Growing pains for Maldives as radicals raise tensions

Posted: 31 October 2007 1357 hrs Maldivian women walk past the Grand Friday Mosque in Male MALE: The Maldives has built South Asia's most successful economy based on luxury tourism, but the atoll nation is now facing religious tensions as it undergoes a difficult transition to democracy. The tranquillity of the paradise holiday destination was shattered in September when Islamic radicals set off a home-made bomb, wounding 12 foreign tourists. The attack was followed by a clash between troops and Taliban-style fundamentalists who want women to be completely covered, singing banned and no schooling for girls. The government has hit back with restrictions to prevent militant Islam spreading in the moderate nation, home to 330,000 Sunni Muslims on 1,192 tiny coral islands scattered across the equator. "We are going through a process of cultural change, an opening of our society," Tourism Minister Mahamood Shougee said. "But as much as we can't allow women to cover from head to toe, we can't allow half naked people on the roads." The problem of religious extremism has been seen as the result of either increased freedoms or opposition to President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who has served six consecutive terms in office since 1978. Gayoom, 69, is now accusing his rivals of holding up his plan to implement sweeping democratic reforms. "I want to be president to give effect to the reform agenda," said Gayoom. "This is my reform programme and I want to see it through." Education Minister Mohamed Nasheed believes the unrest is part of growing pains. "We are going to have a very rapid transformation and the systems are finding it difficult to cope," Nasheed admitted. "People are not used to this 'freedom.' As a result indiscipline has become an issue." Tourism and a highly successful tuna fishing industry has pushed per capita incomes to nearly US$2,700, making the Maldivians the richest in South Asia. However, the islanders have little by way of recreation although their beaches are among the best in the world. Every family is said to be affected by drug-related problem, and the islands have one of the highest divorce rates in the world. Nasheed, who is also acting as the state attorney general, says the country is still evolving legal systems and procedures to deal with economic, social and cultural issues. "Proving something beyond reasonable doubt is a new concept for us," Nasheed said. "These concepts are new to us. We don't even know what bail is." "It is a learning process for all of us. All of a sudden we have medical negligence cases, wrongful dismissal cases. But we don't have the proper laws. What we have is a condensed version of the penal code of India or Sri Lanka." He said what other countries took years to develop, the tiny Maldives was trying to accomplish overnight. "How can we have an independent judiciary when we are all related either by blood or by through marriage," he said. Male, the tiny island capital of the Maldives, is home to some 130,000 people. "Where will Maldives be in another five years? I think the situation will get worse before it gets better," Nasheed said, adding that tensions were likely to escalate ahead of presidential polls next year. - AFP/yb

ހައްދުފަހަނައެޅުން ހުއްޓުވުމަށް އަޅާ ފިޔަވަޅުތަކުގެ ނަތީޖާ އަކީ ކޮބާ؟

އިސްމާއީލް ރަޝީދު އޮކްޓޫބަރ 24، 16:01 0 ޚިޔާލު

ދީނީގޮތުން ހައްދުފަހަނަ އަޅާދިއުމުގެ ކަންތައްތައް ރާއްޖޭގައިވެސް ހައްދުން ނައްޓާފައިވާ ކަމަށް ވާހަކަ ދައްކާ މީހުންގެ އަޑު މި ދުވަސްވަރުވަނީ ގަދަވެފަ އެވެ. އެ މީހުންގެ އަޑު ގަދަވެފައިވާ އިރު ހައްދުފަހަނަ އަޅައިގޮސްގެން އުޅޭ މީހުންގެ އަމަލުތައް ހުއްޓުވުމަށް ސަރުކާރުން މަސައްކަތް ފަށާފައިވާއިރު މިހާރު އުފެދޭ އެންމެ ބޮޑު ސުވާލަކީ އެކަން ހުއްޓުވުމަށް ހިންގާ އަދި އަޅާ ފިޔަވަޅުތަކުގެ ސަބަބުން ހާސިލުވާނީ ކޮން ކަމެއް ބާއެވެ؟ ދީނީގޮތުން ހައްދުފަހަނަ އަޅައިގޮސްފައި ވާ މީހުންގެ ކަންތައްތައް ބޮޑުވެފައިވާ ކަމަށް ބުނެ ސަރުކާރުން މިހާރު ދަނީ ތަފާތު ފިޔަވަޅުތައް އަޅަމުންނެވެ.

