Tag: Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)

Police probing MDP MP Imthiyaz Fahmy’s “contemptuous remarks” against judiciary

Police have begun investigating opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Imthiyaz ‘Inthi’ Fahmy for allegedly making “contemptuous remarks” against the  judiciary, during a TV program broadcast by opposition-aligned television station Raajje TV.

Fahmy told Minivan News that police called him on Wednesday and informed him that the case was being investigated on the judiciary’s request.

However police media official Sub-inspector Hassan Haneef said he was “unsure” whether  police were currently investigating the matter, but said cases concerning contempt of court previously been investigated and sent for prosecution.

Police sent a case concerning Imthiyaz Fahmy for prosecution in June 2012, requesting he be charged with disobeying orders, obstructing police duty and physically assaulting a female police officer during an MDP demonstration on May 29, that had followed the dismantling of the party’s protest camp at Usfasgandu.

In a subsequent statement condemning “excessive use of force” against demonstrators, Amnesty International staed that according to Fahmy, “police in Dhoonidhoo told him he was arrested for ‘disrupting peace’.”

The next day in court, police stated that he had been detained for ‘physically attacking a woman police officer.”

Fahmy denied the charges pressed against him by the prosecution.

Regarding the new police investigation, Fahmy claimed the judiciary was attempting to silence elected members of the public and that allegations of contempt of court were a facade.

“People elected me to find faults in institutions such as the courts find ways to reform them, to correct those faults. I have been elected as a member of parliament by the people to talk about such issues and that is my responsibility. It is a duty vested in me by the people and I will remain firm in executing that duty,” Fahmy told Minivan News.

He further claimed that discrepancies and flaws within the courts were already being widely discussed by the general public.

“The courts themselves do not comprehend the real meaning of the concept of judicial independence,” he claimed.

“They should also understand that dignity and honour is not a one-way train. It goes both ways. Their actions should be of a standard and performed in a transparent fashion so as to have dignity.”

In a statement issued during her visit to the Maldives in February 2013, United Nations Special Rapporteur (UNSR) on Independence of Judges and Lawyers Gabriela Knaul  stated that she had found that the concept of independence of the judiciary has been “misconstrued and misinterpreted” by all actors, including the judiciary itself, in the Maldives.

“The requirement of independence and impartiality does not aim at benefiting the judges themselves, but rather the court users, as part of their inalienable right to a fair trial,” Knaul stated in her concluding statement.

Beyond Knaul, Fahmy noted that several other international experts on judicial independence, including International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), judicial expert Professor Paul H Robinson, United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) as well as the report by the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) – which was set up to look into the legality of the controversial ascension of President Mohamed Waheed Hassan to presidency on February 2012 – had highlighted “serious flaws” within the judiciary.

“The first thing is that the judges were wrongfully reappointed. The constitutional provisions indicate that the judges were appointed by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) wrongly without proper consideration being given to Article 285 of the constitution. That is unconstitutional,” he added.

Fahmy – who is a lawyer himself – claimed that other powers of the state including the legislature and the executive had been set up in accordance with the 2008 constitution and that it was only the courts and the judiciary that had failed to be established in accordance with the new constitution.

“Am I being punished for coming out and speaking the truth? What is so wrong in me reiterating the same facts that are being highlighted by several respected international authorities on the same issue?” he questioned.

Apart from Fahmy, cases against several other MDP MPs are either being currently investigated or being heard in the courts including that of MP Ali Waheed (the party’s Deputy Parliamentary Group Leader), MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor (the party’s spokesperson for international affairs), MP Abdulla Jabir, MP Mohamed ‘Matrix’ Rasheed and MP Ibrahim ‘Bondey’ Rasheed.

Charges faced by the MPs include contempt of court, obstruction of police duty as well as offence of consumption of alcohol.  According to the constitution, a member of parliament loses his seat should he be convicted of a criminal offense that requires serving a sentence longer than a period of 12 months.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

MDP propose US$1.05 billion mariculture industry as part of election pledge

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has pledged to develop a mariculture industry in the country should former President Mohamed Nasheed be reelected in September 2013.

Mariculture is a specialised form of aquaculture which involves the cultivation of marine products such as pearls, oysters, fish and sea cucumbers in the open sea, or in nets or ponds exposed to the sea.

During a function launching the party’s policy on Kendhikulhudhoo island in Noonu Atoll on Saturday, the former president suggested that such an industry could generate US$1.05 billion (MVR 16.19 billion) within five years, should the government be able to successfully run at least 60 mariculture projects throughout the country.

“If we can successfully run  60 projects within five years, we will create 1800 new jobs and the country will receive MVR 16 billion in export revenue,” Nasheed said.

Nasheed claimed the party would establish a soft loan scheme worth MVR 200 million to support the people who wished to become involved in the new industry. He said the MDP hoped to establish mariculture as one of the country’s key industries, alongside fishing and tourism.

The Marine Research Center (MRC) established in the Maldives in the 1980’s has extensively researched the country’s reefs and lagoons and identified several ways in which mariculture activities could be carried out, Nasheed noted.

“What we have learned from this research is that mariculture is a very viable industry that could reap a lot of benefit to the country,” he said.

According to the MRC’s website, current aquaculture products farmed in the Maldives include grouper, sea-cucumber and pearls.

The MRC noted that the first pearl culture activity occurred with financial assistance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1996. When the five year project ended, MRC and the UNDP carried out a follow-up five year project from 2003 to 2008.

During a function to launch a sea cucumber development project on the same island in 2011, Nasheed – then President – elaborated that aquaculture and mariculture projects in the Maldives would ensure “the economic growth and economic viability of the society”.

