The Maldives Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators (MATATO) is taking part in India&#39;s Bharat International Tourism Bazaar (BITB), along with a&nbsp;number of resorts, travel agents and airlines of the Maldives.&nbsp;

&quot;India is one of the fastest growing and largest travel markets in the world, and MATATO intends to have a&nbsp;strong presence in India&rsquo;s leading travel shows with our members and industry partners,&quot; MATATO said in a statement.

Bharat International Tourism Bazaar (BITB) is the first edition of ITB India hosting in alliance with ITB Berlin.

The three-day fair from 4th October to 6th October in the&nbsp;Indian capital of New Delhi expects over 500 exhibitors to meet.

India is the fastest progressive market in the Maldives tourism industry, with an increase of 21.5 per cent compare to 2015, by the end of July 2016.

Maldives has been increasing promotion events in India with roadshows in several major cities and also adding more flights to India.&nbsp;

(WION)

The three-day exhibition from 4th October to 6th October in the?Indian capital of New Delhi expects over 500 exhibitors to meet

The Maldives Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators (MATATO) is taking part in India's Bharat International Tourism Bazaar (BITB), along with a number of resorts, travel agents and airlines of the Maldives. "India is one of the fastest growing and largest travel markets in the world, and MATATO intends to have a strong presence in India’s leading travel shows with our members and industry partners," MATATO said in a statement. Bharat International Tourism Bazaar (BITB) is the first edition of ITB India hosting in alliance with ITB Berlin. The three-day fair from 4th October to 6th October in the Indian capital of New Delhi expects over 500 exhibitors to meet. India is the fastest progressive market in the Maldives tourism industry, with an increase of 21.5 per cent compare to 2015, by the end of July 2016. Maldives has been increasing promotion events in India with roadshows in several major cities and also adding more flights to India. (WION)

Maldives takes part in India's largest tourism fair

The Maldives National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) and Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) held talks aimed at&nbsp;stopping the financing&nbsp;of terrorism.

The discussion was held at the Ministry of Defence and National Security, and was headed by the Minister of Defence, &nbsp;Adam Shareef Umar, and the Governor of MMA, Dr&nbsp;Azeema Adam.

The discussion was centered on possible collaborative measures that could be taken against financing&nbsp;terrorism, as well as money laundering.

The Maldives established the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) in order to combat the growing threat of radicalisation and extremism in the country.

Citing the&nbsp;Indian Intelligence Bureau, Media Report says that&nbsp;the future threat of Islamic State (IS)&nbsp;in&nbsp;South Asia&nbsp;could be from the Maldives, rather than from Bangladesh.

This intelligence report said, in addition to the people who have already joined to the terrorist group, IS&nbsp;may have as many as 500 sympathisers in the Maldives.

There are conflicting accounts of the IS presence in Bangladesh. Prime Minister Sheik Hasina has denied that IS has any presence in the country at all, and attributed the rash of high-profile killings that plagued the country this summer to a local&nbsp;offshoot&nbsp;of&nbsp;al-Qaeda.

But groups like Stratfor, a global intelligence company based in Austin, Texas, have issued reports stating&nbsp;that IS is focusing on expanding in Bangladesh.

(WION)

The discussions aimed at uprooting terrorism come as reports indicate that Islamic State may be expanding in the Maldives

The Maldives National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) and Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) held talks aimed at stopping the financing of terrorism. The discussion was held at the Ministry of Defence and National Security, and was headed by the Minister of Defence, Adam Shareef Umar, and the Governor of MMA, Dr Azeema Adam. The discussion was centered on possible collaborative measures that could be taken against financing terrorism, as well as money laundering. The Maldives established the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) in order to combat the growing threat of radicalisation and extremism in the country. Citing the Indian Intelligence Bureau, Media Report says that the future threat of Islamic State (IS) in South Asia could be from the Maldives, rather than from Bangladesh. This intelligence report said, in addition to the people who have already joined to the terrorist group, IS may have as many as 500 sympathisers in the Maldives. There are conflicting accounts of the IS presence in Bangladesh. Prime Minister Sheik Hasina has denied that IS has any presence in the country at all, and attributed the rash of high-profile killings that plagued the country this summer to a local offshoot of al-Qaeda. But groups like Stratfor, a global intelligence company based in Austin, Texas, have issued reports stating that IS is focusing on expanding in Bangladesh. (WION)

Maldives officials hold talks to stop terrorism funding

The Government of Maldives has urged on Friday the member states of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to create an environment conducive for holding the 19th SAARC Summit.

&quot;The Maldives encouraged States to provide a valuable opportunity for the leaders to discuss critical issues facing the region and expressed hope that the required measures will be taken by relevant member states to convene the Summit at an early date.&quot; stated in a statement by Maldivian government.&nbsp;

The appeal by the tropical nation&nbsp;follows the decisions by some of the SAARC member states who have expressed their inability to attend the Summit scheduled for November due to terrorism, and threats to regional and international peace.&nbsp;

&quot;The Maldives condemns international terrorism, especially those originating from outside&quot;&nbsp;

India was the first country to pull out of SAARC summit followed by Bangladesh,&nbsp;Bhutan&nbsp;and Afghanistan. On Friday, Sri Lanka became the 5th country to pull out of the regional summit leaving the current SAARC chair Nepal, and the host country Pakistan and the Maldives.&nbsp;

While both Maldives and Nepal has urged the South Asian nations to create a conducive environment for the&nbsp;summit, Pakistan on Friday postponed the SAARC summit that was to be held in Islamabad next month.&nbsp;

SAARC summit can be convened only with the participation of heads of state or governments of all of its member states.&nbsp;

The 19th SAARC summit was scheduled to be held from 9th to 10th November 2016 in Islamabad, Pakistan.

SAARC was founded in 1985 and it has eight member states - Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The last summit was held in Kathmandu in 2014. In 2011, the Maldives hosted the 17th SAARC summit.

(WION)

The tropical nation?appealed the SAARC member states to create an environment conducive for holding the summit

The Government of Maldives has urged on Friday the member states of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to create an environment conducive for holding the 19th SAARC Summit. "The Maldives encouraged States to provide a valuable opportunity for the leaders to discuss critical issues facing the region and expressed hope that the required measures will be taken by relevant member states to convene the Summit at an early date." stated in a statement by Maldivian government. The appeal by the tropical nation follows the decisions by some of the SAARC member states who have expressed their inability to attend the Summit scheduled for November due to terrorism, and threats to regional and international peace. "The Maldives condemns international terrorism, especially those originating from outside" India was the first country to pull out of SAARC summit followed by Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan. On Friday, Sri Lanka became the 5th country to pull out of the regional summit leaving the current SAARC chair Nepal, and the host country Pakistan and the Maldives. While both Maldives and Nepal has urged the South Asian nations to create a conducive environment for the summit, Pakistan on Friday postponed the SAARC summit that was to be held in Islamabad next month. SAARC summit can be convened only with the participation of heads of state or governments of all of its member states. The 19th SAARC summit was scheduled to be held from 9th to 10th November 2016 in Islamabad, Pakistan. SAARC was founded in 1985 and it has eight member states - Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The last summit was held in Kathmandu in 2014. In 2011, the Maldives hosted the 17th SAARC summit. (WION)

Maldives urges for convening of SAARC summit at early date

Fifteen-year-old Mohamed Raishan Ahmed of Maldives dreams of including children with disabilities into the mainstream education system.

Raishan has recently been nominated for International Children&#39;s Peace Prize 2016, awarded by KidsRights - a global non-governmental organisation fighting for children&#39;s rights globally.

He was nominated by the Maldives Association of Physical Disables (MAPD) working on issues of disability, bullying and education.

The prize is awarded annually to a child who fights for children&rsquo;s rights.

Raishan has been diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy type II - the nerve cells in his spinal cord are not able to control his muscles.

