Tag: maldives

PG files criminal charges against policeman for reckless driving

A policeman crashed who allegedly killed an elderly woman after crashing into her on his motorcycle will appear in court charged with recklessly driving an engine vehicle, according to a report in Haveeru.

52-year-old Shakeela and her grandson were allegedly hit and injured while crossing the road by Shimaz Ahmed of Guleynooranmaage on Villingilli in Gaaf Alif Atoll.

According to Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH), Shakeela died of internal bleeding in the hospital two hours after the incident on March 2. Her grandson suffered head injuries but recovered.

In its report, Haveeru published a picture of Shimaz riding a motorcycle in September 2009 while appearing to talk on a mobile phone.

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ICJ and former UN Special Rapporteurs to help Maldives strengthen judiciary

A delegation from the International Committee of Jurists (ICJ), led by two former UN Special Rapporteurs, will visit the Maldives September 13-18 to discuss a long-term engagement aimed at strengthening the country’s judiciary.

A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the ICJ had agreed to work with the government on “a sustainable basis” to strengthen the judiciary and incorporate international standards into national law and practice, and build public trust in the legal institution.

The ICJ mission will be led by Dr Param Cumaraswamy and Dr Leandro Despouy. Dr Cumaraswamy was UN Special Rapporteur from 1994 to 2003 and has held roles including President of the Law Association of Asia and Chairman of the Human Rights Committee of the International Bar Association.

Dr Despouy was the UN Special Rapporteur from 2003-2009 and was previously the President of the UN Human Rights Commission.

The Foreign Ministry described the pair “as two of the world’s foremost experts on matters pertaining to the judicial sector and the separation and balance of powers between the judiciary and the other branches of government.”

During their visit in September the pair will decide the terms of reference for the ICJ’s engagement, and “gather information about the challenges to judicial independence and integrity, and report back with findings and recommendations.”

Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Ahmed Shaheed said that while the country had taken “important steps” to increase independence and trust in the judiciary through parliament’s appointment of a Supreme Court last week, “Rome wasn’t built in a day and it is important that we, as a country and as a government, think long-term.”

Speaking to Minivan News earlier this month, the President’s member on the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), Aishath Velezinee, called for international arbitration of the judiciary, particularly disputes regarding the reappointment of judges under standards she argued were unconstitutional “and would deprive the nation of an honest judiciary.”

“We need an impartial investigation of what is going on. And I believe the Maldives does not have anyone able to conduct an impartial investigation. We need assistance,” she said.

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Opposition coalition drafting bill on airport management

The opposition coalition against airport privatisation has announced the four opposition parties – including the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), Jumhoree Party (JP), People’s Alliance (PA) and Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) – will draft a bill governing “operations and rules” at  Male’ International Airport.

A statement issued by the coalition said the draft bill would be presented to parliament this week.

“We will not hesitate to take action against those who violated the law in leasing Male’ International Airport, a state asset, to [Indian infrastructure firm] GMR for 25 years,” said the statement.

“We assure the people of the Maldives that we stand steady and go forward on this issue.’’

The opposition parties – which strongly oppose the government’s decision to upgrade the airport under a 25 year management contract to the GMR-Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) consortium – have not yet revealed whether the bill will oppose the deal outright, or restrict its operations in some way.

DRP MP Abdulla Mausoom said the contents of the bill would be disclosed on conclusion of the drafting process, but said he believed the bill’s object “is not to utterly obstruct the leasing of the international airport.”

Leader of the DQP Dr Hassan Saeed refused to comment to Minivan News on the issue.

According to a report in Haveeru, the DQP’s Deputy Leader Dr Mohamed Jameel told the newspaper in a statement that the bill’s objective was to ensure the airport was “managed by the government or a [Maldivian] company assigned by the government. The aim is to prevent [the government] from giving the airport to a foreign party. The bill will specify everything very clearly,” he said.

Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair said opposition coalition had proved they had vested interests concerned concerning the lease of the airport, and “have shown they are not working not in the interests of the nation, but rather their own self-interest.”

”When the first announced the proposal and published it locally and internationally, no person expressed concern or protested against it,” said Zuhair. ”Because the government did not receive [acceptable bids], the government requested proposals a second time, this time with the assistance of the World Bank.”

Opposition parties were silent throughout, he said, and expressed disapproval “only when the transaction had reached its final stages.”

