Tag: media

Queues return to Indian High Commission as Maldivians seek Indian visas

Queues have started to form outside the Indian High Commission in Male’ as people seek to obtain Indian visas.

Earlier this month the Foreign Ministry decided to hand back all Indian visa application operations to the Indian High Commission following a “decline” in visa requests.

However, local media reported that Maldivians began to queue outside the High Commission building at 11:00pm on January 26 after having their visa applications rejected for various reasons.

Despite media reports, an official in the Indian High Commission denied there had been overnight queuing outside the commission building.

“Some people had come in the morning a little early so there may have been a slight queue then, but was no overnight queuing. If a problem does arise we will find a solution,” the high commission official told Minivan News.

Minivan News was awaiting a response from the Foreign Ministry at time of press.

In his address during Indian Republic Day celebrations in Male’ on Friday, Indian High Commissioner D M Mulay said India offered its assurances “that no Maldivian would ever be denied visa to India and we will work very closely with the Maldivian authorities to resolve all the outstanding issues in a spirit of cooperation and good will. ”

Last month, Maldivians were forced to queue outside the Indian High Commission – in some cases overnight – to obtain medical visas in order to travel to India.

To alleviate the issue, the Foreign Ministry launched an SMS system that alerted individuals when it was their turn to have their visas processed.

However, following a decline in visa requests this month, Maldivians wishing to obtain tokens for their Indian visas to be processed will now have to use the Indian High Commission building as before, as the Foreign Ministry is no longer providing the service.

A spokesman from the Foreign Ministry told Minivan News earlier this month that should the demand for visas increase, the ministry will take measures to ensure all visas are processed.

“If there is a requirement we will consult the Indian High Commission. It is currently issuing 53 tokens per day and we think that is working fine for now,” he said. “We will ensure that Maldivians get their visas.”

The Indian High Commission has claimed the tightened restrictions were in line with a bilateral agreement signed back in 1979 and its appropriation by Maldivian authorities in the intervening years.

A source within the Indian High Commission, speaking to Minivan News in December last year, contended that all visas given to Maldivians for travel to India were provided free of charge – a courtesy he claimed was not extended to Indian citizens coming to the Maldives for work.

The commission spokesperson added that the introduction of the tighter regulations was imposed as a clear “signal” from Indian authorities that the concerns it had over practices in the Maldives such as the confiscation of passports of migrant workers, needed to be brought to an end.

Last week, the High Commission presented journalists with a list of 11 consular grievances, including discrimination and mistreatment of its expatriates and the routine withholding of passports by government departments.

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Cases against MDP MPs Jabir and Ghafoor to be forwarded to PG’s Office this week

Cases against MDP MPs Abdulla Jabir and Hamid Abdul Ghafoor are to be forwarded the Prosecutor General’s (PG) Office this week, Police Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz has said.

The commissioner told local media the cases to be forwarded to the PG’s Office are in regard to both Jabir and Ghafoor’s refusal to provide a urine sample after they were arrested under suspicion of drinking alcohol in November 2012.

Police Commissioner Riyaz was quoted as saying that the case against Ghafoor is also in relation to a previous occasion whereby he refused to provide urine sample after being arrested for obstructing police duty at a protest.

The Drug Act states that the punishment for a person who refuses to provide urine sample when requested by the police is imprisonment for one year, local media reported.

Jabir and Ghafoor were arrested on suspicion of alcohol consumption during a special operation carried out on the island of Hodaidhoo in Haa Dhaal Atoll. Both MPs were subsequently released by Kulhudhuffushi Magistrate Court.

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The future of motor racing in the Maldives: The Piston Cup Challenge

Additional reporting by Leah R Malone

Amateur and professional racers took to the streets of Hulhumale’ this weekend to compete in the Maldives’ first official motorsport competition.

The Piston Cup 2013 racing challenge, organised by both Maldives Motor Racing Association (MMRA) and Piston Group, marked the beginning of what competition organisers are hoping to be a future of sponsored motorsport racing in the Maldives.