&quot;I am proud that I&#39;m the only Maldivian to qualify for the peace prize. I will continue to make Maldives proud too,&quot; he told WION.&nbsp;

Speaking of children with disabilities, Raishan says, &quot;You can. You will. Just believe in yourself to realise your true potential. Know what you are and you can be anything you want to be,&quot; he says. 
&nbsp; 
Raishan&#39;s official campaign for the peace prize was launched in a special assembly held in his school - Kalaafaanu school in the capital city of Male.

Ahmed Mohamed, chairperson of Maldives Association of Physical Disables (MAPD) told WION that this is the first time for a Maldivian child to be nominated for this award.&nbsp;

KidsRights has received 120 nominees from 49 countries across the world for this year&rsquo;s children&#39;s peace prize.

The award has 25 nominees from other South Asian countries - four from Afghanistan, four from Bangladesh, 11 from India and six from Pakistan.

KidsRights will announce three finalists on November 15 and the International Children&#39;s Peace Prize 2016 will be awarded on December 2 at an award ceremony to be held in Netherlands.

Raishan, diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy type II, works to create education awareness among children with disabilities

Fifteen-year-old Mohamed Raishan Ahmed of Maldives dreams of including children with disabilities into the mainstream education system. Raishan has recently been nominated for International Children's Peace Prize 2016, awarded by KidsRights - a global non-governmental organisation fighting for children's rights globally. He was nominated by the Maldives Association of Physical Disables (MAPD) working on issues of disability, bullying and education. The prize is awarded annually to a child who fights for children’s rights. Raishan has been diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy type II - the nerve cells in his spinal cord are not able to control his muscles. "I am proud that I'm the only Maldivian to qualify for the peace prize. I will continue to make Maldives proud too," he told WION. Speaking of children with disabilities, Raishan says, "You can. You will. Just believe in yourself to realise your true potential. Know what you are and you can be anything you want to be," he says. Raishan's official campaign for the peace prize was launched in a special assembly held in his school - Kalaafaanu school in the capital city of Male. Ahmed Mohamed, chairperson of Maldives Association of Physical Disables (MAPD) told WION that this is the first time for a Maldivian child to be nominated for this award. KidsRights has received 120 nominees from 49 countries across the world for this year’s children's peace prize. The award has 25 nominees from other South Asian countries - four from Afghanistan, four from Bangladesh, 11 from India and six from Pakistan. KidsRights will announce three finalists on November 15 and the International Children's Peace Prize 2016 will be awarded on December 2 at an award ceremony to be held in Netherlands.

Maldives: Disabled teenager nominated for International Children's Peace Prize

In his address on the occasion of World Tourism Day, Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom today asserted that one of the highest priority of his administration is to expand and diversify the tourism industry.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

While four new resorts have already started operations in the country&nbsp;so far this year, nine more resorts are scheduled for completion, the President stressed.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&quot;A collaborative push by all Maldivians is&nbsp;crucial for the sustainable development of the country&#39;s tourism,&quot; he added.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Yameen encouraged tourism sector partners to further contribute to the development of the nation&rsquo;s transportation infrastructure in order to facilitate industry growth.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The President also&nbsp;highlighted that while the Maldivian tourism sector is thriving, his&nbsp;administration endevours&nbsp;to expand and develop Ibrahim Nasir International Airport to cater to the increasing demand of the industry would further open the gates towards catering to 7.5 million visitors per year.

&nbsp;

World Tourism Day is celebrated annually across the globe on September 27. This year&#39;s theme for World Tourism Day is &#39;Tourism for all &ndash; Promoting Universal Accessibility&#39;,&nbsp;which Maldivian President says is inline with his administration&#39;s outlook for country&#39;s tourism industry.

&nbsp;

(WION)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Maldives President today said that diversifying the tourism sector is his administration's top priority

In his address on the occasion of World Tourism Day, Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom today asserted that one of the highest priority of his administration is to expand and diversify the tourism industry. While four new resorts have already started operations in the country so far this year, nine more resorts are scheduled for completion, the President stressed. "A collaborative push by all Maldivians is crucial for the sustainable development of the country's tourism," he added. Yameen encouraged tourism sector partners to further contribute to the development of the nation’s transportation infrastructure in order to facilitate industry growth. The President also highlighted that while the Maldivian tourism sector is thriving, his administration endevours to expand and develop Ibrahim Nasir International Airport to cater to the increasing demand of the industry would further open the gates towards catering to 7.5 million visitors per year. World Tourism Day is celebrated annually across the globe on September 27. This year's theme for World Tourism Day is 'Tourism for all – Promoting Universal Accessibility', which Maldivian President says is inline with his administration's outlook for country's tourism industry. (WION)

World Tourism Day: Maldives set to open nine more resorts this year

Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group has set Maldives a new deadline &mdash; March 2017 &mdash; to improve its dismal human rights record and address political problems that have wracked the island nation. 
 
Failure to achieve substantial progress in key areas would result in the archipelago getting expelled from the Councils of the Commonwealth.&nbsp; 
 
This is the third time the action group has extended the deadline for Maldives to make progress on six fronts: progress in political dialogue between the ruling party and the opposition, release of political prisoners, put an end to the government using the country&rsquo;s anti-terrorism act to jail political opponents and dissidents, a separation of powers and an independent judiciary, and freedom and space for civil society. 
 
The previous deadlines were in March and September. 
 
The development took place during the CMAG meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in New York on Friday.&nbsp; 
 
The CMAG, however, has put Maldives on its formal agenda for the third time in the past decade. 
 
Being placed on the formal agenda is a step towards suspension or expulsion from the multilateral body. 
 
The Commonwealth body of foreign ministers from nine member countries were addressed by Maldivian minister of foreign affairs Mohamed Asim and Attorney General Mohamed Anil. 
 
Ministers who attended the meeting welcomed the United Nations&rsquo; efforts to facilitate political dialogue in the troubled archipelago, but regretted failure in initiation of a substantive dialogue. 
&nbsp; 
CMAG stressed on the need to have a conducive environment for a credible presidential election in 2018.&nbsp; 
 
The Commonwealth action group also called on both the government and opposition to engage in a political dialogue without preconditions. &nbsp; 
 
CMAG has taken a stern view of the ongoing political problems in Maldives. 
 
A scathing report submitted by Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative earlier this month further damaged the island nation&rsquo;s reputation in global fora.&nbsp; 
 
The report urged CMAG to suspend Maldives from the Councils of the Commonwealth, exclude the country from all Commonwealth inter-government meetings and events and halt all Commonwealth technical assistance, other than the mandate of the Secretary General&rsquo;s Special Envoy. 
 
Maldives, a nation of about 340,000 Muslims, has been in a turmoil ever since the country&#39;s first democratically elected president Mohamed Nasheed resigned in 2012 following a political and military mutiny. Nasheed has maintained that he was toppled by a coup plotted by Abdulla Yameen.&nbsp; 
 
Nasheed was later handed a 13-year prison sentence under the strong anti-terrorism law for arresting Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed. He, however, sought political asylum in the United Kingdom when he went there for a medical treatment.&nbsp; 
 
Rights bodies and multilateral committees have blamed Yameen for getting Nasheed and prominent political figures were arrested. 
 
