Archive 7 - 11th January 2005

Tuesday 11 January 2005

AFP News
Kofi Annan urges world to look beyond deaths to survivors
MALE (AFP) - UN chief Kofi Annan wrapped up his tour of tsunami-battered countries urging the international community to look beyond casualty figures and stump up with a billion dollars immediately to help survivors.
As he left the Maldives after a 24-hour visit, the UN secretary general told reporters that although death and destruction in this tiny Indian Ocean atoll nation was not as bad as in other Asian countries, it had paid a high social price. read more

DO Readers' Review
Gayyooms' Multimillion Dollar Luxury Yacht 'MV Arumaazu' and Expensive Rolex Watch Collection Should be Sold on e-bay.com to Raise Funds for Relief and Reconstruction
Your Excellency, we believe you! Yes, we need billions of dollars! we don't believe anyone but you, we will not ask any questions for we are not worth it, you are the smartest of all leaders and the most loved leader mankind has ever seen. We know that you will get homes for all Maldivians by 2020. We promise to buy you the biggest luxury yacht ever in the world and to covert the whole of Male' and HulhuMale' and the Airport in Hulhule to the Grandest Palace in the world for you by 2525. We can raise more than 30 million dollars by getting rid of these unnecessary luxuries for now. read more

DO Readers' Review
Everyone should ask about where the funds go
There is every reason to be concerned about misappropriation of funds that have been committed by the international donor agencies and contributions by well wishers from around the world. Let us look at some of the historical events. First and foremost the person in charge of looking after the grand kitty for disaster relief at the Ministry of Finance and Treasury is Riluvan Shareef who actually held all the private sector sponsorship proceeds of the 1990 World Cup live telecast in a Bank of Maldives account held at their Majeedi Magu Branch. While there was a designated revenue account of the then Telecommunications Department (a government parastatal-a state-owned enterprise where the liability is fully borne by the Government of Maldives. If it is partly or jointly owned it's called a Joint-Venture Co. (JVC), e.g. Dhiraagu) Riluvan Shareef created this new Bank Account in breach of the Government Financial Regulations issued by the Audit Office. He later admitted not knowing about such a regulation. To date we do not know what happened to the money. Riluvan Shareef has yet to answer. He is unfit to be in charge of such an operation and therefore should let someone else take charge. read more

Australian Prime Minister John Howard's speech on tsunami
Our nation will continue to help other affected countries. For example, Australian police officers are playing a leading role in identifying victims in Thailand and arrangements are in hand to send schoolteachers to the Maldives and scientific experts to help in repairing the damage to that country's coral reef system.
The spontaneous outpouring of generosity from individual Australians in the last two weeks should be a source of pride to us all. Well in excess of $100 million has been pledged by individuals and companies in a great expression of the decency and good heart of the people of our nation.
This catastrophe has brought the world closer together in a spirit of common humanity. It has been a brutal reminder of the force of nature but also of the inspiring capacity of mankind to ease the suffering of others in their hour of need.
Australia, in its distinctive practical way, will remain in the forefront of helping those who have lost and suffered so much. read more
 

Sunday Times
Don't forget the rest of the world
Richard Curtis, the comedy writer and film director, had his plans for 2005 all worked out. Then the Asian tsunami struck
It’s been a terrible and terribly strange 10 days. My girlfriend and I were having breakfast on a beach in the Maldives when the sea level suddenly rose to our waists. We raced to find our children — and found one neck-deep in water, surrounded by floating furniture. Two others were sitting scared on a bench 50 yards inland. read more

Press Trust of India
Scientists warn of tsunami threat in Orissa, Mumbai
The Consortium of Indian Scientists (CIS) on Sunday cautioned the Centre that coasts of Mumbai and Orissa could be hit by tsunami anytime in the near future and disaster management cell should be in place to tackle the potential threat.
The Consortium, which had prepared a map taking the data from various sources including World Meteorological Department and other seismic centres in India, warned a possible tsunami due to undersea earthquakes in the south Asian region. read more
 