Nasheed, who partook in a sea cucumber hunt during the event, also claimed at the time that it was beneficial for the country utilise the commercial benefits of marine resources in order to “achieve means of income other than revenues gained from the tourism industry”.

Speaking during Saturday’s function, Nasheed highlighted that while successful mariculture projects had been carried out during the three years of his government, a lack of technical expertise in the field was a key challenge for the expansion of such an industry.

A future government led by the MDP would open higher education opportunities in the country in collaboration with the Maldives National University (MNU), he said.

Eco-education

In 2011 during Nasheed’s presidency the MNU began offering courses in environment management – the first higher education program focused on environmental consolidation in the country – with levels varying from bachelors degree, advanced diploma, diploma and degree foundations.

In a bid to encourage people to take up the program, then Ministry of Environment and Energy also opened full scholarship opportunities to those who wished to take up the course.

Nasheed, speaking of the challenges involved in establishing a mariculture industry, said the lack of a hatchery to produce fish-feed was a key challenge.

Others included difficulties with transportation and logistics, which he said could be resolved by enhancing the transportation system established during the last three years of his presidency, would resolve the issue.

“Attention must be given to the environment surrounding us when we carry out any type of business and we should not obstruct the natural life surrounding us while carrying out any business,” he said

Nasheed also promised to establish both quarantine facilities and research facilities that will monitor and evaluate the businesses and would utilise the existing Maldives Food and Drug Authority (MFDA) to ensure the products produced by the industry met the necessary standards.

“Everything we do should be carried out in a sustainable way. MDP will seek to maintain the mariculture industry in a sustainable manner and that businesses involving mariculture will be properly monitored and evaluated,” he said.

Large-scale mariculture not viable; “Fish feed doesn’t grow on trees,” says DRP

Deputy Leader of the government-aligned DRP, Ahmed ‘Mavota’ Shareef, questioned the viability of introducing large-scale mariculture to the Maldives, and slammed the MDP’s economic predictions as inaccurate and an election ploy.

Shareef told Minivan News that when considering the huge investment costs required for mari-culture, funding would be better spent on providing technologies and know how into expanding industrial fishing in the Maldives.

“As opposed to mariculture, which needs large amounts of capital investment, it is much easier to go out and catch fish,” he claimed. “Tuna here is easy and cheap to catch, all people need is a boat. With freshly-caught fish you will get a much higher price than for mariculture.”

As a comparison, Shareef argued that massive amounts of bait and feed would be required to support the MDP’s predictions of a mariculture industry that would generate just over a billion US dollars in revenue over a five year period.

“The availability of fish feed will be a major issue. It does not just grow on trees,” he added.

Shareef also claimed that the mariculture sector was presently dominated by India, China and the US, mainly based around shellfish. However, he argued that mariculture represented just a small proportion of total global fisheries industry.

Shareeef said the DRP would instead favour boosting resources available to the country’s fishermen through supplying bait, satellite communications equipment, longer lines and focusing on forming cooperative fishing companies to boost catches and help establish large-scale industrial fishing.

Responding to Shareef’s remarks, former Press Secretary during Nasheed’s presidency Mohamed Zuhair dismissed claims that the MDP’s predictions were an election ploy, insisting the party had extensively studied the subject.

“The DRP is entitled to their own views. But I don’t believe they have studied the matter that is being discussed. Our predictions are based on extensive research study. The Maldives has previously tested and tried mariculture and the results are promising,” he said.

Zuhair also claimed the MRC had promoted many opportunities in the field of mariculture during former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s government, but these had not progressed because of a lack of incentives from the central government.

“Each of our islands has direct access to the sea and can easily engage with mariculture. This is not something new to the Maldives; it is tried and tested,” Zuhair said.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Reporter Ibrahim ‘Asward’ Waheed returns to Maldives following major surgery

Raajje TV reporter Ibrahim ‘Asward’ Waheed yesterday (April 19) returned to the Maldives following major surgery in Sri Lanka after being attacked with an iron rod in February.

Asward told local media he was very happy to return to the Maldives and added that the attack on him was an attack on media.  He told local media that he would remain undeterred in his role as a journalist.

Asward, 22, is news head of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)-aligned broadcaster Raajje TV.  He was attacked with an iron rod at 1:18am on February 23 while riding a motorbike near the artificial beach area of Male’.

Commissioner of Police Abdulla Riyaz described the attack via Twitter as a murder attempt.

The attack left Asward unconscious.  He was later transferred to a hospital in Sri Lanka for treatment, where he had to undergo major surgery last month to correct a maxillary fracture (broken jawbone).

Police submitted cases against two suspects to the Prosecutor General’s Office April 16
on charges of assaulting Asward in February. The investigation into the murder attempt remains ongoing.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

President Waheed “most patient, just and capable” among candidates: Dr Hassan Saeed

Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) Leader Dr Hassan Saeed has said he believes President Mohamed Waheed is the only presidential candidate who has the required “patience and drive” to work alongside people with differing views.

The recent comments by Saeed – who currently serves as Special Advisor to President Waheed – were made the same month the DQP formally entered into a coalition with the President’s own Gaumee Iththihaadh Party (GIP) ahead of elections scheduled for September 7 this year.

Both the DQP and GIP are small political parties currently facing potential dissolution for lacking the minimum requirement of 10,000 members as stipulated in the recently passed Political Parties Act.

Speaking to local newspaper Haveeru on Sunday (April 14), Saeed said that President Waheed was the most “academically qualified” candidate.

“He stands even far taller when you compare his international experience  and experience in government than any of the candidates. So if you look at it in any angle, this man is far more capable than all of the remaining candidates,” he said.

