Tag: maldives

‘Did you know’ campaign aims to educate public on legal system

A UNDP-run campaign called ‘Access to Justice’ hopes to address a lack of public awareness into how the judicial system works – a critical problem for the development and promotion of human rights in the Maldives, according to the UN body.

The ‘Did you Know?’ campaign will be unrolled across Male’, Hulhumale’ and Vilingilli following a launch event at the Surf Point in Male’ on November 26, and will involve a team of young volunteers door-knocking around the capital and distributing brochures.

During the launch event, stalls will be set up for various institutions, such as parliament, the Attorney General’s Office, Prosecutor General’s Office, Employment Tribunal and independent commissions.

UNDP National Project Manager Naaz Aminath said the purpose of the campaign was to raise people’s awareness of the Maldives legal system and their rights under Chapter 2 of the Constitution.

“The awareness-raising campaign is a year long campaign that will be carried out across Maldives,” she explained, “and we don’t expect people to know everything in one year – this is just the beginning.”

The door-to-door campaign will involve knocking on every door in the capital, and eventually the country, to deliver a pamphlet in English and Dhivehi outlining the legal system, rights and institutions protecting them.

“When we go to houses, if people are willing The idea is to provide people with detailed information if they are willing when we go to the houses. Otherwise we will simply deliver the pamphlet and leave,” she said.

Acknowledging the dry subject matter, Naaz explained that the event would be accompanied by a lucky prize-draw, entertainment and a six-month SMS campaign to spark public interest in the topic.

Naaz noted that the campaign was necessary because although the Maldives was not a post-conflict country, “since independence 45 years ago it has never had a democracy or even separation of power.

“You cannot expect the public or even the government for that matter to know what democracy means or looks like,” she added.

A report by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) into the state of the Maldives judicial system has been drafted but not yet officially released.

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Government seeking US$200 million credit line from Sri Lanka

The Maldivian government hopes to finalise an agreement with Sri Lanka to establish a credit line worth US$200 million, President Mohamed Nasheed told press today prior to departing for Sri Lanka to attend the swearing-in ceremony of President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

As preliminary discussions for the credit line has been ongoing for some time, the President said that he hoped an agreement would be signed in the near future between the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) and the Sri Lankan Central Bank.

“Our aim is not really to use that money for anything,” he explained. “Our aim is to set up a mechanism for Sri Lankan currency to be available for purchase in the Maldives and for Maldivian currency to be available for purchase in Sri Lanka. To set up that mechanism, first of all a framework agreement has to be established. God willing, these discussions will reach a conclusion during this trip.”

He added that the government’s objective was to enable Maldivians to purchase Sri Lankan rupees with Maldivian rufiyaa for imports as well as making Maldivian rufiyaa available to Sri Lankans who wish to buy Maldivian goods.

The mechanism would improve the country’s balance of payments, broaden business opportunities and alleviate the high demand for US dollars in the country, he said.

While Sri Lankans would spend more on Maldivian products as a result of the agreement, local demand for US dollars would “decline significantly” when Maldivians are able to spend “their own currency in Sri Lanka”.

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Maldives contributes double-digit boost to South Asia tourist growth

The Maldives has contributed strong growth to the overall number of tourists arriving within the South Asia region during August, according to new travel industry-supplied figures.

The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) says that international arrivals to the Maldives were up by 27 per cent during the month when compared to the same period the previous year.

The South Asia region as a whole, which also includes Sri Lanka, India and Nepal among its members, posted an increase of the 10 per cent in the total number of monthly visitors during August 2009, according to the association’s figures.

PATA claimed that a more stable outlook within global economics and a growing number of airline services and seats has allowed the Asia Pacific region to benefit from a surge in tourist demand, particularly during the Northern Hemisphere’s summer holiday period.

Total regional tourist growth for August was seen by the association as being slower than the figures recorded during the previous three months, which were found ranging between 14 and 16 percent. However, PATA remained optimistic about the prospects for tourism across Asia and the Pacific Rim territories in 2010.

“To date, visitor arrivals have grown by a very positive 12 percent during the first eight months of the year,” the association stated.

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Poster exhibition in Sultans Park to mark World Day for Prevention of Child Abuse

The NGO Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) is hosting a poster exhibition in Sultans Park November 19 from 4pm to 6pm to mark World Day for the Prevention of Child Abuse.

The posters displayed at the exhibition will consist of those received for the poster competition that ARC announced on 10 October 2010, on the theme “Against the many faces of child abuse”.

This poster competition and exhibition is held in association with Thilafushi Corporation and in partnership with United Artists of Maldives (UAM).

