President Mohamed Nasheed opened a new 600-capacity mosque yesterday built in Rasdhoo in Alif Alif Atoll by Universal Enterprises.
According to the President’s Office, “the mosque was constructed in remembrance of the late Aminath Hussain Kaleyfaanu of Kolige, daughter of the late Maizaandhoshuge Hussain Kaleyfaanu of Rasdhoo.”
Following the opening ceremony, islanders of Rasdhoo presented Universal Enterprises Chairman Mohamed Manik with a memento of appreciation.
The mosque was designed by Ahmed Abbas and built by private contractors Amin Construction.
Prior to his visit to Rasdhoo, the President on Thursday met the island councils of Rinbudhoo, Meedhoo and Bandidhoo during a tour of Dhaal Atoll.
President Nasheed spoke about decentralisation and devolving more decision-making powers to local councils and exchanged views on planned development projects.
A VIP room at the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) intended for use by the President and his family has been given over to house dengue patients.
Earlier this week, 19 beds were set up at the hospital’s emergency lobby, which has since been used as a makeshift ward. In addition, the observation and physiotherapy areas are also being used to treat dengue patients.
President Mohamed Nasheed reportedly made the decision to use the VIP room today because the lobby area did not have a toilet for the patients.
MNBC One reports that the patients at the makeshift ward were now being transferred to the VIP room, which has enough space for 14 beds.
Meanwhile physiotherapy appointments at IGMH were cancelled yesterday while all non-emergency surgeries were suspended today.
While the seasonal dengue outbreak has claimed seven lives this year so far, including four children in 48 hours last week, the dengue control task force revealed yesterday that the number of cases reported has fallen in the past three days.
Some 18 cases were reported on the first day, followed by 16 the next day and 11 yesterday.
Haveeru reported that 35 patients have been admitted at IGMH among a total of 75 nationwide. Of the 35 patients at IGMH, four in serious condition had been placed under special care.
“These four cases did not have the risk of being fatal. But we have placed the patients under special care,” said Dr Ali Latheef, senior consultant at IGMH.
Translated extract of President Mohamed Nasheed’s speech on the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.
“Two or three days ago, police seized a large amount of hard drugs; heroin or brown sugar. It happened, as you know, while 800 packets were being sealed in a house called Henveiru Fashan. Today and tomorrow, a lot of young people will become sick.
These 800 packets, according to our information, were the drugs meant to be used by at least 50 percent of hard drug users in Male’. What we are trying to do with the police operation is seize these drugs. [But] when the drugs are seized, the youth addicted to these hard drugs leave their normal state. When that happens, they don’t have any sense of the wrong they do; they don’t have any sense, any inkling or knowledge of anything they do.
I am glad today and pleased by the fact that they can call the 1410 number. I would say that a lot of youngsters should keep the 1410 in mind. […] I urge very strongly that everyone, all who use drugs, keep the 1410 in your memory, in your recollection, at all times.
We can seize the hard drugs that enter the country. We can find out how it enters, too. And as I envision it we can stop [the trafficking]. While undertaking these efforts, it is now becoming very much certain to me…for example, what happened the other day was the sort of thing I find quite shocking. 800 packets of heroin a night were getting sealed in the house of an honourable member of parliament. 800 packets of heroin were being distributed in the ground floor of this house. True, there might be no connection between the MP and his house to the people doing [the drug dealing]. But what I know is, in my home, in my own home…the laws of the country definitely say this. That I should know what happens in my own home, under my own shelter.
What the government will continue investigating now will be the money transactions. And to find out what A.J Enterprises is and who owns that enterprise; whether it was through this enterprise that all that money was transferred out of the country. What I am trying to reveal is that even if it turns out that the [trail] ends with my own parents I will not back down in the least. Whether it’s the People’s Majlis, the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, any Majlis – God willing we will not leave a single stone unturned to discover who is involved in this.
Using hard drugs, running the existing network, involves large sums of money. The profit of Henveiru Fashan was at least Rf160,000. That is the profit of only one night. We do not doubt any more that on a good night Rf200,000 will be made as profit. A hardware store makes a profit of Rf150,000 a night. A normal general store, a big, big store in Male’ – the profit of one of those big stores would not reach Rf100,000. The business profit in this is not a truth that we will let slide from our minds.
It is not only drug dealing that occurs in this business. There are a number of other illegal businesses related to it. Now we are especially noting the business of selling humans from one country to another. That is, bringing workers into the country illegally in the name of labour as well as bringing them to transit here before being sent to other countries – this has become big business in the Maldives.
The drug business is widespread in the whole international community. It is not just the Maldives that was shocked. We do get shocked when we get this kind of information; we would get shocked when we get it suddenly. It is not just the Maldives that is shocked by this. I have come here today after finding out how shocked the whole region is because of this. [We know] how many kilos we have found and that it is a small amount. With this network in the entire [South Asian] region and reaching the Middle East, it is no small shock. I would think all of us are very shocked.