(WION)&nbsp;

This is the third time the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group has extended the deadline for the island nation to get its house in order

Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group has set Maldives a new deadline — March 2017 — to improve its dismal human rights record and address political problems that have wracked the island nation. Failure to achieve substantial progress in key areas would result in the archipelago getting expelled from the Councils of the Commonwealth. This is the third time the action group has extended the deadline for Maldives to make progress on six fronts: progress in political dialogue between the ruling party and the opposition, release of political prisoners, put an end to the government using the country’s anti-terrorism act to jail political opponents and dissidents, a separation of powers and an independent judiciary, and freedom and space for civil society. The previous deadlines were in March and September. The development took place during the CMAG meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in New York on Friday. The CMAG, however, has put Maldives on its formal agenda for the third time in the past decade. Being placed on the formal agenda is a step towards suspension or expulsion from the multilateral body. The Commonwealth body of foreign ministers from nine member countries were addressed by Maldivian minister of foreign affairs Mohamed Asim and Attorney General Mohamed Anil. Ministers who attended the meeting welcomed the United Nations’ efforts to facilitate political dialogue in the troubled archipelago, but regretted failure in initiation of a substantive dialogue. CMAG stressed on the need to have a conducive environment for a credible presidential election in 2018. The Commonwealth action group also called on both the government and opposition to engage in a political dialogue without preconditions. CMAG has taken a stern view of the ongoing political problems in Maldives. A scathing report submitted by Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative earlier this month further damaged the island nation’s reputation in global fora. The report urged CMAG to suspend Maldives from the Councils of the Commonwealth, exclude the country from all Commonwealth inter-government meetings and events and halt all Commonwealth technical assistance, other than the mandate of the Secretary General’s Special Envoy. Maldives, a nation of about 340,000 Muslims, has been in a turmoil ever since the country's first democratically elected president Mohamed Nasheed resigned in 2012 following a political and military mutiny. Nasheed has maintained that he was toppled by a coup plotted by Abdulla Yameen. Nasheed was later handed a 13-year prison sentence under the strong anti-terrorism law for arresting Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed. He, however, sought political asylum in the United Kingdom when he went there for a medical treatment. Rights bodies and multilateral committees have blamed Yameen for getting Nasheed and prominent political figures were arrested. (WION)

Maldives told to improve its poor rights record by March 2017

While Maldives continues to be marred by the prevailing domestic political crisis, the country got its first-ever private bank today. 
 
President Abdulla Yameen inaugurated the Commercial Bank of Maldives (CBM) with two ATMs and a cash deposit machine in a ceremony in the capital city, Male. 
 
The bank has opened with an initial capital of MVR150 million ($9.75 million). 
 
The newly-inaugurated bank is a joint venture between Sri Lanka&#39;s Bank of Ceylon and a private firm, Tree Top Investment Pvt Ltd, with a corresponding 55:45 stakeholding. 
 
Local business tycoon Champa Hussain Afeef, who is also the the chairman of CBM, is a shareholder in the private firm.&nbsp; 
 
CBM will provide Visa and MasterCard services, mobile banking services, housing and business loans. Maldives now has eight banks including CBM.&nbsp; 
 
Meanwhile, Moody&#39;s investors service report on the Government of Maldives&#39; B2 issuer rating has predicted a stable outlook saying that the country&rsquo;s tourism sector has helped it drive robust growth rates along with strong debt affordability metrics.&nbsp; 
 
A narrowly-diversified economy, high debt burden and political risks represent credit constraints, the report points out. 
 
(WION)

The Commercial Bank of Maldives (CBM) opened today with an initial capital of MVR150 million ($9.75 million)

While Maldives continues to be marred by the prevailing domestic political crisis, the country got its first-ever private bank today. President Abdulla Yameen inaugurated the Commercial Bank of Maldives (CBM) with two ATMs and a cash deposit machine in a ceremony in the capital city, Male. The bank has opened with an initial capital of MVR150 million ($9.75 million). The newly-inaugurated bank is a joint venture between Sri Lanka's Bank of Ceylon and a private firm, Tree Top Investment Pvt Ltd, with a corresponding 55:45 stakeholding. Local business tycoon Champa Hussain Afeef, who is also the the chairman of CBM, is a shareholder in the private firm. CBM will provide Visa and MasterCard services, mobile banking services, housing and business loans. Maldives now has eight banks including CBM. Meanwhile, Moody's investors service report on the Government of Maldives' B2 issuer rating has predicted a stable outlook saying that the country’s tourism sector has helped it drive robust growth rates along with strong debt affordability metrics. A narrowly-diversified economy, high debt burden and political risks represent credit constraints, the report points out. (WION)

Maldives gets its first private bank

Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) is to meet on the sidelines of the 71st session of UN General Assembly in New York on Friday to discuss human rights standards and political situation in the Maldives.&nbsp; 
 
The CMAG, a body of foreign ministers from nine member countries, is set to review Maldives&#39; progress on a six-point reform agenda - progress in political dialogue between the ruling party and the opposition, release of political prisoners, put an end to the government using the country&rsquo;s anti-terrorism act to jail political opponents and dissidents, a separation of powers and an independent judiciary, and freedom and space for civil society - it had proposed earlier this year. 
 
To avoid being put on the CMAG formal agenda, which is a step towards suspension or expulsion from the multilateral body, Maldives needed to take certain steps by September. 
 
On September 18, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) submitted a report to CMAG after a visit to Maldives earlier this month.&nbsp; 
 
The review said the Maldives government had failed to make progress on priority areas identified by the Commonwealth action group in February.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;It is clear that the government is not engaging sincerely with the Commonwealth or the United Nations to implement reforms that will strengthen democratic institutions and enable realization of fundamental rights&quot; the report stated.&nbsp; 
 
CHRI has urged CMAG to suspend Maldives from the Councils of the Commonwealth, exclude the country from all Commonwealth inter-government meetings and events and halt all Commonwealth technical assistance, other than the mandate of the Secretary General&rsquo;s Special Envoy. 
 
CMAG had done a similar review in April and had expressed concern regarding the lack of progress.&nbsp; 
 
But the action group had decided not to take action against Maldives. Instead, it gave the island nation time till September to make &quot;clear, measurable progress&quot; in its polity and human rights standards.&nbsp; 
 
India on the horns of a dilemma 
 
India has kept quiet on Maldives despite the continuing political instability in the country.&nbsp; 
 
During the CMAG extraordinary meeting held in February, India along with Pakistan spoke in defence of the Maldives. Their backing helped the country avoid facing action.&nbsp; 
 
President of the Maldives Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom had thanked India and Pakistan for helping them avoid action.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;There were some who attacked us. But we were saved because of the work done by both of our neighbouring powers,&rdquo; he said a few days after the CMAG meeting.&nbsp; 
 
During the visit to India few days ahead of the CMAG meeting in April, in a joint press statement with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Yameen said the main reason for his visit was to express gratitude for India&rsquo;s role in helping the Maldives avoid actions by CMAG. &nbsp; 
 
&quot;Mr Prime Minister, the reason I visited India today is to express my appreciation for the very steadfast leadership India has shown in protecting Maldives in the CMAG deliberations,&quot; he had said.&nbsp; 
 
Prime Minister Narendra Modi pointed at India&#39;s role as &quot;the net security provider&quot; in the Indian Ocean.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The Maldives is among India&rsquo;s closest partners&hellip; The stability and security of the Maldives are in the interest of India&quot; he said. 
 