ARC will also be launching a holiday programme, including swimming and art, for children at the Kudakudhinge Hiyaa orphanage on November 20, the Universal Chidren’s Day.

The swimming programme will be conducted in conjunction the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF).

The NGO said it hoped both the swimming and art lessons would “give the children more self confidence as well as give them something meaningful and fun to look forward to, especially during the holidays when schools are closed.”

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Rehabilitation and housing vital to combat Male’s youth crime, say police

The Maldives Police Service has backed claims by the country’s Housing Minister that congested living conditions in Male’ are proving to be a major contributor to ongoing youth crime, though the organisation adds that addressing the issue of rehabilitation for young offenders is just as big a concern.

Police spokesperson Sergeant Ahmed Shiyam accepted that high levels of congestion resulting from large numbers of people travelling and settling in the capital has led to little living space for many youngsters, who are being left to aimlessly roam the capital’s streets.

The comments follow claims last week by Home Minister Mohamed Shihab suggesting that escalating crime rates in the capital were a result of insufficient housing conditions that have made young people more susceptible to criminal activity out whilst in Male’.

“When we were young, we could play indoors. We did not have to go out. Now we are forced to go out and meet up with a gang and are caught up in a hassle,” Shihab was reported as saying in Haveeru. “Crime-free places do not exist now. But our living conditions are forcing us to walk into gangs.”

In response to these comments, Shiyam said that the capital is becoming increasingly cramped as more and more people travel to Male’ from outlying islands for work, often leaving young people little alternative than to head out aimlessly onto the streets. It is this aimlessness that the police spokesperson claims young people are increasingly telling officers was the main reason for them running into trouble with the law.

While not every person out on the streets is prone to taking part in criminal acts, in cases where an individual is convicted of involvement in civil disturbances, Shiyam noted that accruing a criminal record for drugs or other civil offences can make it extremely difficult to secure jobs or rehabilitation in the future.

He added that the country’s police force alone is not able to combat these issues, it has launched some programmes in an attempt to rehabilitate young men of between 12 to 14 years of age that have been involved in criminal or possible gang activity.

Some of the schemes being adopted by the police included literally taking young offenders off the streets of Male’ to more secluded island environments in attempts to try and engage different types of learning and cultural experiences.

“Sometimes when we take [young people] to separated and secluded islands, we find these boys do not even know how to pray,” he added.

The police spokesperson explained that additional skills such as computing, photography and art are also being taught to try and encourage a more productive or practical interest in society.

Shiyam claimed the police were having “great success” in running these rehabilitation and activity programmes with young people, although similar programmes with older offenders were not yet being undertaken.

He added that government institutions such as the Ministry of Human Resources Youth and Sports also have similar mandates for providing rehabilitation and activity programmes to try and ensure that young people have options available to them. For those that do get in trouble with the law, the police spokesperson says he remains hopeful that more projects to try to train and rehabilitate young people will be put into practice in the next few years.

It is not just local authorities that are concerned about the impact of Male’s congested housing on young people.

Executive Producer for the Maldives Nation Broadcast Corporation (MNBC)’s Youth TV service, Ibrahim Muaz, said he agreed that congested housing conditions in the capital were certainly exacerbating unrest and discontent among young people.

However, Muaz added that “it was unfair to marginalise young people as the sole perpetrators of crime in the Maldives.”

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Comment: Maldives no paradise for victimised young people

The Maldives is often described as ‘paradise’ or ‘heaven’, or is often described as the most peaceful and most beautiful nation in the world.

We have white sandy beaches, coconut palm trees hanging their leaves to the sea, as seen in the pictures, and the charming view of the sunset.

And this nation is also largely considered by the international community to be one of the best countries for freedom and rights.

Now let’s take a glance inside the so-called ‘paradise’ and see what we find. I am a Maldivian and I love this nation with all my heart. However, the truth will remain as the truth, although most of them try to hide it… forgive me and my words as I continue.

The constitution of the Maldives is just a bunch of words put together in a book with a green cover. In other words, its just an image portrayed to the international community, to show them how much the government pays attention for the rights of the citizens and for the freedom of the citizens. And also to show how democratic the society is.

Believe it or not, we do not have even one third of the rights and freedoms guaranteed in the constitution.

Seeing the chapter on freedom and rights – the second chapter of the constitution – brought comfort to a lot of citizens. Well, it did comfort the citizens before we realised it is guaranteed not for the poor ordinary citizens, but only for the wealthy and high-profile people of the nation.