Despite the remarks, in February 2012, in a leaked audio clip, Saeed was heard describing President Waheed as “politically the weakest person in the Maldives” .

In the audio clip, he also went onto mock the size of the GIP’s support base, claiming at the time that the party’s only members were “Dr Waheed and the wife, that Ahmed ‘Topy’ Thaufeeg, [Secretary General of the GIP] and Waheed’s secretary at the President’s Office”.

Dr Saeed was not responding to calls at time of press when contacted by Minivan News.

Saeed – who was himself a presidential candidate in 2008 and ended the race at third position with 16 percent of the popular vote – claimed that there was a high possibility that many other government-aligned parties would follow the DQP in joining President Waheed’s coalition.

Saeed said these parties could include the government-aligned Jumhoree Party (JP) of business tycoon MP Gasim Ibrahim, Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) and the Maldivian Development Alliance (MDA), led by tourism magnate MP Ahmed ‘Sun Travel’ Shiyam.

Gasim and DRP Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali are both presidential candidates for their respective parties.

The religious conservative Adhaalath Party has also publicly pledged its support to President Waheed, last month announcing plans to form a coalition with the GIP.

Saeed claimed that all political parties, except the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), were welcome to join the coalition.

He claimed that should such an alliance find an agreement on a common ideology, then it could possibly “change the face of Maldivian politics”.

Giving his reasons why the door was closed for the MDP – the largest political party in the country – Saeed claimed that party’s presidential candidate, Mohamed Nasheed, was not a person who had the capacity to work in a coalition government since he always had problems in “digesting opposing views”.

“Chasing and slowing down”

Saeed claimed that the former president’s “impatience” would not allow him to work in a coalition government, adding that the “science of making a coalition government work” required patience and tolerance.

“One cannot simply run at the pace he wants to,” he said. “A coalition partner would always chase the president and slow him down, should he take such a pace. There should always be an environment for dialogue. [In a coalition,] one cannot simply take a wrong way and jump into the sea. Likewise, you cannot go in the right direction as fast as you want. But in general, a coalition government would always be heading in the right direction. Nasheed cannot be like that,”

The MDP previously said that it would not look to form a coalition ahead of elections this year.  However, Saeed claimed by contract, that there was no political party interested in forming an alliance with the main opposition party of the country.

“[The MDP] are only getting the opportunity to work in a coalition within the parliament. Therefore, MDP is seen to work in collaboration with other parties in parliament. They don’t have a problem working as a coalition in parliament. But outside the parliament, they keep saying that they do not want a coalition. This is because, they really don’t have anyone to form a coalition with,” he said.

Speaking during a recent party gathering, former President Nasheed stated that leaders of various political parties had learned “bitter lessons” over the difficulties of running a government by sharing cabinet positions among different political parties over the last four years.

“A cabinet in which one minister belongs to this party and another belongs to that party, cannot run a government,” he said. “I want the people of this country to remember that, when there is word of coalition, it means of forming a weak government.”

Meanwhile, Chairperson of the MDP, MP Moosa ‘Reeko’ Manik echoed similar sentiments claiming that the MDP could not work with political parties demanding political positions as a pre-condition of any alliance.

“There is no place in the MDP for those who come to us and demand a package of four cabinet positions, 12 judges, three warehouses and the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA). But it doesn’t mean all doors are closed for those parties interested in working under a common political ideology,” Manik said at the rally.

Political weight

Saeed this month also criticised former President Gayoom’s Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM).  The PPM is fielding Gayoom’s half brother MP Abdulla Yameen as its presidential candidate.  Saeed claimed that even Yameen should be backing President Waheed instead of the other way round.

Dr Saeed alleged that Yameen was a candidate who was too “hard to sell” to the public, claiming there remain a number of unpleasant “characteristics” that came to the minds of voters about him.

“Yameen will face the anger of anyone who hated Gayoom’s 30 years [in power]. Yameen will get the hatred of every person who was tortured during Gayoom’s time. He would not get the support of anyone who wished to leave the past. Even the person who wishes to support Yameen would hate him because Gayoom is right beside him,” he told Haveeru.

“There are a lot of people who hate dynastic rule.  A lot of businessmen also suffered during Yameen’s tenure as the trade minister. So they would have a hard time to back him.”

Saeed’s remarks in local media were met with harsh criticism from PPM MP Shifag Mufeed, who described the DQP leader as someone that lacked any political weight.

“The Maldives has two political ideologies. It is that of former President Gayoom’s ideology and that of former President Nasheed’s. Though he says that no one would join those two ideologies, Dr Hassan Saeed himself must know that he does not even have the weight of a wheat grain in Maldivian politics,” Mufeed said in parliament yesterday (April 15).

Shifag also slammed the government of President Waheed, claiming that a bill proposed to parliament on increasing an existing Airport Service Charge was an attempt by the government to recklessly increase its income so that it could be utilized in “fooling people” to vote for him.

The PPM and DQP are both members of President Waheed’s national unity government.

Saeed’s election history

After facing defeat in the first round of the 2008 presidential elections, Saeed publicly announced unconditional support to the MDP candidate Mohamed Nasheed during the subsequent run-off election.

Once Nasheed was elected president, the MDP alleged that Saeed took a U-turn on his own unconditional backing and had demanded several cabinet portfolios for his supporters.

Saeed was later appointed as the special advisor to the president – a cabinet minister level position – in the new government.  Meanwhile, Saeed’s running mate, Dr Ahmed Shaheed, was appointed as the Foreign Minister and current Home Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed was given the cabinet portfolio of Communication and Civil Aviation.