While India has played a vital role in preventing CMAG actions against Maldives till now, Maldives former president Mohamed Nasheed has urged the CMAG to base its decision on facts rather than political considerations of the stakeholder states. &nbsp; 
 
On September 23, a decision will be made about putting Maldives on the CMAG formal agenda.&nbsp; 
 
India, the largest democratic nation in the region, has a choice to make: whether to support Maldives or base their decision on the report made by the action group.&nbsp; 
 
(WION)

An NGO report says the island nation has failed to improve on priority areas despite the deadline stretched to September

Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) is to meet on the sidelines of the 71st session of UN General Assembly in New York on Friday to discuss human rights standards and political situation in the Maldives. The CMAG, a body of foreign ministers from nine member countries, is set to review Maldives' progress on a six-point reform agenda - progress in political dialogue between the ruling party and the opposition, release of political prisoners, put an end to the government using the country’s anti-terrorism act to jail political opponents and dissidents, a separation of powers and an independent judiciary, and freedom and space for civil society - it had proposed earlier this year. To avoid being put on the CMAG formal agenda, which is a step towards suspension or expulsion from the multilateral body, Maldives needed to take certain steps by September. On September 18, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) submitted a report to CMAG after a visit to Maldives earlier this month. The review said the Maldives government had failed to make progress on priority areas identified by the Commonwealth action group in February. "It is clear that the government is not engaging sincerely with the Commonwealth or the United Nations to implement reforms that will strengthen democratic institutions and enable realization of fundamental rights" the report stated. CHRI has urged CMAG to suspend Maldives from the Councils of the Commonwealth, exclude the country from all Commonwealth inter-government meetings and events and halt all Commonwealth technical assistance, other than the mandate of the Secretary General’s Special Envoy. CMAG had done a similar review in April and had expressed concern regarding the lack of progress. But the action group had decided not to take action against Maldives. Instead, it gave the island nation time till September to make "clear, measurable progress" in its polity and human rights standards. India on the horns of a dilemma India has kept quiet on Maldives despite the continuing political instability in the country. During the CMAG extraordinary meeting held in February, India along with Pakistan spoke in defence of the Maldives. Their backing helped the country avoid facing action. President of the Maldives Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom had thanked India and Pakistan for helping them avoid action. "There were some who attacked us. But we were saved because of the work done by both of our neighbouring powers,” he said a few days after the CMAG meeting. During the visit to India few days ahead of the CMAG meeting in April, in a joint press statement with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Yameen said the main reason for his visit was to express gratitude for India’s role in helping the Maldives avoid actions by CMAG. "Mr Prime Minister, the reason I visited India today is to express my appreciation for the very steadfast leadership India has shown in protecting Maldives in the CMAG deliberations," he had said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi pointed at India's role as "the net security provider" in the Indian Ocean. "The Maldives is among India’s closest partners… The stability and security of the Maldives are in the interest of India" he said. While India has played a vital role in preventing CMAG actions against Maldives till now, Maldives former president Mohamed Nasheed has urged the CMAG to base its decision on facts rather than political considerations of the stakeholder states. On September 23, a decision will be made about putting Maldives on the CMAG formal agenda. India, the largest democratic nation in the region, has a choice to make: whether to support Maldives or base their decision on the report made by the action group. (WION)

Dismal human rights record: Maldives faces Commonwealth ouster

&quot;I knew Maldivians will be receiving us with a warm welcome, But it was beyond expectation, It was just unbelievable,&quot; said Ibrahim Manikufaanu, the leader of a group of 26 people from the India&rsquo;s Minicoy Island, locally known as Maliku, in the union territory of Lakshadweep. The island is just off India&rsquo;s southern state of Kerala. 
 
&quot;It felt like I was on my own island, surely we do belong to one bloodline,&quot; he told WION. 
 
India&rsquo;s Maliku is like a long lost cousin of Maldives, and actually was officially a part of Maldives centuries ago. 
 
This was the first time in decades a group of Maliku people visited Maldives. The trip was arranged by a non governmental organisation (NGO) called Ihavandhoo Masveringde Gulhun (IMAGU) from Ihavandhoo, an island of a northern atoll in Maldives. The trip celebrated the NGO&rsquo;s 20th anniversary. 
 
IMAGU&rsquo;s president Adnaan Mohamed told WION that they decided to invite the people of Maliku because it&rsquo;s a dream for Maldivians to meet Malikuns.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;People from other Atolls and Islands came to Ihavandhoo just to meet these people from Maliku,&quot; he said. 
 
The Malikuns were in Maldives for a week to celebrate Eid Al Adha with Maldivians. The special visitors made the holidays extra festive. 
 
Historic ties and separation&nbsp; 
 
Minicoy is an Indian island, but is situated closer to Maldives than to any part of India. Minicoy was the northernmost atoll of the kingdom of Maldives before the mid 16th century. Since then, Maliku has fallen under Indian administrations.&nbsp; 
 
India held a plebiscite in Minicoy in 1956 to determine whether or not its people wished to join the Indian Union. The majority decided to join, and Maliku was incorporated into the Union Territory of Laccadive, renamed Lakshadweep in 1973.&nbsp; 
 
A 1970 Pakistan Times article alleged that Maldivian government officials harboured great resentment against India for not returning Minicoy Island, &quot;taken over&quot; long ago by an Indian Maharaja. Muslim inhabitants of the island were clamouring to join Maldives. 
 
Even the recent media reports says Islamabad supports Minicoy Island as being part of the Maldives, and rejected India&rsquo;s territorial claim. But both India and the Maldives seems to ignore these media reports from Pakistan press.&nbsp; 
 
In December 1976, India and Maldives signed a maritime boundary treaty under, which Minicoy was placed on the Indian side of the boundary. 
 
However, in a public speech on Maldivian independence day, 1982, the Minister of Atolls Abdulla Hameed, also the half-brother of President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, claimed that Minicoy was a part of Maldives. 
 
This ambiguous statement was interpreted as an official claim over the island, and caused a minor diplomatic crisis between India and Maldives. 
 
President Gayoom had to clarify that Maldives did not intend to make a political claim over the island, and Hameed&#39;s speech only meant to highlight the linguistic, cultural, and religious ties between Maldives and Minicoy.&nbsp; 
 
In 2015, at the official function celebrating the 50th anniversary of Maldives&rsquo; independence, President Yamin Abdul Gayoom described losing Maliku as one of the dark experiences in Maldives&rsquo; history. 
 
&quot;The long history of the Maldives shows that Maliku or Minicoy was once part of the Maldives,&quot; he said. Whereas roughly the same comment ignited a diplomatic row in the 80s, this time absolutely nothing happened. 
 
Ethnographic Similarities 
 
The culture of Minicoy Island is very different from the other Indian islands of Lakshadweep. Even today, it is believed that the language, religion, ethnicity and culture of Maliku people closely resembles that of Maldives.&nbsp; 
 
Ashraf Ali, the president of the Dhivehi Bahuge Academy of Maldives (an institution that protects, promotes and develops Dhivehi language), told WION that the Maldivian people are proud that their language and way of life is connected to a culturally rich country like India. 
 
&quot;The language they use, Mahal bas, is just a dialect of Dhivehi Bas (a Maldivian language). Their culture, eating habits, language are very similar to Maldivians,&quot; he said. 
 
Ali said Indian institutions devoted to preserving Mahal Bas and Maldives provide language trainings to Manicoys. 
 
IMAGU President Mohamed said his Maldivian hosts and their Indian guests have noticed the similarities between the two during the recent trip.&nbsp;&quot;Maldivians have this bond with the people of Maliku. We did not feel like they are from some other country. Other than Maldivians they are the only people who have Maldivian language as their mother tongue.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Ibrahim Manikufaanu, who is devoted to maintaining the culture, traditions and language of Minicoy Island, said Minicoy will always resemble Maldives. &quot;Maldivian customs and traditions are still very visible in Maliku. We are from one origin, one bloodline&quot; he said. 
 
