Recently in Maldives Category

It's not so much an Arab "Spring" as a Sharia Slinky, and down it goes, step by step. An update on this story. "Trouble in paradise: Maldives and Islamic extremism," by Amal Jayasinghe for Agence France-Presse, February 12:

MALE — At the Maldives' National Museum, smashed Buddhist statues are testament to the rise of Islamic extremism and Taliban-style intolerance in a country famous as a laid-back holiday destination.

Well, kiss that goodbye. Or don't: you might get flogged.

On Tuesday, as protesters backed by mutinous police toppled president Mohamed Nasheed, a handful of men stormed the Chinese-built museum and destroyed its display of priceless artefacts from the nation's pre-Islamic era.

"They have effectively erased all evidence of our Buddhist past," a senior museum official told AFP at the now shuttered building in the capital Male, asking not to be named out of fear for his own safety.

"We lost all our 12th century statues. They were made of coral stone and limestone. They are very brittle and there is no way we can restore them," he explained.

"I wept when I heard that the entire display had gone. We are good Muslims and we treated these statues only as part of our heritage. It is not against Islam to display these exhibits," he said.

Five people have since been arrested after they returned the following day to smash the CCTV cameras, he said.

The authorities have banned photography of the damage, conscious that vandalism of this kind which echoes the 2001 destruction of the Bamiyan Buddha statues in Afghanistan by the Taliban is damaging for the nation's image.

The gates of the two-storeyed grey building, which opened in 2010, are padlocked and an unarmed guard keeps watch.

The Maldives, a collection of more than 1,100 coral-fringed islands surrounded by turquoise seas, is known as a "paradise" holiday destination that draws hundreds of thousands of travellers and honeymooners each year.

Visitors' contact with the local population is deliberately kept at bay, however, with most foreigners simply transferring from the main international airport directly to their five-star resorts on outlying islands.

Few have any idea they are visiting a country of 330,000 Muslims with no religious freedom, where women can be flogged for extramarital sex and consuming alcohol is illegal for locals.

Islam is the official religion of the Maldives and open practice of any other religion is forbidden and liable to prosecution.

The religious origins of the Maldivian people are not clearly established, but it is believed that a Buddhist king converted to Islam in the 12th century....

An alternate headline, with reference to the country's capital:

"Muslim males mull making Male more Muslim."

"New Maldives leader names conservatives to Cabinet," from the Associated Press, February 12:

MALE, Maldives (AP) — The Maldives' new president expanded his Cabinet on Sunday to include religious conservatives who have been demanding the introduction of strict Islamic laws in the Indian Ocean nation that relies on high-end tourism.

Demonstrations over the past year calling for more religiously conservative policies as well as widespread protests over soaring prices had put pressure on the former leader, Mohamed Nasheed. He resigned last week after his order to arrest a senior judge sparked continuous protests. He later said he had been ousted in a coup, leading to a political crisis.

New President Mohammed Waheed Hassan said he was forming a coalition government to help restore stability in the Muslim country ahead of presidential elections due next year. Six members from four political parties were sworn in Sunday as ministers.

They include members of religious conservative Adhaalat, or Justice Party, which wants to see the introduction of Shariah law, and the Progressive Party of the Maldives headed by Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, the former autocratic leader who ruled for 30 years until Nasheed defeated him in the country's first multiparty election in 2008.

The constitution prohibits any religion other than Islam being practiced or preached in the Maldives and specifies that it be governed according to Islamic principles. But authorities have generally been flexible mainly to preserve the country's tourism industry.

However, Islamic activists led by Adhaalat have protested against the former government's ties with Israel and demanded alcohol not be sold outside resorts. The party also led a protest in December against United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay after she asked the Maldives to stop flogging women found to have had sex outside marriage.

It was unclear whether Adhaalat could succeed in getting strict Islamic laws implemented.
The other three parties in the coalition are relatively moderate.

Gayoom, since losing power, has kept away from active politics. Although it is unclear whether he will return to public life, he is likely to influence government policies.

The common factor in the persistence of female genital mutilation outside of Africa is the Shafi'i school of Islamic jurisprudence, which holds the practice to be obligatory. The Maldives has been on a fast track here of late toward intensified observance of Sharia, and the government has already ruled with respect to Sharia's criminal punishments that "there is nothing to debate about in a matter clearly stated in the religion of Islam." As this report makes clear, that attitude threatens the bodily integrity of Maldivian girls and women.

"Female circumcision fear as fundamentalists roll back women's rights," by Ben Doherty for the Sydney Morning Herald, January 25 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

When the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, visited the Maldives late last year, she urged that the practice of flogging women for having sex outside marriage - while very rarely punishing men for the same - should be abolished.

''This practice constitutes one of the most inhumane and degrading forms of violence against women,'' she told local reporters then.

The response was as fierce as it was unexpected. The next day protesters rallied outside the UN building, carrying placards that read ''Ban UN'' and ''Islam is not a toy'' and threatened to ''Flog Pillay''. A website later promised to ''slaughter anyone against Islam''.

Similar protests have followed, and a growing religious divide between moderate and fundamentalist Muslims - constitutionally, all Maldivians are obliged to follow Islam - has led many to question the direction of religion in the Maldives and, in particular, the place of women in Maldivian society.

In an interview with the Herald, the Maldivian President, Mohamed Nasheed, conceded an emergent religious fundamentalism had changed the way women were viewed, and treated, in his country.

