Open World Corporation’ (NOWC), began requesting ‘sponsorship fees’ (‘platinum’ at US$350,000, or two ‘gold’ at US$210,000 each), and the funding of a ‘World Tour’ event whereby the Maldives would pay for a delegation of people to visit the country, provide hot air balloon rides, press trips, flights, accommodation and communications, at a predicted cost of US$500,000.

NOWC had initially levied a US$199 participation fee upon signing of the initial contract in early 2009, and no further costs were explicitly detailed in the contract.

Investigating the company in May, Minivan News confirmed that a ‘New7Wonders Foundation’ was registered in the Swiss canton of Zurich as a charitable foundation, however the contract signed with the Maldives gave NOWC’s address as a law firm in the Republic of Panama.

In response to this story, New7Wonders Spokesperson Eamonn Fitzgerald said the foundation had transferred the commercial operations to its licensing company, New Open World Corporation, “which then runs the commercial aspects.”

In a letter to Minivan News, Fitzgerald insisted that the the Maldives remained in the competition despite the government’s decision.

“The authority to withdraw a participant from the campaign is a decision for New7Wonders alone, not for any government agency. In this respect, New7Wonders adheres to the same principles as FIFA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), organisations that do not tolerate any government interference so as to ensure their independence,” Fitzgerald wrote.

The government responded that “the democratically elected Government of the Maldives is the only legitimate authority to act in the name of the Maldives and its people”, and that its continued use of the Maldives brand by NOWC was “infringing the sovereign rights of the Maldives”.

Following the Indonesian announcement, Minivan News understands from a source familiar with the matter that the tourism authorities of 6-7 other countries have “expressed doubts” about the competition, “but are concerned about losing face.”

Three of Indonesia’s ministers – fisheries, forestry and tourism – acknowledged that the Maldives had led the way, the source said.

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Government signs MoU for first national marine park sponsored by private individual

The Ministry of Housing and the Environment has signed a memorandum of understanding with a private individual, Mohamed Hameed, to create the Maldives’ first comprehensive national marine park.

The park, which Hameed says was conceived in the 1980s, is designed to protect nine islets in South Miladhunmadulu Atoll Edhudhfarru.

Hameed proposed his plan to former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s administration in 2007, but says the current administration has been more supportive and would be overseeing the project.

The government has asked that the plan involve minimal intrusion to the natural environment. “I would expect the government to have a majority share in the program,” said Hameed, explaining that a foundation would be established for the park project.

Hameed said he has been advised by scientists from all over the world, and describes the Edhudhfarru area as “fragile and sensitive, with more water than land, and many unique flora and fauna.”

Hameed said the Marine National Park will provide day trips only, and visitors will pay a fee. An underwater observatory is also expected to draw researchers and tourists alike.

Bluepeace, a local environmental NGO, voted last night to support the project.

“We are very supportive of the concept,” said the NGO’s founder, Ali Rilwan. “I think it is very important that private sector individuals get involved in conservation.”

Rilwan said the Edhudhfarru area is very rich in biodiversity, adding that Bluepeace “expects [the foundation] to be much better than most places because of Hameed’s vast knowledge and interest in the place.”

Rilwan noted that this was the first time a private individual had proposed a conservation project to the government, and that the marine park would be the first national park to host a research center. The land itself will be given to the project’s foundation, which has yet to be established.

Tourism Minister Dr Mariyam Zulfa said the park was intended “not just for preserving species for people to see, like in a zoo. There will be activities going on with the research.”

International groups had been inquiring about such a park for years, she noted.

“The park should have been established a long time ago, because tourism in the Maldives is based on sustainable development,” she said.

Director of the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) Mohamed Naeem said the organisation had not been officially informed of the project, although he understood it had been given to a private company, and said it was “too early to know what to expect from Mr  Hameed.”

Hameed has meanwhile said he hopes locals will become involved in the project. “A national park can only be preserved with the collaboration of the community, and the community should not feel they are deprived of use of the area in any way,” he said.

