President Abdulla Yameen has used executive powers to release four Indian prisoners serving sentences in the Maldives.
President’s Office Spokesman Ibrahim Muaz Ali told local media that the three men and one woman currently detained would be deported upon release. The nature of their offences was not revealed.
“We have an agreement for exchange of prisoners between our two countries. The laws needed to enforce this agreement haven’t yet been completed. Therefore, this decision was taken with the power bestowed upon the president through Article 115 of the Constitution,” Muaz told Haveeru.
He said that the move was intended to strengthen bilateral ties as well as celebrating the recent election of Narendra Modi. The close ties between the two countries will be marked with a 2km friendship walk, starting from the artificial beach at 4pm tomorrow (August 8).
President Yameen also used his presidential prerogative to grant clemency to 169 Maldivian convicts in April.
The Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) came to a standstill yesterday (August 6) after a Cathay Pacific aircraft was unexpectedly grounded.
The runway had to be closed down for about an hour from 9pm because of a hydraulics problem on the plane. Hydraulic fluid consequently leaked onto the runway, causing numerous delays and disruptions, reported local media Haveeru.
According to Haveeru, one Emirates Flight which was scheduled to land had to be diverted elsewhere. Other flights delayed due to the incident include Malaysian Airways, Singapore Flights, and a number of domestic flights.
An official from INIA told Haveeru, “The runway has been cleared and is now operational. The delay took about one hour. Operations are now turning back to normal,” he said.
Maldivian efforts to assist the people of Palestine will culminate in an unprecedented 33 hour telethon aired across multiple participating broadcasters.
Numerous media organisation have initiated a telethon titled ‘I will also help’ to raise funds for victims of the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza. It will air from 2:30pm on Friday (August 8).
The organisers will also assist in arranging a joining of hands across the capital Malé at 5pm on Saturday, while the fundraising – with over US$350,000 already in the Help Gaza Fund – is set to grow as both state and private companies urge staff to donate wages to the fund.
All TV channels and radio stations taking part in the telethon will air the same live program with content – produced by a joint content committee – on the current situation in Gaza to be broadcast through out the programme.
Live updates of donations and details of fundraising and solidarity events organised by councils and NGOs across the country will also feature.
Solidarity
This week Maldives Customs Service and Maldives Ports Limited jointly opened a joint fund where employees of both institutions agreed to donate one day’s basic salary. Faafu Atoll Hospital has also decided to join this campaign.
In addition to one day salaries of their employees, newspaper Haveeru has decided to donate the total revenue generated in advertisement on their online and print news this Thursday (August 7). The paper hopes that this will allow people to donate by placing advertisements on the paper as well.
The state owned State Trading Organization (STO) has announced it will donate a percentage of its two major shops’ sales on on August 8 and 9, five percent from STO Home Improvement, and two percent from STO Super Mart.
STO is also coordinating with the media telethon group for the joining of hands event during which people will stand holding hands across Boduthakurufaanu Magu in Malé starting from the tsunami monument.
Ahmed ‘Hiriga’ Zahir, an organiser and President of the Maldives Journalism Association, requested everyone dresses in black for the event to show that “we are taking part in their sorrow”.
“Remember how we felt when the tsunami hit the Maldives and how we requested foreign aid? Now our brothers and sisters in a situation where they need our help. I request everyone to donate to the best of their ability for this cause,” he said.
The telethon group is also selling fifteen ‘Help Gaza’ t-shirts for MVR100,000 each. Two have already been booked – one by the STO for President Abdulla Yameen and another by Kooddoo Fisheries Maldives Limited for the first lady.4
Joining of funds
After the Adhaalath Party endorsed the telethon, both parties have agreed to join their funds, with the party’s Help Gaza Fund being pooled with the telethon collection from Friday.
The Help Gaza Fund has received over MVR5.48million (US$355,600), the party said today. Collection of funds is on halt for now and will begin again with the the telethon on Friday, explained an Adhaalath spokesperson.
The donations from the joint fund will be handed over to the Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) – chosen because they have worked with Adhaalath in previous fund raising events such as the 2010 Pakistan Relief Fund to help flood victims and the 2009 Gaza Fund.
QRCS has assured that these fund will reach the people of Gaza in the form of food and medicine through their relief efforts in area.
Meanwhile, the Maldivian Red Crescent (MRC) are also raising funds in response to an emergency appeal for US$14.7 million by the Palestine Red Crescent Society on July 14. The MRC Palestine Relief Fund was established on July 20 will continue collecting until August 15.
