Tag: maldives

Bank of Ceylon to provide loans for reclaiming land in Hulhumalé

Bank of Ceylon (BOC) has decided to provide a lon of US$30 million to the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) to reclaim land in the island of Hulhumalé.

HDC Chairman Hassan Ziyath has told local media that the agreement on the matter will be signed within the week.

He revealed that the loan will be paid back within a five year period at an interest rate of 8 percent. The bank is also offering a grace period of two years.

Ziyath stated that physical work to reclaim land in Hulhumalé will commence in early October. The work has been contracted to Belgian company Dredging International.

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“Hope Rilwan is found safe and sound”: Gayoom

Former President and leader of ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has expressed his hope that missing journalist Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla will be found “safe and sound”.

Speaking at a press conference held on Sunday on his return from a seminar in Samoa, Gayoom responded to media queries regarding Rilwan, believed to have been abducted 30 days ago.

“I believe the government is conducting a lot of work to find him. No government body has been negligent in this work. They are speedily conducting the investigation. God willing, this matter will be solved at the earliest, and he will be found safe and sound,” Gayoom stated.

“Our party is also looking into this matter very closely. Our party has even released a press statement expressing our deep concern on the matter. We said (in the statement) that we hope is found safe and sound,” Gayoom continued.

Meanwhile, Rilwan’s family and friends have approached all major political parties including ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), Jumhoorere Party (JP) and main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) requesting meetings and cooperation in efforts to find the 28-year-old journalist.

While the group reports that they have met with the MDP and JP, who have both pledged to offer assistance, the PPM has so far failed to respond to the request.

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Robbery at Gemanafushi petrol shed

The administrative offices of the ‘Unlimited Fuel’ petrol shed in the island of Gemanafushi in Gaafu Alif Atoll has been broken into, and over MVR25,000 (US$1,620) has been stolen from the scene.

Police have stated that they are investigating the matter, confirming that the case was reported to them at 8:10pm on Sunday.

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Missing journalist’s family concerned over slow progress in search

Missing Minivan News journalist Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla’s family has expressed concern over slow progress in the Maldives Police Service’s three-week long search.

The police released a statement on Thursday night claiming it had questioned 318 individuals, interrogated 111, searched 139 locations in Malé’s suburb island Hulhumalé and searched 267,197.5 square meters of ocean.

“These are just statistics. We want to find him. We want the police to tell us if they have leads, if there is progress,” Rilwan’s brother Moosa Rilwan told Minivan News today.

“We want to know what the results of these extensive searches are. It’s been a month, my family and I fear for his life,” Moosa said.

Rilwan was last seen boarding the Hulhumalé ferry on August 8 at 12:55am. Evidence gathered by Minivan News suggests Rilwan was abducted.

Abduction

Eyewitnesses told Minivan News they saw a man being forced into a car at knifepoint in front of Rilwan’s apartment building at the time he is expected to have reached his house. The abductors dropped the knife and eyewitnesses reported the incident to the police. Minivan News understands the police confiscated the knife from the scene.

The police have said they took in two cars and have conducted forensic tests. Samples have also been sent abroad for further tests. Meanwhile, four individuals’ passports have also been withheld in connection to the case.

According to Moosa, the police have so far refused to publicly comment on whether there is a connection between the abduction and Rilwan’s disappearance.

“If the incident is not connected to Rilwan’s disappearance, who was abducted? What did the police do on the night after the abduction was reported? Why have they taken in two cars in relation to Rilwan’s disappearance?” Moosa questioned.

“Why have the police withheld passports? Have they been questioned? Are the police not afraid these men may go into hiding in the country?”

The police’s statement raises more questions than answers, he added.

Extensive search

According to the police, a specialist crime command team consisting of police officers from the intelligence department, forensics department, marine police specialist operations and divisional operations are working around the clock on the case.

The team is analysing 719 hours of CCTV footage from 101 cameras at 48 locations along the route Rilwan is believed to have traveled in Malé on the night of his disappearance.

Police are also investigating 638,000 cellphone numbers that have hit cell towers along the same route, the statement said.

Some 18 vessels in Hulhumalé lagoon including Safari boats, all of the beach area and empty lots in Hulhumalé, eight houses in Malé’s, four locations and the waste dump in Malé’s second suburb island Villingili were also searched, the police said.

Rilwan’s family will continue to support the police in the search, Moosa said.

The Human Rights Commission has also released a statement noting that it had yet to be updated on the authorities’ attempts to locate the missing journalist, despite having made a request for information more than two weeks ago.

Pressure up

An Avaaz petition has been launched calling on the Maldives government to expedite the search to find Rilwan and to guarantee a safe environment for all journalists, human rights defenders and bloggers in the Maldives.

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party has tabled the case with the People’s Majlis Security Services or 241 committee.

Minivan News understands Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer, Commissioner of Police Hussein Waheed and Minister of Defense and National Security Mohamed Nazim were summoned to the confidential committee hearing on Thursday.

Rilwan’s friends and family have also gathered 5000 signatures on a Majlis petition calling on the parliament to press for a thorough and speedy investigation.

The family has offered MVR200,000 (US$ 12,945) for any information on Riwlan’s whereabouts.

Maldives media have also called for a speedy investigation in a joint statement and have met with the Commissioner of Police, MPs from the ruling Progressive Party of the Maldives and MDP, Prosecutor General and Majlis Speaker Abdulla Maseeh regarding the case.

International organisations, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF), the Committee to Project Journalists (CPJ) and the UNHCR, have expressed concern over Rilwan’s disappearance.

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Family of Rilwan submit petition with 5000 signatures to People’s Majlis

The family of missing journalist Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla have submitted a petition calling for the Majlis’s national security committee to find answers to questions regarding his disappearance 27 days ago.