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Letter on racial discrimination

Dear Editor,

With reference to your well-written and interesting recent article “UN Committee Grills Maldives Delegation on human rights commitments”, the Foreign Ministry welcomes such efforts to disseminate information about the Maldives’ important interactions with the UN human rights machinery. The UN Treaty Bodies are the guardians of the international human rights conventions and the Maldives has taken a number of steps over recent years to work more closely with those Bodies in order to strengthen our human rights protection system.

However, I would like to make one important clarification regarding the article. You write, in the third paragraph, that “the committee noted that the government’s historical position had “been to deny the existence of racial discrimination in the country as the Maldives has a small homogeneous population, of the same origin, pursuing the same religion, and speaking the same language.” It is important to clarify that this “historical position” refers to the reports submitted under the CERD Convention by the former Government. The current Government, in its report to CERD and in its interactions with the Committee, started from a position that racial and related discrimination is a problem in the Maldives, as it is in all countries, and that we must all accept that the problem exists in order to take meaningful steps to address it. In this regard, the current Government is committed to closely reviewing the findings and recommendations of the CERD Committee, and to working with all national stakeholders to confront discrimination in line with our international obligations.

Regards
Iru

Irushaadha Abdul Sattar is the Director of Communications for the Maldives Foreign Ministry.

All letters are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write a letter, please submit it to [email protected]

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Labour authority plays down expatriate worker culture-clash claims

In the second of a two part article, Minivan News looks at the challenges facing skilled expatriates coming to work in the Maldives and the current systems in place to prevent both employees and employers from suffering workplace malpractice. Read part one

The Minister of Human Resources  Hassan Latheef has said that the country’s Labour Relations Authority has not received notice of any cultural difficulties between expatriate staff and local employees in the Maldives. However, the country is planning amendments to employee rights.

Amidst complaints from some expatriates about alleged difficulties and mistreatment from local employers, Latheef suggested that in some cases, language and legislation were key barriers to ensuring workplace harmony.

Several European and Australian skilled expatriates who spoke to Minivan News criticised certain employment practices that they claimed led to clashes with their employers. These clashes are said trigger premature job dismissal, and in some instances force employees to flee the country.

Minister Hassan Latheef, speaking to Minivan News earlier this year, rejected suggestions that any cultural clashes were occurring between foreign workers and their employers, at least as reported by the Labour Relations Authority.

“In the work place, I do not see any cultural differences that are being brought up and creating issues [between expatriate workers and employers],” he said.

According to Latheef, however, the Dhivehi language was seen as a major potential barrier to harmony between foreign workers from outside the region and their local colleagues and employers. He said workers from countries like Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh did not generally face this barrier.

“There is one thing in common for an Indian worker, a Sri Lankan worker or a Bangladeshi worker who is working in the same site doing the same work – their language of communication is Dhivehi. That keeps them not so much nationalistic,” he said, referring to any potential difficulties foreign workers are said to face. “We haven’t come across any cases [of cultural discrimination] as such and this has not been raised as an issue by anybody so far – fortunately.”

The minister did advise caution when addressing the treatment of workers, either national or foreign. Preventing potential widespread difficulties in the future, or culture clashes between bosses and their staff, was important, he said.

“I do sense that if we neglect [the issue of treatment of foreign worker] or keep our eyes shut, this could create problems because you know with Bangladeshis [working in the Maldives], I’m sure they face a lot of things that are not common in other countries,” he said. “So if we don’t keep in our minds that this could be an area that someday might create problems, we always have to be cautious of the issue that these workers are of different nationalities. I know I’m very cautious of that.”

Latheef claimed that legislation –particularly in areas like labour relations – was another key area that the government had pledged to address.  With an estimated 100,000 expatriate workers believed to have been hired in the Maldives, 45,000 are thought to be skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers from Bangladesh. According to Latheef, the High Commission for Bangladesh based in Male’ has worked with the ministry on numerous occasions to resolve any humanitarian concerns or workplace issues that have occurred with its nationals in the Maldives.

