Maldives Referendum, August 20, 2007

In the referendum on Maldives adopting the presidential or the parliamentary system, the known devil--the presidential system won an endorsement from two-thirds of voters.

President declares victory in referendum, calls for national reconciliation, Haveeru Daily, August 19, 2007.

The validity of the referendum was challenged by not just the opposition parties but also some Maldivian citizens as this report shows.

Some views on what makes an election free and fair:
ACE Electoral Knowledge Network, Guiding Principles of Electoral Integrity.
Common Cause, Election Reform Agenda.
Australian Election Commission, What makes an election free and fair?

Postscript: India is going to give the Maldives anti-terror training. On whom will those guns be trained?

Maldives Update (Ameen Faizal) April 23, 2007

From Minivan News:

After Six Days In Jail, Ameen Faisal Sees Lawyer

Six days after he was arrested and taken to Dhoonidhoo prison, Shadow Defence Minister, Ameen Faisal, has been able to see his lawyer. Mariya Ahmed Didi visited the prison at 10:30am on Saturday. She reports that she also visited the prison on Friday, but when she arrived officials knew nothing of her visit and she was refused entry. Mr Faisal’s family had voiced concern that he had been denied access to legal advice, labeling it, “a blatant violation of all international human rights treaties.”

Back in Dhoonidhoo: Ameen Faisal, April 20, 2007

Amin Faisal, Shadow Defence Minister and the elected President of Male' Dhaairaa of the Maldivian Democratic Party has been detained in the notorious Dhoonidhoo Island in solitary confinment. He was taken into custody while attending the funeral of Hussein Salah who was allegedly murdered by the Maldivian police. Mr.Mohamed Nasheed (Anni), the Chairperson of the MDP was detained at the same time. Mr.Nasheed who has since been released claimed that he was severely beaten up by the police and iscurrently receiving treatment in Sri Lanka.

Ill-treatment and torture of detainees by the Maldivian police are commonly reported in the international media and by the Amnesty International. Dhoonidhoo Prison is especially notorious, and Maldivians refer to it as the Dhoonidhoo Hilton.

Amin Faisal is being held without access to legal representation whichis in contravention of all international humanitarian conventions andthe Maldives is signitory to several of them. His lawyer, Ms.Mariya Didi (whose part in the Maldivian democratization movement was recently recognized by the US State Department), was informed April 20, 2007 at 0930 hours that she would be able to visit him. The police arranged for her to visit Dhoonidhoo, but when she arrived there the island police claimed that they knew nothing of the visit. Therefore she was forced to return without having seen Mr.Faisal.

Mr. Faisal is widely known (in the Maldives) to be diabetic and is also on medication for high blood pressure. His family is extremely concerned for his ill-health. His sister told Minivan News: "I am very concerned for his safety. If Anni was beaten up then there is no reason to believe that the police will treat Ameen any better! I am also very concerned for his health as he is a diabetic (Type II). The fact that he is being denied access to his lawyer is a blatant violation of all international human rights treaties," she added.His wife has also not been allowed to visit him.

Amin Faisal has been targeted by the police on several occasions. He was arrested and detained for several weeks in November 2006 following the Addu Boat Crisis reported extensively here on Subcontinent South.

Will Jordan, 21 In Jail Since Salah’s Death, Including Ameen Faisal, April 19, 2007.

Maldives Update: March 20, 2007.

Maldivian society are conscious of the need for reform”, but will that professed acknowledgment translate into judicial reform actually taking place?
Adam Cooper, Will Judicial Reform Happen? MinivanNews, March 14, 2007.
Maldivian NGO Slams Rice Pudding Trial, Minivan News, March 18, 2007.

Maldivians becoming more conscious of Human Rights Violations.
Celebrating human rights in the Maldives, Aliran Monthly, March 16, 2007.

Maldives Update: March 12, 2007.

The habit of debate follows the democratization movement in the Maldives and commentators analyze media reportage in Maldivian newspapers and websites.
Adam Cooper, Lowering The Tone, MinivanNews, March 3, 2007.
The Pitiful State Of Maldivian Web Media, MinivanNews, March 11, 2007.
The critiques voiced in these have been borne out by the responses to these critiques.