Connectivity 
 
Though the nearest island to India&rsquo;s Minicoy is the Maldivian island of Thuraanuku, the Indian government has forbidden the direct travel between the two islands since 1956, despite their geographic proximity and ethnographic similarities. A special permit from the Indian government is still needed to enter Minicoy.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;It was not easy to travel between Maliku and Maldives. We were not allowed to travel directly. We rarely meet Maldivians,&quot; Manikufaanu said. 
Difficulty visiting Maldives did not stop Minicoys from giving up Maldivian customs and traditions. Maldivian media connected Minicoys to Maldives ever since they started getting the radio signal of the Voice of Maldives, the Maldives&rsquo; state broadcaster&rsquo;s station. Manikufaanu says that over the years, Maldivian media played a huge role in Minicoy to keep Maldives alive in their heart.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Now Maliku people have access to public service broadcaster, as well as some private broadcasters, and they read the online news websites of Maldives&quot; he said.&nbsp; 
 
To make it easier to travel between Maliku and Maldives, two months ago a travel agency called Under Water Travel and Tours introduced a tour package which connects the two islands. &quot;We need a passport copy of the passenger, we get the permits from the authorities. We arrange everything,&quot; said director of Under Water Travel and Tours, Mohamed Imthiyaaz, to WION.&nbsp; 
 
Before 1956, people of Minicoy and people from Maldives&rsquo; northern atolls used to travel often across the islands. Even today, both 
Maldivians and Malikun wish to travel directly between the islands. But since 1956, the journey of few hours has become long; it takes 12 hours to reach Cochin city of the Indian state of Kerela in a ferry, and it&rsquo;s around a two hour flight to reach Ibrahim Nasir International Airport of Maldives &mdash;&nbsp;from there it will take more hours to reach the northern atolls, depending on the travel arrangements. &nbsp; 
 
However Imthiyaaz said they are trying to make direct travel possible from Maldives to Maliku in a near future. 
 
&quot;We are negotiating with both Maldivian and Indian government. We are hoping this happens soon,&quot; he said.&nbsp; 
 
This is surely long-awaited good news for both Maldivians and Minocoys. 
Hopefully soon the cultural cousins won&rsquo;t need to wait for Eid to be together again. &nbsp; 
 
(WION)

India?s Maliku is like a long lost cousin of Maldives and actually was officially a part of Maldives centuries ago

"I knew Maldivians will be receiving us with a warm welcome, But it was beyond expectation, It was just unbelievable," said Ibrahim Manikufaanu, the leader of a group of 26 people from the India’s Minicoy Island, locally known as Maliku, in the union territory of Lakshadweep. The island is just off India’s southern state of Kerala. "It felt like I was on my own island, surely we do belong to one bloodline," he told WION. India’s Maliku is like a long lost cousin of Maldives, and actually was officially a part of Maldives centuries ago. This was the first time in decades a group of Maliku people visited Maldives. The trip was arranged by a non governmental organisation (NGO) called Ihavandhoo Masveringde Gulhun (IMAGU) from Ihavandhoo, an island of a northern atoll in Maldives. The trip celebrated the NGO’s 20th anniversary. IMAGU’s president Adnaan Mohamed told WION that they decided to invite the people of Maliku because it’s a dream for Maldivians to meet Malikuns. "People from other Atolls and Islands came to Ihavandhoo just to meet these people from Maliku," he said. The Malikuns were in Maldives for a week to celebrate Eid Al Adha with Maldivians. The special visitors made the holidays extra festive. Historic ties and separation Minicoy is an Indian island, but is situated closer to Maldives than to any part of India. Minicoy was the northernmost atoll of the kingdom of Maldives before the mid 16th century. Since then, Maliku has fallen under Indian administrations. India held a plebiscite in Minicoy in 1956 to determine whether or not its people wished to join the Indian Union. The majority decided to join, and Maliku was incorporated into the Union Territory of Laccadive, renamed Lakshadweep in 1973. A 1970 Pakistan Times article alleged that Maldivian government officials harboured great resentment against India for not returning Minicoy Island, "taken over" long ago by an Indian Maharaja. Muslim inhabitants of the island were clamouring to join Maldives. Even the recent media reports says Islamabad supports Minicoy Island as being part of the Maldives, and rejected India’s territorial claim. But both India and the Maldives seems to ignore these media reports from Pakistan press. In December 1976, India and Maldives signed a maritime boundary treaty under, which Minicoy was placed on the Indian side of the boundary. However, in a public speech on Maldivian independence day, 1982, the Minister of Atolls Abdulla Hameed, also the half-brother of President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, claimed that Minicoy was a part of Maldives. This ambiguous statement was interpreted as an official claim over the island, and caused a minor diplomatic crisis between India and Maldives. President Gayoom had to clarify that Maldives did not intend to make a political claim over the island, and Hameed's speech only meant to highlight the linguistic, cultural, and religious ties between Maldives and Minicoy. In 2015, at the official function celebrating the 50th anniversary of Maldives’ independence, President Yamin Abdul Gayoom described losing Maliku as one of the dark experiences in Maldives’ history. "The long history of the Maldives shows that Maliku or Minicoy was once part of the Maldives," he said. Whereas roughly the same comment ignited a diplomatic row in the 80s, this time absolutely nothing happened. Ethnographic Similarities The culture of Minicoy Island is very different from the other Indian islands of Lakshadweep. Even today, it is believed that the language, religion, ethnicity and culture of Maliku people closely resembles that of Maldives. Ashraf Ali, the president of the Dhivehi Bahuge Academy of Maldives (an institution that protects, promotes and develops Dhivehi language), told WION that the Maldivian people are proud that their language and way of life is connected to a culturally rich country like India. "The language they use, Mahal bas, is just a dialect of Dhivehi Bas (a Maldivian language). Their culture, eating habits, language are very similar to Maldivians," he said. Ali said Indian institutions devoted to preserving Mahal Bas and Maldives provide language trainings to Manicoys. IMAGU President Mohamed said his Maldivian hosts and their Indian guests have noticed the similarities between the two during the recent trip. "Maldivians have this bond with the people of Maliku. We did not feel like they are from some other country. Other than Maldivians they are the only people who have Maldivian language as their mother tongue." Ibrahim Manikufaanu, who is devoted to maintaining the culture, traditions and language of Minicoy Island, said Minicoy will always resemble Maldives. "Maldivian customs and traditions are still very visible in Maliku. We are from one origin, one bloodline" he said. Connectivity Though the nearest island to India’s Minicoy is the Maldivian island of Thuraanuku, the Indian government has forbidden the direct travel between the two islands since 1956, despite their geographic proximity and ethnographic similarities. A special permit from the Indian government is still needed to enter Minicoy. "It was not easy to travel between Maliku and Maldives. We were not allowed to travel directly. We rarely meet Maldivians," Manikufaanu said. Difficulty visiting Maldives did not stop Minicoys from giving up Maldivian customs and traditions. Maldivian media connected Minicoys to Maldives ever since they started getting the radio signal of the Voice of Maldives, the Maldives’ state broadcaster’s station. Manikufaanu says that over the years, Maldivian media played a huge role in Minicoy to keep Maldives alive in their heart. "Now Maliku people have access to public service broadcaster, as well as some private broadcasters, and they read the online news websites of Maldives" he said. To make it easier to travel between Maliku and Maldives, two months ago a travel agency called Under Water Travel and Tours introduced a tour package which connects the two islands. "We need a passport copy of the passenger, we get the permits from the authorities. We arrange everything," said director of Under Water Travel and Tours, Mohamed Imthiyaaz, to WION. Before 1956, people of Minicoy and people from Maldives’ northern atolls used to travel often across the islands. Even today, both Maldivians and Malikun wish to travel directly between the islands. But since 1956, the journey of few hours has become long; it takes 12 hours to reach Cochin city of the Indian state of Kerela in a ferry, and it’s around a two hour flight to reach Ibrahim Nasir International Airport of Maldives — from there it will take more hours to reach the northern atolls, depending on the travel arrangements. However Imthiyaaz said they are trying to make direct travel possible from Maldives to Maliku in a near future. "We are negotiating with both Maldivian and Indian government. We are hoping this happens soon," he said. This is surely long-awaited good news for both Maldivians and Minocoys. Hopefully soon the cultural cousins won’t need to wait for Eid to be together again. (WION)

Maldivians and Indians reunite to celebrate joint heritage

A number of Sunni and Shia Muslims in India&rsquo;s capital city today offered Eid prayers behind a Shia Imam as a mark of unity. 
 
On the occasion of Eid-ul-Adha, followers of both the sects performed prayers together in New Delhi&rsquo;s Shia mosque of Shah-e-Mardan in Jor Bagh. 
 