Both Former Bangladeshi High Commissioner to the Maldives, Professor Selina Mohsin, and the serving Controller of Immigration Abdulla Shahid have previously told Minivan News that failures in immigration policy left foreign workers vulnerable to substandard treatment and workplace malpractice.

Latheef claimed that concerns over employee treatment were being addressed. Legislation was awaiting approval for local and foreign workers alike that was aimed to cover a wide variety of issues relating to staff and employer rights.

“There is a bill being drafted, a very comprehensive one on industrial relations that would have provisions for making trade unions and everything to do about lockouts, picketing and striking, regulatory bodies’ functions and the Labour Relations Authority – it’s very comprehensive,” he said.

Echoing comments from the country’s employment tribunal, which is independent of the Human Resources Ministry and the Labour Relations Authority that falls under its remit, Latheef said that the majority of complaints received were from local workers, particularly in the country’s tourism industry.

Latheef added that about 95 percent of complaints received by the Labour Relations Authority from expatriate workers involved the alleged failure of an employer to pay wages. He said living conditions or overall treatment were not a commonly raised issue. But the minister believed local workers differed from their expatriate colleagues.

“Maldivians rarely complain about the pursuit of [unpaid] salaries – most of the time, they complain about the conditions at work or their living conditions. Most of the complaints I should say come from resort workers,” Latheef said. “Their complaints come from not being paid a service charge they are entitled to, to conditions of their accommodation and alleged discrimination from senior management.”

Among proposed changes to labour laws, the government last month invited comments on amendments to the Employment Act targeted at setting new living standards for foreign and local workers. These standards aimed to align with International Labour Ogranisation (ILO) recommendations.

The Human Resources Minister claimed that many potential problems currently facing expatriate employment in the country were expected to be eradicated by next year. He anticipates new systems for hiring foreign workers will be in place as well.

The claims were made after the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) assumed the duties of front-line immigration staff and Human Resources Ministry officials handling employment for a several weeks in June, following allegations of corruption in the work permit process.

The controversial decision, criticised by opposition MPs, was said to have Lateef’s support. Lateef believed military assistance was vital to reforming the processes of immigration and hiring expatriate labour.

“I don’t see the problems we have now will be there in 2012,” he said. “For instance we have a backlog of roughly 40,000 expatriates working here illegally,” he said. “The scenario would be very different in dealing with the ways we think of and the manner we act [to employees] on a happy day. But it is not a very happy day for us.”

View from the Employment Tribunal

The country’s Employment Tribunal, formed in 2008 to rule on disputes between employees and employers, previously said it had not received any complaints of alleged workplace discrimination. It also said expatriate cases represented a minority of the overall complaints received.

A tribunal spokesperson, who wished to remain anonymous, added that although the tribunal had not dealt with cases such as forced labour or discriminatory behaviour from employers, “this does not mean it is not taking place fairly openly.”

“I think it is all happening in the country, even if we do not receive such cases. Anybody who is in this society knows it is happening in the country,” the spokesperson added, emphasising that employment laws were designed to treat local and foreign workers equally regardless of their nationality.

The tribunal itself is not currently able to enforce its decisions through the courts, even by ruling against breaches of contractual or legal obligations without additional amendments to the Employment Act.

Accepting this current lack of enforcement capabilities, the tribunal spokesperson added that the Labour Relations Authority did have a legal mandate to take action against employees deemed to be in violation of employment rights.

The spokesperson said it was therefore vital to ensure that inspections of work premises and practices were being carried out efficiently  “[The Labour Relations authority] has the mandate to go to workplaces to supervise and inspect and see if it’s all according to the Employment Act and they can also take action if it is not. Like for example, if the work conditions are not good enough as per the law, if they don’t have a contract, or if they are receiving a salary or not, these people can check on that, but we can’t,” the spokesperson said. “We are more like a court, so we can only attend to the claims submitted to the tribunal and only go on with those cases. I think if the (Labour Relations Authority’s] inspections are conducted well there will be less problems, the institution would be better actually.”