އއ. ހިމަންދޫގައި ސަލާމަތީ ބާރުތަކުން ހިންގި އޮޕަރޭޝަނަށް ހުރަސް އަޅާފައިވަނީ ދީނީ ގޮތުން ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅާފައިވާ ބައެއް ކަމަށް ވަނީ ބުނެފަ އެވެ.

ރާއްޖޭގައި ގާނޫނީ ތައުލީމް ހާސިލުކޮށް ދޭ މަރުކަޒުގައި ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައިދިއުމަށް މަގުފަހިވާ ކަންތައްތައް ހިނގަމުންދާ ކަމަށް ވަނީ ބުނެފަ އެވެ. ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައި ގޮސްފައިވާ ބަޔަކު ރާއްޖޭގައި އުޅޭކަމުގެ އަޑު ގަދަވެފައިވާ އިރު އެ ވާހަކަތައް ގިނައިން ދައްކަނީ ސަރުކާރުންނެވެ. ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައި ގޮސްފައިވާ މީހުން ވަކިކުރުމަށް ސަރުކާރުން ބަލާ މިންގަނޑަކީ ކޮބައިކަން އަދި ވެސް ނޭނގެ އެވެ. ދީނީ ގޮތުން ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައި ގޮސްފައިވާ ބަޔަކު އުޅޭ ކަމަށް ވާހަކަ ދައްކާ ނަމަ ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައިދިއުމަކީ ކޮބައިކަން ދީނުގައި ކަނޑައަޅާފައިވާ އުސޫލުތަކާ އެއްގޮތްވާގޮތުގެ މަތިން ސާފުކޮށްދޭން ޖެހޭނެ އެވެ.

މިހާތަނަށް ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައި ގޮސްފައިވާ ބަޔަކާ ބެހޭ ގޮތުން ވާހަކަ ދައްކާ ނަމަ އިނގިލި ދިންކުރަނީ ތުނބުޅި ދިގުކޮށް ފައިކުރި ވަކި ވަރަކަށް ބުރިކޮށްފައި ހުންނަ މީހުންނާއި ދިމާލަށާއި މޫނު ބުރުގާ އަޅައިގެން އުޅޭ މީހުންނާ ދިމާލަށް ކަމަށް ފާހަގަކުރެވެ އެވެ. އަދި ނަމާދުކުރުމުގައި ވަކި އުސޫލުތަކެއް ގެންގުޅޭ މީހުންނާ ދިމާލަށް ވެސް ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައިގޮސްފައިވާ ކަމަށް ބުނެ ހަދަ އެވެ. ވަކިން ޖަމާއަތް ހަދައިގެން ނަމާދުކުރާ މީހުން ވެސް އެލިސްޓުގައި ހިމަނަ އެވެ. އެ ފަދަ ތަފާތު ކަންތައްތައް ކުރާ މީހުންގެ ނަން އެ ލިސްޓުގައި ހިމަނަ އެވެ.

ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅާދިއުން ހުއްޓުވުމަށް އަޅާ ފިޔަވަޅުތަކުގެ ތެރޭގައި ކާކުކަން ނޭނގޭގޮތަށް ހެދުން އެޅުން މަނާކުރަން ރައީސް އެންގެވި އެންގެގުމަށް ގިނަ އަދަދެއްގެ ދީނީ އިލުމުވެރިން ވަނީ ދެކޮޅު ހަދައި ދީނީގޮތުން މޫނުބުރުގާއެޅުން މަނާކުރެވޭނެ އެއްވެސް ގޮތެއް ނޯންނާނެ ކަމަށް ވިދާޅުވެފަ އެވެ.

”އެކަނބުލޭގެ މޫނު ނިވާކުރުމަށް ބޭނުންވަނީ ނަމަ, އެކަން މަނާކުރެވޭނެ އެއްވެސް ގޮތެއް ދީނުގައި ނޯންނާނެ. ފިތުނަ ވެރިކަން އުފެދޭ ތަންތާނގައި މޫނު ނިވާކުރުމަށް ވަނީ އަންގަވާފައި,“ މަދީނާއިން ދީނީ ތައުލީމް ހާސިލުކުރައްވާފައިވާ މަޝްހޫރު ދީނީ އިލުމުވެރިޔާ އައްޝައިހު އާދަމް ނަސީމް )ބީއޭ ނަސީމް(ވިދާޅުވި އެވެ.

