Tag: Nasheed

Employ recovering addicts, President urges big business

State-owned corporations and large businesses should help rehabilitate drug addicts back into society through active recruitment, President Mohamed Nasheed has said during his weekly radio address.

The President noted the state-owned construction firm Works Corporation Limited had employed 15 recovering addicts in its Thilafushi precast yard, and that 11 of the 15 had successfully completed the program. The company had now taken on an additional 25 young people to boost the government’s drug rehabilitation efforts, he said.

Addicts, he said, were isolated from their families and society as a result of their addiction, and such programs could return them to the community.

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President on break following election tour

President Mohamed Nasheed is on a four day holiday following the conclusion of the local council elections, reports Haveeru.

The President’s Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair claimed the president had worn through three pairs of shoes during a campaign tour of 100 islands, during which he delivered 130 speeches.

Nasheed will spend his break at Muleeage, Haveeru reported, and return to work on Sunday.

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Gayoom’s return may signal review of political options: Daily Mirror

Is former Maldivian President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom reviewing his political options for the future in the light of the inevitable mid-term crises facing the MDP Government of his successor, asks Sri Lanka’s Daily Mirror newspaper.

“The question has acquired significance in the light of Gayoom returning from a Malaysian holiday earlier than expected, to spearhead the campaign of the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) for the local council polls due in February.

“Proving critics wrong, Gayoom had made an honourable exit after 30-long years of controversial rule when Nasheed as leader of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) defeated him in the run-off presidential polls in 2008. The change-over came with an understanding that the new Government would allow him to retire in honour with protection against legal action for alleged wrong-doings while in power. The MDP campaign had centered on human rights violations under the Gayoom regime, and Nasheed himself was designated ‘Prisoner of Conscience’ by Amnesty International.

“Hiccups in the implementation of the agreement apart, there was nothing to suggest in the interim that Gayoom would consider throwing his hat into the ring. This was so, despite the fact that Gayoom had handed over the reins of the party to his vice-presidential running-mate, Thasmeen Ali. He however agreed to remain as the ‘Supreme Leader’ of the party, in what was considered a sinecure position with no real responsibility or authority. Not any more, or so it now seems.”

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Raising parliament’s wall to 12 feet “sends wrong message”: MP Nasheed

Parliament has announced its intention to increase the height of the building’s boundary wall to 12 feet to increase the security of the building.

Secretary General of the Parliament Secretariat Ahmed Mohamed told local media earlier that the decision was made on the advice of security services “to prevent people from climbing the wall or throwing things.” The Secretariat is currently searching for a contractor to do the work.

Parliament has been subjected to recurrent protests outside its gates, most recently by demonstrators against the MP Privileges Bill and new pay structure, which would have seen the salaries of Maldivian MPs increased to a level on par with those in Sweden, as well as introduced a plethora of benefits ranging from tax-free cars to certain immunities from the criminal justice system.

President Mohamed Nasheed refused to ratify the bill yesterday, after consulting the Attorney General, Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) and receiving 289 letters of concern from the public.

Independent MP Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed said that he did not think the solution to public concern regarding MPs and their work was “to turn parliament into a fortress.”

“I believe parliament should be seen to be accessible, open and transparent – a symbol of open democracy,” he said.

“There have been quite a lot of disturbances outside, and odd comments towards parliamentarians sitting having coffees, and a lot of unruly elements in the area, but I don’t believe this justifies raising the wall,” he said.

“I’m not sure how this came about – I just heard they were looking for a contractor to raise the wall. I don’t see it as a solution – it sends a message of defiance, which is not the right message to send to the public.”

MP Nasheed, who abstained from the vote over the controversial MP Privileges bill, said he believed the President was justified in refusing to ratify it.

“I didn’t want to express an opinion on it. There are issues I like, but there are things in it I don’t like. I believe it exceeds the ambit of priviledges and guarantees that parliamentarians need to carry out their work.”

Nasheed said he felt the term ‘priviliege’ could be misleading and said he understood it in a techincal sense as distinct from ‘benefits’, in that ‘privileges’ provided that which MPs required to function free of interference.