The spokesperson added that ultimately employers and employees alike could come to the tribunal with allegations of breaches of contract, but claimed workers in the Maldives were not aware of their rights or the process of getting a verdict from the tribunal.

“A claim has to be submitted within three months if there is a dispute,” the spokesperson said. “I think awareness [of the tribunal’s work and requirements] is very important especially for foreigners, though locals also have the same problem.”

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Plunge in youth pursuit of higher education “worrying” say education officials

Recent statistics from the Education Ministry show that only six percent of Maldivian youth aged between 17 to 25 are pursuing higher education.

The statistic comes from two reports on higher education, which are currently being compiled with assistance from the World Bank and the United States. The first report is investigating the status of higher education in the Maldives, as well as plans for its improvement. The second report is examining financial assistance.

Maldives National University Chancellor Dr Mustafa Luthfy said that six percent is “a worrisome number.”

“If they are qualified enough to go into a higher institution, they should,” he said. It was not difficult to find a public college in the Maldives, Luthfy noted, although he acknowledged that private institutions were costly.

The challenging transition between grades 7 and 8 is one explanation for the dropout rate, said Luthfy. He added that if students were unable to keep up with secondary school material, then they would not be able to get into higher institutions.

“We have to be very very careful about criticizing enrollment,” Luthfy said. “If we are going to offer more degree-level courses, we need students who achieve higher A and O levels in high school.”

A recent Juvenile Justice Report suggests a correlation between academic success and relationships with a parent or guardian. Juvenile Justice records say that of the offenders reported between April 1 and June 30 this year, 95 percent dropped out in 8th or 9th grade, and few lived with parents or guardians.

When asked if this contributed to low enrollments in higher education, Luthfy replied that “schools and parents are working very hard to improve the quality of education, and improve graduation rates.

“The Maldives has a small population, we want everyone to be an educated person,” he said.

O-level results for 2010 improved on previous years, with particular gains in science subjects, however the pass rate for the 6700 who sat the international standardised high school exams was 35 percent – up from 32 percent in 2009, and 27 percent in 2008.

Most major subjects showed a positive trend in results except for arts, geography and history, Deputy Education Minister Dr Abdulla Nazeer stold Minivan News at the time, “subjects which are only taken by a few students.”

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MDP Ali Waheed alleges that journalists politicised his housing bid

Former Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Ali Waheed, who recently crossed the floor to join the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), has claimed that journalists covering his winning bid for a beach house in Hulhumale’ had politicised the matter and implied he was corrupt.

Waheed said that he had paid Rf1 million (US$64,580) upfront for the house, after winning the bid with the Hulhumale Development Corporation.

“The house will become my property only after I finish the rest of the payment within five years,” Waheed said in a press statement. “However, the story of this business transaction was spun in the media, with [outlets] writing ‘Ali Waheed and his wife have bought two houses in Hulhumale’ for Rf9.4 million’ (US$600,000)’ in their headlines.’’

Waheed said the journalists who wrote the articles had “attempted to damage my reputation” by implying to the public that there was “corruption in everything I spend money on.”

“Perhaps that is how journalists and owners of those news outlets got land plots, houses and wealth from previous governments,” he continued. “I will not use a proxy and stay hidden, and will do everything very publicly. For the information of such journalists who get personal with their pens, I will be involved in the real estate business in the future.”

He added that he had joined the MDP “with empty hands” to support government’s efforts to “change an antiquated and weak economy to a modern and robust economy.”

“I see the future of the Maldives very clearly, I can see the flats of flat Dhonbe [phrase used by opposition to mock President Mohamed Nasheed],” he said. “By God’s will, Maldivian citizens will see a better tomorrow than today and Ali Waheed will go boom boom to maximum.”