މަދީނާގެ އިސްލާމިކް ޔުނިވަސިޓީން ތައުލީމް ހާސިލުކުރައްވާފައިވާ ހަސަން މޫސާ ފިކުރީ ވިދާޅުވީ މޫނުބުރުގާ އެޅުމާ ބެހޭ ގޮތުން ބައެއް އިލުމުވެރިން ވަނީ އެކަމަކީ ވާޖިބެއް ކަމަށް ދެކޭ ކަމަށާއި އަނެއް ބައި އިލުމުވެރިން ގަދަވެގެންވާ ސުންނަތެއް ކަމަށް ދެކޭ ދީނީ މައްސަލައެއް ކަމަށާއި މި ކަމަށް ސަރުކާރުން ވަކިގޮތަކަށް ނިންމެވުމަކީ ދީނަށް ގޮއްޖެހުން ކަމަށް ވިދާޅުވެފަ އެވެ.

މޫނު ބުރާ އެޅުން މަނާކުރެވޭނެ އެއްވެސް ގޮތެއް ދީނީ ގޮތުން ނެތް ކަމަށް ދީނީ އުލުމުވެރިން ފަތުވާ ދޭއިރު އެކަން މަނާކުރުމަށް އަޅާ ފިޔަވަޅުތަކުން ނުކުންނާނެ ނަތީޖާއާ މެދު ކަން ބޮޑުވާން ޖެހެ އެވެ.

ކޮން ބައެއްކަން ނޭނގޭގޮތަށް ހެދުން އެޅުން މަނާކުރުމުން ގައުމުގައި ޓެރަރިސްޓް ހަމަލާތައް އިތުރުވެ ހަމަނުޖެހުން ބޮޑުވެގެން ހިނގައިދާނެ ކަމުގެ އިންޒާރު މިހާރު ވެސް އަދާލަތު ޕާޓީން ވަނީ ދީފަ އެވެ. އިސްލާމިކް ޑިމޮކްރެޓިކް ޕާޓީން ވަނީ މޫނު ބުރާ އެޅުން މަނާކުރާ އަމުރަކަށް ތަބާ ނުވުމަށް ގޮވާލައިފަ އެވެ.

އަދާލަތުން އެ އިންޒާރުދީފައިވަނީ މޫނުބުރާ އެޅުން މަނާކުރުމަށް ރައީސް އޮފީހުން ކަމާ ބެހޭ އިދާރާއަށް އެންގުމާ ގުޅިގެން ބޭއްވި ނޫސްވެރިންގެ ބައްދަލުވުމެއްގަ އެވެ.

އެ ބައްދަލުވުމުގައި ވާހަކަ ދައްކަވަމުން ޑޮކްޓަރު އަބުދުލް މަޖީދު އަބުދުލް ބާރީ ވިދާޅުވީ މޫނު ބުރުގާ އަޅާ މީހުންނާ ތުނބުޅި ދިގުކުރާ މީހުންނަކީ ހަރުކަށި އުސޫލުތަކުގެ މީހުން ކަމަށް ބޭރާއި ރާއްޖޭގައިވެސް ލޭބަލްކުރެވޭ ކަމަށާއި ރާއްޖޭގެ މީޑިޔާއިންނާ ސަރުކާރުން ވެސް އެ މަފްހޫމް ރައްޔިތުންނަށް ވިސްނައިދިނުމަށް ވަރަށް ބޮޑަށް މަސައްކަތް ކޮށްފައިވާކަމަށެވެ.

”މީހާގެ ބޭރުފުށުން އެ މީހާގެ މަލަމަތި ހުންނަ ގޮތެއް ނޫން ހަރުކަށި ކަމަކީ. އެއީ އެ މީހާ ގަބޫލުކުރާ ގަބޫލްކުރުން, އެ މީހާގެ އިއުތިގާދު. ހަރުކަށިކަން ނައްތާލާކަށް ނުޖެހޭނެ މޫނުބުރުގާ އެޅުމާ ތުނބުޅި ދިގުކުރުން މަނާކުރާކަށް. ހައްދަކީ އިން. ދީނުގެ ހުކުމަކަށް އުޅުމަކީ އެއީ ހައްދުފަހަނައެޅިއްޔޭ ނުބުނެވޭނެ,“ ގުރުއާން ތަފްސީރު އިލުމުން ޕީއެޗްޑީ ހާސިލުކުރައްވާފައިވާ މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވި އެވެ.