However, following a falling off with Nasheed, Saeed left the government claiming that his “diligent” advice was not considered by the former president.  Later, Jameel was sacked from the government and Shaheed joined forces the MDP.

Leaving the government, Saeed and his fellow party colleague Jameel quickly turned against former President Nasheed and became outspoken critics of his administration.

‘Hate-pamphlet’ scandal

In January 2012, just a few days before the controversial fall of Nasheed, DQP released a 30-page pamphlet accusing Nasheed’s government of working under the influence of “Jews” and “Christian priests” to weaken Islam in the Maldives.

“When the Nasheed administration established diplomatic relations with the biggest enemy of Islam [Israel], the government agreed to change the school curriculum and teach our small children about the goodness of Jews,” read the pamphlet. “The Jew’s plan and way of thinking is to divide Islamic countries.”

The Nasheed administration denied the allegations and claimed that the pamphlet was filled with “extremist, bigoted and hate-filled rhetoric” intended to incite hatred among public towards the government.

Following President Waheed’s controversial ascension to power on February 7, 2012, Saeed was reappointed as the Special Advisor for the President while his colleague Jameel was given the position of Home Minister.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Former President Nasheed reaches Copenhagen climate talks despite alleged obstruction

Former President Mohamed Nasheed was temporarily obstructed from traveling overseas yesterday (April 14) despite having High Court approval, the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has alleged.  Nasheed’s office has said this is the fourth time over the last 12 months that he has faced restrictions on his travel.

The High Court had granted Nasheed permission to travel abroad yesterday, while Maldivian authorities were informed of his planned departure to Copenhagen, Denmark, at 7:30pm in the evening, MDP MP and Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor claimed today.

However, an hour before Nasheed’s scheduled departure – after he had arrived at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) in Male’ –  his office said they were informed Nasheed could not leave the country.

The Department of Immigration and Emigration were then accused of preventing Nasheed from leaving the Maldives, claiming the High Court had not granted him permission to travel overseas before April 15.

After Nasheed’s flight departed, the Immigration Department then granted their official permission, Ghafoor said.

Nasheed then rescheduled his flight and departed the Maldives for Copenhagen at 11:40pm on April 14.

Ghafoor added that this was the fourth instance where Nasheed has been obstructed from traveling abroad on a scheduled international visit under the present government.

He explained that “everything was scheduled properly and there was no controversy from the High Court,” instead the issue lies with the Immigration Department.

“The Immigration Department will not stop trying to find any little administrative mistakes – and when they can’t, they invent something. They will most likely quote an administrative error on the part of Nasheed’s staff,” said Ghafoor.

“President Nasheed has not been shown the courtesy a former head of state deserves,” he added.

Nasheed’s spokesperson, Mariya Didi echoed these sentiments stating: “As a former President, it deeply concerning that the Maldivian authorities continue to withhold the constitutionally stipulated privileges accorded to President Nasheed.”

When asked about Nasheed’s travel arrangements, Immigration Controller Dr Mohamed Ali told Minivan News today to “ask the MDP about it,” adding he would not comment on any instance of the former president being obstructed from traveling overseas.

Climate change, economics, and democracy

While in Denmark, Nasheed has been invited to speak at the University of Copenhagen on the economics of climate change.

His office has said he will speak on outlining the dangers posed to the Maldives by climate change, and explain how the world can build a carbon neutral global economy by focusing on the opportunities provided by clean technology.

The investments for producing sustainable energy in the Maldives are now viable, Nasheed told local media prior to his departure yesterday.

Ghafoor said that Nasheed plans to speak at the Danish Parliament and meet with ministers during this “rushed but comprehensive trip”.

“He’s not a green man per se, but rather supports economics of the green movement,” he added.

Nasheed told local media that his parliamentary speech will highlight how the Maldives has deviated from democratic principles and the efforts necessary to put the country “back on track to democratic governance”.

Nasheed is scheduled to return April 18.

Previous travel bans

Earlier this year,the Hulhumale’ Magistrate Court denied former Nasheed’s request to travel abroad for a family wedding from March 27 to March 31.

Meanwhile, Nasheed’s request to travel overseas between February 27 to March 5 was denied by the Hulhumale’ Magistrate Court because “he had not cooperated with the court on previous instances”. The trip had been scheduled after Nasheed received an invitation from the Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma, and to Denmark under an invitation from the state.

Nasheed was also prevented from leaving the country December 21, 2012 to visit his ill father in Bangkok, Thailand due to a “technical problem,” the Department of Immigration and Emigration has claimed.

Earlier in 2012, the Hulhumale’ Magistrate Court imposed an internal travel ban “confining Nasheed Male’,” which he said will hinder his political campaigning and wider party work.

Copenhagen climate justice advocacy

Nasheed galvanised thousands of environmentalists at a 350.org rally in Copenhagen December 2009, vowing to persevere until a politically binding climate change treaty was attained.

The Danish Prime Minister called Nasheed “the real hero of Copenhagen” following a marathon 30 hour negotiation session to reach an agreement during the 2009 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) talks.

The agreed-upon accord recognises that global temperatures should rise no higher than two degrees Celcius above pre-industrial levels, but does not commit developed countries to legally-binding emission reduction targets.

Current carbon-neutral commitments

The current government of President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik has said it is committed to pursuing carbon neutral ambitions, despite last year’s political tensions reportedly affecting investment potential for such schemes.

Environment Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela said last year that some of the programs presently being undertaken by her ministry had started seven years previously – before Former President Mohamed Nasheed came to power – and were being adhered to on the grounds they would benefit the nation.

“We are continuing with the carbon neutrality program,” she said at the time. “ We are giving it our best shot.”