Funds will be raised through MRC Emergency Relief Fund bank accounts, donation boxes and door-to-door collection across the country.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has called on the Maldives to guarantee the safety of journalists after 15 journalists received threatening text messages regarding coverage of gangs in Malé.
“Death threats lead to self–censorship,” said Benjamin Ismail, head of RSF’s Asia- Pacific Desk.
“The authorities have a duty to guarantee the safety of journalists. This includes arresting those responsible for these threats. The authorities must end the culture of intimidation and impunity by ceasing to turn a blind eye to abuses by the rival gangs.”
Journalists with Haveeru, Raajje TV, Maldives Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), Villa TV (VTV), Sun Online, and Vaguthu received an anonymous text on Wednesday saying, “[We] will kill you if you keep writing inappropriate articles about gangs in the media.”
The threats came in the wake of extensive coverage of a spate of violence in Malé which saw one dead and nine hospitalised with serious injuries.
The press freedom advocacy group cited a Maldives Broadcasting Commission report published in May, in which journalists said political parties were the main source of threats against journalists, followed by gangs and religious extremists.
“The threats encourage self–censorship, with 30 percent of journalists saying they are afraid of covering gang activity and 43 percent saying they do not report threats to the authorities,” the RSF said.
The organisation noted that although death threats are frequent in the Maldives, they are rarely carried out. However, the near fatal- beating of Raajje TV journalist Ibrahim ‘Asward’ Waheed sets a “disturbing precedent.”
“As Malé is a small town, journalists have nowhere to hide when they are threatened,” noted RSF.
Speaking to Minivan News today, Asward condemned his 18 month long wait for justice. After a second witness failed to identify suspects with absolute certainty at the Criminal Court today, Asward said delays affect memory and allow attackers to tamper with evidence.
“Each day of delay is one more day without justice,” he said.
He called on the courts to expedite the trial and said he had no confidence the courts may deliver justice.
“It’s quite possible that the case will conclude saying that I beat myself up,” he said.
The Maldives Police Services have said the near fatal attack was not politically motivated, but connected to gang activity. Asward has denied this claim.
Gangs often seek media coverage of their actions, but turn against the media when the coverage is not to their liking or when media covers activities of rival gangs, note RSF today.
Gangs enjoy “complete impunity,” as politicians use them to threaten and pressure journalists or people they regard as opponents the organisation said.
The organisation also noted slow progress on prosecuting those responsible for the attack on Asward and the arson attack which destroyed Raajje TV office in October.
Raajje TV Journalist Ibrahim ‘Asward’ Waheed has condemned delays in prosecuting two men suspected of critically injuring him in a near-fatal attack in February 2013.
The Prosecutor General’s Office in May 2013 pressed charges against Ahmed Vishan, 22 years, and Hassan Raihan, 19 years, for assault under Article 128 of the Penal Code.
If found guilty, the two face a jail term or banishment between six months and five years, or a fine between MVR100 and MVR5000.
“Each day of delay is one more day without justice,” Asward told Minivan News today.
The Criminal Court held a hearing this morning in which a second anonymous witness said the suspects “looked very similar” to the two men they had seen fleeing the crime scene. However, the witness repeatedly said they could not be absolutely certain if the suspects were indeed the attackers.
Asward has blamed the witnesses uncertainty on the long trial process.
“Delays affect memory, making it difficult for witnesses to identify suspects. It also allows the attackers to tamper with evidence,” he said.
“It’s quite possible that the case will conclude saying that I beat myself up. It’s been 18 months since the attack. The courts must speed up the process,” he continued.
Noting the two suspects have been kept in pretrial detention since March 2013, Asward said delays in justice also violate rights of the two suspects.
The broadcast journalist also said the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Criminal Court have repeatedly failed to inform him of dates for court hearings.
“I found out today because our court reporter saw the case on the court schedule. This failure to inform me shows they are not particularly interested in completing the case,” he said.
The witness told the Criminal Court today they saw a man holding an iron bar getting on the back of an Air Blade motorcycle on the night of the attack. The witness said they did not see the actual attack.
On December 16, the first witness had also said told the Criminal Court they are unsure of the identities of the attackers, but also said the two suspects look very similar.
The anonymous witness said they saw a man with a three-foot long iron bar knock Asward down to the ground with a blow to the face. Afterwards the attacker hit Asward a few more times while he was on the ground.
The witness said Vishan “looked very similar” to the man who had attacked Asward.
Only the man on the back of the motorbike attacked Asward, the witness said.
The Maldives Police Services have said the attack appears to be premeditated, and former Commissioner of Police Abdulla Riyaz at the time described the attack as a murder attempt.