Zuhair queried the coalition’s claims that leasing the airport compromised the country’s nationalism: “It is only the management of the Airport that we are handing over to GMR – the water company is operated the same way, and so far no one has complained about that. It just shows how insincere the opposition are being.”

The GMR-MAHB consortium will spend US$373 million upgrading the international airport after winning the controversial bid. Last week it held workshops with airport staff and stakeholders to determine what would be required.

Speaking at the opening of the cavernous Delhi Terminal 3, GMR Manager P Sri Pathi told Maldivian journalists that physical work would begin on the airport towards the end of this year.

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President’s nomination for Auditor General refused by finance committee

Former President of the Anti-Corruption-Commission (ACC) Ali Rasheed Umar,who was proposed by President Mohamed Nasheed as the new Auditor General following a vote of no-confidence in Ibrahim Naeem, has been refused by parliament’s finance committee.

Opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Ahmed Nihan said Umar was failed “due to integrity issues.”

“Some questions were raised at the committee regarding issues of integrity,” said Nihan. “There were some claims made against  him when he was the President of ACC, and some other issues.’’

Former Auditor General Ahmed Naeem was dismissed by a no-confidence motion in parliament.

Parliament voted to dismiss Auditor General Naeem with 43 in favour and 28 against, after the ACC accused him  of corruption for using the government’s money to buy a tie and visit Thulhaidhu in Baa Atoll.

Naeem claimed the charges were an attempt to discredit his office and prevent him from reclaiming the government’s money stored in overseas bank accounts.

“A lot of the government’s money was taken through corrupt [means] and saved in the banks of England, Switzerland, Singapore and Malaysia,” Naeem claimed, demanding a financial audit of current and former government ministers. He was dismissed by the opposition majority parliament several weeks later.

Press secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair was unavailable at time of press.

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Parliament’s CSC and HRCM appointments “capable and willing”: Zuhair

Parliament selected three of the eight names proposed by President Mohamed Nasheed for members of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM).

The three members appointed for HRCM were Maryam Azra Ahmed of Maafannu Hukuradhige, Jeehaan Mahmood of Dheyliyage in Hinnavaru of Lhaviyani Atoll and Ahmed Thalal of Henveiru Adduge. Former President of HRCM Ahmed Saleem was not approved by the parliament.

In the same session on Thursday, Parliament appointed five members for the CSC: Dr Mohamed Latheef of Mahchangolhi Kimbi, Mohamed Fahmy Hassan of Galolhu Kohgiri, Ahmed Hassan Didi of Galolhu New Waves, Abdulla Jinah and Khadheeja Adam of Galolhu Alafaruge.

Press Secretary for the President, Mohamed Zuhair, said that the government believed “all persons appointed are capable and willing persons.”

“The President proposed names to the parliament including the people who are already members of the commission,’’ said Zuhair. “Parliament researched the names and appointed names for the CSC and HRCM.’’

Both the CSC and HRCM were left in constitutional limbo last week after parliament failed to conduct the reappointments in time for the interim period deadline of August 7.

Prior to the appointment of commission members on Thursday, a source at HRCM said the legal legitimacy of the institution’s activities were questionable until the new commission was approved: “we don’t even know if we are supposed to be going to work.”

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Chinese couple disappear at sea, leaving 13 year old daughter

A Chinese couple holidaying in the Maldives disappeared from their resort on Saturday after they went for a swim, according to the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF).

The 38 year old woman and 40 year old man were holidaying with their 13 year-old daughter on the Hilton Irufushi Beach and Spa Resort in Noonu Atoll.

Lieutenant Abdulla Jaleel said that MNDF had already searched 102 square miles from air and sea, attempting to locate the lost couple.

“Yesterday we checked near Rehendi Resort, today we started to search near Dhigufaru island,’’ said Jaleel. “We have been unable to discover any sign of them.’’

“On that day, we received a report from a speed boat  travelling in the area that they thought they had seen a woman lying face down on the surface, but when they turned towards the direction of the woman to check, she had vanished,’’ Jaleel said. “MNDF Nothern Area coast guard immediately went to the area, but there was no sign of them.’’

Daily newspaper Haveeru reported that the couple and their daughter went to the beach and that their daughter walked around the beach collecting shells while her mother and father were swimming. When she came back she noticed her parents were missing.

Jaleel said that the missing couple’s daugter was now under observation at Irufushi resort.

The resort issued a statement today saying it had immediately launched its emergency search and rescue plan, and contacted the MNDF Coast Guard.