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Monday 10 January 2005

Local News

Villingili people occupies Ga Atoll Office
Villingili in North Huvadu Atoll was badly affected by tsunami that hit the Maldives on 26 of December last year. Many houses were destroyed and people had to be evacuated to nearby islands. They went to these islands on their own and with the help of people from nearby islands. No help received from the government for 60 hours and the communication was broken down with Male.
For the past 12 days the people of Villingili have been cleaning their island and they have been expecting relief aid from the government. What they receive is controlled by the Atoll Chief Abdurahman Mohamed and he got his own men in the distribution of relief aid in the island. They never give aid to anyone except for the supporters of Fathimath Sheerin who is a candidate to the upcoming election to the parliament. The Atoll Chief had his own gang of men who are supportive of Fathimath Sheerin.
So when things went too bad the people of Villingili went to the Atoll Office and occupied the building. Many people were even on top of the roof. The men demanded the Atoll Chief to do justice in the distribution of relief aid to tsunami victims of Villingili. The people remained there occupying the building till late evening. Then the NSS police went to Atoll Office and tried to snatch a man from the crowed by pulling on his neck. For this action the crowed got very angry and demanded the police to go away. Though the police didn't go and went inside the Office and protected the Atoll
Chief. The drama went on till dark and finally the Atoll Chief Abdurahman Mohamed left the island fearing his safety.

DO Readers' Review
Politicizing Religion: A Dangerous Game
The devastation wrecked by the Tsunami in the Maldives is akin to dabbing salt over the wound which was the already infected collective psyche of the Maldivian people. For all educated women and men throughout the world at the beginning of the 21st century, it would be quite apparent without having to undergo a crash course in psychoanalysis or counselling that the way we perceive natural disasters or other such phenomenon and its effects on our lives in relation to our places in the universe has a direct consequence on how we feel about ourselves, and by default, about the meaning of our lives in this world. read more

Turkish Press
Blue whale washes ashore in tsunami-hit Maldivian beach
FULL MOON, Maldives (AFP) - A blue whale has washed ashore at a deluxe tourist resort island in the Maldives, complicating the nation's struggle to clean its formerly pristine beaches in the wake of the tsunami disaster.
The National Security Service (NSS) deployed 30 men to remove the carcass of the 70-foot-long whale that turned up on the five-star Full Moon island resort, 15 minutes by speedboat from the capital island Male. read more

Reuters
Time to put Maldives back on the map - literally
KOLHUFUSHI, Maldives (Reuters) - Some parts of the Maldives were so severely lashed by last month's tsunami that the government says the map of the paradise cluster of nearly 1,200 tiny islands literally needs to be redrawn. If the view from a low-flying seaplane is anything to go by, it is easy to see why.
A sweep over the large Hakuraa Club Resort in the southern reaches of the Indian Ocean island chain reveals how waves have torn into the centre of the crescent shaped island and sucked out tonnes of sand. The roof of a beach bungalow floats oddly intact near Medhufushi Resort, surrounded by wood that used to be the rest of the building.read more

Manila Times
Maldives' endangered paradise clings to tourist dream
KANDOOMA, Maldives: Fears a rise in sea level could wipe the Maldives off the face of the earth had added to the exoticism of the atoll resort nation, but no one was ready for a snap dress rehearsal.
The manager Mohamed Wafir of this tiny hotel island is still thanking god none of his 210 guests was trapped inside their rooms when, out of the blue, the sea came crashing in on the day after Christmas. read more

stuff.co.nz
Geography, planning spare Maldives tsunami's worst
MALE: Standing on the rock that is the Maldives' highest point and looking down on the Indian Ocean less than 3 metres below, it is easy to see why this nation of low-lying atolls fears rising sea-levels will one day wipe it off the map.
What is less easy to understand is why that nightmare did not become a reality the day after Christmas when a giant tsunami crushed fishing villages and tourist resorts across Asia. read more

memritv.org

Advisor to Saudi Justice Minister, Ibrahim Al-Bashar: Affected Nations Were Destroyed for Lying, Sinning, and Being Infidels