“[Things like] elevating status in society, seating orders, use of the [airport] VIP lounge on departure, special treatment at the places MPs visit – I don’t believe these are necessary for an MP to function,” he said. “These are not privileges, they are benefits.”

“As for the criminal [immunities], I don’t believe any parliamentarian should be exempt or receive special treatment from criminal proceedings. There are concerns about the surveillance of MPs and advantages taken of this monitoring, but I believe the criminal justice system must come into action, even against an MP. But there should be a parliamentary mechanism in parallel to check on the process.”

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EC warns of potential two month delay for local council elections in Addu, pending court battle

President of the Elections Commission (EC) Fuad Thaufeeq has said that local council elections in Addu could be delayed by up to two months, with the EC forced to conduct voter registration again after President Mohamed Nasheed declared the atoll a city for the second time yesterday.

The Civil Court ruled on Sunday in favour of the minority opposition Dhivehi Quamee Party (DQP), that the President had no authority to do declare Addu a city until it met the then-unstated requirements for a city, as determined by the Local Government Authority.

Yesterday the authority – currently consisting solely of the Home Minister – published the requirements in the government gazette, and the President declared Addu a city for the second time, after Adduans and MDP activists took to the streets to protest against the Civil Court’s decision and the DQP.

“The Local Government Authority consists of only one person, which is Hassan Afeef, and today I asked Afeef to determine whether Addu Atoll meets the requirements to be a City,’’ President Nasheed said, addressing a rally at Thinadhoo in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll.

However overcoming the technicality raised in the Civil Court was not so simple, warned Thaufeeq.

“When the Civil Court ruled that the first declaration of the Presdient was invalid, it also invalidates all the work done by the commission to hold the Local Council Election,’’ said Thaufeeq.

“Now we will have to register all the citizens of Addu, will have to announce for the elections, will have to elect candidates and will have to give them time for campaign. The commission will have to repeat the whole process for the Local Council Elections in Addu.

“There would be a delay of almost two months [in Addu], while all the other atolls will have concluded the elections and have elected councilors,’’ he explained. “The best way is to hold the elections across all the islands at the same time, by overturning the Civil Court’s ruling.’’

He said the EC was seeking legal advice and trying to determine a way to resolve the issue.

“We have not decided what we will do yet, but these are the issues that will arise if the second declaration is be implemented,’’ he added.

Attorney General Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad has already said the government will seek to appeal in the High Court, but with the elections scheduled for February 5, a delay could be possible.

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Divide or unify: Gayoom’s return to politics raises election stakes

The return to politics of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom following his retirement in February last year could unify the opposition or deepen the growing factional split between the two parties, observers have suggested.

The former President returned to the Maldives to campaign on behalf of the opposition Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP), of which he remains the ‘Honorary Leader’.

In a speech on Thursday evening at Kalaafaanu School in Male’, Gayoom did not show overt support of either the faction led by dismissed Deputy Leader Umar Naseer, or that of current party leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali whom he endorsed on his retirement.

Conflict between the two factions came to a head in mid-December when a party rally descended into a factional brawl after supporters of the dismissed Naseer gatecrashed the venue.

In his speech Gayoom urged unity, quoting from the Quran and emphasing that “we should work to reduce the disputes among us.”

“I am saying this in my capacity as the Supreme Leader of DRP, as a father of all you members and as an elderly person,” local newspaper Haveeru reported the former President as saying.

He expressed concern that rival parties would exploit the opportunity to divide the opposition ahead of the elections, and said the DRP needed to win in order to protect both the country’s Arab-Islamic heritage and national assets – a clear criticism of the government’s decision to allow Indian infrastructure giant GMR to take over the management and development of Male’ International Airport.

“We should utilise the resources bestowed on us by God Almighty. The rich natural resources we have are for our children, the future generations and for us. That should not be given to foreigners,” Haveeru reported Gayoom as saying.

Despite the call for unity and his prior public endorsement of Thasmeen, Gayoom appears to be hitting the campaign trail with dismissed Deputy Leader Umar Naseer – whom the Elections Commission last week maintained had been formally removed from the party’s membership list despite the party’s “internal dispute”.