“The hotel is assisting the authorities and all efforts are being made to locate the guests. The well being, safety and security of our guests are of paramount importance and the Hilton Maldives / Iru Fushi Resort & Spa continues to make every effort to ensure that all practises and standards are in line with strict safety and security regulations,” the resort said.

On February 27, a 69 year old German tourist died while snorkelling at Embudhu Village Resort in Kaafu Atoll, eight kilometres from Male’.

On March 1, a Chinese tourist died while snorkeling at Chaaya Lagoon Hakurahura Island Resort. Two weeks later on March 14 a second Chinese tourist died at Holiday Inn Kandooma Resort.

Correction: A previous version of article incorrectly stated that a Chinese couple died at Holiday Inn Kandooma Resort on March 14. The male guest died while the female guest was revived.

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Comment: What do you call a lawless State?

On Tuesday the Maldives appointed a Supreme Court bench in one of the few displays of cross-party cooperation seen in parliament since the ratification of the 2008 Constitution.

But Raadhafathi, a Maldivian national currently working on a project to strengthen the justice sector of the Maldives, and with experience training judges and inspecting courts all over the country, claims the road to an experienced, impartial and capable judiciary will be long and arduous.

The Maldives is in a state of transition. A new Constitution, a new Supreme Court, a new President, multi-party systems and many other factors creating a crucial period for the judiciary as well as for the country as a whole.

I am writing this to highlight the justice sector of Maldives.

Since independence the Maldives has acceded or ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), Convention Against Torture (CAT), Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The Maldives was officially awarded a seat in the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva in May 2010.

The Constitution adopted in 2008 provides for independence of the judiciary, creates new individual liberties, establishes judicial review and gives certain responsibilities relating to the judiciary to the Judicial Services Commission (JSC). These developments present challenges as well as opportunities for the judiciary.

The dynamic reforms of the past two years require that the judiciary transforms itself to ensure that it has the capacity to address the issues brought before it in the coming years. The Maldives is geographically unique in that it is comprised of 20 Atolls containing nearly 1200 islands, out of which 200 are inhabited. This presents numerous governmental challenges which judiciaries in other countries do not face.

During the past five months I have:

  • Been involved in the training of 18 Judges from the Malé courts and 23 Magistrates from the Island Courts on Human Rights and the Constitution;
  • Interviewed NGO’s, Human Rights Commission of the Maldives, Migrant Workers, Bangladesh Embassy, Indian High Commission, Department of Immigration and private lawyers.
  • Visited all the police stations, prisons and detention facilities in the Malé surrounds;
  • Interviewed prisoners and prison staff
  • Visited and interviewed drug rehabilitation facilities
  • Visited all the courts in Malé and interviewed judges and court staff including the [interim] Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
  • Visited Southern and Northern Atolls Courts and interviewed Magistrates, Atoll police commanders, Investigation officers, court staff, prosecutors and court users in the community.

It is evident there is an urgent need to increase the capacity of judges and the court staff to handle the number and complexity of the cases brought to the judiciary, in particular protecting rights enshrined in the Constitution. In addition, Human Rights is a new concept in Maldives and very few people poses the necessary skills and knowledge.

Major features and problems of the legal and judicial system operating in the Maldives

There are total of 208 judges/magistrates in Maldives. Although rights are defined and independent institutions exist to ensure rights are protected, the weakness of the current legal framework lies with the lack of trained professionals in the justice sector, in particular judges, magistrates, prosecutors and police.

98 percent of the legal profession in Maldives (including prosecutors, lawyers, judges, magistrates) are less than qualified to be in the legal profession. Most judges and magistrates have only completed secondary education, and they are not required to be lawyers.

Very few have completed undergraduate or post graduate degree from a western country. Most degrees are from Egypt or Saudi Arabia, and they are usually from unrelated fields. Some have received a Diploma in Sha’riah Law from Institutions established in Malé.

There is no common denominator in judicial training and experience. Some have learned in Arabic, some in Dhivehi, a few in English (the majority of the Judges I have met do not speak English to a serious degree).

The average age of judges at present is 28-32 years.

This situation gives rise to many problems such as reconciling Shari’ah law and the codified common law, as well as the attitudes of judges trained in the Shari’ah law and lawyers trained in common law traditions of the Commonwealth. In addition, the lack of laws governing legal procedure exacerbates the situation further, ensuring there is no consistency in their judgments or conduct of cases.