Head of Serious and Organised Crime Department Mohamed Daud revealed that both suspects had criminal records and belonged to “groups” or gangs in the capital.
Daud claimed at the time that the attack was not thought to be politically motivated.
The attack left Asward unconscious, and he was transferred to a hospital in Sri Lanka for treatment, where he had to undergo major surgery to correct a maxillary fracture (broken jawbone). The beating has also affected Asward’s eyesight.
President Abdulla Yameen has warned foreign companies of the importance of political risk assessment before investing in countries such as the Maldives.
“At a time when you had a very heightened political environment in Maldives, at a time when the parliament was polarised, it was a pity that political risk assessment was not undertaken by GMR,” said the president.
Yameen’s comments came during the scholarship awards ceremony of Trans Maldivian Airways’ (TMA) youth pilot training programme – a company he cited as an example of successful foreign investment after its takeover by the Blackstone Group last year.
“Whenever we hear about GMR, the issue that comes right to the limelight is their inability to assess political risk at the time.”
GMR’s landmark airport development deal – signed during the prematurely ended term of President Mohamed Nasheed – was itself abruptly ended by the succeeding administration in December 2012.
The concession agreement to develop Ibrahim Nasir International Airport was signed in June 2010, the same month in which Nasheed’s entire cabinet resigned in protest against what it considered to be the obstructionist policies of then-opposition parties.
Legal action initiated by the deal’s opponents eventually invalidated the deal’s funding arrangements, leading the government of Dr Mohamed Waheed to justify the annulment using the legal principle of ‘frustration’ – in which unforeseen events render contractual obligations impossible.
In June this year, a Singapore court of arbitration ruled the deal had been “valid and binding”, finding the Government of Maldives liable for damages still to be determined by the court.
The Maldivian Democratic Party had subsequently called for the reinstatement of the GMR deal, threatening to dissolve any future deals to redevelop the country’s major international airport.
Foreign diversification
During yesterday’s ceremony, President Yameen continued to appeal to foreign investors, expressing the country’s desire to diversify from the dominant tourism industry.
“We are not just about the sun, the sand, the sea – Maldives is more subtle. That is the message we are trying to give to the world now,” he told those in attendance at Traders Hotel.
The government’s drive for new investment has focused upon five ‘mega-projects’ as well as an improved climate for new investors, facilitated by controversial plans to establish special economic zones via legislation recently introduced to the People’s Majlis.
Tracing the journey of foreign investment in the Maldives alongside his own public career, Yameen noted that foreign investments were seen as “punitive” in the mid 1980s, with local laws designed to prevent them.
“My task was to encourage political leaders and the president that foreign investment was not such a bad thing. It is only through foreign investment that small countries such as Maldives could forge ahead.”
Yameen – who spent two decades with the Ministry of Trade and Industries – went on to describe frequently “lonely” and “solitary” overseas discussions on potential investment in the Maldives.
Indeed, the president described the difficulty he had in persuading Blackstone’s risk management personnel to invest in the country. The deal saw the US private equity firm gain a monopoly in the vital seaplane sector as rival firm Maldivian Air Taxi was bought simultaneously.
Congratulating those awarded the TMA training scholarships yesterday, Yameen pointed to the country’s “motivated”, “highly intelligent” and “easily trainable” youth as a key resource, urging the seaplane operator to increase the number of Maldivian staff members.
He also expressed his gratitude to the company for providing assistance in his “endeavour which is to bring prosperity throught the avenue of finding ways for the youth”.
The government recently revealed that a number of companies had expressed interest in the government’s Hulhumalé youth city project – which will reportedly include youth-specific housing, international class sports facilities, a theme park, and a yacht marina, catering to a population of 50,000.
The British High Commission in Colombo is today accepting online bookings for the second Visa Application Centre to be held in Malé on August 27.
The optional one-day service which, for an additional fee, allows applicants who are resident in the Maldives to submit their UK visa application and biometric data using a mobile facility in the Maldives’ capital.
“This initiative will make it easier for Maldivians to submit their visa applications and biometric data for all visa categories, including students at this busy time of year,” said British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka and Maldives John Rankin.
“I hope that many Maldivians will make good use of this opportunity and apply online to meet the deadline.”
Applicants for all visa categories can book an appointment between now and midday on August 25. The application centre is unable to process cash payments and visa fees must be paid online prior to the appointment.
On July 28, an Israeli surfer on Thulusdhoo Island vandalised a protest placard featuring a swastika alongside an Israeli flag.