Since early 2012, the Maldivian government has overseen the initial stages of a few new renewable energy projects to achieve this goal.

The Maldives’ State Electric Company Limited (STELCO) announced in March 2013 plans to implement a 50 megawatt floating solar panel project to power the country’s capital Male’ and provide renewable energy for 28 islands with rooftop installations.

The Ministry of Environment in conjunction with the Ministry of Finance issued a prequalification application in January 2013 for the “Solar Maldives Programme.” The project aims to “design, build, finance, own, operate and transfer grid-tied solar photovoltaic systems for integration with diesel generators on 15 islands” in the south, north, and upper north provinces.

The government has also received bids to install a 300 kW grid connected solar PV system on Thinadhoo Island, the regional capital of Gaaf Dhaal (Huvadhoo) Atoll. This is part of the “Clean Energy for Climate Mitigation (CECM) Project” financed by the Climate Change Trust Fund (CCTF) – a collaboration between the Maldivian government, World Bank, European Union (EU) and the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID).

“The system is expected to meet 30 percent of the peak day time demand of electricity and will offset approximately 300 tons of carbon dioxide annually,” the Ministry of Environment previously claimed.

The Waheed administration has also announced its intention to move ahead with plans to transform the Maldives into a biosphere reserve through the designation of zones across the country that would earmark land use for specific purposes such as tourism development or conservation.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Services halted, Maldivians deprived of progress following “coup”: Nasheed alleges

An array of services formerly provided by the Maldivian government have stopped since President Dr Mohamed Waheed came to power, former President Mohamed Nasheed has alleged.

Nasheed, speaking in local media, has accused the Waheed administration of depriving the Maldivian people of “one and a half years of prosperity” and progress since his government ended following the controversial transfer of power February 7, 2012.

Despite the criticisms, President Waheed has in recent days been touring North Maalhosmadulu Atoll to view developments such as sanitation and education projects that are currently being undertaken by the state.

However, Nasheed alleged that all of the initiatives launched under his administration have since been halted by Waheed’s government, which he said came to power under the guise of protecting the “nation and religion”.

“Every island that I go to, I see commenced projects unfinished. Harbours have come to stop. Sewerage systems have come to a stop. The change of school sessions to a single session have come to a stop. Aasandha has become a Baasandha. Transport has come to halt, everything has stopped. So I think Waheed’s campaign slogan is ‘halted’,” he was quoted as saying by Sun Online.

“President Waheed has neglected the most prosperous one and a half years of this nation. Since my government was changed through a coup, I can only perceive this coup [government] as something that has come to halt,” said Nasheed.

Nasheed was reported to have made the comments during an MDP “Dheythin Fahethi” campaign event on Kurendhoo Island in Lhaviyani Atoll.

President’s Office Media Secretary Masood Imad and Spokesperson Ahmed ‘Topy’ Thaufeeq were both in meetings and could not respond to calls from Minivan News at time of press.

Revenue through tourism

Speaking Friday (April 12) on the island of Rasgetheemu on North Maalhosmadulu Atoll, President Waheed pledged to develop local islands in the area into resorts to help enhance social welfare for local people.

The president claimed that revenue generated through taxing these resort properties would then allow the state to spend a proportionate amount of funds on benefiting nearby islands, while also providing employment for young people.

Pointing to the potential development opportunities provided by tourism, President Waheed also slammed the efforts of “the group of people calling for the boycott of Maldives tourism”.

“In the past one and a half year, a group of people have continuously attempted to defame the Maldives and called upon tourists not to visit the country” he stated.

Boycott calls

In addition to concerns about a recent avaaz.org petition threatening a boycott of tourism in the Maldives – which has now been signed by over two million people since its launch -Waheed also condemned individuals making “false allegations on human rights abuses”.

Dr Waheed urged the Maldivian public to be aware of any such attempts to “destroy the Maldives’ tourism industry”.

The Avaaz petition is calling for legal reforms in the country after a controversial flogging sentence was handed to a 15 year-old rape victim who admitted to having consensual sex with an unnamed man during a police investigation.

The government of President Dr Mohamed Waheed has pledged to appeal the sentence given to the minor by the country’s Juvenile Court, while also reviewing local laws to enact potential reforms over the use of flogging. No time-line for such reforms has yet been set beyond the commitment to hold talks.

In a letter published on Minivan News earlier this month, Avaaz.org Executive Director Ricken Patel insisted that the organisation had not called for a outright tourism boycott.

“What we do stand ready to do, however, is to inform tourists about what action is and isn’t being taken by the Maldives government to resolve this issue and change the law, and to identify those MPs and resort owners who are using their influence to push for positive change – and those who are not,” Patel said.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Female participants in Maldives tourism training declining: Four Seasons Hotels

The Four Seasons Hotels group has encouraged the government to promote technical and vocational training “much more aggressively”, while also expressing concern at declining female participation over the last decade in its apprenticeship program.

Four Seasons has graduated 288 apprenticeship students in the Maldives over the last 12 years, with 47 youths completing the latest program in 2013. However, only one female graduated from the scheme today during a special ceremony held in the capital Male’, while two women are enrolled in the 2014 program.

Four Seasons Resorts Maldives Regional Vice President and General Manager Armando Kraenzlin explained to Minivan News today (April 13) that the number of female apprenticeship program participants has been declining over the last 10 years.

“We never had many participants – 5 to 7 per batch – but it used to be easier [to recruit women] about ten years ago. Unfortunately, numbers have dropped,” he said.

Kraenzlin said he believed the declining number of women in the training program could be the result of more jobs being available outside of the tourism sector, or parents hesitating to let their daughters work at resorts.