He said he was distressed by religious groups who campaigned for girls to be circumcised or to be kept home from school.

''We were a matriarchal society. Our inheritance, also, in the past was from women. But, with a new kind of radical Islam, the perceptions some of them have on women are not familiar to many Maldivians,'' Mr Nasheed said.

Once again, wherever Sharia enjoys a resurgence, the observable effect is that tolerance decreases, harassment increases, and respect for human rights decreases.

Anecdotal reports suggest female circumcision is undergoing a resurgence in the Maldives, particularly on the outer islands, where local imams hold significant influence.

Shadiya Ibrahim, member of the newly formed Gender Advocacy Working Group and a long-time campaigner for women's rights, said Maldivian society was growing more oppressive towards women.

''Being a woman is harder now. The religious Wahhabist scholars preach more forcefully than anyone else can. They have this backing of religion as a tool.

''No one can make the argument to have a more liberal, a more positive attitude towards women. Day by day, it is becoming harder for women to live in this country,'' she said.
Ms Ibrahim said women were excluded from positions of power, from taking jobs and even from education, particularly beyond primary level.

The practice of flogging women for extramarital sex was common across the Maldives, she said.

''It happens everywhere. Normally, this punishment is given when you give birth, which is why it is almost always women. If you have 140-odd women being flogged, you have only two or three men.'' The flogging is public and done with a paddle or a cane, and is intended more to humiliate than to cause serious injury.

Ms Ibrahim said flogging was accepted by many Maldivians, and there were other, more serious issues emerging, including a growing number of instances of sexual violence.

''This week, there have been two cases of a gang rape of [a] minor, one 16-year-old, one 12-year-old and, very often, while there is an effort to catch the perpetrators, eventually, the media will turn it into 'the girl was wearing this', 'the girl had gone there','' he said.

When you are a second-class citizen, if you are found out of your supposed place, you forfeit your right to protection. You are "asking for it."

Domestic violence is common. A nationwide survey done in 2007 found one in three Maldivian women had been abused, sexually or physically.

Aneesa Ahmed, president of advocacy organisation Hope for Women, said a domestic violence bill before the Maldivian parliament would raise awareness of an issue rarely discussed in the Maldives. But the legislation has been stuck in parliament more than 14 months. Only five of the Maldives' 77 parliamentarians are women.

Ms Ahmed said Maldivian women's control over their lives was being eroded. ''Men in the Maldives feel that the women's role is reproductive and in the home. That's what women should do and that's all we should do.''

There is nothing "moderate" about the Maldives, where religions other than Sunni Islam are forbidden. The government appeared willing to consider a variety of measures toward further Islamization of the nation when protesters demanded concessions ranging from a complete ban on alcohol and pork to a ban on direct flights to Israel.

That appears only to have emboldened the protesters, who, together with opposition members in government, seem to be trying to summon the zephyrs of the "Arab Spring" to the Maldives. "More arrests in Maldives as protests spread," from Agence France-Presse, January 21:

Dozens of anti-government activists were arrested in the Maldivian capital Male, the opposition said Saturday as the government accused them of whipping up religious extremism.

Opposition parties said police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of activists on Friday night and that dozens were detained, raising to 82 the number of arrests in the past four days.

"The police detain people and release them after a few hours," opposition spokesman Mohamed Shareef said adding that a total of 82 had been arrested during the past four days.

Maldivian authorities said the protesters had attacked government facilities, including two police vehicles and vandalised the home of a government minister during the protests.

The government said six journalists and staff of the state-run national television broadcaster had been attacked by anti-government protesters while private media organisations accused the government of intimidating them.

Anti-government activists have been keeping up pressure on President Mohamed Nasheed who initiated the arrest Monday of the head of the country's criminal court on charges of misconduct and favouring opposition figures.

A senior figure in the opposition Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP), Mohamed Jameel, was also re-arrested on Wednesday as police investigate him and the party for allegedly spreading hate-speech.

The government has accused Jameel, a former justice minister, of making public remarks that Nasheed was working under the influence of "Jews" and "Christian priests" to weaken Islam in the Maldives.

The government on Wednesday raised fears of Islamic extremism taking hold in the Indian Ocean atoll nation, which is best known for its upmarket tourism and as a destination for honeymooners.

Honeymooners might consider Key West or Hawaii instead. Or Intercourse, Pennsylvania. Or a cold day in Hell, Michigan, where a snowball's chances are rather good just now.

The foreign ministry said it was "extremely concerned" by an increase in extremist rhetoric used by the government's rivals that could lead to "stigmatization, stereotyping and incitement to religious violence and hatred".

There have been anti-Semitic protests recently about the transport ministry's decision to allow direct flights from Israel, while a restaurant that hung up Christmas decorations in 2010 was also targeted.

As noted in the previous posting on developments in the Maldives, "the way Sharia's proponents tend to talk about brothels and prostitution as a scare tactic, you'd think every other house on the block was a whorehouse." Searching our archives on the term "prostitutes" or "whores" turns up these stories, Malaysia's "Obedient Wives Club," and warnings that this or that defiance of Sharia will let a thousand brothels bloom.

In all likelihood, it is the mixed company of men and women that suffices to get many such outfits branded as brothels in the current move to shut down all spas and health centers in resorts. One can't rule out the existence of a "massage parlor" of the wink-wink nudge-nudge variety, but the "threat" here seems deliberately overstated in order to shut down an entire sector of businesses.