More than half of the youth are into drugs, one way or another. Either dealing it or using it. You all know this is to be true.

The police have no idea how to deal with this issue. The only solution they apply is intimidation, harsh words, handcuffs and batons.

As a matter-of-fact, police have developed a nasty habit of arresting kids roaming the streets.

Police keep these arrested kids in detention for 23 hours and releases them presenting them face justice. Where is the article 45 of the constitution? Article 45: “Everyone has the right not to be arbitrarily detained, arrested or imprisoned.”

I would like to tell Commissioner of Police Mohamed Faseeh that this is not helping. In fact, it makes the situation of Male’ worse day by day. They cannot be stopped using that method. Think twice Mr Faseeh. If it could prevent the crimes, there would be no more gangs in Male’ because every time police conduct operations, hundreds are arrested and released. The ultimate price of it is ‘nothing’.

Most of the arrested kids are presented with wide opportunities to engage in crimes and gangs during their 23 hours stay behind the bars. The people they meet behind the bars become very friendly.

I have witnessed, on more than one night, kids sitting in public areas being arrested on no charges and being released after 23 hours without being presented to court. Their whole life shatters after being victimised by such a police ‘special operation’.

His family disowns him for bringing disgrace to the family. What other choice does he have? Other than joining the friends police forced him to meet behind the bars?

These kids are helpless. They live in tiny little congested houses with their entire family. They have no place to lie down inside their homes. That forces them to roam around, to sit on public benches. But if they get arrested while sitting there, where is the article 32 of the constitution? Article 32: “Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly without prior permission of the State.”

I have seen some of them refusing arrest as they have not committed any offense. However, the police warns them they have the power to arrest, and that for demanding for their freedom and rights, one can be arrested for 23 hours.

Our little green book includes the phrases “unlawful arrest” and “unlawful order”. Article 64: “No employee of the State shall impose any orders on a person except under authority of a law. Everyone has the right not to obey an unlawful order.”

In the meantime, the real gangsters have been at large. They have been progressing their work and have built nests not only in the capital city Male’ but also in other islands. It is public knowledge. As a result, there has been a significant and notable increase in the crime rate across the islands very recently.

Crimes are increasing at a steady rate. Gangs spreading their work nationwide.

It’s about time the police took appropriate measures on this issue for sake of the future of our next generation. The political parties and MPs can’t deal with these issues as they are too busy with their own wars.

The law enforcing agency’s pathetic manner of dealing with the issue will never solve it either. The police may think their aggressiveness and hostile actions towards these boys will assist them. If you think so, you’ve got it so wrong.

It only encourages them to challenge the police. If the police confront them thisway, I am sure they would never give up, they would rather suffer a broken rib. Hostile action and aggressiveness is not the answer to our problems. The other day you release them, they will be out there again.

Police officers also need to improve their own ethics before they are sent out to correct others’ mistakes. I have met females who complain that it is common practice for police officers patrolling the streets to stop by and whistle at young woman on the streets. To me that’s inexplicably disgraceful.

Police officers speak rudely, to show people they are powerful. Yes, you are and we know that. We wonder how many lives of innocent kids you will ruin before you catch one single criminal.

The wisest of us Maldivians would leave the country. Do not even think of the word ‘enjoy’ while you are living here. One could be arrested for having a chat with a friend in a public place. When the police say jump, you just ask “how high?”.

The articles stated in our constitution are very sophisticated, but we do not get to taste the sweetness of it. Article 63 of the constitution states: “Any law or part of any law contrary to the fundamental rights or freedoms guaranteed by this Chapter shall be void or void to the extent of such inconsistency.”

So I doubt if the police law is valid. I do not know what will be your perspective. I just exercise my right to express my opinion when I feel it’s time.

All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]

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Third of operating income “bad and doubtful debts”: BML quarterly report

The Bank of Maldives (BML) has reported a stable third quarter profit of Rf 10,412,552 (US$810,000) for the three months to September 2010, a small increase on second quarter profit stemming from a nine percent increase in overall income.

However of the state-owned bank’s third quarter operating income of Rf 140,236,774, almost a third (Rf 55,242,937, or US$4.3 million) was downgraded as provision for “bad and doubtful debts”, a Rf 8 million (US$620,000) increase on bad debts for the second quarter 2010.

Staff costs represented Rf 43,822,269 (US$3.4 million), over half the of the bank’s total operating expenses of Rf 71,110,433 ($US5.5 million).

During the quarter the bank sanctioned 2039 loans, worth Rf 708 million (US$55 million).