Within hours, an estimated 30 protesters from Malé travelled to the island to call for the expulsion of all Israeli tourists. The new arrivals were temporarily detained while the police evacuated 30 Israelis along with 4 tourists of other nationalities.
The incident has left several guest houses on Thulusdhoo empty and caused the cancellation of bookings, while nearby resorts have called off excursions.
Thulusdhoo, only 40 minutes away from Malé, is home to one of the country’s top surf breaks and – although Israeli arrivals amount to a small fraction (3,253) of the 1 million-plus tourist arrivals in Maldives each year – Thulusdhoo’s nine guest houses rely heavily on Israeli surf tourism.
“Business will be down for the next three months. If incidents like this occur in the future, guest house tourism will suffer a lot of damage,” said Mohamed Hashim, who runs Batuta Maldives Surf View on Thulusdhoo.
Anti Israeli sentiment has been growing in the Maldives since the onset of the Israeli offensive in Gaza. The Maldives has announced plans to boycott Israeli imports, thousands have marched in solidarity with Palestine, and over MVR5 million has been donated to a humanitarian fund for Gaza.
Maldives luxury resorts – with one hotel on one island – are shielded from the local citizenry and society but they have offered islanders little benefit from its multi-billion dollar profits. Local tourism, on the other hand – while it offers hope of greater wealth distribution – is particularly vulnerable to unrest within the community.
Vigilante action of the sort seen on Thulusdhoo could pose serious risks for this emerging sector.
Real danger?
Interviews with protesters reveal that they had demanded police escort guests off the island through the protesting crowd in order to show tourists “they cannot provoke us”.
One man claimed the Israeli tourists were soldiers and described their actions as condescending. He further claimed the tourists had told locals, “We are Israelis. You cannot do anything to us.”
Condemning the police’s detention of the protesters while guests were evacuated, he said the police had treated the locals “worse than the Jews.” Israeli tourists must face the protesting locals, he argued, claiming even US President Barack Obama had gone to places where shoes had been thrown at him.
“This is a slap to Maldivian Muslim faces. After harming Muslims in that country, they come here, to a Muslim country, stay in a Muslim community and slap us in the face.”
“They have given Maldivians a warning. Just as they are killing children there, tomorrow they will kill your children,” he continued.
Another man said, “They cannot come to the Maldives on that passport. This is a 100 percent Muslim nation. Jew, Christian dogs cannot come into this country.”
No confrontation
Thulusdhoo Island Council President Ahmed Anees has denied the claim of confrontations between protesters and guests, saying that the community had in fact resolved the issue before those journeying from Malé arrived.
Batuta manager Hashim said that, though he did not believe that any of the protesters would have physically harmed guests, guest house owners could not agree to demands for guests to be escorted through the irate crowd.
“Escorting guests off through a crowd opens up opportunity for danger, for example someone in the crowd throwing a stone. We didn’t allow them the opportunity,” he said.
Rumors on social media and irresponsible media coverage had caused the situation to escalate, he said.
“Just as insults to our Prophet Mohamed riles us up, the swastika riles them up. It represents the Holocaust in which millions of Jews died. The guest shouldn’t have vandalised the placard. I do not support their actions. The boards were taken down. The issue was resolved,” he continued.
Protesters have gone on to hold a series of nightly demonstrations in Malé, calling for a ban on tourists from Israel. The Israeli and American flags were burned in front on Relax Inn and Mookai Hotel in Malé on Thursday.
Hashim said he did not see how banning Israeli tourists could have an economic impact on Israel.
“A ban on imports from Israel can cause an economic impact, but banning Israeli tourism is not that important. It affects our economy, not theirs,” he said.
Evacuation “heartbreaking”
Israeli citizen and tour operator Tom Niv – present on Thulusdhoo during the incident – described the evacuation as “heartbreaking.”
“I am fully against ugly behavior. When ugly behavior occurs, whether it’s from Israelis or locals, the police should get involved. As a travel agent, I am not accepting any kind of unwelcome behavior. We are guests in this country and we should respect rules.”
Thulusdhoo is “no longer safe for us,” Niv continued. “That a few extremists can impact a whole nation is crazy.”
Both Niv and Hashim maintained that Thulusdhoo was tourist friendly up until the evacuation.
“The guests mixed with the locals, frequented local businesses such as souvenir shops and went fishing on local boats,” Hashim said.
“There was a really good vibe, even clients posted on social media, look these are Muslims, we are Jews, see how good friends we are and see how much fun we have together,” Niv said.