"Concern over Maldives spa 'prostitution' closures," from BBC News, December 30 (thanks to Gl):

Tourism operators in the Maldives have expressed concern over a government order to shut down all spas and health centres in resorts.

The ban followed allegations by an opposition Islamist party that spas were being used for prostitution.

Tourism is a key foreign exchange earner for the Maldives.

The islands are a popular destination for wealthy honeymooners and celebrities where luxury rooms can cost up to $12,000 (£7,748) a day.

The Maldives Association of Tourism Industry said the ban would harm the economy. It has appealed for a resolution of the issue.

The tourism ministry on Thursday instructed all resort hotels across the hundreds of islands that make up the Maldives to shut down spas and health centres offering beauty treatments and massages with immediate effect.

Last week the opposition Adhaalath party, a conservative religious movement, staged a protest in the capital Male against such spas, arguing that they were being used as brothels.

"An Islamic party has been agitating against spas hoping to embarrass the government," a senior government figure told the AFP news agency....

The practice of any faith other than Sunni Islam is already illegal there, which only supports the drive to legislate accordingly. Indeed, the gradual implementation of stricter and stricter Sharia reaches a tipping point as one rule leads to another: if we are enforcing this rule, why not that? And that, and that? Hence the "jurisdictional creeping" seen in Britain's Sharia courts.

As even Imam Rauf knows, Sharia is a package deal. There can always be more enforcement, and there will always be someone who will demand more as the condition for a ruler's legitimacy, and be willing to fight and overthrow governments to see it implemented.

An update on this story. "Maldives 'considering' complete ban of alcohol and pork," from Haveeru Online, December 28 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

The government yesterday revealed its plan to completely ban alcohol and pork in the Maldives following the demands made by religious protestors on Friday.

The President's Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair told journalists that the government is considering imposing a nationwide ban on alcohol and pork in response to the demands made by religious protestors on Friday.

"As you are aware of, more than 400 locals are living in some large resorts whereas the population of an island consists of only 200-300. Therefore, the government is looking into ways to completely ban the sale of alcohol and pork throughout the Maldives," he said.

Five demands were put forward at the protest organised by the civil society coalition and opposition parties on Friday.

The demands include removing the SAARC monuments in Addu, condemning UN human rights chief Navi Pillay's comments about Islamic Sharia, not allowing Israeli airlines to operate flights, closing down the brothels in Male and a reversed decision on declaring areas of inhabited islands uninhabited in order to permit alcohol sales.

The way Sharia's proponents tend to talk about brothels and prostitution as a scare tactic, you'd think every other house on the block was a whorehouse.

Zuhair said the government will close down massage parlours in the country as such places are suspected of being run as brothels.

"Those places are not operated with a special permission from the government, but the government has now begun inspecting and classifying those places," he said.

Zuhair noted that the government will not obstruct any decision made by Addu City Council to remove the SAARC monuments set up in Addu.

Referring to the demand made to President Mohamed Nasheed to condemn the comments made by UN human rights chief Navi Pillay in Maldives, Zuhair said no controversial statements were made during the "courtesy call" she paid to the President.

He said the parliament could only respond to the comments she made at the parliament on flogging of women convicted of extra-marital sex, as the government did not arrange her to speak at the parliament.

The Press Secretary further stressed that the businessmen involved in the tourism sector will have to play a major role in preventing Israeli national airline from commencing operations to the Maldives.

"When tourists want to come they will first book the resort before booking the airline and if the resorts cancel their bookings they will not come to the Maldives. The airline will stop operations because it cannot run the business if there won't be any passengers to travel," he said.

But "Islamic Shariah is equal to peace," they insist, despite the fact that wherever Sharia experiences a resurgence, harassment increases and tolerance decreases. Extrajudicial punishments, vandalism, attempts to silence criticism, and calls for Sharia's most brutal penalties tend to follow. This situation is also unfolding in the already decidedly non-"moderate" Maldives.

More on this story. "Thousands demonstrate in Maldives over Islamic law," from the Associated Press, December 23:

MALE, Maldives (AP) — Thousands in the Maldives protested Friday, calling on the government to halt what they called "anti-Islamic" activities, including a plan to allow direct flights to Israel. More moderate supporters of the president rallied as well as debate swells over the future of the state's religion.

The Indian Ocean archipelago of 300,000 Muslims prohibits practicing any other faith.

Remember this when the president claims to stand for "moderate" Islam below. "Moderate" is a uselessly relative term, ultimately only defining someone who is somehow less "extreme" than the next guy.

The protesters want authorities to stop the sale of alcohol in the islands, shut down brothels operating in the guise of massage parlors and demolish monuments gifted by other countries marking a South Asian summit last month because they see them as idols.

More than 3,000 people heeded a protest call by the opposition Adhaalat, or Justice, Party and several other groups that accuse President Mohammed Nasheed's government of compromising principles of Islam and call for strict Islamic law.

"Islamic Shariah is equal to peace," read some placards carried by protesters.

Though the country is known more for its exquisite island resorts and does not allow stoning or executions, it is under scrutiny for its absence of religious freedom and for punishments such as public flogging.

Debates on religious issues have emerged since a group vandalized a monument gifted by Pakistan marking a South Asian summit last month with the image of Buddha. Buddhism was part of the present Islamic republic's history. An angry protest last month followed a call by United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay for the Maldives to end the punishment by flogging of women who are found to have had sex outside marriage.