There are truths we know while we attempt to stop this network and the trafficking of hard drugs into the country. That is the fact that we have to show compassion to the youth at this time. When we don’t provide care for them, they take off with the box cutter and steal money from the mother’s drawers. [They] need it. They need to use. They must use. We have to come to know and understand this. We shouldn’t try talking about this politically or with the intention of hiding behind a nice veil, without using the real terms and words. I won’t do it. I will talk about how thing stand from A to Z. That is, regardless of whatever anyone says about me – the bitterness involved in this, how much our society has been destroyed by this, the obstacles it places on our country’s development, how we cannot achieve our desired ‘Other Maldives’ because of this will become very much clear.
Closing the doors to hard drugs is a policy of this government, a pledge of this government. God willing, this government will do it. The government will find those who smuggle hard drugs into the country. They will be detained. We will ask the Prosecutor General to take them to trial. That is the extent of what the government can do. We are not trying to meddle with trials illegally even now. However, we will [send] all the cases with all the evidence to the Prosecutor General’s Office – that is along with everyone else involved in this business, this network. Among them include using cycles, cars and lorries; providing places for packing; private companies facilitating business transactions – no one should be doing any of this. God willing, this government will give those involved the just punishment.
A detox centre was opened in Male’ last year. And a detox centre was opened last year in Addu Atoll Meedhoo. This detox centre is not a rehabilitation centre. So when you go there and nothing but [detoxification] comes of it, don’t complain about that. The place is intended for a particular purpose. That is what the place can do. Additionally, God willing we will be able to open a new detox centre for women I think today or tomorrow. Helping girls with this is absolutely necessary.
It has become very clear to us that the gang violence in the country is also very much tied to drugs. I think the connection between Red Light City and their affiliated gangs to this business was seen beyond doubt the other day [at the police briefing]. In the past, “our peaceful protest was disrupted by this gang, the gang leader was this person, that person calls such and such a politician” – we heard of this a lot. However, we did not go into it back then. And we haven’t gone into it after taking over government even up to this day.
Based on the evidence gathered, the government is only requesting the Prosecutor General to take the case to trial. From judges we request that they deliver a verdict based on what was said and the evidence presented. We don’t ask for more than that from anyone. We will not ask for more.
Our goal is to assure for our youth a better, more prosperous, much happier tomorrow than today. My prayer is for us the blessings of both worlds.
The former deputy leader of the main opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) has claimed that results of examinations made on human bones discovered inside Gamadhoo Prison show they “are over 800 years old.”
”Those bones were first taken to Thailand for investigation and [investigators] said they were over 800 years old,” said Naseer. ”Later the government sent the bones to America, where they also said the same.”
Umar said the investigation into the identity of the bones was now closed, ”but the government will never say that because they want to use it for political purposes.”
”This news is confirmed to be true, we have allies inside police as well as in Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF),” said Naseer, himself a former policeman.
He said the police and government “cannot deny this and if they did, they should show the report on the examinations.”
Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam today said that police had been still unable to determine the age of the human bones found inside Gamadhoo Prison.
”We did send it abroad for forensic investigations,” Shiyam said. ”So far we have not been able to determine the age of those bones.”
He said that investigation was still ongoing and that details of the case that police were able to share had already been given to the media.
On September 2009, inmates in ”Asseyri jail” discovered human bones buried two feet underground while they were digging the area to plant trees.
The same year, the President’s Office asked police to investigate the discovery and samples of the 14 bone fragments were sent to Thailand for DNA analysis.
In October last year, President Mohamed Nasheed said Human bones discovered in the site of 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 that time said that forensic examination has identified the age of the deceased, while a former prison guard, Mohamed Naeem, of Gaaf Dhaal Hoadhendhoo Muraka, has told the police investigation that Anees died in Gaamaadhoo prison.
President Nasheed spent three years in Gaamaadhoo prison for dissident journalism in opposition to the rule of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
Parliamentary Group Leader and MP Moosa ‘Reeko’ Manik of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) last night criticised the government at a rally where President Mohamed Nasheed was present, for not arresting former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
Speaking at the rally held to celebrate Social Liberal Party (SLP) President Ibrahim Ismail rejoining MDP, Moosa said that blame for failure to provide justice for those allegedly tortured by Gayoom’s administration did not only lie with the judiciary.
Moosa spoke little, but before he left the rally he said he would go to Gayoom’s residence “and disturb him no matter if I have to go to jail.”
President Mohamed Nasheed also spoke at the rally and responded to Moosa, saying that there was “no one who understands Moosa’s feelings more than I do.”
However, Nasheed said it would be impossible to provide justice before upgrading the judicial system, a process he said would take a long time.