Waheed won the beachfront house for Rf4.6 million (US$300,000), bidding Rf 3020 per square foot. His wife also reportedly won a house.

Waheed’s former opposition colleague, MP Ahmed Nihan, questioned Waheed’s ability to afford such a property on his MP’s wage. Waheed, he alleged, “was quite a poor boy when we first met him as a DRP MP – that’s why we spoke with a friend and arranged him a house for rent that did not require an advance paid upfront,” said Nihan. “There was no way that Waheed could afford to buy a house in Hulhumale’ for Rf4.6 million unless there was a hand of corruption in it.”

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Maldives Halal-Haram Committee researching Golden Churn Butter

Spokesperson for the Islamic Ministry, Sheikh Ahmedulla Jameel, has said that the Halal-Haram Committee of the Maldives has begun to determine whether ‘Golden Churn Creamy Butter’ contains any unlawful substance in it, after Malaysia’s Islamic Ministry declared that the product contains the deoxyribonucleic acids (DNA) of swine and may be haram for Muslims.

The product is a popular food commodity in the Maldives and found in many local convenience stores.

Jameel said that the Islamic Ministry had received no official information from the Malaysian authorities, and was going by media reports.

‘’The Committee will declare whether it is haram or halal, as it is the committee that determines the status of food products in the Maldives,’’ he said, adding that the Islamic Ministry did not have further information to share on the matter.

Malaysian newspaper reports said the issue came in to light in April 18 when the Johor State Religious Department (JAJ) circulated a memo within its department to alert them of a swine DNA finding in Golden Churn Pure Creamery Butter products.

“There has been much confusion regarding the Golden Churn product. We have released a media statement before stating that the product contains pig DNA but many doubted it,’’ the newspaper quoted the Assistant Islamic Minister Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman saying.

President of Religious NGO Jamiyyathul Salaf Sheikh Abdulla Bin Mohamed Ibrahim said he heard about this incident but did not have any official information on the issue.

”These kind of issues do occur in the Maldives, in many cases these companies produce both types of the same product, one type which is for Gulf countries,” Sheikh Abdulla said. ”But the Maldives have sometimes received stocks produced for the Europe.”

He said the NGO has recently discussed the issue with the Islamic Minister.

”The ministry told us that because the cost of establishing a laboratory was expensive they were were many challenges they faced in solving the issue,” he said.

Andrew Ballantyne, Executive Chairman of the Australian company that produces the butter, Ballantyne Foods, said in a statement that both Ballantyne factories in Australia and New Zealand had been certified halal by halal certification authorities for all the butter brands produced and distributed by the company.

“It is important to understand that each delivery of butter out of Australia and New Zealand carries mandatory quality standards from relevant Government Food Authorities including Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service, (AQIS) and the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) in additional to strict Halal certification requirements. We confirm that our Golden Churn butter complies with the requirements of these authorities,” Ballantyne stated.

“Ballantyne only use high quality milk to make cream that is churned into butter. Ingredients are: cows milk, milk solids (non fat), moisture and 1.5-2 percent salt. No other additions, colours or preservatives are permitted.”

The particular canned butter variety under question in Malaysia had been certified halal by New Zealand Islamic Processed Food Management, “a recognised Islamic authority in New Zealand. NZIPFM is duly accredited by Jakim to certify products that are produced in New Zealand.”

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Public Accounts Committee to dismiss claims against governor

Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee has claimed that a motion of no-confidence against Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) governor Fazeel Najeeb is baseless.

Haveeru reported that four out of five members of a sub-committee tasked with evaluating the motion had claimed there was no reason for it to go ahead.

President Mohamed Nasheed had sent a letter to the parliament claiming that the MMA was not executing its legal responsibilities, and neither was its governor.

“We didn’t notice anything significant from [the letter] at all to justify a motion of no confidence against him,” a member of the committee told Haveeru.

The committee will review the report from the sub-committee and make a decision next week.

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