That included a Facebook group calling for her death.

Other residents also rallied Friday in support of the president, who said he stands for a brand of moderate Islam traditionally practiced in the country and that it is vital to preserve the country's economic lifeline, tourism....

As this report notes, "the country of 300,000 people forbids practice of religions other than Sunni Islam," and our archives chronicle numerous other abuses. While the president lodges his protest here against stonings and amputations, the country's foreign minister has said that Sharia's punishments such as flogging for adultery are basic Islamic principles not up for debate. No one can argue with Allah, the foreign minister said.

"Maldives president condemns protest call from Islamic groups," from the Associated Press, December 19:

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The president of Maldives has condemned a protest planned by an Islamic party against what it calls anti-Islamic activities in the country.

A government statement Monday quoted President Mohamed Nasheed as saying that the real goal of the protest is the introduction of Islamic penalties such as stoning, amputations and executions.

Nasheed defended working women and said Maldives should continue to practice a moderate form of Islam that allows recreation, sports and music. [...]

The country of 300,000 people forbids practice of religions other than Sunni Islam.

This was another protest in need of a "Thank You for Proving Our Point" sign. Indeed, just last weekend, a rally against "extremism" in Tunisia was attacked by "Islamist" stone throwers.

"Protesters calling for religious tolerance attacked with stones, threatened with death," by JJ Robinson for Minivan News, December 10 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

Police are investigating a violent attack on a ‘silent protest’ calling for religious tolerance, held at the Artificial Beach to mark Human Rights Day.

Witnesses said a group of men threw rocks at the 15-30 demonstrators, calling out threats and vowing to kill them.

One witness who took photos of the attacked said he was “threatened with death if these pictures were leaked. He said we should never been seen in the streets or we will be sorry.”

Among those injured in the attack was Ismail ‘Khilath’ Rasheed, a controverisal blogger whose website was recently blocked by the Communications Authority of the Maldives (CAM) on the order of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs.

Rasheed suffered a head injury and was rushed to Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH).

“They started hitting us with bricks. They were aiming at our heads – we could tell they were serious and wanted to kill us,” Rasheed told Minivan News from hospital. “I was taken on a motorcycle to IGMH, but I could see them behind me still hitting my friends.”

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said police attended the scene after the attackers had departed, and were currently investigating the cause of the violence. No arrests had yet been made, he added.

The protesters, calling themselves ‘Silent Solidarity’, had earlier issued a press release stating that their intention was to “make the Maldives and the international community aware of the rising religious intolerance in the Maldives, and to condemn the Constitutionally endorsed suppression of religious freedom. We also denounce the increasing use being made of Islam as a tool of political power.”

“Silent Solidarity will be protesting against discrimination of all races, gender, sexual preferences and religious beliefs and supporting freedom of thought and expression. In our silence, we speak volumes,” the group’s statement said.

The Maldives has come under increasing international scrutiny following an apparent rise in religious intolerance.

Several monuments gifted to the Maldives by other SAARC countries during the recent summit in Addu have been defaced or stolen on the grounds that they are idolatrous. Islamic Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari has condemned the monuments while the opposition has hailed the vandals as “national heroes”.

Protests also erupted last month after UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay spoke in parliament calling for the government and the judiciary to issue a moratorium and debate on flogging as a punishment for extra-marital sex....

More fallout and general conspiracy paranoia in connection with this story. "Islamic Minister, MPs, PPM and religious groups condemn UN Human Rights Commissioner," by Ahmad Naish for Minivan News, November 27 (thanks to Ron):

Statements by visiting UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay calling for a moratorium on flogging as a punishment for fornication and criticising the Muslim-only clause for citizenship in the Maldivian constitution have been widely condemned by religious NGOs, public officials and political parties.

In an address delivered in parliament last Thursday, Pillay said the practice of flogging women found guilty of extra-marital sex “constitutes one of the most inhumane and degrading forms of violence against women, and should have no place in the legal framework of a democratic country.”

The UN human rights chief called for a public debate “on this issue of major concern.” In a press conference later in the day, Pillay called on the judiciary and the executive to issue a moratorium on flogging.

On article 9(d) of the constitution, which states “a non-Muslim may not become a citizen of the Maldives,” Pillay said the provision was “discriminatory and does not comply with international standards.”

Local media widely misreported Pillay as stating during Thursday evening’s press conference that she did not believe the Maldives had a Constitution, which prompted a great deal of public outrage. Her comment, however, was in response to a challenge from Miadhu Editor Gabbe Latheef, who asked “if you believe we have a Constitution, why are you speaking against our Constitution?”

“I don’t believe you have a Constitution, you have a constitution. The constitution conforms in many respects to universally respected human rights. Let me assure you that these human rights conform with Islam,” Pillay said on Minivan News’s recording of the press conference, however her phrasing was widely misinterpreted by the media.

Pleading for hypothetical, coulda-woulda-shoulda, academic-exercise Sharia does not change what Sharia actually is, as this story makes clear.

Shortly after Pillay’s speech in parliament, Islamic Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari told local media that “a tenet of Islam cannot be changed” and flogging was a hudud punishment prescribed in the Quran (24:2) and “revealed down to us from seven heavens.”

They said it, they cited the same chapter and verse that we have noted many times. Are they Islamophobes?

Bari noted that article 10 of the constitution established Islam as “the basis of all the laws of the Maldives” and prohibited the enactment of any law “contrary to any tenet of Islam,” adding that the Maldives has acceded to international conventions with reservations on religious matters such as marriage equality.