Al-Bashar: Whoever reads the Koran, given by the Maker of the World, can see how these nations were destroyed. There is one reason: they lied, they sinned, and were infidels. Whoever studies the Koran can see this is the result. Some intellectuals, philosophers and journalists - may Allah show them the straight path – say this is the wrath of nature. Whoever is angry must have a soul and a brain in order to act out his anger. Does the earth have a brain and a body with a soul? They talk about the wrath of nature, or else they claim that what happened was due to a fissure in the depths of the earth, which the earth's crust could not bear. They connect cosmic matters. read more

memritv.org
Palestinian Friday Sermon by Sheik Mudeiris: Tsunami Allah's Revenge at Bangkok Corruption
The following are excerpts from a Friday sermon on Palestinian Authority TV by Sheik Ibrahim Mudeiris:
Mudeiris: What happened there, in South-East Asia… We ask God to have mercy upon all the martyrs - for he who dies by drowning is a martyr. We ask God to have mercy upon all the Muslims who died there. Allah willing, they are martyrs. But, don't you think that the wrath of the earth and the wrath of the sea – should make us reflect? Tens of thousands dead, and many predict that the number will be in the hundreds of thousands. We ask God for forgiveness. When oppression and corruption increase, the law of equilibrium applies. I can see in your eyes that you are wondering what the "universal law of equilibrium" is. This law is a divine law. If people are remiss in implementing God's law and in being zealous and vengeful for His sake, Allah sets his soldiers in action to take revenge. read more

memritv.org
Saudi Cleric Muhammad Al-Munajjid: Allah Finished Off Richter Scale in Vengeance Against Infidel Criminals
The following are excerpts from an interview with Saudi cleric Muhammad Al-Munajjid:
Al-Munajjid: The problem is that the (Christian) holidays are accompanied by forbidden things, by immorality, abomination, adultery, alcohol, drunken dancing, and… and revelry. A belly dancer costs 2500 pounds a minute and a singer costs 50,000 pounds an hour, and they hop from one hotel to another from night to dawn. Then he spends the entire night defying Allah. read more

memritv.org
Allah Punishes Homosexuality and Fornication at Christmas - Saudi Professor Sheik Al-Fawzan
The following are excerpts from an interview with sheik Fawzan Al-Fawzan, a professor at the Al-Imam University
Al-Fawzan: These great tragedies and collective punishments that are wiping out villages, towns, cities, and even entire countries, are Allah's punishments of the people of these countries, even if they are Muslims.
Some of our forefathers said that if there is usury and fornication in a certain village, Allah permits its destruction. We know that at these resorts, which unfortunately exist in Islamic and other countries in South Asia, and especially at Christmas, fornication and sexual perversion of all kinds are rampant. The fact that it happened at this particular time is a sign from Allah. It happened at Christmas, when fornicators and corrupt people from all over the world come to commit fornication and sexual perversion. That's when this tragedy took place, striking them all and destroyed everything. It turned the land into wasteland, where only the cries of the ravens are heard. I say this is a great sign and punishment on which Muslims should reflect. read more

News24.com
Maldives blames scientists
Male - The Maldives on Sunday blamed scientists for not sharing information that could have reduced the tsunami destruction across Asia as the UN secretary general vowed to improve infrastructure in hard-hit nations.
Maldivian foreign minister Fathulla Jameel said the death and damage in the Indian Ocean atoll nation could have been minimised if authorities had been alerted when the tsunamis began after an undersea earthquake near Indonesia. read more

News24.com
Maldives tsunami bill $4.8bn
Male - The damage to the Maldives from the Asian tsunami catastrophe was Wednesday estimated at $4.8b.
"This includes the damages that have been done to the livelihoods of everyone ranging from fishermen to traders in addition to the destruction caused to property," said planning minister Hamdoon Hameed.
He said damage to privately-owned resorts on the Indian Ocean atoll nation was at least $100m. read more

Local News
Annan visits the task force and Gayyoom meets him in Kurumba Village

Male' - Kofi Annan today visited the Relief Centre - Tsunami Task Force in Male' and rubbed shoulders with the Maldivian government elite. No formal statements have been issued as yet by the UN Secretary General.

Also, the Dictator has met with Mr. Annan in the resorts where Annan is staying and has so far refrained from showing Annan his multi-million dollar palace and office complex. Many locals believe that after the recent exposure of his tyranny to the world, Gayyoom is a little conscious about his lavish lifestyle and to show off his billionaire lifestyle to diplomats like the UN Secretary General. On the other hand, it is possible that Annan did not accept such an invitation because he does not want to be seen to the wider world as being a supporter of a renowned tyrant, a dying breed.