“We have submitted the petition with over 5000 signatures and we hope we will get the support from the members of all parties in our quest to find our brother,”

Today’s petition asked the national security committee to request relevant authorities to give answers to questions which “arose due to the negligence of the Maldives Police Services in searching for Rilwan.”

Additionally, the Maldivian Democracy Network (MDN) has today written an open letter (Dhivehi) to the Commissioner of Police Hussain Waheed, expressing its own concerns about the investigation and requesting a public response.

MDN’s letter noted that the police service “has a responsibility to reveal information regarding the case in a manner which will bring satisfaction to the concerned public, to a level where you do not lose the trust that the public holds in you.”

The Human Rights Commission has already released a statement noting that it had yet to be updated on the authorities’ attempts to locate the missing journalist, having made a request for information more than two weeks ago.

MDN’s letter requested information on the following points:

– Whether the reported confiscation of a vehicle and orders for a number of arrests are related to witness reports of a man being forced into a car outside Rilwan’s home just minutes after his last confirmed sighting.

– The apparent failure of police to follow the norms of procedure in foreign countries which includes making public photos of the victim and providing a contact for the public to call with information regarding the person

– Potential cooperation between police and friends and family of Rilwan who have continued activities to raise awareness of the disappearance, including communication regarding activities that could hinder investigations.

The unresolved questions in the family’s petition also included whether standard procedures were being followed and whether links with a reported abduction had been properly explored.

“These are also matters on which state institutions have so far conducted no work in order to reach the truth,” read the petition submitted this morning.

Prior to the petition, Rilwan’s family had presented MPs with a letter last week requesting their help in the search.

“Hear our plea. Please. I’m calling on all leaders. We are going to all leaders in the Maldives. We are telling them please calm our hearts. For Allah’s sake, please tell us what has happened to our son,” Rilwan’s mother, Aminath Easa, pleaded with authorities.

In response to a letter from Easa earlier this week, the campaign to find Rilwan continued yesterday as hundreds of people affected by violent crime gathered at Malé City Hall to call for justice.

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HRCM uncertain as to state’s actions in Rilwan case

The Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) has again suggested that authorities are not doing enough in the search for missing Minivan News journalist Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla.

After seeking updates on the case from both the the foreign minister and attorney general on August 19, the HRCM noted that it had not seen “any further efforts from the state following the appeal”.

“The commission brought Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla’s case to the attention of the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of expression through the UN’s special procedures, and the commission has been monitoring the state’s actions in the case of [Rilwan’s] disappearance,” read today’s statement.

Today’s statement said that HCRM members had met with police on August 28, urging them to use all resources to expedite their investigation.

Before working for Minivan News, Rilwan had been an employee of the HRCM between 2010 and 2012.

Calls to speed up the search for Rilwan – last seen on the Malé-Hulhumalé ferry in the early hours of August 8 – have been echoed by numerous international groups, including the UN and Reporters Without Borders.

Neighbours reported seeing a man fitting Rilwan’s description being forced into a vehicle outside his apartment at around 2am on August 8.

The most recent update from police came last week when Police Commissioner Hussain Waheed explained that 80 statements had been taken after questioning nearly 200 people.

Waheed also explained that multiple locations around the capital had been searched, including the lagoon around Hulhumalé, while nearly 300 hours of CCTV were being analysed.

Minivan News also learned last week that the passports of four men were being held in relation to the disappearance.

Working ceaselessly

“As it has been 26 days since Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla disappeared without a trace, the commission has been ceaselessly doing all it can,” read today’s HRCM statement.

Friends and family of Rilwan, also known to his twitter followers as moyameehaa, have also been campaigning tirelessly for greater action on the part of authorities.

Rilwan’s mother has urged all families of victims of violent crime to work together to ensure justice, calling for meeting to be held for all those affected by such incidents in Malé City Hall tonight at 9pm.

“It is the Maldives Police Services tasked with protecting our children and us. It is the courts tasked with ensuring justice for us in times of injustice,” said Aminath Easa in an open letter this week.

“However, we have to work together to expedite their services and hold them accountable,” she continued.

After demonstrating against the People’s Majlis’ failure to adequately address the issue, campaigners have collected over 4000 signatures on a petition calling on relevant authorities to provide answers to question that remain outstanding due to perceived police negligence.

Media groups have also provided a united front in the search for Rilwan, coordinating closely with campaigners to raise awareness of the disappearance.

Additionally, journalists representing all private outlets have jointly expressed grave concern over what they believe to have been an abduction, calling for an end to the persistent intimidation of the press.

Raajje TV’s staff yesterday donned black and blurred presenter’s faces on news segments regarding the disappearance as a show of support for the #findmoyameehaa campaign

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Nine persons apply for vacant High Court judge post

Nine persons – six males and three females – have applied for the vacant post of Judge on the High Court bench.

The applicants are UNDP Resident Representative Aishath Rizna, Family Court Head Judge Hassan Saeed, Hulhumalé Court Marriage Registrar Hassan Ali, Criminal Court Judges Abdulla Didi, Muhuthaz Fahmy, and Civil Court Judges Aishath Sujoon, Mariyam Nihaayath, Hussain Mazeed, Abdulla Jameel Moosa.

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Journalist Haseen denies charges of obstructing police duty

Channel News Maldives (CNM) journalist Abdulla Haseen has denied charges raised against him of working with political figures to obstruct police duties.

At a hearing held at the Criminal Court today, Haseen is reported in local media as having said that he had attended political rallies only as a journalist with the intention of covering them for news pieces.

Haseen is accused of having removed police barricades and of speaking to police officers in obscene language along with Abdulla Idrees of Gulfaamuge in Laamu Maavah and former opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor.

The next hearing of the case has been scheduled to be held on September 28.

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