In his Friday prayer sermon the following day, Bari asserted that “no international institution or foreign nation” had the right to challenge the practice of Islam and adherence to its tenets in the Maldives.

Meanwhile, the religious conservative Adhaalath Party issued a statement on Thursday contending that tenets of Islam and the principles of Shariah were not subject to modification or change through public debate or democratic processes.

Adhaalath Party suggested that senior government officials invited a foreign dignitary to make statements that they supported but were “hesitant to say in public.”

The party called on President Mohamed Nasheed to condemn Pillay’s statements “at least to show to the people that there is no irreligious agenda of President Nasheed and senior government officials behind this.”

The Adhaalath statement also criticised Speaker Abdulla Shahid and MPs in attendance on Thursday for neither informing Pillay that she “could not make such statements” nor making any attempt to stop her or object to the remarks.

The party insisted that Pillay’s statements and the SAARC monuments in Addu City were “not isolated incidents” but part of a “broad scheme” by the government to “pulverize Islam in the Maldives and introduce false religions”.

Later that night, the Civil Society Coalition – a network of NGOs that campaigned successfully against regulations to allow sale of alcohol in city hotels to non-Muslims last year – announced a nation-wide mass protest on December 23 against the government’s alleged efforts to securalise the country.

Spokesperson Mohamed Didi claimed the current administration was pursuing an agenda to “wipe out the Islamic faith of the Maldivian people” through indoctrination and “plots” to legalize apostasy and allow freedom of religion.

Freedom of religion? Oh, the humanity!

He suggested that “the few people who cannot digest the religion of the people should immediately leave the country.”

The NGO coalition said it expected “over a 100,000 people” to participate in the planned protest.

Former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) announced today that it would join the protest. PPM interim council member and religious scholar MP Dr Afrashim Ali told newspaper Haveeru that Pillay “can’t say that to us” and condemned the statements on behalf of the party.

Afrashim called on the executive, parliament and judiciary to enact a law prohibiting any statements that “opposes the principles of Islam.”

In a statement today, religious NGO Islamic Foundation of Maldives (IFM) strongly condemned Pillay’s remarks and criticised MPs for not objecting at Thursday’s event.

Pillay’s statements in parliament amounted to calling on MPs “to legalize fornication and gay marriage,” IFM contended.

“Therefore, anyone who agrees to this surely becomes an apostate,” the statement reads. “And if this [fornication and homosexuality] is spread anywhere, Almighty God has warned that fire will be rained upon them from the seven heavens.”

Meanwhile, a Facebook group was formed yesterday with members calling for her to be “slain and driven out of the country.” The group currently has 207 members.

One member posted a banner to open a public debate on whether citizens should rise up and either “kill or lynch” those who “deny the Quran, not tolerate Islam and undermine the constitution.”....

Protesters called for the arrest of the UN human rights chief for criticizing and calling for debate on flogging for extra-marital sex, as is called for in Qur'an 24:2: "The woman and the man guilty of adultery or fornication,- flog each of them with a hundred stripes: Let not compassion move you in their case, in a matter prescribed by Allah, if ye believe in Allah and the Last Day: and let a party of the Believers witness their punishment."

Such debates have been branded "anti-Islamic issues," and the implication is clear that to challenge Sharia is to challenge Allah, which could conceivably bring its own set of charges (Qur'an 5:33) at some point in the Maldives' gallop toward full Sharia.

The phenomenon on display here is also the major obstacle to reforms in Islamic countries where human rights in general, and the rights of non-believers and women are concerned. "Maldives won't allow debates on anti-Islamic issues: Foreign Minister," by Ahmed Hamdhoon for Haveeru News Service, November 26 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

The government will not allow debates to be held in the Maldives on issues that are against the fundamentals of Islam, Foreign Minister Ahmed Naseem said today.

The minister's comments come two days after the UN human rights chief called for a public debate in the Maldives on the practice of flogging women found guilty of extra-marital sex.

Minister Naseem told Haveeru that the government would not open a basic Islamic principle such as flogging for public debate in the Maldives despite requests to do so.

"What's there to discuss about flogging? There is nothing to debate about in a matter clearly stated in the religion of Islam. No one can argue with God," he said.

"Our foreign ministry will not allow that to happen."

Naseem stressed that the government will not act against the views expressed by Islamic Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari on Navi Pillay's comments.

"The government will follow the recommendations given by the Islamic Ministry on religious issues. The government will not stand up against the views expressed by Bari, which is the view of the government [regarding Pillay's remarks]," he said.

"Maldives is a 100 percent Muslim country."

During her four-day visit to the country, Pillay told parliamentarians on Thursday that flogging women convicted of extra-marital sex is one of the most inhumane and degrading forms of violence against women.

"I strongly believe that a public debate is needed in Maldives on this issue of major concern," she said.

Pillay later told reporters that she held discussions with President Mohamed Nasheed, ministers and the judiciary on how to end the practice of flogging in the Maldives.

"At the very least, pending more permanent changes in the law, it should be possible for the government and the judiciary to engineer a practical moratorium on flogging," she proposed.

She also called on Maldivian authorities to remove the "discriminatory" constitutional provision that requires every citizen to be a Muslim.

"I would again urge a debate on that to open up the benefits of the constitution to all and to remove that discriminatory provision," she said.

Meanwhile, the UN human rights chief's comments sparked protests in capital Male with some calling for her arrest.