Madam Nasreena also met Mrs. Annan in the resort and not in Male'. It is unlikely that Annan will get a tour of the Grand Place of Asia 'Theemuge'.

DO has not been able to contact any officials of Annan or his staff in Kurumba Village, they seem to be always unavailable and lines get cut off. Perhaps another way Gayyoom controls people from contacting this high profile delegation.

BBC News
Paradise lost in the Maldives?
The United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan visited the tsunami-struck islands of the Maldives on Sunday in his tour of countries affected by the Indian Ocean tsunami.
His tour was to include ruined plantations, destroyed villages, as officials warn about the possible collapse of the tourist industry on which the country depends.
The tsunami has shattered the lives of the population. Adamu Abdul-Qayyoom, a retired fisherman, has lived 74 years on the Maldives and had never seen anything like it. read more

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Sunday 9 January 2005

Local News
Kofi Annan arrives in Maldives to witness Tsunami devastation

Secretary General of the United Nations Dr. Kofi Annan arrived in the Maldives today and is expected to visit some of the worst hit islands in Meemu Atoll and Dhaalu Atoll. He was received at the airport by Foreign Minister Fathulla Jameel and Deputy Minister Hussain Shihab. Gayyoom did not receive him personally because he is angry about the treatment he got in Indonesia. Annan will be taken to specific islands which were devastated by the tsunami. This is an opportunity for Gayyoom to get more aid allocated through UN which is managing the whole relief program in the region. We Maldivians are not expected to benefit from any cash pledges to Gayyoom's relief fund.

What we must not forget is that this high profile visit by the Secretary General of the UN to the Maldives is non-political and for humanitarian purposes. It was not because of our great Dictator but because UN wants see the situation on the ground and be seen to care about the larger countries that are affected by this disaster as well as the smaller ones like ours.

Dr. Annan will be staying in Maldives for 2 days and is expected to depart on 11th.

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Local News
Munavvaru arrives in Addu to a hero's welcome

Dr. Munavvaru was received at Gan airport by more than 300 people yesterday. He is the incumbent member of parliament for Addu and was tipped to win the elections which will take place this month. However, far from securing his seat, he was not even allowed to contest as treason charges were brought against him for participating in the 13th August democracy demonstrations. Dr Munavvaru was held in solitary confinement without charge for more than 2 months for participating in the demonstration.

Dr. Munavvaru is hailed as a hero especially after he left the government and joined the reformists. It is believed that Dr. Munavvaru will endorse the candidacy of reformists standing for Addu seats, Aslam and Shareef who are the front runners in the current general election.

Many political analysts believe that although Dr. Munavvaru served two terms in Gayyoom's government as Attorney General, they never really got on well because Munavvaru was a man of principles with an intellectual capacity that Gayyoom envied.

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Local News
Fishing is the new trend and the catch is higher than average

Now that the tourism sectors is not performing as it did before with a fall of more than 40% in bookings, one good thing is that the fishing community is performing well. Local fish catch has been more than average over the past week after people have taken to the seas on 1st January. Sources in Male' as well as in Atolls have reported good fish catches and are expecting this trend to continue. The question now is whether the Government and the private sector and buy the stock from the fisherman and provide them with finances to start rebuilding their lives. The common sentiment is that people will have to build their own homes and that even if Gayyoom gets money from international sources for rebuilding of homes of the homeless, that money will not reach the people. Maldivians are used to this and are not expecting any goodwill gestures or responsible response to the crisis from Gayyoom. "All this aid money will go to his private accounts, we know that" said a refugee from Dhiffushshi in Male' Atoll, many of whom were forced to abandon the island and come to Male'. "We will build our homes" he further added. "All these years we survived on our own and we will survive once again" he concluded.

Local News
Abdulla Hameed rejects decentralisation

Reliable sources have confirmed that Atolls Minister Abdulla Hameed is not keen on decentralisation and moving populations to larger islands. The island chiefs as well as Atoll Chiefs are very much in support of the idea and do not want to move to another island. The population is not consulted on this matter and their fate is being sealed by Gayyoom's brother Hameed. According to very reliable sources, people who have been displaced do not want to go back to their small islands but are being forced to return. In fact some have already returned without even having a place to live. If they go against the will of Hameed, prison cell for life is the only other option.