Over 100 drivers and motorcyclists competed in the Piston Cup 2013 racing challenge, which attracted over 4000 spectators to the two-day event.

Piston Group Director Mohamed Mauroof told Minivan News that events like the Piston Cup take street racers out of Male’ and puts them in a professional and disciplined environment where they can hone their talents.

“We are trying very hard to encourage motor racing in the Maldives. At first, the public were not very supportive of us as we used to be racing on the streets. However, now they are supporting us because we are doing it in a controlled environment.

“This is the start and it will be better from here on in. We are planning to host another race event in June this year and one next year too,” Mauroof added.

The aim of the Piston Cup was not only to increase interest in motor sport, but to set a benchmark for future events with the festival-style atmosphere that included fire dancing, Maldivian rock bands, boduberu (traditional singing and drumming) and fireworks.

Former street racer Ahmed ‘Dada’ Aiman Abaas, who won twice driving for team Rannamarianes, said that organised racing events are the best way to tackle street racing in Male’.

“I started illegal racing when I was 18, but when the government gave us permission to race in Hulhumale’ it all changed. These events give us a chance to race the right way.

“Illegal street racing has stopped now. If the government continues to give us the opportunity to race here, everyone will wait for that. I hope to have the opportunity to one day go professional,” Abaas said.

According to the MMRA website, individuals who held a valid licence and are “physically and mentally fit” were able to compete in the event.

Event Organiser Ismail Agleem told Minivan News earlier this month that while anyone who meets the race requirements could enter, motor cyclists will be required to have five days worth of practice and car drivers will need to attend a practice session prior to the race. Any competitor who failed to attend these sessions would be deemed a “non-qualifier”.

Mohamed ‘Afu’ Afsah, who has international racing experience and won four races – jointly for teams B Bros and Rannamarianes – in the motorcycle events at the Piston Cup, spoke of the difficulty aspiring Maldivian motor sport competitors face living on the islands.

“I have only been racing for the last two years, and it has been very difficult to practice because we are riding on an island with soil roads. We desperately need a track.

“I am so grateful for events like this, because now we have the chance to practice every week. I really appreciate it,” Afsah added.

High speed concern

With the speed limit in Male’ limited to 30km/h for cars and 25km/h for motorcycles, the Maldives Police Service had previously raised concerns over inexperienced racers driving at high speeds during the event.

Asked whether there was a risk that the competitors – some of whom who may have only driven in the speed controlled zones of Male’ – risked an accident, event organiser Ismail told Minivan News prior to the race there had been “no serious accidents” in previous events.

During the weekend races, Piston Group Director Mauroof said that there had been only one major incident during the event.

“For some of the car drivers this is their first event, and the track is not very big for car racing. That was the reason for the accident.

“We have had no other major accidents where the fire and medic teams had to attend. The driver [who crashed] is fine. However his car is not,” Mauroof said.

MNDF involvement

Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim said that the MNDF assisted with the event to promote partnership with Maldivian youth.

“We worked with the youth because they came and met me a few days ago and requested me to organise this. It’s good that we meet with youth, so I took initiative.

“I have enjoyed it, the youth have enjoyed, the racing teams have enjoyed it too, it is a very good event, I’ll always be a partner for the youth, and if they request again, I’ll be happy to host it,” he added.

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Maldives must pay India US$50 million next month: Finance Minister

Additional reporting by Luke Powell

The Maldives government has to pay US$50 million to State Bank of India (SBI) next month, Finance Minister Abdulla Jihad has stated.

In December 2012 the Maldives government paid US$50 million to SBI, who refused to extend the period of the treasury bonds issued by the bank during the previous government, local media reported.

Speaking to local newspaper Haveeru, Jihad said the government is yet to come to an arrangement to pay the next US$50 million installment to SBI, explaining that the money will have to come from the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA).

“The US$50 million due in February will have to be paid from the reserve. We have been ordered to pay the amount. There has been no change to the order so far. So it must be paid,” Jihad was quoted as saying in local media.