Protestors surrounded the UN Building yesterday, condemning Pillay's remarks and demanding an apology from the UN and parliamentarians.

Pillay's visit was the first such visit to the Maldives by a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

As the Maldives adopts more and more of Sharia, it becomes more and more intolerant. Here again we see that for some strange reason, those who -- according to Western Islamic apologists -- misunderstand their own religion of tolerance and peace seem to have the upper hand in a Muslim country. The Vast Majority of Moderates yet again fails to do anything to stop their supremacist coreligionists. Now, why is that?

"Intolerance grows in the Maldives," by Sudha Ramachandran in Asia Times, November 23 (thanks to all who sent this in):

BANGALORE - The rising tide of religious intolerance in the Maldives is threatening the country's young democracy.

Monuments donated by Pakistan and Sri Lanka were vandalized last week as they were seen to be "idolatrous" and "irreligious".

Member-countries of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) donated monuments to mark the just-concluded 17th summit of the regional grouping that the Maldives hosted.

The monument gifted by Pakistan consisted of an image of its founder, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, and also featured figures, some of them drawn from seals belonging to the ancient Indus Valley Civilization. Historians have argued that these figures of animals and human beings point to early religion. The Sri Lankan monument was of a lion, the country's national symbol.

On the eve of the unveiling of the Pakistan monument, a mob reportedly led by the opposition Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), the party of former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, toppled the bust of Jinnah. A day later, the monument was set ablaze and the bust stolen. The Sri Lankan monument was found doused in oil with the face of the lion cut off.

Sources in the Maldivian government told Asia Times Online that the vandalization was driven by political motivations rather than religious beliefs. "This is the opposition's way of damping the success of the SAARC summit," a member of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said.

The PPM has hailed the vandals as "national heroes" and promised to "do everything" it can to secure the release of the two men arrested over the incidents.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs has ordered the government to remove the monuments as they "breach the nation's law and religion". Islamic Affairs Minister Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari told the local media that the Pakistan monument was "illegal" as it "represented objects of worship of other religions".

Adhaalath Party president Sheikh Imran Abdulla told Minivan News that the monument "should not be kept on Maldivian soil for a single day" as "it conflicts with the constitution of the Maldives, the Religious Unity Act of 1994 and the regulations under the Act" as it depicted "objects of worship" that "denied the oneness of God".

Sunni Islam was declared the official state religion of the Maldives under the 1997 constitution. This was retained in the 2008 constitution. Article 9-d says that "a non-Muslim may not become a citizen of the Maldives". While the constitution allows non-Muslim foreigners to practice their religion privately, they are forbidden from propagating or encouraging Maldivians to practice any religion other than Islam....

One will recall the massive economic boycott and sanctions leveled against South Africa for the institution of apartheid there. The countries that practice Sharia's own, centuries-older version of apartheid, denying freedom of conscience, religion, worship, and equal status and rights, should not get a pass.

"Indian Catholic jailed in the Maldives over a Bible and a rosary," by Nirmala Carvalho for Asia News, October 7:

Mumbai (AsiaNews) – Shijo Kokkattu, an Indian Catholic from Kerala, has been languishing in a Maldives prison for more than a week because he had a Bible and a rosary at his home. Both items are banned on the archipelago.

“The lack of justice and the degree of religious intolerance” on the islands “are reflected by the actions of the Maldives government,” said Sajan K George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC). “This is the worst form of religious persecution. The Indian government should demand an apology for the shabby treatment inflicted on one of its citizens.”

Islam is state religion in the Maldives. There is no freedom of worship. In 2008, a constitutional amendment denied non-Muslims the right to obtain Maldivian citizenship.

Shijo, 30, has taught at Raafainu School on Raa Atoll for the past two years. Recently, whilst transferring some data from his pen drive to the school laptop, he accidentally copied Marian songs and a picture of Mother Mary into the system. Some teachers reported the matter to the police who raided his home and found a Bible and a rosary in his possession.

Shijo Kokkattu’s case shows the paradox of the Maldives, a nation that “claims to be a major tourist destination, yet arrests innocent people,” George said. “This shows its intolerance and discrimination towards non-Muslims as well as its restrictions on freedom of conscience and religion.”

“Religious freedom remains a taboo on the archipelago,” the GCIC president explained. “Muslims refuse all other forms of worship other than the one approved by the state. Doing the opposite means arrest. Kneeling, folding one’s hands or using religious symbols like crosses, candles, pictures or statues can lead to government action.”

For George, “All this is a clear violation of universal human rights. If Muslims living in non-Muslim countries can enjoy religious rights, the spirit of reciprocity should apply to countries like the Maldives and Saudi Arabia.”

This is the other side of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation's ongoing efforts to compel the West to criminalize "defamation of religion" -- that is, realistic and truthful portrayals of Islam. Once the foolish kuffar has done that, then this other shoe will eventually drop.

Islamic Tolerance Alert: "Religious Unity Regulation prohibits preaching a religion except Islam," from Haveeru Online, September 17 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

MALE, September 17 (HNS) – President’s Office has gazetted the controversial Religious Unity Regulation, declaring it an offence to preach a religion except Islam in the Maldives.

The 12-clause regulation makes it mandatory for preachers of Islam, both locals and foreigners, to have a first degree in a field of Islamic education from a ministry-approved college, university or centre....