Local News
Heath Minister Aneesa not concerned about any diseases but official stats draws another picture

According to Maldives Health Minister Aneesa, there is nothing to be worried about. There are no calls for concern and there is no outbreak of any disease in Maldives. However, according to official figures from the Tsunami Task Force (the Maldives cabinet) more than 30 persons per day is being diagnosed with diarrhoea. The latest figures show 483 people with diarrhoea and 320 with viral fever. This is something to be seriously concerned about but perhaps the minister has more resources at her disposal than we know.

Saturday 8 January 2005

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EU Business
EU official wants temporary European shelter for tsunami children
Italy's European Union commissioner Franco Frattini proposed Friday that EU countries should provide temporary shelter to child victims of the tsunamis that devastated parts of south Asia.
"Thousands of European families are willing to receive them," he said in an interview with Friday's edition of the Italian newspaper La Repubblica. read more

 

CBC Arts
Jet Li recounts tsunami ordeal
HONG KONG - Jet Li described on Friday how he survived the Dec. 26 tsunami in South Asia for the crowd at a charity concert in Hong Kong.
Li, the star of such martial-arts pictures as Hero and The One, was vacationing at a resort in the Maldives when the massive wave hit. read more

 

Times Online
Maldives cancellations slow down
Holidaymakers abandoning Thailand and Sri Lanka but cancellations are slowing for the Maldives.
Holiday bookings to Thailand and Sri Lanka have slumped even though most resorts in the countries remain untouched by the tsunami.
The Foreign Office has adviced against all but essential travel to Sri Lanka and the resort areas of Khao Lak and Phi Phi in Thailand. The number of arrivals at Bangkok airport fell 27 per cent in the first three days of the year, and Thai resorts are losing a reported £6m a day.
But with the FCO not advising against travel to the Maldives, tour operators are continuing to run charter flights to the islands, where only 19 of 87 resorts are closed. read more

 

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Book Review

 

 

The revolution of America presented in politics what was only theory in mechanics. So deeply rooted were all the governments of the old world, and so effectually had the tyranny and the antiquity of habit established itself over the mind, that no beginning could be made in Asia, Africa, or Europe, to reform the political condition of man. Freedom had been hunted round the globe; reason was considered as rebellion; and the slavery of fear had made men afraid to think. read more

 

The hygiene packs are being sent to the Maldives on Monday

BBC News
Princes help prepare tsunami aid
Princes William and Harry have been working as volunteers in a warehouse sending aid to tsunami victims. The brothers helped preparing and loading hygiene packs for the Red Cross at Warmley, South Gloucs, on Friday.
They are the first royals to take part in the relief effort and specifically asked to be physically involved after being moved to tears by TV coverage. read more

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Tsunami News

US$ 300,000 gone missing from relief fund of Gayyoom says Chief of Staff Mohamed Zahir

Male' - According to an associate of the Maldives Chief of Staff Two-Two Mohamed Zahir, and head of Services Section of the newly formed Tsunami Relief Task Force, US$ 300,000 has gone missing from the relief funds already. General Two-Two said so in a private conversation with a friend.

In Maldives, even accusing Gayyoom or a government entity of fraud or embezzlement of public funds or corruption will land you a prison sentence, with or without a trial. People talk of such misdemeanours quite openly and with jubilation, with expressions such as 'you see, as we expected, the money have started to go missing! amazing, isn't it! Gayyoom is so clever!'. Maldivians are too scared to do anything about it.
 

Maldives: President rides out tsunami in safety while country floods
Maldives President Maumoon Gayyoom fled to deep water on his luxury yacht accompanied by NSS security vessels, and left the people of his country at the mercy of the tsunami, without as much as attempting to initiate public warning. Two hours after the tsunami had hit, he returned to the capital Male to take charge.
The Maldives is a small island nation 745 miles south of India in the Indian Ocean. The archipelago of 1192 low-lying coral islands is spread across hundreds of kilometres of ocean. The average height above sea level is just one metre. For many years it has asked bigger, more powerful nations to act on global warming. So when the tsunami hit the nation on December 26, many of the islands were entirely flooded by the surging waves, including much of the capital, Male. read more

 