Following increased tensions between the Indian government and Maldives government over the airport dispute with Indian infrastructure giant GMR – which was evicted from the country by the present government in December 2012 – India turned down a request to extend the treasury bond period.

Payment of the debt will see the state’s reserves fall below US$140 million – less than a month of imports.

On top of the debts due to SBI, GMR is currently seeking compensation for the contract termination in the Singapore Court of Arbitration, which it has calculated at US$800 million.

The company’s lenders, including Axis Bank, have meanwhile called in their loans, for which the Maldives’ Finance Ministry is the guarantor.

Attorney General Azima Shukoor recently claimed that although the previous Attorney General may have signed the guarantor document, the government would argue that is could not act as a guarantor under the Public Finance Act without  parliament’s approval, which was allegedly not obtained.

“The State is acting as the guarantor to the loans taken based on the transactions between GMR and Axis Bank. I believe that is not something permitted under the Finance Act. It is like a blanket sovereign guarantee,” Shukoor told local media in December.

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Maldivian man alleges beating in Indian prison after attempting to export peacock feathers

A Maldivian man arrested in Trivandrum, India for attempting to take a bag of peacock feathers back to Maldives has alleged he was beaten in prison, local media reported.

Ahmed Rufwaan Ali, 23, was arrested at Trivandrum Airport in December 2012 before spending 13 days in an Indian prison.

Speaking to media on his arrival back into Male’ yesterday (January 26), Ali alleged that officers in the prison tortured him due to his refusal to “subject himself to their instructions”, Sun Online reported.

Rufwaan subsequently clarified that he had been “beaten” in custody.

“Using the word ‘torture’ insinuates that I was exposed to extreme violent treatment which was not the case. It is also the ‘cultural’ language barrier that the Dhivehi language consists of limited vocabulary which when translated to English, can fit to a variety of synonyms,” he said, in a subsequent statement.

Rufwaan said he had been asked by reporters as to whether he was beaten in custody, to which he “regretfully responded, “It is a jail after all, and we will get beaten. Yes I was beaten. The rules of the officers there is that, once jailed we have to beg for mercy at their feet. I refused to do that, which is why I got the beating.”

Ali blamed the Maldivian consulate in India for the way he was treated in prison, claiming that Indian authorities had been about to release him before the Maldivian Consulate “communicated to Indian Customs authorities in an inappropriate manner”.

He also claimed the Maldivian consulate in India did not help to  bail him out of prison, and instead he had to rely on his family for the money.

“I first paid 25,000 rupees, and then 10,000 rupees as fine. All the help I got came from my family. The consulate there did not concern itself with me,” Ali was quoted as saying in local media.

Ali claimed that he was not aware of the ban on buying and selling peacock feathers, adding that he was unaware if the feathers were fake or not, according to local media.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Abdul Samad Abdulla was not responding to calls from Minivan News at time of press.

Clarification: Initial reports in local media quoted Rufwaan as saying he had been “tortured” in custody. Rufwaan subsequently issued a statement claiming he had been mistranslated and that he was in fact only “beaten”.

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Harbour construction project begins in Gemanafushi

The Maldives Transport and Construction Company (MTCC) has begun a 10-month harbour construction project on the island of Gemanafushi in Gaafu Alif Atoll.

The project aims to reconstruct a 304 metre long and 91 metre wide harbour in place of the old habour, which is in ruin and insufficient for use, local media reported.

President of Gemanafushi Council Asim Mohamed told local media that work on the project begun on January 24, adding that MTCC were given 10 months to complete the project.

Asim thanked president Waheed for starting the project soon after making a promise to do so on a recent visit to the island.

“When President Waheed visited this island a while ago, he promised that a new harbour would be constructed here. Within a short period of time, work on what will be one the best harbours in the Maldives has begun here.

“I thank President Waheed in my own name, as well as on behalf of the people of this island”, Asim was quoted as saying in Sun Online.

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Supplementary budget to be proposed in first half of 2013: President Waheed

A supplementary budget is to be proposed to parliament before the end of the first half of 2013, President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik has announced.