“Almost everyone who came to Thulusdhoo got really connected with the locals. They weren’t like in resorts, like servants. It was not about money or tips. They really became good friends.”
Anees said residents continue to welcome tourists of any nationality, though he admitted he was now apprehensive of having Israeli tourists on Thulusdhoo.
Repercussions
Hashim fears businesses might now be wary of investing in Thulusdhoo in the future.
“Any act that may harm tourism worries us. Tourism is a very vulnerable industry. Burning flags in front of hotels in Malé and calling for tourism bans will scare off tourists,” he added.
Deputy Minister of Tourism Hussein Lirar said the safety of tourists is the government’s first priority, and that it is holding discussions on preventing similar incidents in the future.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Home Affairs are in the process of establishing Tourist Police to deal specifically with tourist affairs.
“This is quite important as the number of tourists coming to Malé is also increasing,” he said.
For Niv, the evacuation will have far-reaching consequences for guest house tourism in the Maldives.
“Israelis are not the only one who went away, Australians, French – not too many – but they will tell their friends that local islands are not safe anymore.”
“Now it is against Israel. But tomorrow it could be against Europeans or against Americans. It shows what can happen in certain conditions. This will definitely damage tourism in local islands and tourism in general,” said Niv.
Demands for a ban on tourists from any country should be directed at the government, while disagreements with any state’s actions ought not to translate into direct threats against tourists.
The incidents on Thulusdhoo reveal the risks radicals could have on guest house tourism. Local disputes over the actions of an Israeli – or a tourist of any nationality – should be taken up with police and local government.
Failure to do so could cause irreparable harm to the guest house sector.
The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) has called on the Maldives to make a speedy investigation into the death threats against opposition MPs and to offer them full protection.
The statement follows a series of death threats made against seven Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MPs on Saturday night (August 2).
“IPU is deeply concerned by these acts of intimidation against MPs in a country where many parliamentarians have been victims of attacks, harassment and arbitrary arrests in recent years,” said the IPU.
Secretary General Martin Chungong said “the authorities’ response to the threats and their capacity to promote, with the help of the opposition, real inclusiveness and political dialogue will be a litmus test for the democratic process in the Maldives.”
“The authorities must act with the necessary resolve to bring the culprits to justice,” continues the statement.
MP Eva Abdulla – a recipient of the threats, and the first Maldivian member of the IPU – told Minivan News that she had received no update from the authorities regarding any investigation or protection after reporting the incident three days ago.
“I am alarmed the parliament has not said anything,” she said.
“The MNDF should take some action, the Majlis have not said anything, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union is speaking before the parliament,” Eva added.
Meanwhile, police claimed that an investigation had been launched on the day the threats were received, with a spokesman describing the investigation as “going very fast”.
When asked about the level of security offered to MPs, the spokesperson stated that it was the responsibility of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) to provide a bodyguard.
Both the police and the MNDF were unwilling to comment on the level of protection currently offered to MPs.
The Sergeant-at-Arms – the head of the Majlis’ independent security team – told Minivan News that he had been informed of the threats, adding that the usual procedure was to inform MNDF and the police.
He suggested that authorities have no capacity to track who sends these threats, a point previously contested by the opposition who have suggested those culpable are being protected from prosecution.
Threats
In the death threat sent to MPs on Saturday, the perpetrators referred to the murder of Ungoofaaru constituency MP and Islamic scholar in October 2012.
“It is not a sin to kill those who challenge Allah’s words and call for freedom of religion. Afrasheem Ali was an example,” read the message.
While the murder of Dr Afrasheem was the most shocking attack on an elected representative in the country’s history, former MDP MP Alhan Fahmy was left unable to walk for months after being stabbed in the back in February this year.
The safety and rights of MPs have previously been a concern of the IPU, who in November 2013 arranged an emergency visit to the Maldives.
The organisation’s request for an urgent visit was prompted by the growing list of cases involving Maldivian MPs – 24 in total – filed with the IPU’s Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians.
Death threats made against those in the public eye have become a norm in Maldivian cyberspace. Politicians, bloggers, and social media users have reported receiving threats for a range of reasons, from their support of a particular political party to their advocacy of freedom of religion.
Earlier this week, 15 journalists from different media outlets received SMS threats in relation to the coverage of gang violence in the capital Malé.
The Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) has previously expressed concern over the prevalence of cyber threats, and urged victims to report threats made via Facebook, Twitter, or comments on blog posts to the police.
“In light of recent events, at a time of high levels of intolerance, and increase in gang related violence, do not treat any form of cyber threat as an idle threat,” said HRCM Vice President Ahmed Tholal.
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