”The DRP office requested the commission remove his name from the party’s membership, saying that they have dismissed him,” said Elections Commissioner Fuad Thaufeeq. ”So we removed his name accordingly in respect to the party’s wishes.”

DRP MP Ahmed Mahlouf, himself a supporter of Naseer, told Minivan News today that while Gayoom “had invited everyone in the party to join his [campaign] trip, the others [Thasmeen’s faction] are travelling separately.”

“The target is the same – to win the local council elections,” Mahlouf said. “He definitely helped during the parliamentary campaign when he travelled to the islands, and he also campaigned for me. He is starting his first trip on Janurary 10, and islanders and candidates are looking forward to his visits.”

Political impact

The former President remains an enigmatic figure in Maldivian politics. The true extent of his popularity since the DRP’s win in the parliamentary elections over two years ago is unclear, given the absence of independent and impartial political polling in the country. The MDP contends that its infrastructure and development projects have won over many islanders, but many Maldivians – and certainly Thasmeen – still live in the shadow of their ‘Honorary Leader’ of 30 years, and responsibility for the many teething problems of the new democracy have landed at the MDP’s feet.

Certainly, news of Gayoom’s return to Male’ prompted thousands of supporters to appear at the jetty on December 31 holding posters of the former president.

The ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), Mahlouf suggested, was scared of Gayoom and the loyalty he inspired in the party faithful.

“Gayoom is the only person with popular support, and that was clearly seen in the parliamentary election. [The MDP] are scared he will run in 2013, but that will be the decision of other people. He is the right person for an election in 2011, if it were held,” Mahlouf said.

Gayoom had not said whether he would run for 2013, Mahlouf added, and had only said he would talk about the 2011 local council elections.

“But if he fit enough to run, he is the right person to change things again, and stabilise the economy,” Mahlouf suggested. “Maybe not the full five year term, maybe 2-3 years and then hand the leadership to his Vice-President. This is just my speculation, nothing has been decided – I think it should be decided at a DRP primary.”

He acknowledged that while Gayoom had publicly endorsed Thasmeen as leader in February, “I’m not sure whether he supports him anymore, or feels that [Thasmeen] is the right candidate for 2013.”

The split has put the party’s coalition agreement with the People’s Alliance (PA) under strain, with growing tension between Thasmeen’s faction and PA leader Abdulla Yameen potentially threatening the opposition’s parliamentary majority.

Mahlouf acknowledged that “the fighting is getting hot”, but said the party had resolved not to discuss internal politics with the media before the conclusion of the local council elections.

“I know Yameen is also very concerned about what the government is doing, and will only tolerate things to a certain point. There are things that need to be corrected on both sides, and we need to sit down and resolve them.”

MDP Chairperson Mariya Ahmed Didi said the former President’s return to politics “gels us together – those who believed and came out against his dictatorial regime.”

Furthermore, she suggested, it had allowed “aspiring leaders in DRP and those affiliated to DRP to see Gayoom for what he really is – concerned only about his self interest and trying to set up a dynasty.”

Thasmeen and DRP party spokesman Ibrahim Shareef had not responded to Minivan News at time of press.

Motivation

Concern over the former President’s impact on Maldivian politics reached right to the top: in the final days of 2010, President Mohamed Nasheed publicly warned Gayoom that returning to the campaign trail would not be wise and raised concerns over his safety.

“Sometimes when former presidents leave the country and then return to the Maldives, a very regrettable fate has occurred,” Nasheed said. ”I am concerned that something very regrettable is about to happen in Male’.”

”If Gayoom is returning to politics then he is messing with the feelings of the citizens that could cause them to confront and return to their history, and it is very possible that a regrettable consequence may occur,” Nasheed said. ”Do not mess with the feelings of the citizens of the Maldives, because when they are shaken, not even I can curb the pressure.”

Rumours of a previous back-room truce between the two leaders over the pursuit of corruption and human rights allegations against the former President in return for his retirement from public life appeared to be on shaky ground following Nasheed’s high profile support of elderly historian Ahmed Shafeeq during the launch of Shafeeq’s book in October 2010.