“We are talking to government ministries and the press to promote idea of ladies working,” he added.

Also present at today’s ceremony, Education Minister Dr Asim Ahmed told Minivan News that he believed female participation in the tourism sector and Four Seasons apprenticeship program was increasing.

“Last year’s program had one woman, whereas two are enrolled in the 2014 batch. This is gradual improvement, although much less than we would like,” he said.

The small, insular Maldivian island environment instills very close family ties, which makes it difficult for parents to allow their children to leave and “stay long periods in a hotel”, according to Ahmed.

“The culture here is for children to grow up and grow old in same house,” he claimed.

“In the Maldives, you go to work [at a resort] and live there. It’s a very difficult thing to get your head around.”

Ahmed explained the nationwide need for women and parents to be more aware about the conditions of female employees working at resorts, particularly in terms of accommodation arrangements.

“It is important parents buy into this and believe resort work is beneficial and reliable [for their daughters].  The other challenge is we have to provide child care and other facilities that will release the women to go and work,” he added.

Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb told Minivan News that he believed women were not participating in the industry because families were adhering to the “past culture” of keeping children at home, in addition to being concerned about where their children would be living.

“Females are leaders in the houses. The men go out to work,” said Adheeb.

“Kids grow up and take care of their parents. In many cases, when boys get married they go to the girl’s house to live, because parents like to keep their daughters with them.

“This is why especially parents don’t want their daughters to go and work,” Adheeb added.

“Radical change”

Earlier this year, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP and Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor told Minivan News that he believed a “radical change to the tourism approach” was needed in the country.

“Resorts must have close-by islands with flats so employees can go home to their families [after completing their shifts],” Hamid said.

Additionally, he believed the response rate for tourism training programs was decreasing in the country because Maldivian parents were discouraging children from participating due to “religious xenophobia”.

Hamid also accused the religious conservative Adhaalath Party (AP) of propagating the view that “anyone who is not a Muslim is an enemy”.

“I’ll probably be the next Dr Afrasheem Ali for saying this, but maintaining this hate of the ‘other’ is very dangerous and not discussed openly. This confusion has to be sorted. It’s a race against time and ideas,” he stated.

Adhaalath Party President Sheikh Imran Adbulla was not responding to calls at time of press.

Public vs private programs

During the graduation ceremony for this year’s apprentice trainees held at Mandhu College in Male’ today, Kraenzlin praised the skills of the latest batch of participants, emphasizing that “the Maldivian work ethic is among the highest I’ve observed in my career”.

“It is very exciting to see what a well spent year can do in the life of a young person,” he added.

“Training young people requires commitment and resources. Resorts taking in the minimum number of apprentices a year and certifying them successfully should be supported, recognized and incentivised,” Kraenzlin said.

“We encourage govt to promote Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) performance objectives much more aggressively. It’s a great system.  In this way hundreds of vocational training positions can be created. We think it’s not that difficult.”

Tourism Minister Adheeb and Education Minister Ahmed also both praised the apprenticeship program for its development of young people in the Maldives.

“This corporate social responsibility effort takes a big burden from the government to the private sector,” stated Adheeb, during his commencement speech.

“All other resorts and general managers should follow the example of Armando [Kraenzlin] and the Four Seasons,” he added.

Minister Ahmed echoed these sentiments stating, “this is an important program for the rest of the tourism industry to emulate”.

Additionally, both ministers mentioned the STEP program, a training and education initiative launched this January for ‘O’ level graduates as part of a collaborative endeavor between the Education Ministry, Tourism Ministry, and Ministry of Human Resources Youth and Sport.  Some 15 partner resorts are also included in the scheme, according to the Education Ministry.

The year long Four Seasons Apprenticeship program was recognized as the Maldives’ first government accredited TVET certified apprenticeship scheme in 2010. Graduates are able to earn TVET, PADI divemaster, or Ministry of Transportation boat driving license certifications, the hospitality company claimed.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

“Anti-semitism, racism, xenophobia and religious intolerance” deeply entrenched in Maldivian political discourse: Dr Shaheed

Anti-semitism, racism, xenophobia and religious intolerance “are deeply entrenched” in political parties currently opposed to the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), former Foreign Minister in both Nasheed and Gayoom’s government, Dr Ahmed Shaheed, has said.

Dr Shaheed’s comments follow reports in local media summarising US Embassy cables first published by Wikileaks in 2009, and discussed during the then-opposition parliament’s efforts to impeach the foreign minister.

In particular, the Maldivian government’s engagement with Israel was the subject of a parliamentary debate November 9, 2009, in which Shaheed narrowly avoided impeachment following a no-confidence motion.

Opposition to the Maldives’ recognition of Israel was seized by then opposition groups in December 2011 as a sign of the Nasheed government’s “anti-Islamic” policies. The previously disparate parties formed the ‘December 23 coalition’, following a large rally in Male’.

Dr Shaheed said “Growing extremism hurts the Maldives rather than anybody else, because whenever a state is unable to deliver what is in the public interest due to intimidation from others, it is the state that suffers.”

“The growth of extremism itself has numerous causes, but none of it is linked to government policy towards Israel or Palestine,” he added.

Many Maldivians firmly believe that policies pursued by Israel affect their solidarity with Arabs and other Muslims, Dr Shaheed explained.

“We care about how Israel treats the Palestinian people, because we care about the safety of the Muslim holy places under Israeli jurisdiction, and because we need to have a dialogue with Israel communicating our interests and concerns on these matters regularly,” he said.

More space for civic reasoning in Maldivian politics is needed for the Maldives to “behave like the rational nation-state, with friendship towards all, that we claim we are,” he said. “Silence may be golden but dialogue is the miracle tool of diplomacy.”