The bank also announced a new pension plan and staff provident fund, taking effect in 2011, and selected candidates for its “executive grooming programme”.

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Maldives grappling with globalisation, says foreign policy expert

The Maldives is grappling with the positive and negative aspects of globalisation, says South Asia security expert Professor Stephen Cohen, formerly of the US Department of State and now senior fellow in Foreign Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington.

Speaking to Minivan News during a recent visit to the Maldives, Professor Cohen suggested that the Maldives faced a unique set of challenges as a generally homogenous society, relative to the ethnic and religious diversity of neighbouring countries.

“This is a state [which is coping] with the negative and positive aspects of globalisation – one aspect was the decision to become a tourist resort destination in the 70s, but then [a negative aspect] in recent years is that this has established targets for attacks such as those in Bali or Mumbai,” he said.

“The state has to protect those targets, and the Maldives is not a state with giant capability. If there is an [extreme] Islamist element in the country, is there the intelligence capability to monitor them? Can they be put in jail? Can the government anticipate and break up a plot? We won’t know until it happens.”

In the absence of such evidence, Professor Cohen suggested, a balanced policy of appeasement “I think is the only viable strategy.”

“But you have to watch out for the Afghan model, where they played both sides against the middle but eventually lost control. The Nepalese played both sides, balancing India and Pakistan, Israel and the Palestinians, America and the Chinese, but lost sight of their own domestic political process.”

The Maldives, he suggested, could successfully avoid picking a side “as long as it remains an ‘out of the way’ place – they don’t have minerals or oil, so I think they’ll get away with it.”

Nonetheless, the country’s delicate economy and the import of radical Islam meant the nation had shades of Pakistan in the 1950s-1960s, “to the degree that Maldivians are now travelling to places like Pakistan for training,” Professor Cohen said.

A debate over whether an Islamic country such as the Maldives could reconcile itself with dependence on a liquor-selling tourism industry was part of a larger modernisation dialogue happening in countries like Turkey, he said. “Can Islam be tolerant, and how can it deal with extremists in its own ranks? Can you have a modern Muslim state, compatible with the rest of the world? They are finding ways of working around it.”

The Maldives had the foreign policy advantage of having few natural resources coveted by other states, Professor Cohen noted.

“Strategically the Maldives is the soft underbelly to Sri Lanka,” he said, before adding that the reason countries were interested in the small island nation was less to do with its location and more that they did not wish it to fall into the hands of anybody else.

“Everybody wants an independent Maldives – they want to be able to send tourists, and ships. The Maldives is lucky in that it has no disagreements over oil or fish, and while the tourist islands are a delicate asset, I think [the government] understands that.”

As an aside, Professor Cohen recalled his time at the US State Department and noted US involvement in tracking suspected players in the failed 1988 coup by mercenaries linked to the People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE).

“It’s a little known fact,” he said. “A passing American vessel transiting in the area picked up the escaping ship and pointed [the pursuers] towards it. I had only just left the State Department but I heard about it. It was a pivotal moment in the country’s history, and its purpose was never quite clear.”

Now, Professer Cohen said, the Maldives is challenged with balancing relations between its larger neighbours and major tourist markets such as China.

“China practices a very skillful kind of low-profile diplomacy. They seem to be able to find what a country needs the most,” Professor Cohen observed. “I’ve seen it in Pakistan – Americans are hated in Pakistan, but the Chinese are beloved. And along come the requests for favours.”

It was difficult to measure the effect of such soft power, he said.

“All you are buying is a moment of hesitation in the mind of the policy maker, when they balance the pros and cons. That’s where the influence is, and that’s where you get your money’s worth.”

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Six Senses Laamu to open in April 2011

The new Six Senses Laamu resort, by Six Senses Resorts & Spas, will open in the Maldives in April 2011 the company has announced.

Chairman and CEO of Six Senses Sonu Shivdasani was reported on HospitalityNet as saying the development of the project had been “challenging, [with] unavoidable delays frustrating to all. I believe though that it will all have been worthwhile, as Six Senses Laamu has all the ingredients to make it a hugely popular destination. With its remote (but accessible) location, its pristine reef, its yinyang surfing wave, its contemporary design features and focus on nightlife, it will set a new standard for Six Senses Resorts.”

Shivdasani attributed the delays to the resorts commitment to using only sustainable materials in its design and architecture, and the property’s isolation.

In addition to 97 villas, the resort will offer 10 beach front residences for purchase at U$2.5 million, fully staffed and managed by the resort part of a managed rental programme with a guaranteed five year five percent yield.

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