The regulation, which instructs scholars to consider the social harmony, states practices that should be avoided in preaching Islam in the Maldives, including the practice of making comments in contradiction with prophetic traditions and majority view of the scholars....

The regulation also prohibits comments of hatred towards people of other religions, spreading a religion other than Islam and using an object that resembles a sign of a religion other than Islam.

A person who violates the regulation will be sentenced to 2-5 years in prison, banishment or house arrest.

"President of Islamic Foundation Ibrahim Fauzy told Minivan News last week that the Foundation does not recognise Israel as a state, asserting that 'it is also against our religion to have relationships with Jews'."

Just one example of such interfaith harmony can be found in Qur'an 5:51: "O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors: They are but friends and protectors to each other. And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them. Verily Allah guideth not a people unjust."

"Israeli eye surgeons visiting Maldives to 'illegally harvest organs', claims Islamic Foundation," by Ahmed Naish for Minivan News, November 29:

The Islamic Foundation of the Maldives has reiterated calls to the Maldives government to "shun all medical aid from the Zionist regime" with a team of seven Israeli eye surgeons due to arrive in the country next month, claiming that Isreali doctors and surgeons "have become notorious for illegally harvesting organs from non-Jews around the world."

An article on the Foundation's website titled "Beware of Israeli eye surgeons" claims Israeli medical teams have harvested organs from dead Haitians after the devastating earthquake that struck country as well as from Palestinians killed in fighting in the longstanding Arab-Isreali [sic] conflict.

"The health authorities in Maldives have to take utmost caution in allowing Israeli medical surgeons into this country and Maldivians who apply for treatment from these doctors have to take precautionary measures to avoid any foul play," it reads.

"So, keep an eye out for... I mean, uh, wait..."

A day after the government-run Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) announced the imminent arrival of the Israeli doctors, the Islamic Foundation called on the government not to normalise relations with the Jewish state or "accept any sort of assistance from Israel as long as they are in the lands of Palestine."

President of Islamic Foundation Ibrahim Fauzy told Minivan News last week that the Foundation does not recognise Israel as a state, asserting that "it is also against our religion to have relationships with Jews."...

Here is the video about which Marisol wrote here. The marriage celebrant has now been arrested. One does wonder, however, how many other marriages he has celebrated. Mocking the kuffar is good fun until it could start having a negative impact upon the tourism industry. "Maldives arrest marriage celebrant after 'hate' ceremony," from AFP, October 29 (thanks to Ima):

COLOMBO (AFP) - Police in the Maldives have arrested a marriage celebrant who abused a foreign couple as "swine" and "infidels" during a luxury ceremony in the holiday paradise, an official said.

Maldivian police spokesman Ahmed Shiyam said the celebrant, who conducted the ceremony in the local language at an upmarket resort fringed by white sand and turquoise water, had been arrested with another hotel employee on Thursday.

A video of the ceremony, during which the hapless couple are taunted and subjected to a series of insulting and religious-tinged abuse, was posted on YouTube and has sparked fears for the country's tourism-dependent economy....

"You are swine," the couple were told. "The children that you bear from this marriage will all be bastard swine.

"Your marriage is not a valid one. You are not the kind of people who can have a valid marriage. One of you is an infidel. The other, too, is an infidel and, we have reason to believe, an atheist."

The wife, wearing a white dress and carrying a bouquet, and her husband smile shyly through the ceremony, which was to renew their marriage vows at a cost of 1,300 dollars.

In front of a table decorated with incense sticks, the English-speaking couple bow their heads in prayer through the torrent of accusations, curses and swearing from the celebrant.

At the end of the 15-minute routine, they exchange rings as the staff clap, before heading onto the beach to plant a coconut tree in the sand.

The Islamic republic of the Maldives, a nation of palm-fringed islands scattered in the Indian Ocean, is one of the world's most exclusive honeymoon destinations and its economy relies heavily on tourism.

No law contrary to the tenets of Islam can be enacted in the Maldives, and while this report doesn't mention it (and in the full version tries to establish otherwise), Islamic law mandates that apostates from Islam be killed. Islamic Tolerance Alert: "First prisoner of conscience in Nasheed's Maldives," from Maldives Dissent, May 30 (thanks to Sharif):

Mohamed Nazim, a man who posed a question to Wahhabi televengalist Zakir Naik has become the country's first prisoner of conscience since president since Nasheed took office in 2008.

Nazim asked Naik the verdict in Islam for individuals who were still struggling to decide on faith in a country such as the Maldives, where most people practise religion not by choice but because they inherited it from their parents.

Naik's jumbled response that the Maldives government should decide the plight of such people suggests that he hadn't properly researched the country to which he had come to lecture. Clearly unused to intelligent debate, Naik then went on the insult Nazim's knowledge of Islam and education.

"Don't try to be too smart," he told Nazim. "I have to educate you from scratch."

Following the exchange, a section of Naik's auidence hounded Nazim and allegedly attacked him before police took him away.

The latest news is that police have now obtained a court order to extend Nazim's detention. But Maldivian judges have not extended similar cooperation to police for people accused of murder, child abuse and rape.

Mohamed Nazim did say he was not a believer of Islam, but it could be argued that he was speaking hyphothetically to elicit an answer from Zakir Naik. Only Nazim himself can verify his religous stance.

Nazim has effectively become the country's first prisoner of conscience since Mohamed Nasheed, a self-professed champion of free speech and democracy, took office.