In his book, Shafeeq alleged that 111 people died in custody under the former administration and that he himself had been arrested and his diaries destroyed. Nasheed promised that police would investigate and revealed that human bones discovered in the former Gaamaadhoo prison matched the age and estimated period of death of Abdulla Anees, Vaavu Keyodhoo Bashigasdhosuge, an inmate officially declared missing in the 1980s.

Nasheed’s public support of the book prompted Gayoom to write to the British Prime Minister David Cameron, appealing for pressure to be placed on President Mohamed Nasheed following “the escalation of attempts to harass and intimidate me and my family.”

The matter, he told the British PM, involved “unsubstantiated allegations by an elderly man by the name of Ahmed Shafeeq that I had, during my tenure as President, ordered the murder of 111 dissidents.”

“In a book authored by this Shafeeq, which was ceremoniously released [on October 10] by Mohamed Nasheed himself, it is accused that I also ordered the man’s arrest and supposed torture in prison. In a country of just over 300,000, it is safe to assume that even one ‘missing person’ would not go unnoticed, let alone 111.”

Nasheed’s government had “escalated its attempts to harass me” in the run up to the local council elections, Gayoom wrote, despite his retirement from politics.

“After the government’s defeat in last year’s parliamentary elections, the popularity ratings of the ruling MDP have fallen further in recent months as a result of the government’s failure to deliver on its campaign promises, and its lack of respect for the law.”

“On the other hand,” Gayoom told the British PM, “I continue to enjoy the strong support, love and affection of the people, and have been voted by the public as ‘Personality of the Year’ in both years since stepping down from the presidency.”

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Speaker seeks legal advice after Acting Finance Minister presents 2011 budget

Speaker of Parliament Abdulla Shahid has told local media that he is seeking legal advice after Acting Finance Minister Mahmoud Razee presented the 2011 State Budget to parliament.

Finance Minister Ali Hashim resigned on Friday following the Supreme Court’s ruling that ministers rejected by parliament could no longer hold their positions. President Mohamed Nasheed appointed Economic Development Minister Mahmoud Razee as acting minister in Hashim’s stead.

Haveeru reported Shahid as saying the budget would not be debated on Monday as he was seeking legal advice on the matter. Shahid was not responding to calls at time of press.

“We need to find ways to carry out this task without disrupting the state,” Haveeru reported Shahid as saying, despite observing that Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ahmed Nazim had told the paper that Razee would be able to present the budget as he had been endorsed by parliament.

Independent MP Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed told Minivan News that he believed there had been a move towards tabling the budget during tomorrow’s session of parliament.

The text of the Constitution requires the “Minister of Finance” to submit the budget for approval “prior to the commencement of each financial year” – in the Maldives, the calendar year.

Nasheed said that this was a specific responsibility of the Finance Minister, and that the Constitution did not appear to allow for an acting or state minister to present the budget, however he noted that “there is cross-party support to get the budget moving. It is likely they would approve whomever the President nominates as Finance Minister.”

The Speaker had consulted him on the issue, Nasheed said, adding that he had suggested that irrespective of whether there was a finance minister, the budget had already been released into the public domain and there was nothing preventing parliament from starting an informal deliberation.

It was, he said, entirely normal for committee hearings to conduct informal discussions prior to obtaining quorum, such as when a member was late or absent, and then conduct the formal debate and speech once quorum was achieved.

“In view of the Supreme Court’s decision [on Thursday], an appointed minister is a de facto employee until approval by parliament, whereupon he ripens into a fully-fledged cabinet minister. The easiest way may be for the President to just appoint a Finance Minister.”

Nasheed added that he did not think the issue was critical, as if the budget was delayed parliament had the potential to pass an emergency budget to ensure the functioning of basic services in the interim, as it did when the new government took office.

Theoretically, Nasheed noted, there was nothing preventing the President from simply reappointing dismissed ministers in perpetuity, although he suggested that this would be “unproductive” and run against the “spirit of the constitution”.

The President today reappointed Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad as Attorney General (AG), following Sawad’s resignation on Friday.

The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that cabinet members rejected by parliament could not remain in their posts. Sawad was among the members of cabinet not endorsed by the opposition majority parliament.

“There’s nothing in the rules, but this has to come to an end some time,” MP Nasheed said. “If disaappoved again, the Attorney General could be appointed a third time – the Constitution doesn’t go into such detail.”