With the recent introduction of the multi-party democracy President Gayoom is forced to introduce sweeping democratic reforms.
Ali Rasheed, Viewing Democracy In The Maldives, Minivan News, March 12, 2007.
A. S. I. Moosa asks in the Dhivehi Observer: Can India help democratise Maldives by protecting a 28 year old brutal dictatorship?

Mean while Mariya Ahmed Didi, from the Maldivian opposition, was honoured as an ‘international woman of courage’ by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

Maldives Update: March 5, 2007.

Following a four-day visit to Male by the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges, the United Nations has urged the Maldives to grant judicial independence in order to hasten the transition towards democracy.
Maldives: UN law expert stresses need for ‘guaranteed’ judicial independence, UN News Center, 15 February 2007.

Also See: Eminent jurists begins probe into South Asian counter-terrorism laws. Important in all the states of the region, it has a particular significance in the Maldives where dissidents are occasionally branded terrorists in order to exert the maximum coercion possible.

Will international attention hasten the democratization process? The results have been mixed so far.
Phillip Wellman, International Eyes On Maldives Reforms, Minivan News, March 1, 2007
Finding An Excuse For Reform, Minivan News, March 4, 2007.
Paul Roberts, International Observer To Mediate DRP-MDP Talks, Minivan News, March 4, 2007.
Mariyam Mohamed, No democracy till 2010; What do we do now, just wait? Dhivehi Observer, March 4, 2007.

Meanwhile people express their concerns over a recent surge in police brutality that has occurred in both Male and Addu Atoll.
Phillip Wellman, MDP Holds Demonstration, Minivan News, February 22, 2007.

Sri Lanka Update: February 18, 2007.

The Indian National Security Advisor made a startling statement in Munich a few days ago: LTTE manipulates Indian stock market-Narayanan, Daily Mirror, February 16, 2007.

Responding to the UN report on Children and Armed Conflict, the LTTE has asserted that it functions as a de facto state, providing services to people in its 'jurisdiction'. This is its justification for recruiting anyone over the age of 17 for military service.
LTTE responds to UN report on Children and Armed Conflict, TamilNet, February 14, 2007.

In addition to bonding with the Maldives on issues of common concern, Sri Lanka's ties with Pakistan are likely to be strengthened by the purchase of arms.
Pak eyes larger share of SL's arms market, The Times of India, Feb 18, 2007.

More than two decades of war and insurgency have made weapons easily available as this story shows:
Ayesha Zuhair, Illicit small arms abuse rampant in Hambantota, Daily Mirror, February 17, 2007.

The recent dismissal of three ministers from the Sri Lankan cabinet is having interesting consequences. One minister, Anura Bandaranaike, has already mended fences with the President. The others are building alliances where they can.

Maldives Update: February 12, 2007.

February has been good to President Gayoom. First, the Satyagraha conference. Then, fissures in the Maldivian Democratic Party. Finally, a friendly visit by a neighbouring head of state.

The November 10 rally exposed one faultline within the Maldivian democratic movement, and in recent days, that has led to a split.
Will Jordan, Shareef Leaves MDP, Warns Of “Anarchy & Chaos", Minivan News, February 10, 2007.
MSDP Blames MDP For Hijacking Meeting, Minivan News, February 12, 2007.
Ali Rasheed, Viewing Democracy In The Maldives, Minivan News, February 12, 2007.

Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapakse is on a three-day official tour in Maldives. He is to hold bilateral talks with Maldivian President on wide-ranging subjects including investment, tourism, fisheries, education and cultural affairs.
Lanka- Male ink several bilateral deals, Daily News, February 12, 2007.

Maldivian government is to enact the Press Freedom decree by end of this month. The media and journalist are in a dilemma regarding the benefits the decree has in store for them.

Dhoonidhoo Prison received new inmates, it was reported--those detained during the President's visit to Addu last week. At Least 55 MDP Supporters Facing Trial, Minivan News, February 12, 2007.

The Addu boat detainees are finally being charged.
AG Files Cases Against 4 ‘Namoona’ Detainees, Minivan News, February 8, 2007.

In spite of all this, change may be creeping in: HRCM Condemns Police Violence, Minivan News, February 9, 2007.

Last words:

(1) From Silver Fire's blog: Maldivian Women and Role Models, February 11, 2007.

(2) From Will Jordan's blog: The art of euphemism, February 7, 2007.