The judicial system is in considerable chaos. There are no Rules of Court, instead certain rules and regulations are found in more informal publications called ‘Court Circulars’.

In criminal cases, there is no formal onus of proof, and Judges can and do conduct cases any way they want. Every Judge does his or her cases differently and unpredictably.

State attorneys can appear in private legal cases and can be and are members of the Majlis. These arrangements are a direct breach of the separation of powers doctrine. This again demonstrates a failure to appreciate how a democracy and the separation of powers are intended to operate.

The right to a fair trial is a cornerstone of democratic societies. How a person is treated when accused of a crime provides a concrete demonstration of how far a state respects human rights. Unfortunately in the Maldives:

  • Courts assume guilt based on the prosecution case before the ‘trial’
  • A Russian national who only speaks Russian is provided an English Interpreter
  • Prosecution did not provide the documents filed to the accused. Prosecution stated “providing a copy to the accused is not included in the budget.”
  • If a woman submits an application for a divorce, the courts treat the woman with disrespect and 99 percent of the time, they are not granted a divorce regardless of evidence produced – even in domestic violence cases.
  • Prosecution takes too long to file a case, particularly in the islands.
  • Legal profession lacks basic advocacy skills
  • Majority of the legal profession are not competent. They are independent by law but not in practice. As for impartiality – the island courts in particular – this is not exercised due to the small community they live in. Island prosecutors often discuss matters with the magistrates. The prosecution is also allowed to go and spend time with the court staff, while the accused is waits outside in the waiting room.
  • Most judges do not know that public can attend hearings. Hence often those who attend are sent away. The other issue is lack of space in the tiny court rooms.
  • Accused not given an opportunity to cross-examine

Despite all this, the JSC, the independent body responsible for the judiciary, approved all judges to be appointed without term (tenure to retire at 70). If the JSC were to continue the way they have been conducting themselves, there is no hope to strengthen the judiciary of Maldives nor to protect rights enshrined in the Constitution.

The transitional period (Chapter 14 of the Constitution) ended on 7 August 2010.  While the Supreme Court has been appointed, unfortunately the judiciary remains in a state of disarray.

No one (including the executive, parliament and judiciary) knows the meaning of the term ‘separation of powers’, ‘what the law is’ nor even what ‘Human Rights’ means.

No one obeys or respects the legal system, and the Maldives legal system is oppressive and unjust. The entire situation contravenes basic tenets of the rule of law and requires urgent change. The concepts of enforceable natural justice, procedural regularity and due process are not known in Maldivian courts.

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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Comment: Asian growth rebounds – must now focus on broader development goals

As Asia rebounds from the Global Economic Crisis, and resumes rapid economic growth, a big question will be whether Asia will lead the world in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – a set of eight broader development goals for 2015 to which world leaders signed on in 2000 at the United Nations.

At a meeting held in Jakarta on August 2 and 3, Asian ministers and experts discussed the region’s progress and strategies to accelerate it.

Progress on the MDG’s can be described as uneven – some good, some bad and some ugly.

First the good news: Asia has succeeded in the aggregate in reducing poverty since 1990 by some 500 million people. The global crisis of 2008-2009 has halted this progress and may even increase the number of poor by some 30-40 million people. As growth is restored poverty reduction will resume although with a lag and those that fell back into poverty will need greater support to climb back. Asia has also made good progress on education: particularly on enrollment, and quite noteworthy is the increase in girl’s enrollment.

Infant mortality has also declined and helps explain the rise in life expectancy in the region as immunization programs have been successfully rolled out in many parts of Asia. More than half of Asia’s population now have access to safe drinking water. Across the region China, Vietnam, Thailand , Malaysia, Iran, Sri Lanka and some Pacific Island countries as well as Maldives stand out in making the most dramatic progress across a wide range of MDGs.

Now to turn to the bad: much less progress has been made on health indicators such as maternal mortality, as well as on sanitation and environmental goals.

In many countries in Asia well organised health systems – especially in rural areas – do not exist. Even in those that have them, like China and Vietnam, they have deteriorated and out of pocket expenditures have risen to amongst the highest in the world.

Basic sanitation has also not been accorded the highest priority in many parts of Asia leading to greater propensity of health epidemics.

While the carbon foot print per capita in many parts of Asia remains small because of low incomes, the carbon intensity of development in Asia as a whole remains very high and China is now the largest consumer of energy in the world. Degradation of land and water systems also has a worrisome trajectory.

