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Category Archives: Maldives Police Service

Breaking News: Police Officer Hospitalized

13 Mar

According to a police media report, a police officer has been hospitalized in ADK Hospital in Male’ after being attacked by gangsters and was found “thrown into a lane” around Alikilegefaanu Magu. The report says that the officer’s face has been severely beaten. The Police Officer was in plainclothes according to the report.

The local print and online media who were “reporting 24/7 round the clock” are silent on the matter at this moment in time.

Rumors say that the people who attacked the police officer are known to authorities and will be apprehended shortly. It is hard to believe that anything will come of it. There is little hope that anything meaningful can be done to maintain law and order in this country, while the current August Constitution and unfinished business related to establishing the legal and judicial infrastructure remain as is.

And Ibra writes to the President on his blog, in a post published 4 hours from the attack – which I thought was related. He writes:

[…] The entire nation has to be mobilized if we are to get out of this hell hole. You can see the reaction of the Mob in relation to efforts by the police to establish the authority of the law. They will come after the Police, the Cabinet, the MPs and any other who will stand in their way. Only the unifying of the Public, across political divisions can combat this evil.

That brings me to the point of this letter, Mr.President. It is only you who can unify the nation on this one. It is your Constitutional duty to do that. The Constitution spells out in black and white that it is your Constitutional duty and obligation to promote unity among the people. You can’t do that by ignoring the majority of the people in this country and just acknowledging people of a certain political membership. You will be deepening the divisions even further.

Mr. President. You are the PRESIDENT of this country, elected by UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE. You are not the PRIME MINISTER appointed by a majority party in the Majlis. The Maldivian Constitution does not provide for a Prime Minister yet, Mr. President. I remind you, lest you forget.

Read the full post here

 
2 Comments

Posted by on March 13, 2009 in Leadership, Maldives Police Service, My Concerns, Terror

 

Mind boggling figures…

11 Mar

The Defense Minister and Home Minister and the Police Commissioner gave a joint press conference on Tuesday to brief the public on the ongoing street violence and gang related murders that are terrorizing Male’.

Some of the figures that were revealed in the press conference were mind-boggling. The new “Pentagon” Prison going to cost the country over 80million Rufiyaa. This is over 400,000 Rufiyaa (30,000 US Dollars) per head for each of the 200 inmates for whom the prison is being built. [I was told that the cost per key for a three-star resort hotel is under 70,000 US Dollars.]

The cost of maitaining a prisoner is currently at 36,000 Rufiyaa (nearly 3,000 US Dollars) a month. This according to the Defense Minister is equal to housing one person in a nearby tourist resort!

And there are over 500 convicted criminals roaming the streets of Male’, ready to engage in further criminal activity. Male’ is the capital city buzzling with crime. And if the press briefing is to be believed, the crime infrastructure is so far ahead of the law and order capabilities that soon the criminals will take over the captial city of this paradise nation.

Minivan report on the press briefing

 
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Posted by on March 11, 2009 in Comments and Opionion, Democracy nd Reform, Maldives Police Service, Terror

 

TEAM vs. Tourism Workers Union

02 Dec

Maldives tourism industry has been rocked by the recent protests demanding compliance to the new Labor Law which was enacted just prior to the country’s new constitution and the October Presidential Elections. The leading representative body of the tourism industry employees in the forefront fighting for tourism sector employees has been TEAM – the Tourism Employees Association of Maldives.

Team was the key lobby behind the action that forced the then government to propose an amendement to the Tourism Act days after it was enacted into law. The amendment included the tourism industry workers in basic rights such as the forty-eight-hour working week of maximum six working days.

TEAM has been voicing their concerns over alleged non-compliance by hotel-resort managements since the amendment. A strike by workers on the luxury resort of One and Only Reethi Rah and the subsequent engagement of riot police with the protesters on the request of the management got the President involved in the issue.

Now, all of a sudden and out of the blues, Haveeru Daily Online has reported that the Tourism Workers Union represented by its two lawyers has said in a press briefing today, that the timing of the strikes by tourism sector employees for rights is not happening at the right time. The lawyers said that the first step should be to create an environment to resolve disputes through negotiations. The lawyers also reportedly said that the best way for the workers is to leave the resorts and give the employers a lesson.

TEAM President Ahmed Easa is reported to have said, “Problems from other resorts such as Cinnamon and Manafaru have been solved through protests. There’s no doubt about it that going on strike is the best way to solve this problem.” (Minivan News)

Haveeru did not say who is behind the Tourism Workers Union, though the article creates a sense of curiosity as to its motive in coming into the seen right now the way it did! The article does not say that these lawyers were employees of the industry or represented persons who wanted to act behind the scenes.

Minivan News article
Haveeru article in Dhivehi

 
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Posted by on December 2, 2008 in Civil Society, Maldives Police Service, Nation Building

 

Police Lies…

01 Dec

One of the emerging new realities of the New Maldives seem to point to the Maldives Police as having a culture of propagating lies against ordinary citizens. They seem to have inculcated the “lie-culture” for the protection of the government they serve.

Jazeera Online reports that Fahala Saeed a reporter of Minivan Daily (who was arrested by Police allegedly with drugs on his body) was convicted and jailed possession of drugs. That was in October 2006. More than two years from then it has been found that the allegation was a lie. Saeed is now a free man after scrutiny by the High Court.

The Human Rights Commission who visited the tourism employees who were on strike in the upmarket island resort of One and Only Reethi Rah reported on Sunday:

“The police in riot gear had confronted them in order to remove the 13 dismissed staff from the island, while they were striking as a means of peaceful protest. Police used spray that irritates eyes and batons,” a statement reads.

Police also sent out a statement on Sunday denying any use of weapons or any injury caused. “Police did not use batons, pepper spray or tear gas. Police did not carry teargas to the island,” it reads.

So the Police lied again. A culture of systemic lying!

Related Links: Jazeera – Minivan / Fahala Saeed release – Minivan / Police Use Batons

 
1 Comment

Posted by on December 1, 2008 in Maldives Police Service, My Concerns

 

Maldives Police Service responds to Presidential Candidate's accusations

14 Sep

The Maldives Police Service has reacted to statements made by presidential candidate Hassan Saeed in a media apperance.

The Police response has specific references accusing the former Attorney General of corruption and use of his political office for personal gains. The Police response to Hassan Saeed’s allegations, contained a list of counter allegations of his wrongdoings and an open threat that they will continue to dig up his shit if he doesn’t fall in line.

The Maldives Police Service has so far not taken any legal action for the wrongdoings of Hassan Saeed but seem to keep the files just in case.

 
8 Comments

Posted by on September 14, 2008 in Democracy nd Reform, Maldives Police Service

 
 
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