Similarly, Nasheed added, the potential for repeated rejection of appointed ministers by a vindictive opposition “goes with the Presidential system of government that we have. It’s unlikely that a president [in the Maldives] will command a majority, and it’s the same situation faced by US President Barack Obama [with a Democrat executive and Republican Congress].”

During the original appointment of ministers, “the President did it very beautifully,” MP Nasheed said. “He proposed the names and sent them to parliament, and then they were appointed, which was the responsible way to proceed.”

The loss of seven ministers, Nasheed suggested, was an “extreme situation” and unlikely to reoccur.

“The results might have differed if the MDP had taken part in the vote,” Nasheed said. “They may have been able to salvage more [without the boycott]. To let go of seven cabinet ministers must have been a huge decision.”

Meanwhile, President Nasheed has ratified the First Amendment Bill to the Public Finance Act, following a ruling from the Supreme Court for early ratification of the bill.

In a statement on the President’s Office website, the President said the bill was ratified in compliance with the Supreme Court’s ruling “despite legal issues [that] would negatively affect government’s social protection system.”

The newly reappointed Attorney General has filed a case in the Supreme Court seeking a ruling of of several articles in the Act as contradicting the Constitution.

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“Silver linings” says President, as Supreme Court ruling prompts Cabinet reshuffle

The departure of seven members of the Maldivian cabinet following Thursday’s Supreme Court ruling that ministers cannot retain their posts without endorsement by the opposition-majority parliament has prompted President Mohamed Nasheed to reshuffle the cabinet.

The Supreme Court ruling came after opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) leader took the government to court on the matter after using its majority to disapprove the reappointments of seven cabinet ministers. MPs of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) boycotted the vote in protest.

President Nasheed appointed Political Advisor Hassan Afeef as Home Minister, replacing Mohamed Shihab, who has been appointed Advisor on Political Affairs.

Shifa Mohamed has been promoted from Deputy Minister of Education to Minister in place of Dr Musthafa Luthfy. Both Afeef and Shifa received letters of appointment last night.

Foreign Minister Dr Ahmed Shaheed has meanwhile resigned and been replaced by Minister of Housing and Environment Mohamed Aslam, in the post of acting minister.

Attorney General Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad, formerly the Tourism Minister, has also resigned and been replaced by Minister of Human Resources, Youth and Sports Hassan Latheef, as acting Attorney General.

Minister of Health and Family Dr Aminath Jameel has been appointed acting Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture in place of Dr Ibrahim Didi.

Minvan News understands that no acting minister has currently been appointed to the Defence portfolio, which will instead be directed by the President with the assistance of security advisors.

It’s not cricket

During a press conference held on Saturday evening at the President’s residence ‘Muleaage’, Nasheed briefly discussed the Maldives’ cricketing triumph over Saudi Arabia in the Asian Cricket Council’s (ACC) 2010 Trophy Challenge, before opening the floor to questions.

Nasheed denied that the parliament had impacted the functioning of government or that the Supreme Court’s ruling had crippled the executive’s ability to appoint cabinet in a highly partisan political landscape.

Instead, he stated, the ruling “makes interpretation of the Constitution much more clear, and should therefore assist governance. Other than giving us clarity, I don’t really see as an obstruction to governance. I see it as giving more clarity as to how go about it.”

The President said he did not regret the decision in June for cabinet to temporarily resign en masse in protest against obstruction by parliament, which opened the executive to a Majlis counter-attack by its refusal to approve ministerial reappointments.

There was, he said, “a bigger picture.”

“I do not regret what happened in June. Try to understand the political landscape and what was happening at that time – which became quite clear through the [leaked] telephone conversations.

“Elements in the opposition were bent on disrupting the government. In very many words we heard that they wanted to topple the government, and remove many cabinet ministers. Cabinet at that time felt it had enough justification to say it was very difficult to govern because of parliamentary obstruction.”

The political instability and “looming uncertainties” created in the resultant vacuum “created an environment where a Supreme Court could be established.”

“For us to be able to come up with a Supreme Court was a fair achievement,” Nasheed said, “and we were able to get that primarily because of a number of political uncertainties that were looming at that time.”