The combined prayers were a part of the #ShoulderToShoulder movement launched last year by two alumni of Jamia Millia Islamia. 
 
This year&#39;s joined prayers were organised by Ajuman e-Hadri, the trustee of Shah-e-Mardan. 
 
The spokesperson for Anjuman e-Haidri, Syed Bilal, said that the joint Eid prayers represented the unity of Islam. 
 
&quot;We follow the same religion. Muslims should come together and discuss their differences&nbsp;if any,&quot; he said. 
 
The Chairman of Imam Council of India Maqsood ul Hassan Qasmi who belongs to the Sunni sect, spoke on similar lines. Qasmi said Islam is a religion of unity which has come under attack by some terrorist groups.&nbsp; 
 
He said groups&nbsp;like the Islamic State were trying to divide Muslims by creating differences among them. 
 
&quot;These groups are using the name of Islam. We condemn them and declare that they are not Muslims,&quot; he said. 
 
The universal brotherhood movement #ShoulderToShoulder started last year with the first combined Shia-Sunni Eid-ul-Fitr prayers held at Juma Masjid, followed by Eid-ul-Adha in Lucknow. 
 
The latest were the&nbsp;joint Eid prayers this year in Delhi&#39;s Jamia Nargar&nbsp;to celebrate Eid ul-Fitr. 
 
(WION) 
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Combined Eid-ul-Adha prayers offered at a Shia mosque in New Delhi represents the unity of Islam

A number of Sunni and Shia Muslims in India’s capital city today offered Eid prayers behind a Shia Imam as a mark of unity. On the occasion of Eid-ul-Adha, followers of both the sects performed prayers together in New Delhi’s Shia mosque of Shah-e-Mardan in Jor Bagh. The combined prayers were a part of the #ShoulderToShoulder movement launched last year by two alumni of Jamia Millia Islamia. This year's joined prayers were organised by Ajuman e-Hadri, the trustee of Shah-e-Mardan. The spokesperson for Anjuman e-Haidri, Syed Bilal, said that the joint Eid prayers represented the unity of Islam. "We follow the same religion. Muslims should come together and discuss their differences if any," he said. The Chairman of Imam Council of India Maqsood ul Hassan Qasmi who belongs to the Sunni sect, spoke on similar lines. Qasmi said Islam is a religion of unity which has come under attack by some terrorist groups. He said groups like the Islamic State were trying to divide Muslims by creating differences among them. "These groups are using the name of Islam. We condemn them and declare that they are not Muslims," he said. The universal brotherhood movement #ShoulderToShoulder started last year with the first combined Shia-Sunni Eid-ul-Fitr prayers held at Juma Masjid, followed by Eid-ul-Adha in Lucknow. The latest were the joint Eid prayers this year in Delhi's Jamia Nargar to celebrate Eid ul-Fitr. (WION)

Shia, Sunni Muslims stand #ShoulderToShoulder for Eid prayers in Indian capital

DhiTV and DhiFM were the first ever private television and radio stations launched in the history of the tiny island nation of the Maldives. Till 2008, Maldives had only government-controlled media houses, such as Television Maldives (TVM) and Voice of Maldives (VOM). Other than these, there were three daily newspapers, which were also owned by the then cabinet ministers. Unfortunately, both DhiTV and DhiFM was shut down on August 10, 2016.&nbsp;

DhiTV and DhiFM became very important in Maldives&#39; media history. For the first time, it allowed the citizens of Maldives to hear a different side of the story;&nbsp; it provided the people with an option other than the official version of an event, emanating from the government-affiliated media establishment.

The news of DhiTV shutdown came as a shock to the whole country, as the news of the closure was abruptly announced to the television staffs, just a day after the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) passed the Anti-defamation bill in the parliament.&nbsp;

The stations, owned by the local business tycoon Champa Mohamed Moosa (uhchu), were operated by Broadcasting Maldives and Maldives Media Company. In a joint memo sent to the staffs on 10th August, the companies announced the shut down of the transmission of the channels that day itself at 00:00 hours, saying that they do not believe the channels could be run in a sustainable manner under the current circumstance. The staffs were given notice of three months with salary. Though the companies did not officially mention anything about the Anti-defamation and Freedom of Expression Act that were ratified on 11th&nbsp; August, arguably the decision was linked to it.&nbsp;

The Anti-defamation act allows fines up to MVR 2 Million which is approximately US$ 130,0000.&nbsp; The Act stipulates that any media house can be closed down if found guilty of slander, for having breached social norms, and if it threatened national security in some way. Under the Act, a company can be held accountable and punished for going against the tenets of Islam. Failure to pay the fines will result in a jail sentence of up to 6 months. What makes it worse is, individuals and media stations can only appeal the sentence after paying the fine.

Irrespective of their relation to the government, the Maldivian media stood united against the bill. The only exception was the Public Service Media (PSM) which was independent, yet always supported measures taken by Maldive government. PSM not only supported the&nbsp; proposed bill from the government but also tried to justify it by using Islam as a shield. PSM was broadcasting various programs, bringing Islamic scholars to talk about defamation from a religious perspective.&nbsp;

Maybe what PSM did not understand was that the journalists raising voice against the bill are also not in favor of defamation.&nbsp;

I always believed that to be a responsible reporter, we need to be careful about defamation. But that does not mean, I am supporting any restriction on either freedom of expression or freedom of speech in the name of defamation. It is a right guaranteed by the constitution to every citizen of Maldives, and exercising these rights are necessary for a journalists to act as a watchdog in a democracy. Right to freedom of expression and freedom of media can not be restricted even in a state of emergency. Parliament can only pass a law if it is not opposing the constitution.&nbsp;

Concerns expressed by the majority of Maldivian journalists were ignored by the parliamentary members of the ruling party. Instead, they passed the bill with even tougher penalties. Sadly, some of these members are also the owner of various media outlets; they not only let down Maldivian journalists and the general public but also their own employees. For instance, the owner of Sun Media Group&nbsp;Ahmed Shiyam,&nbsp;who is also the leader of the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) as well as Yamin Rasheed,&nbsp;the owner of the Sangu TV and Member of Parliament of the PPM party,&nbsp;voted&nbsp; in favor of the bill.&nbsp; Journalists from both media outlets were raising their voice against the bill and calling the MPs to vote against it. But their voice went unheard.&nbsp;

Our voice went unheard and the government ratified the bill criminalising defamation with hefty fines.

The Anti-defamation Act could be used by anyone as a harassment tool against journalists and to attack the fourth power of democracy. Now the question is why just DhiTV? After all, DhiTV has been long labeled as a pro-government channel. Why not some other station like RajjeTV, which is popularly known as an anti-government station.&nbsp;

&nbsp;Informed sources gave us some hints that DhiTV has been on the government&#39;s blacklist as much as RajjeTV; during 2013 presidential election campaign, DhiTV was against President Yamin Abdul Gayoom. During the PPM primary, former Home Minister Umar Naseer and Yamin Gayoom were contesting to be the PPM presidential candidate, DhiTV was against Yamin and backing Umar. Even after Yamin won the primary, DhiTV continued their stand against Yamin by backing the presidential campaign of President Dr. Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik of the time. As a business tycoon, investing many projects in Maldives, the owner of DhiTV surely will need the government&rsquo;s cooperation, even if he has to give up DhiTV for that.&nbsp;

When DhiTV was shut down, I was part of the team working as a news anchor. During that last week, I mostly had 2 p.m and 8 p.m news. August 10th was the only day when I had to present the 10 p.m news.&nbsp; Management decided to end the news coverage with the 8.pm news and I did not get the chance to say goodbye. I just wished, I knew 8 p.m prime time news of 9th August was going to be my last time live on DhiTV. What bothered us more was not that we lost our job, but we lost DhiTV. Re-opening DhiTV soon is our hope. And I believe it will happen sooner or later.&nbsp;