In the original cable referred to by Sun Online, Dr Shaheed told then US Ambassador Robert Blake that he believed “radical clerics ignited a reaction” among the Maldivian population and this was “a lot, but not a genuine undercurrent.”

Dr Shaheed “highlighted that former President Nasheed pledged to “renew ties” with Israel in his September 24 (2009) UN General Assembly speech,” that the Maldives Defense Minister and Minister for Natural Disasters would visit Israel later that year, and both nations “have already signed agreements on health, education, and tourism”.

Speaking to Minivan News, Dr Shaheed said he believed MDP’s rivals considered the cables “the perfect fog-machine to distract any discussion of bread and butter issues in the campaign.”

“Many in the Maldives see the Palestinian-Israeli dispute in religious terms, and religious sensitivities are played up during election time,” he added.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs meanwhile told Minivan News the Maldives is “not against Israel”.

“The Maldives’ government always supports Palestinian citizens to have their freedom and urges this in the United Nations,” said Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Muaz Ali.

“This does not mean Maldives is against Israel,” he said.

“Anti-semitism, racism, xenophobia and religious intolerance”

“Neither former President Maumoon Gayoom nor former President Mohamed Nasheed divided the world into a Dar al- Harb and a Dar al- Islam as in classical Islamic international relations theory, which is what the Salafists in the Maldives want to do,” stated Shaheed.

Shaheed explained that “anti-semitism runs deep in certain sections of Maldivian society”, highlighting as an example an article published in Dhivehi on local news website Dhi-Islam in January 2011, reporting on the agreements made between the Maldivian and Israeli government.

“Under this heinous agreement, these people have thrown the little children and the youth of the Maldives, as well as the country’s education sector and the health sector and many other matters, into the lap of the evil Zionist Israelis, who, as we have been informed through the seven heavens, will never wish anything but evil for Muslims,” the article reads.

“Jews have even historically been an evil people who have been cursed because they had killed prophets and spread corruption on earth, and that they are the biggest enemies of Muslims is proven by the teachings of the Holy Quran and forms of the core beliefs of Muslims. This agreement will impose pressures to prevent the dissemination of these teachings,” it adds.

The report claims that Jews have falsely exaggerated “incidents” of torture and killings during the Holocaust “to inculcate sympathy towards Israel in the minds of Maldivian youths; to convince the Maldivian youths that the jews are the victims of oppression and to make them blind and insensitive to the occupation of Palestine, the seizure of Muslim holy lands, and the endless oppression the jews inflict on the inhabitants of the land.”

“This agreement is high treason or the highest form treachery against the noble Islam and Maldivian identity, upon which this country is founded. It is a matter far more dangerous and grave than can be treated lightly,” said the report.

Historical Maldivian – Israeli relations

There is no document to support the claim that Maldives ever severed diplomatic relations with Israel, in Maldivian or Israeli records, explained Dr Shaheed.

Instead, what appears to have happened is a downgrading of the relationship where no Maldivian president since the early 1970s has been willing to receive an Israeli ambassador formally in his office.

The Maldives voted at the UN to accept the legitimacy of Israel, on December 17, 1991, at the request of then President George Bush, by repealing the 1975 UN resolution equating zionism with racism.

“The Maldives was not alone in changing its policies towards Israel – there were a number of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) states doing the same thing, or had even restored full diplomatic relations,” said Dr Shaheed.

“Under Gayoom, the Maldives categorically accepted the two-state solution. All of these actions were firmly grounded in international law and state practice,” he added.

The Maldivian government discussed the question of restoring ties with Israel following the Oslo Accord agreement in 1993, which established a peace process framework to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Israel agreed to recognize Yasser Arafat as its partner in peace talks and essentially exchanged land for peace. The Palestinians in turn recognized Israel’s right to exist while also renouncing the use of terrorism and its long-held call for Israel’s destruction.

The Gayoom cabinet agreed on a three-stage restoration of ties with Israel, beginning in June 1994. The Maldivian government “agreed to recognize Israeli passports and ended the travel ban” during stage one, explained Shaheed. Shortly thereafter stage two saw trade and commercial relations were fully restored. Restoring political ties occurred during stage three, with regular meetings at senior diplomatic levels, between 1995 to 2008.

“So what President Nasheed said at the UN – and that was my formulation – was that Maldives wanted friendly relations with all states in the General Assembly,” said Dr Shaheed.

“This does not and has not prevented Maldives from criticizing actions of UN member states when they violate peremptory norms of international law, but Nasheed was not going to divide the world into the good the bad and the ugly,” he declared.

In recent years, attitudes toward Israel have greatly fluctuated with collaborative engagement by the Maldivian government being countered by some anti-semitic ‘blowback’ from elements within Maldivian society.

In February 2010, a team of experts from the Israeli Foreign Ministry are training 35 Maldivian officials in emergency preparedness, with a focus on the management of mass casualties.

Later that year, in November, the Islamic Foundation of the Maldives (IFM) called on the government to break off all diplomatic ties with Israel, a day after Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) announced that a team of seven Israeli doctors is due to arrive in the country to treat patients at the government hospital for a week.

The IFM reiterated calls to the Maldives government to “shun all medical aid from the Zionist regime” with a team of seven Israeli eye surgeons due to arrive in December 2012, claiming that Isreali doctors and surgeons “have become notorious for illegally harvesting organs from non-Jews around the world.”

The following month, Founders of the IFM NGO claimed that although they do not believe in “hysterical outbursts” and theories of an imminent “Jewish invasion” in the country, a week of anti-Israel protests and flag burning across Male’ has reflected “strong dissatisfaction with the government’s open attitude” to the Jewish state.