“Now that we have a Supreme Court, it is clear on how we have to proceed with affairs and implement the Consitiution. I think it is a fine experience and I really think that once we step back and have a look what has actually happened, we will be able to understand that there are many many silver linings.”

As for the resigned ministers, “they are very capable people and we will be using their services – if they are willing. I have already had conversatinos with them. I believe they are willing to serve the country and the people, and will continue to serving in the government. But they won’t be serving in cabinet.”

Reaction

While the president was looking for “silver linings” in the dismissal of more than half his cabinet, Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair indicated that the rest of the executive was not quite as sanguine.

“The Supreme Court has returned the verdict that the opposition can use its ‘brute majority’, without citing any reasons for the disapprovals,” he said. “But it’s not the Supreme Court that refused consent, it was parliament, and people who were involved in the former dicatorship.”

The Supreme Court’s ruling, he said, had set a “disturbing precedent” for a any particularly vindictive majority opposition to perpetually refuse the appointment of ministers not of its choosing.

“Of all the ministers, [those disapproved] were the ones who had worked very hard to establish the Supreme Court and separation of powers, and do away with authorative power. And now it seems like the very same former establishment is punishing those forces,” Zuhair said.

He suggested that the opposition’s stubborness on the matter of endorsement by parliament, and lack of reasons giving for the dismissal of each minister, signalled a political grudge match “after they lost four key appointments when the cabinet resigned: the Chief Justice of the [interim] Supreme Court, who was known to be endorsed by them, the chief of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), who was also endorsed by them, chief of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) who was also endorsed by a DRP majority house, and the JSC Chief Mujthaz Fahmy, who appeared to be supportive of them. That may have rankled.”

“And there are other reasons – for instance, they have accused [Defence Minister] Ameen Faisal of involvement in the coup attempt of 1988, which he denies. [Former President] Gayoom’s judiciary at the time saw rebellion as a high crime, whereas in today’s multi-party democracy, someone going against the government is not a rebel.”

Deputy Leader and spokesperson for the DRP, Ibrahim Shareef, said the opposition was willing to give the President “the benefit of the doubt” and endorse any minister nominated, “as long as they can do the job.”

Shareef said it was too early to comment on whether the party would be endorsing the ministers currently pending parliamentary approval, including last night’s appointments to the Education and Home Affairs portfolios, Shifa Mohamed and Hassan Afeef.

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President apologises to Vilu Reef couple, invites back to Maldives

President of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed rang the couple degraded in the Vilu Reef ‘wedding ceremony’ incident to apologise on behalf of the nation, and invite them back to the Maldives at their convenience as his personal guests.

Nasheed called the couple on Saturday afternoon to personally apologise for the incident, which grew into an international media firestorm after a video of the couple being mocked and humiliated in Dhivehi by up to 15 complicit resort staff surfaced on video sharing website YouTube.

“The couple told the President that their images have been published in the media without their consent, which is causing them considerable distress and embarrassment,” the President’s Office said in a statement, adding that Nasheed was appealing for their privacy to be respected.

“The couple asked President Nasheed, during a telephone call on Saturday afternoon, to make the intervention on their behalf.”

“President Nasheed calls on the media not to reproduce photographs or video footage of the couple without their consent and to report the incident in a sensitive manner.”

The statement added that the couple “thanked President Nasheed for taking the time to personally intervene in this matter.”

Ambassador Iruthisham Adam from the Maldives embassy in Geneva also telephoned the couple, offering the government’s “profound and heartfelt apologies”.

“I informed the couple that the entire country is deeply shocked and saddened by what has happened. The Maldives is renowned for its warm hospitality and this incident has brought great shame upon our tourism industry and our country,” Ambassador Adam said in a statement.

The Ambassador informed the couple the two members of the resort´s staff had been arrested by Maldives police and the case was being investigated. The ‘celebrant’, food and beverage assistance Hussein Didi, and another man, are in police custody while the authorities determine the charges.

Minivan News understands that the Ministry of Tourism met with tourism industry leaders today to discuss steps to avoid a repeat of the incident. The government has already proposed to regulate ‘renewal of vows’ ceremonies in every hotel and resort in the country.

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