Management of DhiTV decided to end the news coverage with the 8PM news and I did not get the chance to say goodbye

DhiTV and DhiFM were the first ever private television and radio stations launched in the history of the tiny island nation of the Maldives. Till 2008, Maldives had only government-controlled media houses, such as Television Maldives (TVM) and Voice of Maldives (VOM). Other than these, there were three daily newspapers, which were also owned by the then cabinet ministers. Unfortunately, both DhiTV and DhiFM was shut down on August 10, 2016. DhiTV and DhiFM became very important in Maldives' media history. For the first time, it allowed the citizens of Maldives to hear a different side of the story; it provided the people with an option other than the official version of an event, emanating from the government-affiliated media establishment. The news of DhiTV shutdown came as a shock to the whole country, as the news of the closure was abruptly announced to the television staffs, just a day after the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) passed the Anti-defamation bill in the parliament. The stations, owned by the local business tycoon Champa Mohamed Moosa (uhchu), were operated by Broadcasting Maldives and Maldives Media Company. In a joint memo sent to the staffs on 10th August, the companies announced the shut down of the transmission of the channels that day itself at 00:00 hours, saying that they do not believe the channels could be run in a sustainable manner under the current circumstance. The staffs were given notice of three months with salary. Though the companies did not officially mention anything about the Anti-defamation and Freedom of Expression Act that were ratified on 11th August, arguably the decision was linked to it. The Anti-defamation act allows fines up to MVR 2 Million which is approximately US$ 130,0000. The Act stipulates that any media house can be closed down if found guilty of slander, for having breached social norms, and if it threatened national security in some way. Under the Act, a company can be held accountable and punished for going against the tenets of Islam. Failure to pay the fines will result in a jail sentence of up to 6 months. What makes it worse is, individuals and media stations can only appeal the sentence after paying the fine. Irrespective of their relation to the government, the Maldivian media stood united against the bill. The only exception was the Public Service Media (PSM) which was independent, yet always supported measures taken by Maldive government. PSM not only supported the proposed bill from the government but also tried to justify it by using Islam as a shield. PSM was broadcasting various programs, bringing Islamic scholars to talk about defamation from a religious perspective. Maybe what PSM did not understand was that the journalists raising voice against the bill are also not in favor of defamation. I always believed that to be a responsible reporter, we need to be careful about defamation. But that does not mean, I am supporting any restriction on either freedom of expression or freedom of speech in the name of defamation. It is a right guaranteed by the constitution to every citizen of Maldives, and exercising these rights are necessary for a journalists to act as a watchdog in a democracy. Right to freedom of expression and freedom of media can not be restricted even in a state of emergency. Parliament can only pass a law if it is not opposing the constitution. Concerns expressed by the majority of Maldivian journalists were ignored by the parliamentary members of the ruling party. Instead, they passed the bill with even tougher penalties. Sadly, some of these members are also the owner of various media outlets; they not only let down Maldivian journalists and the general public but also their own employees. For instance, the owner of Sun Media Group Ahmed Shiyam, who is also the leader of the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) as well as Yamin Rasheed, the owner of the Sangu TV and Member of Parliament of the PPM party, voted in favor of the bill. Journalists from both media outlets were raising their voice against the bill and calling the MPs to vote against it. But their voice went unheard. Our voice went unheard and the government ratified the bill criminalising defamation with hefty fines. The Anti-defamation Act could be used by anyone as a harassment tool against journalists and to attack the fourth power of democracy. Now the question is why just DhiTV? After all, DhiTV has been long labeled as a pro-government channel. Why not some other station like RajjeTV, which is popularly known as an anti-government station. Informed sources gave us some hints that DhiTV has been on the government's blacklist as much as RajjeTV; during 2013 presidential election campaign, DhiTV was against President Yamin Abdul Gayoom. During the PPM primary, former Home Minister Umar Naseer and Yamin Gayoom were contesting to be the PPM presidential candidate, DhiTV was against Yamin and backing Umar. Even after Yamin won the primary, DhiTV continued their stand against Yamin by backing the presidential campaign of President Dr. Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik of the time. As a business tycoon, investing many projects in Maldives, the owner of DhiTV surely will need the government’s cooperation, even if he has to give up DhiTV for that. When DhiTV was shut down, I was part of the team working as a news anchor. During that last week, I mostly had 2 p.m and 8 p.m news. August 10th was the only day when I had to present the 10 p.m news. Management decided to end the news coverage with the 8.pm news and I did not get the chance to say goodbye. I just wished, I knew 8 p.m prime time news of 9th August was going to be my last time live on DhiTV. What bothered us more was not that we lost our job, but we lost DhiTV. Re-opening DhiTV soon is our hope. And I believe it will happen sooner or later.

Freedom of expression under siege in Maldives

Crackdown on media continued in Maldives on Wednesday as Al Jazeera, an international news network, released &#39;Stealing Paradise&#39;, a documentary alleging corruption by key figures in the Maldives government including President Abdulla Yameen. The documentary has sparked a massive outrage in the political circuit in the recent weeks. 
 
Soon after the documentary was released on YouTube, a raid was conducted at the office of Maldives Independent, the only news organisation in the country producing English content. The warrant authorised the police to search the entire office building, which also houses a law firm, a college, a non-governmental organisation working for human rights and a travel agency. 
 
The warrant said that the raid was a part of an investigation into a suspected plot to overthrow the elected government. 
 
According the Maldives Independent, the media outlet was later assured in a written statement that &ldquo;no incriminating evidence was found following the police raid&rdquo;. 
 
A source close to the news organisation told WION the raid was peaceful. However, it is being speculated that raid&nbsp;was probably aimed to remind that climate of control is prevailing in the country.&nbsp; 
 
It&#39;s pertinent to mention that Maldives Independent editor Zaheena Rasheed has been interviewed in the controversial documentary over the alleged embezzlement by the government. 
 
Broadcasting regulator issues warning 

 
A warning was also issued on Wednesday by Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) threatening legal action &ldquo;if found guilty of defamation when broadcasting or re-broadcasting the content in Stealing Paradise&rdquo;. 
 
The broadcasting regulator reminded broadcasters of the recently adopted anti-defamation law with hefty fines. 
 
The commission said several concerns and complaints against the Al Jazeera documentary had already been received regarding possible slander and libel. 
 
Documentary alleges massive corruption in Maldives 

 
The documentary, created by Al Jazeera&rsquo;s award-winning investigative unit, claims to expose massive corruption of $1.5 billion in Maldives, including fraud, theft, bribery and money laundering. 
 
Al Jazeera&#39;s senior investigative producer Will Jordan earlier informed that he received death threats following the alleged expose. 
 
President Yameen, former vice-president Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Ghafoor, governor of Maldives monetary authority Azeema Adam, former commissioner of police Hussain Waheed and Supreme Court judge Ali Hameed, among others have been accused of &#39;misuse of public money&#39; and &#39;abuse of power&#39;. 
 
President Yameen has also been accused of receiving cash bags filled with $1 million by himself.&nbsp; 
 
The documentary also alleges that Yameen had dictated former president Mohamed Nasheed&rsquo;s prison sentence. 
 
According to Stealing Paradise, former vice-president Adheeb had ordered to &ldquo;blast the auditor general&rsquo;s office&rdquo; after auditor general Niyaz Ibrahim uncovered embezzlement within the government. 
 
It also hints that Yameen hindered the investigation into the disappearance of a journalist Ahmed Rilwan who went missing about two years ago. 
 
An alleged text message was sent by the President to the then home minister Umar Naseer saying: &#39;Umar no need 2b overwhelmed by Rilwan case&#39; (sic). 
 