އިލްމުވެރިންގެ ވާހަކަތައް ހުރި ގޮތަށް ބަލާއިރު އެންމެ ކަންބޮޑުވާން ޖެހެނީ ހައްދުފަހަނައަޅައިދިއުން ހުއްޓުވުމަށް އަޅާ ފިޔަވަޅުތަކުން އެންމެ ބޭނުންގެވެން އުޅޭ ނަތީޖާ ނުކުމެދާނެތީ އެވެ. އަގީދާއާ ގުޅޭ މައްސަލަތައް ހައްލުކުރުމަށް ނުފޫޒާއި ބާރު ބޭނުންކޮށް އަދަބުތަކެއްދީގެން ހައްލުނުވާކަން ދުނިޔެއިން ދަނީ ފެންނަމުންނެވެ. ނަމަވެސް އެކަން ހުއްޓުވުމަށް ފިޔަވަޅުއެޅުމަކީ މުހިންމުކަމެއް ނަމަވެސް ކަންބޮޑުވާން ޖެހޭނީ އެ ފިޔަވަޅުތަކުން ބޭނުންވެގެން އުޅޭ ނަތީޖާ ނުނެރެވިދާނެތީ އެވެ.

Trial against 12 "extremists" from Himandhoo begins

| DATE: 2007-10-27 |
MALE, October 27, 2007 (Haveeru News Service) -- The trial of 12 \\\"extremists\\\" from North Ari atoll Himandhoo has started in the wake of the recent arrest of many from the island after Police and the Army clashed with extremists from the island over the shutting down of an illegal mosque in the island. The 12 are charged under Maldivian Law on Religious Unity.

The State is prosecuting the 12 under Clause 4 of the Law on Religious Unity by accusing them of having a part in conducting normal and Juma (Friday) prayers at a private mosque set up in a private home called Dhaarul Khairu. Maldivian law requires that all mosques be official and that people cannot hold private congregations at private places when performing the namaz.

The defendants are Husham Ismail, Mohamed Adam, Nizar Ali, Ahmed Naseem, Mohamed Shiyam, Ali Nasheed, Moosa Naseer, Mohamed Abu Bakr, Mustafa Ibrahim, Ismail Shareef, Abdulla Mohamed and Hussain Adam.

At a hearing on Thursday six of them appeared. The hearing heard the testimony of a witness -- Police Inspector Hussain Waheed.

The State Prosecutor is lawyer Ali Shah.

Inspector Waheed said that last year he visited Himandhoo twice on a police operation and that his and the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs scholar\\\'s advice were not heeded by the extremists.

He said that only “two to three extremists” prayed at official congregations.

The official mosque in the island has been closed for around three years after some members of the community testified that the mosque was built on top of a graveyard which is haram (prohibited) in Islam. The Council recently announced that work on building another mosque near the harbor of the island will resume this year.

Thursday’s hearing adjourned after the Judge called on the defendants’ lawyer to produce his witnesses.

Official mosque to be built in extremist-leaning Ukulhas

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| DATE: 2007-10-23 |

The official mosque which was closed down three years ago. (Haveeru Photo: Mohamed Waheed)

MALE, October 23, 2007 (Haveeru News Service) -- The Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs yesterday said that work will be started this year on building an official mosque in North Ari atoll Ukulhas which is under threat of becoming another extremist hotbed like neighboring Himandhoo.

It has been three years since the official mosque there has been closed down after some residents complained that the mosque was built on top of a graveyard and therefore it was haram (prohibited in Islam) to pray there.

Due to this, a group of around 80 people, who were thought to be extremists, were found to be praying at a makeshift mosque which is illegal as Maldivian law requires all mosques to be registered under the Government.

The Council\\\'s Assistant Director Mohamed Najeeb said that the Finance Ministry has put up for tender the project of building the mosque in the harbor area of Ukulhas. But some residents of the island are against building the mosque near the harbor.

As soon as a contractor is chosen by the Finance Ministry, work on constructing the mosque will begin, Najeeb said.

The mosque will have a space of 2,880 square feet.

After closing down the official mosque, the Government had asked the people to use a social center in the island to conduct prayers. But as the center was not facing the Kaaba in Mecca and due to the presence of cable television services, some residents refused to pray at the center and instead conducted prayers illegally in a private house.

Asked why it has taken almost three years to build a mosque for Ukulhas, Najeeb said that it was only in January this year that the Council was mandated with building mosques.