While Article 9 (b) of the Maldives constitution states a citizen of Maldives may not be deprived of citizenship, 9 (d) states that a non-Muslim may not become a citizen of the Maldives. And, Article 10 states that state religion is Islam and that no law contrary to any tenet of Islam shall be enacted in the Maldives. [...]

To my knowledge none of Nazim's alleged attackers have been arrested for taking the law into their hands, even though they must have been caught on TV.

Meanwhile, although Naik himself is reported to have said things which might be contrary to Maldivian law, such as promoting under-aged marriage, no one has called for the arrest of the preacher yet.

The bill is full of tolerance, however: it allows non-Muslims to worship in private homes.

This is one of those stories where it becomes bitterly ironic -- those who report on this will be called "Islamophobic," but no one will particularly mind that the Maldives is systematically stamping out the freedom of religion in the name of Islam.

Islamic Tolerance Alert: "Islamic President requests ruling on non-Muslim worship," by Ahmed Naish for Minivan News, November 21:

President Mohamed Nasheed said yesterday he would seek advice from religious scholars on Islam's position on allowing non-Muslims to worship in an Islamic community.

In his radio weekly address, the president said the constitution was "very clear" that laws contrary to Islam could not be made or enacted.

"It has become very important for me to find out what Islamic sharia says about not allowing foreigners who want to worship other religions in the Maldives," he said.

"When this bill comes from the People's Majlis for the president to ratify, the question before me will be what is the ruling in Islamic sharia on people of other religions living in an Islamic community to worship?"

The president said he needed an answer to the question before ratifying the bill. "When I know, it will be easier for me to make a decision on ratify the bill before it becomes law," he said.

Banned

Last week, a bill proposed by independent MP Ibrahim Muttalib Fares-Maathoda on outlawing places of worship for non-Muslims was sent to committee for further review with unanimous consent of all MPs who participated in the vote.

At the sitting, Muttalib said he learned that inquiries had been made with the government on establishing places of worship for expatriates and there was no law to forbid it.

"The other thing we have to think about today is that the government is considering establishing wedding tourism in the country and this will indirectly set up churches in the country," he said.

Horror of horrors!

While the bill states that foreigners or expatriates will be allowed to worship in the privacy of their homes, involving Maldivians or encouraging them to participate will be an offence.

The bill specifies a jail term of three to five years or a fine of between Rf36,000 (US$2,800) and Rf60,000 (US$4,669) for those in violation of the law.

Several MPs called for longer jail terms and higher fines, while others said foreigners in violation of the law should be deported.

But, some MPs argued the law was unnecessary as the constitution states that Islam shall be the basis of all laws and non-Muslims cannot be citizens.

Most MPs said laws were needed to seal off all avenues to freedom of religion being established in the Maldives.

Rights for Muslims

Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed, state minister for Islamic affairs, told Minivan News today the president's office had not officially asked for the ministry's advice.

"But the matter has been sent to the Fiqh academy and they will issue a decree on it," he said. Shaheem said he believed laws should be made to protect Islam and strengthen Maldivians' faith.

"Right now, Muslims aren't getting their rights," he said. "For example, there's no way for students to pray at schools, you can't get some jobs if you wear the burqa and there are some jobs where you can't grow beards."

He added the ministry had drafted regulations under the Religious Unity Act of 1994 together with the police and sent it to the president's office.

The regulations will be published in the government gazette next week, he continued, and would provide a legal framework to protect Islam.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Abdullah bin Mohamed Ibrahim, president of religious NGO Salaf Jamiyya, said he believed the bill was necessary to safeguard Islam.

"What the president said doesn't match what was in the bill," he said. "The bill is about making it illegal to build places of worship for non-Muslims. It doesn't make it illegal for foreigners to pray in their rooms or houses."

Abdullah said the association had information that Christian missionaries were trying to infiltrate the country and proselytize in the Maldives.

"I believe the bill is essential because the constitution does not forbid building places of worship," he said.

American law students are drafting Sharia code for the Maldives. From Daniel Pipes at FrontPage, with thanks to DC Watson:

Today, July 26, 2004, is the day any of you who are students at the University of Pennsylvania Law School must get in your resumé and a grade sheet if you want to participate in the newly-announced seminar on "Islamic Criminal Law: Drafting a Criminal Code for the Maldives."

The law school's registrar, Gloria Watts, sent out a notice informing students of changes in the fall semester's course offerings, as first noted at LittleGreenFootballs.com. One of the them is that Paul H. Robinson, Colin S. Diver Distinguished Professor of Law, cancelled his "Criminal Law Theory Seminar" and replaced it with the three-credit Maldive project. Robinson's course description explains the reasons for the shift in the seminar's topic and its urgency:

The seminar will revolve around a single project: drafting a new criminal code for the Maldives. The work has been requested by the Maldivian government and is sponsored by the United Nations Development Program. Because the Maldives is by constitutional mandate an Islamic nation and, as a matter of law, all citizens are Muslim, the code will be the world's first criminal code of modern format that is based upon the principles of Shari'a.

After studying the existing Maldivian criminal law statutes and the criminal law principles contained in Shari'a, student teams will propose criminal code provisions and critique the proposals of others.

Selected students will have the opportunity to travel to the Maldives as part of the U.N. mission to coordinate the criminal code drafting work. (The Maldives is a nation of 1200 islands in the Indian Ocean that has for centuries been a transit point between Africa, the Middle East, and Asia and continues to have strong cultural connections to all three.)