A digest of news and opinion from the Maldives.
Finance Minister Ahmed Munawar submitted for parliamentary approval Wednesday a record MVR27.9 billion (US$1.8 billion) budget for 2018. Opposition lawmakers continued to protest with chants of “government of thieves” while Munawar presented the budget projections. “The goal of the 2018 budget is developing human resources for building the nation along with spending on infrastructure development […]
The death penalty is a violent and ineffective form of punishment that has no deterrent or protective value, the UK has said following the Maldives’ decision to lift its moratorium on executions. British minister Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon told the House of Lords Monday the government had engaged the Maldives at the highest levels on […]
The Education Ministry Tuesday hit out at reports that a popular professor has been banned from giving lectures at local schools. Mihaaru said that Professor Hassan Ugail, the first Maldivian scientist and PhD holder in mathematics, was banned by the Education Ministry. The report was later edited to say he faced “challenges” to appear at […]
Two people with connections to the Islamic State group have been charged for planning and attempting to take part in a suicide attack, officials confirmed Tuesday. The men are affiliated with the jihadi group operating out of parts of Syria and Iraq, the Prosecutor General’s office said. PG spokesman Adam Thaufeeq told the Maldives Independent […]
President Abdulla Yameen has told the people of Kulhudhuffushi they can either stay in the past or move with the times. He has not visited the island for two years but was there on Sunday for the ruling party’s annual rally. PPM supporters, heads of state-owned firms and senior government officials have been flocking to […]
Kulhudhuffushi airport will be completed by the middle of next year, authorities have said, despite the government not yet hiring a contractor to build it. Tourism Minister Moosa Zameer and other ruling party figures were on the remote island Sunday to inaugurate the project, which involves the destruction of mangroves. Building the airport was a […]
A newly hired spin doctor for the Maldivian government has been blasted by opposition activists for defending the “biggest rogue” in the country – President Abdulla Yameen – as well as his for previous work with an African dictator. Celebrated human rights lawyer Jason McCue is a director at Rigel Corporation, which last month issued […]
The former boss of the Maldives’ tourism promotion company pleaded not guilty Saturday to 15 charges related to the country’s largest-ever corruption scandal. Abdulla Ziyath, who managed the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation, is accused of misappropriating US$23 (1h 33m) million (MVR357 million) by leasing 13 uninhabited islands and two lagoons owned by the state. He […]
The easiest way to ‘colonize’ a country is by weakening its economy and forcing it to depend upon another country for its income and livelihood, President Abdulla Yameen has said, even as the Maldives attracts massive overseas investment for mega projects and relies heavily on foreigners for tourism. Yameen was speaking at the capital’s convention […]