Friday 7 January 2005

Editorial
Gayyoom doesn't even know how many Maldivians there are, so how can they assess anything?
It is quite unbelievable to see that the Assessment of Damage Report published by the Tsunami Disaster Task Force is based on population projections for the mid-year 2004 rather than actual figures. This is highly unprofessional because we are no longer dealing with just numbers but people. If the government cannot provide actual population figures, then the total homeless, displaced, injured and the death toll including the missing people will not reflect the true picture. read more

Disco Saleem jailed for over a month because police thought he was writing for DO

Ahmed Saleem, otherwise known as Disco Saleem, has recounted the horrors of being in jail for political reasons in the Maldives.
Saleem was taken to the Police Headquarters on Oct 23, 2004, after a Police raided is work place - the State Trading Organisation (STO). He said that the hard drive of his PC was among the items seized. read more

 

Minivan News
Japan to give $16 million to the Maldives
(Kyodo) Japan pledged Thursday to provide $80 million to Sri Lanka and $16 million to the Maldives in grants to help the countries after the earthquake-triggered tsunamis in the Indian Ocean, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said. read more
 

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Tsunami Victims
A young boy is looking for his family
An email to DO said that this boy who is about 2 years old, from Khoa Lak is looking for his parents his
parents.Nobody knows what country he comes from. If anyboy known him or can help further please contact by phone 076-249400-4 ext. 1336, 1339
or e- mail :
info@phuket-inter-hospital.co.th
To view larger image please click here

Financial Express
Leaders put $4 bn to work at tsunami summit
World leaders began putting $4 billion in aid pledged for tsunami survivors to work on Thursday, the urgency of their task conveyed in chilling warnings that more carnage may be discovered and the death toll will climb.
At a one-day crisis summit in the Indonesian capital, the leaders welcomed debt relief for countries hit by the December 26 disaster and supported the creation of a tsunami early warning system to prevent awful loss of lives in the future. As people around the world poured out their hearts and emptied their wallets for victims, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appealed at the summit for $977 million, covering basic humanitarian needs for an estimated five million people in the next six months. read more

Divernet News
Tsunami disaster - dive centres report order in the chaos
The tsunami disaster in South-east Asia has taken so many lives, and wrecked those of so many survivors. Families have been broken through loss, and thousands of people have seen uninsured homes and businesses destroyed.
From the point of view of leisure scuba-diving, a number of divers and snorkellers are believed to have died in the tsunami. Others, holidaying from all over the world, have described their experiences when the wave went through as they dived in open water. Some have spoken of suddenly reduced visibility and being surged up and down, others of being spun as if in a washing machine.
read more

Maldives fears diseases from washed up corpses
MALE (AFP) - The Maldives fears the bodies of Asia's tsunami victims will wash up on its pristine beaches and increase the risk of disease, a minister said Thursday.
"There had been two or three bodies washed ashore, but we can't be sure if they are of our own people or not," the tiny Indian Ocean holiday spot's defence minister Ismail Shafeeu told AFP here. "The currents move in such a way that people washed into the sea in other countries could end up here." "These bodies also bring the risk of disease." He said those bodies, possibly from the December 26 tsunamis that struck across 11 nations in and around the Indian Ocean region, were too badly decomposed for identification. read more

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BBC News
Tsunami's salt threat to islands
Water supplies on some Indian Ocean islands may have been ruined for years or decades by the salt water that flooded them during the Asian tsunami. It means communities may be reliant on outside aid for the foreseeable future. Reports from across the stricken region suggest salt water filled wells and invaded porous rocks which communities depend on for their water supply. Atolls in the Maldives may be worst affected; islanders may have to wait for rains to flush out water systems. read more

Coast Guard helps Tsunami-struck Maldives:
[India News]: Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 6 : Braving inclement weather and hostile conditions, the Indian Coast Guard has taken the lead role in bringing relief to the tsunami-hit Maldives where life is getting back to normal, 11 days after the disaster hit the Indian ocean shoreline. read more

 

Couple escape from Maldives tsunami
A COUPLE who got engaged on a paradise island days before it was wiped away by the Asian earthquake have told how a cancelled scuba diving lesson may have saved their lives.
Matt Vaughan-Williams, from Bury St Edmunds, and his fiancée Vikki Smith, had planned the scuba session in the Maldives on the day the tsunami hit – but it was called off just hours before. read more