Maldives tourism under threat

AFP	Published:Oct 23, 2007
MALE - A rise in Islamic militancy poses an unprecedented threat to the Maldives’ status as South Asia’s most upmarket holiday destination, but the government is determined to beat the extremists. The first concrete sign of trouble in the archipelago traditionally seen as the holiday-maker’s paradise came last month, when 12 foreign tourists including a honeymooning British couple were wounded in a bomb attack. President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, an Islamic scholar, responded quickly, ordering a major crackdown in the moderate Sunni Muslim nation of 330,000. While well-heeled tourists are welcome, Gayoom has made it clear Muslim clerics eager to bring Taliban-style extremism to the turquoise blue lagoons and secluded tiny coral islands are not. Gayoom decreed foreign clerics should not be allowed entry without special permission, barred women from covering themselves from head to toe, and ordered that educational qualifications from foreign madrassas, or Islamic seminaries, will not be recognised. Former education minister Mohamed Zahir Hussain said a minority of people believed that tourism was against Islam and were keen to disrupt the mainstay of the economy. Extremist elements oppose revenues from tourism, including the sale of liquor, which is prohibited by Islam. “I am sure we can manage,” Hussain said. “People are shocked, but we can deal with the problem because of the geography of the Maldives." Only 200 of the 1,192 islands are inhabited, and tourist resorts are kept separate, with foreigners not allowed to spend the night on any inhabited island except the capital Male. Maldivians are employed in resorts, but cannot work as bar tenders. Tourism Minister Mahamood Shougee said he believed extremism would simply fizzle out. “There is no popular support for them and the extremists had reached the maximum level they could,” Shougee told AFP, adding the problem could also be tackled without undermining growth in tourism, the mainstay of the islands’ economy. The Maldives hopes to welcome 650,000 holiday-makers this year, around 10% up on 2006, he said, adding that the industry earned the country about 200 to 300 million dollars annually. However, the September 29 bombing at the Sultan Park in Male, a popular stop for tourists visiting this highly congested, one-square-mile capital, has tarnished the country’s image as a peaceful destination. Former attorney general Hassan Saeed warned the problem could escalate unless the government took immediate action to address the underlying economic and social problems. “If the situation is left unattended, there will be more serious trouble,” Saeed said. “It can be stopped. The good thing is that Maldivians are traditionally moderate." Earlier this month, the government raided the epicentre of radical extremism on an island some 100 kilometres south of Male and detained over 50 people who clashed with police and security forces. Saeed said Maldivian extremists may be inspired by events in Afghanistan and Iraq, but the troubles in the atoll nation were essentially due to underlying domestic issues. “I believe it is home grown,” said Saeed, who quit as attorney general in August saying the government was not taking adequate measures to deal with the problem. Asian diplomats believe the government may even be trying to play up religious extremism to allow it to crack down on dissent in a country that recognised political parties only two years ago.

Maldives fears foreign terror cells as religious tensions rise

1 day ago

MALE (AFP) — The Maldives has begun a crackdown on Islamic militant groups in an effort to prevent international terror networks from setting up cells here, President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom told AFP.

The president said a small minority of the Indian Ocean archipelago's 330,000 Sunni Muslims had begun preaching an extremist form of Islam that could affect the peaceful image of the popular tourist destination.

A bomb attack targeting foreign tourists here last month followed by violent clashes with police and security forces had alerted the country to the "very serious threat of extremism," he said in an interview at his seafront office at the weekend.

"Maldivians are influenced by what is happening in the world. They go to Pakistan, study in madrassas and come back with extreme religious ideas," said Gayoom, who is an Islamic scholar from Egypt's Cairo University.

Asked whether foreign groups could be funding Maldivian extremists, Gayoom said: "It is very plausible... We have taken enough measures to deal with the problem. We take it very seriously."

He said there was evidence that extremists may be receiving funding from abroad and the unrest could allow international terror groups to capitalise and set up cells in the country unless authorities applied pressure.

Maldivian police said there was no hard evidence of Al-Qaeda operating here, but that the possibility could not be discounted.

Gayoom, 69, said the Maldives was sharing intelligence with neighbouring India and Sri Lanka as well as Britain and the United States to tackle Islamic militants.

More than 50 people, all Maldivians, are already in custody, according to officials.

The president said Islamic extremism had begun to affect the peaceful coral islands, better known as an up-market destination for honeymooners and well-heeled tourists than a hotbed of militancy.

"They want to lead a very primitive life. They want women to cover their faces," Gayoom said, referring to those already in custody.