Growth has helped reduce poverty but rising inequality in almost every country in Asia has enhanced social tensions and reduced the potential impact of growth on poverty reduction. Had inequality remained the same as in 1990, another 300 million people could have climbed out of poverty for the same level of growth.

Incomes at the top of the distribution have grown faster than those in the bottom. Though reasons behind rising inequality are complex, some broad themes emerge. First, there has been a relative neglect of the agriculture sector by the development community both at the national and international levels. Second, globalisation processes favour skilled labour against unskilled labour – leading to slower growth of wages among the poor.

In this context, Asian countries that have grown rapidly over a decade, but have not seen substantial reduction in poverty and hunger rates will need to focus specifically on the inclusiveness of their growth strategy.

This is also is the ugly side to the Asia story; which is that of hunger and malnutrition; with almost 600 million people going to bed hungry every day. The irony is that over this period Asia has eliminated the scourge of famines and per capita foodgrain availability has increased, yet hunger affects millions.

Asia’s social assistance programs and food subsidy systems have not succeeded in reaching these hungry people. The massive rise in food prices in 2006-2008 had a hugely disproportionate effect on the poor, with the bottom quintile seeing a decline in purchasing power by 24 percent versus only a decline of 4 percent of purchasing power for the top quintile.

Well targeted conditional cash transfer programs – such as those in Latin America and cash for work programs such as the Mahatma Gandhi Employment Guarantee Program in India could help the hungry get the minimum needed to avoid hunger and keep their children sufficiently nourished.

The resources and political will exist in Asia to fix these problems. As world leaders gather in September at the UN for the MDG Summit there is much to learn from Asia and much to be gained by renewing the political will within Asia to try and accelerate progress on the MDGs.

As growth resumes in Asia the smaller resource rich Asian economies such as Mongolia, Laos, and Papua New Guinea are on the verge of a dramatic increase in their resource base to tackle the MDG’s. The attainment of MDGs offers a good guidepost to ensure that their resource boom does not become a resource curse, because the MDGs offer a much broader yardstick of development than income alone.

In the rapidly growing export led economies of Asia, reducing inequality by ensuring a much more inclusive development strategy, improving social protection for health, old age and natural disasters is vital for ensuring that those who get out of poverty do not fall back into it permanently.

Greater regional integration is vital to ensure that the benefits of rapid growth in the region benefit all. Free trade agreements are stitching together, slowly but gradually, a common market; but pan Asian infrastructure still lags behind and is vital to ensure that prosperity spreads across Asia.

Above all Asia must begin systematically to address social and cultural inequities: gender, caste and ethnic to ensure that not only will huge progress be made to achieve MDGs by 2015 but that an Asian renaissance will be triggered to lead to an Asian century.

Ajay Chhibber is UN Assistant Secretary General, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director for UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific.

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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Letter on Hulhumale’ Hospital

Mr President,

I am writing you, Mr President, to inform you about the death of a student of Grade 9 at Ghaazy School Hulhumale’ on August 9, 2010.

According to the student’s parents, the student attended Hulhumale’ Hospital with severe chest pain on August 8, 2010. A doctor (an Indian national) prescribed medicines and sent her away without doing any of the investigations which are usually done by good doctors.

Since all chest pains are NOT normal, this doctor should have referred her to the physician who is also working at Hulhumale’ Hospital. But this doctor neither referred her to that physician nor did any investigation like an ECG or blood tests, from which a physician could normally identify whether it was a chest pain related to gas in the stomach or a heart-related problem.

So, therefore, I would like to inform you Mr President, that this is a problem which has to be solved without any further delay. I also like to mention that this is a very sad story, and that many people who seek medical treatment at this hospital feel that some doctors and nurses are so careless that they recently gave an expired injection (which was sold by a pharmacy) to a young child without noticing that it was expired. This means neither the pharmacist nor the nurse noticed that it was already expired.

This is not something we can correct by investing additional money BUT we can easily with proper supervision of the hospital manager. For this hospital it is much, much easier to solve such problems because the hospital manager is both a manager and a medical doctor.

Mr President, this email is intended to inform you about what is really happening in our beloved country so that our beloved President could keep it in mind even with the very tight and very busy, VERY IMPORTANT engagements at this critical time.

Hameed

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 email it to [email protected]

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