Speaking at Henbadhoo in Noonu Atoll, the President claimed the country’s economy “is not as bad as it is perceived to be”, adding that the decline in global economy was affecting the Maldives in an adverse way, local media reported.

Waheed stated that that priority will be given to projects such as health centres and other basic services on islands, and that he intends to make the necessary changes to the supplementary budget in order to address these issues, he was quoted as saying in local media.

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American high school teacher implementing sustainable mosquito control project in the Maldives

“For most people in Siskiyou County, mosquitoes are no more than a nuisance. But in the Maldives, where they breed rapidly and transmit painful and sometimes deadly Dengue fever, they’re much more of a problem”, Californian publication Mount Shasta Herald  reports.

“Former Mount Shasta High School teacher Trudy Rilling-Collins is working to control mosquitoes in the Maldives in an environmentally friendly way. She recently enlisted help from MSHS graduate Sydney Miller to implement sustainable mosquito control projects with local islands in the Maldives, a double chain of 26 atolls consisting of 1,200 islands off the coast of India and Sri Lanka.

Rilling-Collins hopes to create a project model that will empower the Maldivian people to effectively control mosquitoes on their own. Not only will this benefit the people – both local Maldivians and tourists – but it will also help the environment, she explained.”

To read more, click here.

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MDP accuse Commonwealth Secretariat of complicity in “coup” cover-up

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has accused the Commonwealth Secretariat of being involved in an alleged cover-up of key details surrounding the controversial transfer of power on February 7, 2012.

In a statement released yesterday (January 23), the MDP claimed that parliament’s Executive Oversight Committee (EOC) had uncovered evidence of a “systematic government cover-up designed to subdue testimonies from key witnesses to the coup d’etat”.

The statement accused the Commonwealth Secretariat of having “close involvement” with the government’s Committee of National Inquiry (CoNI) that reported on the power transfer on February 7, 2012 – making it implicit in any alleged cover-up.

Among the MDP’s allegations, the Commonwealth Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to the Maldives Sir Donald McKinnon was accused of “giving in” to government demands to appoint certain individuals to oversee the report.

“The CoNI, established by Dr Waheed shortly after he came to power, was originally made-up of three people – all well-known sympathisers of former President Gayoom – and chaired by President Gayoom’s former minister of defence,” the statement read.

“After an international outcry, the government was forced to agree to reform the CoNI. The Commonwealth Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to the Maldives, Sir Donald McKinnon, was subsequently sent to the Maldives to mediate an agreement, but eventually gave in to government demands that President Gayoom’s former defence minister must remain as chair, and that the other two members must remain in place.”

The MDP added that the final report of the CoNI had maintained that the transfer of power had been constitutional and rejected allegations of a “coup d’etat” despite what it claimed was “widespread evidence to the contrary.”

Minivan News is awaiting a response from the Commonwealth Secretariat at time of press.

The statement was released the same week in which senior military and police intelligence figures gave evidence to the EOC alleging that the transfer of power on February 7 “had all the hallmarks of a coup d’etat”, and claimed that the final CoNI report had not reflected their input.

The figures included Brigadier General Ibrahim Didi, Commander of Male’ area on February 7, Police Head of Intelligence Chief Superintendent Mohamed Hameed, Chief of Defense Force Major General Moosa Jaleel, Head of Military Intelligence Brigadier General Ahmed Nilaam, Chief Superintendent of Police Mohamed Jinah and Commissioner of Police Ahmed Faseeh.

All six have since resigned or been suspended from duty.

President’s Office Spokesperson Ahmed ‘Topy’ Thaufeeq told Minivan News today that the CoNI report was a “transparent” process undertaken by “qualified Maldivian people”.

“Because of this, the CoNI report is accepted by the government. We have a judiciary, if anyone has a problem with this affair they can go to the courts themselves,” he added.

Asked whether the MDP’s allegations that the suspension of senior military staff who gave evidence to the EOC was an attempt by the government to “subdue testimonies from key witnesses”, Thaufeeq argued that the government “was not in a position to talk about a military matter”.

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