Maldives Update: January 13, 2006

• Maldivian Government Condemns Hussein’s execution, Minivan News, January 2, 2007.
• Adhaalath Party criticizes statement released by Foreign Ministry regarding Saddam’s execution, The Evening Weekly, January 9, 2007.

News on the democratization movement:

• Ali Rasheed, The Parliamentary Wing’s Contribution to 10/11, Minivan News, January 10, 2007.
• An older assessment: Mohamed Shinan, MDP winning the war despite losing so many battles? Haveeru Daily, November 11, 2006.

The Maldivian government continues to build ties abroad even as its support base erodes domestically.

• Maldives Defence Minister in India, Sahara Samay, January 8, 2007.
• More Police Sent Abroad for Training, Minivan News, January 9, 2007.

Citizens of other South Asian countries continue to find employment opportunities in the Maldives.

• Study Shows More Expatriates Working in Maldives, Minivan News, January 2, 2007.

Is the Maldives beginning to face the same threats of religious extremism as its neighbours have for a long time?

• Extremist Group Issues Death Threats, Minivan News, January 8, 2007.
  

Maldives Update, December 30, 2006

What has been the consequence of the planned (but cancelled) November 10 demonstration? Minivan News columnists debate:

• Abdulla Sharif, The Fallout Of 10/11: MDP's Gain? Minivan News, December 22, 2006.
• Fathimath Shimla, The Fallout Of 10/11: Government's Gain? Minivan News, December 22, 2006.

Maldives Update, November 15, 2006

Sudha Ramachandran, Gayoom’s misuse of Indian help? Deccan Herald, November 15, 2006.

Maldives Boat Crisis Update, November 9, 2006 (2)

Some of the people in the dhoni are reportedly being held in the island prison of Dhoonidhoo although whether all of them are there is not known. Some have been denied medication; a few were able to have access to their lawyers. They have still not been told why they are being held.

The Head (trustee) of British charity Maldives Aid, Mr. Tim Hardingham, is said to have been taken into police custody last night and there has been no news of him since. Unconfirmed reports say that he is being held at the Male International Airport. His family in the UK has not been told of any details of why he is being held or where.

This follows the deportment of two journalists, one an American working for Minivan News, and the other a British freelancer a few days ago.
RSF ‘Concerned’ Over Expulsion Of Foreign Journalists, Minivan News, November 7, 2006

Maldives Boat Crisis Update, 8-11-06 (2)

The Coast Guard is said to have boarded the boat, handcuffed and arrested people on board the dhoni. There is no word after that.

The Maldivian crisis raises anew a range of very old questions that states and citizens across South Asia need to consider:

1. Do borders delimit and limit our concerns about human rights and democracy?
2. Where is the threshold beyond which polite, international legal constraints about sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs do not apply, for clearly there should be such a threshold in international society?
3. Should considerations about such limits inform the decision to buy and sell arms, boats and other equipment that can have a 'dual-use' capability--against true marauders and against one's citizens?

The crisis also points to how government-controlled media can prove a liability to the government itself because their credibility is eroded over time. The result is that coverage of crisis situations is polarized to the point where everything one side says seems wrong to the other. In the argument over who is telling the truth, it is real people who fall between the cracks.

CRISIS: Maldives Update: November 6, 2006

A dhoni (boat) full of people heading from Addu to Male for the November 10, 2006 MDP demonstration has been stopped.

As they left Addu, they were allowed to embark. However, closer to Male, the dhoni was stopped by the Coast Guard, where were using an Indian-supplied search and rescue vessel. They sprayed hot water on the passengers in the dhoni and threatened to shoot them if they continued on. The passengers include women and children. The dhoni has taken shelter in a lagoon and has been anchored there since last night, with no food or water being allowed. At this moment the boat is still in the lagoon.

Coast Guard Threatens to Sink Boat, Minivan News, November 7, 2006.
The Dhivehi Observer has also just uploaded a report of this.

Will the political crisis generate a humanitarian crisis in this and other instances? It looks very likely. The time for ignoring events in the Maldives is long past.

PS: The comments section of this post debates the veracity of this report. In so doing, it illustrates the range of views in the Maldives today.

Subcontinent South, September-October 2006, Part B

The second part of the 'catch-up' issue of Subcontinent South (Volume I, Number 39) focuses on the Maldives.

Maldives: September-October 2006.