"It is not good for the image of the country. We have been a liberal country for centuries."

Last week, the president ordered a ban on bearded mullahs, or clerics, entering his country unless invited by the authorities.

On Sunday he went a step further, announcing plans to bar Maldivians from travelling to extremist religious schools in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia that advocate Taliban-style practices.

"Some of these extremist people have said that it is against Islam to sing," Gayoom said. "This is not proper religious teaching. Uneducated people are falling for it."

On Sunday, he also ordered an investigation into whether religious schools here were sticking to official texts.

Gayoom came to power in 1978 and under his rule the Maldives, a nation of 1,191 tiny coral islands scattered some 850 kilometres (550 miles) across the equator, has become South Asia's most prosperous economy.

He is worried that any sign of trouble could tarnish the peaceful image of the country, where some resorts charge as much as 14,500 dollars a night for the super-rich to stay at exclusive resorts on small, palm-fringed islands.

"We want to be known as very peaceful country with political and social stability. We are determined to preserve that image," he said.

He said the September 29 bombing that wounded 12 foreign nationals had led to cancellations of holidays here, but the industry had since recovered.

Resorts are reporting near full occupancy.

Reforms unveiled by Gayoom two years ago to allow political parties to function for the first time in living memory may have also led to open defiance of authority, according to officials here.

Gayoom said he hoped to complete the democratic reforms within a few months and contest elections due within a year "to complete the work I started."

Profile Of A Radical

By Susannah Peter in Male'
October 22, 2007 MNS

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Controversial cleric Sheikh Ibrahim Fareed was arrested earlier this month for allegedly breaching Religious Unity laws.

But is this prominent cleric really an “extremist threat to society?” Or an inspirational preacher who simply “speaks the truth,” as his supporters testify?

Susannah Peter spoke to friends, family and former colleagues to find out more.

Youngster

Ibrahim Fareed, born in Dhula Kudahadhoo, came to Male’ to study when he was a young boy.

Described by one neighbour as a “quiet little soul,” he quickly developed a reputation in the capital for his piety.

“All he ever wanted to do was be a preacher,” his sister Anshoo recalls. “He recited the Koran perfectly.”

Yet the boy who would grow to be a prominent cleric was also full of fun and life, passionate about music and dance.

“And he was always so strong. He would always get what he wanted,” says Anshoo.

“He’s still the same today,” laughs his wife Yumna.

Fareed won a scholarship to study Sharia law in Quatar when he was 17. And this is the point where descriptions of him diverge.

Did his time abroad mould him into a dangerous threat? Or did his studies deepen his understanding of Islam, giving him the tools to spread God’s message?

“Extremist”?

Fast-forward nine years, and Fareed returns to Male’. His former neighbour, who asked not to be named, didn’t recognise him.

“I heard talk of a man who was giving religious lessons, speaking at Mosques and houses,” she recalls.

“I didn’t realise at first it was the same little Fareed who had left all those years before, with his long beard and short trousers.

“He was like an early Malcolm X. Island people saw him as their Mullah.”

Fareed, who joined the Islamic Consultation Council (ICC) of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party in 2005, used his position to “brainwash people,” she says. “He was a bacteria who would enter any organisation to get what he wanted.”

MDP Secretary General Hamid Abdul Gafoor takes up the story. “He never directly preached violence in his speeches, and he was never anti -West,” he says. “But he did mix politics and religion with a very fundamentalist angle.”

Fareed was very popular in MDP, he adds, but also “disturbed” more “moderate thinkers” with his “troubled attitude” at general meetings.

Hamid draws on the veil as an example. “Women have a guilt complex – you are either labelled loose or holy,” he says.

“And he played on that distinction. Some women see it as a way of getting acceptance from men. There is still a gender gap in Maldives. Fareed deepened it.”

Truth-teller?

But talk to family and friends, and a very different picture emerges. Fareed the figure of truth and decency.

“He’s not extremist,” insists Yumna, who wears a burga. “The Government arrested him because they do not want him to be so popular. They don’t want us to know the truth.”

Ahmed “Sandhaanu” Didi, who shared a cell with Fareed back in August 2004, nods emphatically, saying he doesn’t “even understand” the word “extremist.”

“Here we don’t have extremists, only people with different opinions,” he says. “Islam is not man-made, but ruled by Allah. Are you extremist because you wear you trousers a certain length? That’s bullshit.”