Naseer has, however, denied the allegation. 
&nbsp;

<div class="twitter-block">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
I did not recieve any text message from RY on Rilwan&#39;s case. I am 100% sure that aljazeera will NOT have such a text.
&mdash; Umar Naseer (@UmarNaseerPPM) <a href="https://twitter.com/UmarNaseerPPM/status/773418335988056064">September 7, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

<div class="twitter-block">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
No doubt that this is the most corrupt govt ever, but equally corrupt was RNs&#39; govt. Small difference between cholera and shygella.
&mdash; Umar Naseer (@UmarNaseerPPM) <a href="https://twitter.com/UmarNaseerPPM/status/773419863415152640">September 7, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

 
 
The story has been told using three mobile phones that reportedly belong to former vice-president Ahmed Adheeb. Dozens of confidential documents. 
 
Apart from the undercover footages of confessions by people, the documentary also features interviews of politicians from opposition including former president Mohamed Nasheed and former vice-president Mohamed Jameel. 
 
Maldivian government dismisses allegations in the documentary

Meanwhile, Maldivian government has dismissed the allegations insisting that Al Jazeera has failed to provide any evidences to substantiate the claims against President Yameen. 
 
The government has insisted on submission of evidences obtained by Al Jazeera to the Maldives Police service and Anti-corruption Commission of the Maldives. 
 
An official statement says: The government is saddened by the allegations made in the documentary and has expressed disappointments particularly raising concerns with regard to the manner in which the reporting was undertaken. 
 
&quot;In preparing the report, the government notes that the individuals interviewed are persons who are suspects in a corruption investigation by both the Maldives Police Service and the Anti-Corruption Commission and by whom Interpol has issued a red notice over. It is also noted that individuals, who are actively working against the government, some of whom having publicly announced that they seek the removal of the legitimate government before 

<div class="twitter-block">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Confiscating my passport is another ridiculous &amp; politically motivated attempt by President Yameen&#39;s Government (1/2)
&mdash; Mohamed Nasheed (@MohamedNasheed) <a href="https://twitter.com/MohamedNasheed/status/773473985497600000">September 7, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

the end of its constitutional term, have also been interviewed for this report.&rdquo; 
 
Further, it has been claimed that the &ldquo;government was denied the opportunity to present a balanced, fair and true version of events, which makes &ldquo;Stealing Paradise&rdquo; nothing but defamatory, falling short of accepted international and legal norms of reporting.&rdquo; 
 
Meanwhile, some key politicians have preferred to remain silent over the controversy, while others are denying the allegation including former president Mohamed Nasheed and former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. 

<div class="twitter-block">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
I have never asked for nor received any money to join/support any political movement. Allegations contrary to this are totally false.
&mdash; Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (@maumoonagayoom) <a href="https://twitter.com/maumoonagayoom/status/773557267262124032">September 7, 2016</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

 
 
Both Maumoon and Nasheed denied fixing a &ldquo;deal&rdquo; as a part of the negotiations to form an alliance. &nbsp;Nasheed also protested against the revocation of passport&nbsp;amid allegations.&nbsp; 
 
 
(WION) 

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A documentary alleging corruption of $1.5 billion in Maldives was released on Wednesday sparking massive outrage in political circuit

Crackdown on media continued in Maldives on Wednesday as Al Jazeera, an international news network, released 'Stealing Paradise', a documentary alleging corruption by key figures in the Maldives government including President Abdulla Yameen. The documentary has sparked a massive outrage in the political circuit in the recent weeks. Soon after the documentary was released on YouTube, a raid was conducted at the office of Maldives Independent, the only news organisation in the country producing English content. The warrant authorised the police to search the entire office building, which also houses a law firm, a college, a non-governmental organisation working for human rights and a travel agency. The warrant said that the raid was a part of an investigation into a suspected plot to overthrow the elected government. According the Maldives Independent, the media outlet was later assured in a written statement that “no incriminating evidence was found following the police raid”. A source close to the news organisation told WION the raid was peaceful. However, it is being speculated that raid was probably aimed to remind that climate of control is prevailing in the country. It's pertinent to mention that Maldives Independent editor Zaheena Rasheed has been interviewed in the controversial documentary over the alleged embezzlement by the government. Broadcasting regulator issues warning A warning was also issued on Wednesday by Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) threatening legal action “if found guilty of defamation when broadcasting or re-broadcasting the content in Stealing Paradise”. The broadcasting regulator reminded broadcasters of the recently adopted anti-defamation law with hefty fines. The commission said several concerns and complaints against the Al Jazeera documentary had already been received regarding possible slander and libel. Documentary alleges massive corruption in Maldives The documentary, created by Al Jazeera’s award-winning investigative unit, claims to expose massive corruption of $1.5 billion in Maldives, including fraud, theft, bribery and money laundering. Al Jazeera's senior investigative producer Will Jordan earlier informed that he received death threats following the alleged expose. President Yameen, former vice-president Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Ghafoor, governor of Maldives monetary authority Azeema Adam, former commissioner of police Hussain Waheed and Supreme Court judge Ali Hameed, among others have been accused of 'misuse of public money' and 'abuse of power'. President Yameen has also been accused of receiving cash bags filled with $1 million by himself. The documentary also alleges that Yameen had dictated former president Mohamed Nasheed’s prison sentence. According to Stealing Paradise, former vice-president Adheeb had ordered to “blast the auditor general’s office” after auditor general Niyaz Ibrahim uncovered embezzlement within the government. It also hints that Yameen hindered the investigation into the disappearance of a journalist Ahmed Rilwan who went missing about two years ago. An alleged text message was sent by the President to the then home minister Umar Naseer saying: 'Umar no need 2b overwhelmed by Rilwan case' (sic). Naseer has, however, denied the allegation. I did not recieve any text message from RY on Rilwan's case. I am 100% sure that aljazeera will NOT have such a text. — Umar Naseer (@UmarNaseerPPM) September 7, 2016 No doubt that this is the most corrupt govt ever, but equally corrupt was RNs' govt. Small difference between cholera and shygella. — Umar Naseer (@UmarNaseerPPM) September 7, 2016 The story has been told using three mobile phones that reportedly belong to former vice-president Ahmed Adheeb. Dozens of confidential documents. Apart from the undercover footages of confessions by people, the documentary also features interviews of politicians from opposition including former president Mohamed Nasheed and former vice-president Mohamed Jameel. Maldivian government dismisses allegations in the documentary Meanwhile, Maldivian government has dismissed the allegations insisting that Al Jazeera has failed to provide any evidences to substantiate the claims against President Yameen. The government has insisted on submission of evidences obtained by Al Jazeera to the Maldives Police service and Anti-corruption Commission of the Maldives. An official statement says: The government is saddened by the allegations made in the documentary and has expressed disappointments particularly raising concerns with regard to the manner in which the reporting was undertaken. "In preparing the report, the government notes that the individuals interviewed are persons who are suspects in a corruption investigation by both the Maldives Police Service and the Anti-Corruption Commission and by whom Interpol has issued a red notice over. It is also noted that individuals, who are actively working against the government, some of whom having publicly announced that they seek the removal of the legitimate government before Confiscating my passport is another ridiculous & politically motivated attempt by President Yameen's Government (1/2) — Mohamed Nasheed (@MohamedNasheed) September 7, 2016 the end of its constitutional term, have also been interviewed for this report.” Further, it has been claimed that the “government was denied the opportunity to present a balanced, fair and true version of events, which makes “Stealing Paradise” nothing but defamatory, falling short of accepted international and legal norms of reporting.” Meanwhile, some key politicians have preferred to remain silent over the controversy, while others are denying the allegation including former president Mohamed Nasheed and former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. I have never asked for nor received any money to join/support any political movement. Allegations contrary to this are totally false. — Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (@maumoonagayoom) September 7, 2016 Both Maumoon and Nasheed denied fixing a “deal” as a part of the negotiations to form an alliance. Nasheed also protested against the revocation of passport amid allegations. (WION)

Maldives reacts to controversial documentary alleging government embezzlement

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Zee News Rajasthan

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Umaima Rasheed Hussain

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