In May 2011, Ahmed Naseem became the first Maldivian Foreign Minister to visit Israel.

However, in September 2011, Deputy Leader of the Adhaalath Party Dr Mauroof Hussein has called for alarm after alleging that a delegation from an Israeli company, Teshuva Agricultural Products, was due to arrive in the Maldives to assess the country’s agricultural potential. The Israeli agricultural delegation that was supposed to arrive on Filadhoo cancelled the visit after the islanders warned that they would not let the delegation go further than the jetty.

In December 2011, Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari requested parliament endorse a resolution forbidding the government to establish ties with Israel.

While in April 2012, MPs passed a resolution preventing Israeli national airline El Al from operating scheduled flights to the Maldives until Majlis’ National Security Committee completes further investigation into the matter. El Al applied to the Ministry of Civil Aviation in May 2011 requesting permission to fly to the Maldives starting in December 2011.

There was no direct flight from Israel to Maldives between 2009-2011, so the Maldives was “not able to maximize the benefits from the growing Israeli market,” Dr Shaheed remarked.

“Maldives could have significantly increased the direct income and benefits from Israeli tourism by accepting direct flights from Israel, resulting in a longer holidays and greater expenditure in Maldives while still making the holiday comparatively cheaper for the visitor,” he added.

Likes(0)Dislikes(1)

Reports of Speaker Shahid, DRP MPs’ defection to MDP unconfirmed

Rumours that Speaker of Parliament Abdulla Shahid and two other government-aligned MPs, Alhan Fahmy and Abdulla Abdul Raheem, have joined the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) are being widely circulated by local media.

Minivan News was unable to confirm the reports at time of press as Speaker Shahid and the other MPs were not responding to calls. The DRP has acknowledged the rumours, but has said it has not been officially informed of the switch.

Local media has also reported that government-aligned MPs Mohamed ‘Colonel’ Nasheed, MP Ali Azim and MP Hassan Adil are also preparing to join the opposition.

Speaker Shahid, Ali Azim and Nasheed are all from government-aligned Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP). The supposed reason for their defection, as reported in local media, was a clash within the party’s parliamentary group over its stand on recently scheduled no-confidence motion against Home Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed.

A source in the MDP familiar with the matter alleged to Minivan News that the defection of the MPs was prompted after DRP Leader MP Ahmed Thasmeen Ali brokered a “last minute deal” with the government in return for DRP not voting against the minister.

According to a 2010 report by former Auditor General Ibrahim Naeem, loans totalling Rf1 billion taken out by Fonadhoo Tuna, a company owned by Thasmeen at the time, and luxury yachting company Sultans of the Sea, connected to the party leader, had yet to see any repayments.

Together the loans accounted for 13 per cent of the total amount loaned by the bank in 2008. Naeem commented at the time that defaults on bank loans issued to “influential political players” could jeopardise the entire financial system of the country.

DRP MPs Mohamed Nashiz and Ali Azim were summoned to court in November 2012 regarding the debts, just as parliament was voting to determine whether no-confidence motions against ministers could be taken in secret.

Those summons were in relation to a Civil Court ordering Mahandhoo Investments and Kabalifaru Investments – two companies with ties to DRP Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali – to repay millions of dollars worth of loans to the Bank of Maldives Plc Ltd (BML). The verdict was also upheld by the High Court in October 2011.

MP Azim alleged at the time that President Mohamed Waheed Hassan and other senior members of the executive had approached him, offering to cancel the court summons if he agreed to vote for the secret balloting in a way they preferred.

According to the MDP source, ahead of the no-confidence motion on April 8 the DRP had “in principle agreed” to vote against the minister, but had changed their minds at the last minute. Speaker Abdulla Shahid was “left no choice but to call off the session”.

Shahid called off the parliamentary session following point of orders taken by opposition MDP MPs over the issue of the secret ballot, which the Supreme Court had overturned despite parliament’s earlier vote in favour.

Upon concluding the session Speaker Shahid announced that the matter raised by MDP MPs regarding Supreme Court’s decision had been sent to parliament’s General Affairs Committee. He said the committee will review the decision and begin working the following day.

Despite the rumours, the DRP MPs have been in no hurry to confirm the reported switch.

Speaking to Minivan News, MDP Spokesperson MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor claimed that “a re-alignment in favour of the opposition is definitely happening”.

“I can confirm you as I am a parliamentarian myself that several parliamentary groupings who previously stood behind the old dictatorship are slowly dismantling now. They have now started to realise that backing an old dictatorship is wrong,” said Ghafoor. “I can guarantee you that a re-alignment is definitely happening and dismantling of the old dictatorship is imminent.”

However Ghafoor declined to reveal the names of those MPs involved in the claimed switch.

Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) Deputy Leader Ibrahim Shareef said the party had received no official confirmation that Speaker Shahid or any of the party’s MPs had resigned from the party or were  looking to switch to the MDP.

However, Shareef said he could not rule out the possibility of such a switch in the current political climate, citing that political defections “occur very fast in this country”.

“Anything is possible” he admitted. “As far as we are concerned, there are a lot of rumors right now about a political switch.”

Should the defections happen as rumored, the number of opposition MDP MPs will be 35 – just 4 MPs short of the parliament’s simple majority required for the dismissal of cabinet ministers and pushing through legislation.

Parliament breakdown by party (prior to rumoured defection of five DRP MPs):
MDP 29
PPM 19
DRP 11
JP 3
PA 1
DQP 1
Independent – 11
Likes(0)Dislikes(0)