Nasheed said he had in the meantime given high priority for other necessary things such as providing sewerage systems and shelter for people.
In the special rally last night, first President of MDP Ibrahim Ismail ‘Ibra’, who resigned in 2006, rejoined the party along with other political figures who had belonged to the SLP including Youth Minister Dr Hassan Latheef.
Speaking at the rally, Ibra said that he decided to leave SLP and rejoin MDP because he wanted to take part in the reform movement begun by the party.
Today the MDP website said Moosa had left the rally early because he had to fly to China on official business.
According to the MDP website Moosa said he had no issues with the party itself, but had criticise state institutions for failing to investigate the torture allegations.
Meanwhile, former Deputy Leader of the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) and now close ally of Gayoom claimed that Gayoom had not tortured Moosa, but ”Moosa injures himself by getting drunk and thinking Gayoom did it.”
Naseer also claimed that Nasheed was not interested in establishing justice and must have been mistaken.
”He’s still in the 1940s. It;s for the judiciary to create justice, why does not he go to the courts?” asked Umar. ”We know why. It’s because he does not have any evidence. How can there be evidence for something that was not done?”
Government income has to be doubled to create fiscal space for increased capital expenditure and investment for development opportunities, President Mohamed Nasheed said in his radio address yesterday.
Speaking on the cabinet decision last week to incentivise voluntary redundancy in the civil service, President Nasheed reiterated that facilitating more attractive and higher paying employment opportunities for civil servants and government employees remains “a major goal for the government.”
“Development opportunities are going to be very limited if a large part of state revenue is recurrent expenditure,” he said. “We have to increase capital expenditure. The best way is to exponentially increase government income.”
While revenue was increasing year by year, Nasheed continued, current levels of annual income have to be “doubled” to make fiscal space for capital investments.
“It will take time for the state to reach that level,” he added. “It is necessary for the government to maintain recurrent expenditure at a certain level to reach [the goal]…The government’s purpose, or objective, is to find ways for employees to improve their standard of living.”
Under the scheme launched by cabinet on Tuesday, civil servants and government employees will be eligible for one of four retirement incentive packages: no assistance, a one time payment of Rf150,000 (US$11,700), a payment of Rf150,000 and priority in the small and medium enterprises loan scheme (for those 18-50 years of age), or a lump sum of Rf 200,000 (US$15,600) and priority in government training and scholarship programmes (for those 18-40 years of age).
Government employees above the age of 55 who retire voluntarily will be given the same benefits as those released by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) at the mandatory retirement age of 65.
In August 2009, the government’s decision to implement austerity measures to alleviate the crippling budget deficit – including unpopular pay cuts of up to 15 percent for civil servants – was met with protests and fierce resistance from opposition parties and the CSC.
President Nasheed announced at the time that the government planned to halve the 32,000-strong civil service by 2011 through redundancies and transfer of employees to corporations.
While the President stated that the civil service should be composed of no more than 18,000 well-paid and qualified staff, CSC Chair Mohamed Fahmy told Minivan News last week that the commission currently has 19,000 permanent staff.
International organisations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank meanwhile insist that reckless expansionary fiscal policies from 2004 onward that saw doubling expenditure on salaries between 2007-2009 crippled the economy.
“The Maldives faces the most challenging macroeconomic situation of all democratic transitions that have occurred since 1956,” read a World Bank report in March 2010.
President Mohamed Nasheed has called for the United Nations to deploy peacekeepers in the troubled gulf state of Libya, in an effort “to contain” its leader Muammar Gaddafi.
The Libyan government, a 42 year autocracy under Gaddafi, is facing rising international censure after using African mercenaries and military hardware – including anti-aircraft missiles – against civilian protesters.
At least 300 people are believed dead in the uprising while armed opposition groups now control much of the east of the country including Zawiyah, a town just 30 miles from the west of the capital of Tripoli. The British SAS meanwhile evacuated more than 500 British oil workers from a staging point in the Libyan desert, using C-130 Hercules transports.
“I feel that the UN should now be thinking about peacekeeping in Libya – on the ground intervention. This is very important,” Nasheed said on ‘Walk the Talk’.
“It is very disturbing to see the whole thing being played out, and everyone talking about their nationals – we all humans and sovereignty cannot be played over humanity,” Nasheed said.
“It is very disturbing to hear everyone talking only about their own nationals. People should be talking about Libya and the people. You kill an Indian, you kill a Libyan, what difference does that make? You’ve killed someone.”
Direct action was needed, Nasheed said, rather than the further economic sanctions that had been imposed.
“[The international community] are talking about sanctions – but Libyans already can’t import anything,” he said.
Nasheed noted that Gaddafi had survived the extreme political turbulence of the last 3-4 days, and said he was “very jittery” about the prospects of the leader stepping down voluntarily.
