ha.kela 2008

topPolitics in Maldives

The current president, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, has been in office for all but 10 years of the period since Maldives became a Republic in 1968, making him the longest serving political leader in Asia. Although generally considered a liberal and moderate voice on the Maldivian political scene, Gayoom has in recent years been heavily criticised for his autocratic rule. He survived an assassination attempt in January 2008. Seeking to challenge the autocracy of Gayoom, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) was formed by a group of activists in 2001. It established itself in exile in Sri Lanka, bringing international attention to democratic shortcomings of the Gayoom regime. Political parties were not allowed and candidates for the Majlis (parliament) stood as independents. The 50 members of the Majlis elected the president who was then approved in a public vote in which no other candidates stood. By powers of appointment the president had effective control over the cabinet, judiciary, the civil service and local government. This feudal political apparatus looked increasingly out of place in the 21st century. In response to national and international criticism, a constituent assembly was established in 2004. In June 2005, parliament unanimously voted in favour of introducing multi-party democracy in the Maldives and four political parties have registered; the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), Justice Party (Adaalath Party - AP), Islamic Democratic Party (IDP) and the Maldivian People’s Party (Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party - DRP) which is headed by the current president. As part of the constitutional review, a 2007 referendum was held to determine whether a presidential or parliamentary model should be adopted. Over 70% of the voters supported Gayoom’s recommendation for the presidential route but the powers of office will be reduced and the incumbent limited to two terms. An election must be held in October 2008 along conventional lines – apart from Gayoom himself for the DRP, the other parties have announced their candidates including Mohammad Nasheed for the MDP, democratically selected through a “primary” process. Parliamentary elections are due to follow in March 2009. Despite factionalism amongst its members, by April 2008 the constituent assembly finally produced a revised constitution which now awaits the ratification of the president. There is concern that the delay allows too little time to pass legislation governing the new electoral process. Maldives has an active civil society. All islands are, by law, required to have an Island Development Committee and a Women's Development Committee. Although these committees work with varying degree of success, they are an important link between the government and local island communities. The two largest NGOs in the country, SHE and Fashan, are mainly concerned with Health Education

Mohamed Nasheed (Anni)
Congratulation messages are pouring to President-elect Mohamed Nasheed who has won the first multi-party presidential election on 28 October. People from islands and different walks of life have been joyfully sending their mesages of congratulations and good wishes to Mr. Nasheed who has been acclaimed by the people as a hero of their their new founded freedom and democracy.
These messages are coming in the form of SMS messages through Nasheed’s secretariat, through the radi and tv channels. Messages from the people express their gratitude to Nasheed for his relentless struggle to bring democratic reform and to address plights of the people. They said they have great hope in Nasheed’s sagacity and leadership to usher a new era of democracy peace and development. ” We are proud of you Nasheed for your courage and will, and you have won for the people. We have faith in you, you will lead our country towards greater prosperity and happiness” ” I am delighted you have won the election, it is a victory for the people. We can never forget you for your great sacrifice, and we pray for the peace and progress of the country” ” We are gratified by your election victory bringing an end to Gayoom’s 30 years rule. We hope democracy and justice would prevail in our country” ” Thank you and Congratulations Nasheed, for your great service for democracy for and winning this election. I hope you will make a successful presidency with equalilty and justice to all as you have always advocated” ” Congratulations Nasheed for your grand victory, We are proud of you, you are truly our hero, Its great to see your example of respect and tolerance and the manner in which you said you will hold Gayoom in dignity and honour This will be your legacy and the country’s legacy if you forget the past and look at the future” Increasing number of messages coming from people have expressed their sentiments of joy and hope by the election of Nasheed as the new President.
There are meetings and receptions held in different parts of the country to mark Nasheed’s election victory.

ha.kela(beach foto)

Climate Change in Maldives

Maldives is one of the countries that is most vulnerable to rising sea levels caused by global warming. In offering an upper estimate of 0.59m for the potential rise in sea level by 2100, the 2007 assessment by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) stresses that scientific uncertainties over carbon feedback loops have not been taken into account so that this is not an “upper bound” prediction. 80% of the land area in Maldives is less than 1m above mean sea-level and 47% of houses are



less than 100m from the coastline. The combination of high tides and storm surges that occur usually during May will clearly pose an ever-increasing threat of devastatin consequences for the country. Ominously, an unprecedented number of 55 islands were inundated in the storm surge in May 2007.






Submersion of the Maldives beneath the waves is an image of doom exploited by many climate change activists. The Maldivians themselves appear in no mood to succumb. An emerging strategy of “safer islands” reinforces the development plans for “population and development consolidation” in that people from the lower lying islands might relocate to others more suitable where they can be protected against sea intrusion. One third of the population already lives in Male, surrounded by a sea wall and dependent on expensive desalination plants for water supplies.







long list of potential adaptation projects, the government’s National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) identifies the priorities as coastal protection and population movement. It acknowledges that the upper end of IPCC predictions would bring regular inundation of “almost all islands”. Salt water intrusion will also be damaging to food production whilst any reduction in rainfall will affect the majority of the Atoll populations who rely on rainwater harvesting for their source of water.










The NAPA attempts no costings - adaptation funding proposals that emerged from the Bali Conference in 2007 do not remotely approach the urgent needs of countries such as Maldives. However, in a radical development in 2008, Maldives was successful in lobbying the UN Human Rights Council to assess whether the threat to survival posed by climate change amounts to violation of human rights. Maldives is Maldives is one of the countries that is most vulnerable to rising sea levels caused by global warming. In offering an upper estimate of 0.59m for the potential rise in sea level by 2100, the 2007 assessment by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) stresses that scientific uncertainties over carbon feedback loops have not been taken into account so that this is not an “upper bound” prediction. 80% of the land area in Maldives is less than 1m above mean sea-level and 47% of houses are less than 100m from the coastline. The combination of high tides and storm surges that occur usually during May will clearly pose an ever-increasing threat of devastating consequences for the country. Ominously, an unprecedented number of 55 islands were inundated in the storm surge in May 2007.








Maldives has made good progress with human development and has already achieved the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) related to poverty reduction, health and education. However, the country’s unique geography renders its tiny population vulnerable to unpredictable behaviour of the natural world and the global economy alike.traumatic devastation of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami triggered initial predictions that development in Maldives would be set back by a generation – the argument being that reconstruction costs (estimated at $470 million) represented more than half of the country’s GDP and that the loss of livelihoods from key industries such as tourism were proportionately more significant than in other countries hit by the disaster
In the event such fears have not been realised. An MDG progress report published in 2007 states that income poverty fell “significantly” in the 2 years immediately following the tsunami, thanks to generous aid of $368 million in that period which created work opportunities linked to reconstruction and ensured the rapid return of tourism. However, recovery has been far from straightforward for the 10% of the population displaced by the disaster. The country’s capacity for efficient allocation of such a vast sum was inevitably challenged and 10,000 Maldivians were still displaced more than two years after the disaster.

2004 MDG assessment just prior to the tsunami showed that all measures of poverty in Maldives had fallen by more than half in the period from 1997. Universal access to primary education was also recorded, together with exceptionally high adult literacy. As a “least developed country” (LDC), Maldives was scheduled by the UN to graduate to middle income status but, due to the tsunami, this was postponed to 2011. Aspiration to the standards of fully developed countries is inhibited by the expense of delivering social and economic services to over 20 “atolls” (small groups of inhabited islands) dispersed across 90 000 square kilometers. The government has promoted the concept of “population and development consolidation” which will involve relocation of the “most vulnerable” Maldivians from the smaller islands. As yet the plan is voluntary and low key.

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