“Certainly he should go – I’ve no doubt about that,” he said. “It is our responsibility to make sure that at the end of the day we don’t have headlines saying 500,000 people are dead from aerial bombing in Libya.”
The Maldives, Nasheed said, was a “laboratory case” for the current call for democracy in the Middle East and the ousting of autocratic leaders.
“For the last 100 years Maldivian leaders have tried to emulate Egypt. There was Gayoom, but other leaders before him also studied in Egypt.
“What they need now are political parties. We will always support movement in any country when people want to be free – it is very important for development that countries haves strong political parties and free and fair elections.”
The uprisings had showcased that there was “no contradiction between Islam and democracy”, Nasheed said. “We are a 100 percent Muslim country and we have been able to galvanise the public for political activism, we’ve been able to amend our constitution, we able to build political parties, we have had free and fair presidential elections, parliamentary elections, local elections, we have separation of powers, we have a very vibrant independent media, we have all the fundamental rights – but all that requires space for organised political activism.”
A theocracy based around an extreme religious idea, Nasheed said, was simply “The camoflage of a standard dictatorship – except in the name of God.”
Issues such as Israel and Middle East peace issues could be more easily dealt with in a free and democratic country, Nasheed said.
“We have been able to have a number contacts with Israel now – the people have no issue with that.”
Queried by the interviewer about the widespread public anger Nasheed faced when reaching out to Israel, Nasheed claimed that “there is always organised opposition, and there should be and we can always talk about it and give our point of view.”
The uprisings had broken many Middle Eastern stereotypes, Nasheed agreed.
“Finally we will be able to show Islam for what it is – a high sophisticated intellectual life, that is highly attractive to people.”
Asked by the interviewer if he himself was “a devout Muslim”, Nasheed described himself as “practicing”, “but I don’t think that necessarily narrows my thinking or my attitude or my interactions with anyone.”
The interviewer also challenged Nasheed on how the Maldives could balance a broadly Islamic population with the influences of Western-style beach tourism.
“Traditionally we were Sufi Muslim, so therefore we were very liberal,” Nasheed said. “But in 70s we had wahabism starting to come in. Then in the late 70s Gayoom came to power, after living in Egypt.
“There was always a tendency to use religion or verses from the Quran or hadiths to justify yourself or justify your actions. Some other leader might have said “for development’. But Gayoom would say, ‘for God, so that we may attain paradise.’ What you are really saying is that you are building a school.”
President Mohamed Nasheed has warned that it would not be wise for Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, the nation’s former president, to return to the country for campaigning purposes after publicly announcing that he had given up on his political career.
The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) website reported that Nasheed had heard that Gayoom was returning to the Maldives for local elections campaigning and warned that ”it might cause history to return”, potentially endangering the former leader’s safety.
The comments have been condemned by some in the main opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), which was formerly led by Gayoom, as being spoken out of “fear” over the impact the former president may have on the elections.
Senior figures from the (DRP) last week told Minivan News that Gayoom would be returning to the Maldives to campaign for the party in the upcoming local council elections and had also been invited to stand once again for the presidency. However, Gayoom has not officially commented to the media or made a decision regarding these possible plans.
Nasheed said he was concerned over the implications Gayoom’s return may have on the country and those opposed to the former leader, according to the website.
“‘Sometimes when former presidents leave the country and then return back to the Maldives, a very regrettable fate has occurred,” he said. “I am concerned that something very regrettable is about to happen in Male’.”
Nasheed claimed that some former presidents have had difficulties when they returned to the Maldives after leaving, while others have had their political lives destroyed.
”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,” he said. ”Do not mess with the feelings of the citizens of the Maldives, because when they are shaken, I can’t even curb the pressure.”
The president said he would nonetheless do everything he could for the safety of the former president.
”But still if you are speaking of returning to politics, again, it is more likely to see the history of the Maldives to return,” he said. ”It is not what any of us would wish to see.”’
Meanwhile, DRP MP Ahmed Nihan condemned the remarks of Nasheed in the ”strongest possible terms.”
”His comments were very inappropriate to be said by a president to a former president,” claimed Nihan. ”We know the hidden interpretation of the words he had said.”
Nihan said that both the MDP and Nasheed were afraid, as they understood that they would not stand a chance against Gayoom.
”They understand without a doubt that it is the DRP who will win the local council elections if Gayoom comes out,” he said.
An art performance by renowned local artist Afzal Shafiu Hassan titled ‘Social Crisis’ took place on Thursday afternoon to call attention to the disintegration of social cohesion caused by political upheavals and partisan rivalry.
President Mohamed Nasheed attended the performance held at the Jumhooree park or Republic square.
The performance drew attention to increasing social discord and underscored the need for healthy and peaceful political discourse as well as respect for different opinions.
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