Sandhaanu, who has known Fareed five years, adds he never pressured him with his religious beliefs, that he would only preach if invited.

“He is patient,” he says. “And he never asked me to grow my beard long, or change anything.”

Fareed’s brother-in-law Mohamed Solid points out the alleged extremist condemned the Malé bomb blast, saying Islam “hates killing.”

“He likes everyone, including the West,” he says earnestly. “He wants to help the whole world, not just Maldivians.”

Safety of the veil

Shuhaidha, the best friend of Fareed’s wife, met the cleric at the Faculty of Sharia Law in Male.’

Fareed visted her home “many times,” and “told me the truth about Islam,”she says. He explained why women should wear the full veil, a practice President Gayoom wants to ban. .

Shuhaidha proudly wears the full veil. “Its not extremist,” she says./“As women, we must not show our faces or eyes in public.”

Fareed’s sister, Anshoo, adds she feels “safe” when she wears the veil. “I don’t want other men looking at my face, and it covers my body shape as well.”

Fareed’s one-year old daughter, Mariyambonthi, will wear the veil when she is nine.

“We won’t need to ask her if she wants to wear it, because she already loves wearing it now,” Yumna, mother-of four tells me proudly, as she cradles the child.

“We miss Fareed terribly," she sighs. “It’s so lonely without him.”

Truth Teller?

Both Hamid and Fareed’s former neighbour refer to his “hypnotic charisma” and “impressive” use of language and tone.

But is this an adequate explanation of Fareed’s huge popularity among many conservative Muslims? Why is his message so appealing?

“He is so popular because he is the only one who speaks the truth,” Anshoo tells me.

But Hamid says he thrives off disaffection in the Maldives.

Fareed has become “the voice and embodiment” of a “sub-culture” that was already there, according to the MDP official.

“Many Maldivians have no voice, can’t get anywhere, can’t break through the red tape,” he says. “He offers a solution; God.”

“And there is some truth that young people have no choice other than drugs, or fundamentalism. They feel they have no future.”

Anti-Gayoom

Fareed has consistently slammed President Gayoom’s religious policies.

“Maldivians are timid people, afraid to speak out,” Sandhaanu says.“But Fareed is fearless. People know that, and listen to him.

“Everyone who loves Islam opposes President Gayoom’s preachings. That’s not Islam, it’s his own version.”

“The Government, who say they have the final say on Islamic beliefs, see him as a threat,” agrees Hamid. “Fareed came out with a lot of fire.”

Differences in opinion among Islamic scholars and my own FAQs

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| DATE: 2007-10-22 |HNS

The breakaway religious group in Himandhoo guard their makeshift mosque before Police and the Army stormed it. (Haveeru Photo: Ahmed Hamdhoon)

By Moosa Latheef*

MALE, October 22, 2007 (Haveeru News Service) – When the Government first started giving religious advice to the public, one venue where such service was conducted was Mulee-Aage in the capital Male.

As a child I once attended one of the sessions at Mulee-Aage which had earlier been used as the President’s residence and later as accommodation for visiting foreign dignitaries.

At that time, when people talked about Islamic scholars, the first name that came to my mind was President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, one of the top Islamic scholars this country has seen to date.

I was quite enthusiastic about attending the meeting, and although my childlike mind then could not absorb all the advice that were given by him, it was an exhilarating experience for me as a child.

With President Gayoom at the helm of the country, information about Islam was widely disseminated across the country. The President helped the Maldives get rid of many ‘bidua’s or false principles and practices which were widespread in Maldives as traditionally Maldivians have been a superstitious people who sometimes practice black magic.

Earlier, what was meant by the Sunnah (the actions of Prophet Mohamed) was interpreted as the non-obligatory prayers and fasts that Islam encourages. However, today, the Sunnah has now been interpreted to mean following the culture and traditions of centuries ago. Today in Maldives you can see some men with long beards and ankle length pants, described by some as part of the Sunnah.

My grandfather was a devote Muslim. He would come back from dawn prayers only after the sun has risen. And then he would once again go to the mosque in the morning to offer a non-obligatory Sunnah prayer called ‘Luha’ namaz.

When my grandfather had his eye operated on, doctors advised him to make sure that he does not get water into his eye. But being so devote, my grandfather could only once adhere to that doctor’s advice.

Whenever I checked why my grandfather was missing from the hospital bed, he would be found doing the ablution before the prayers. Such was his devotion. Yet, he was clean shaven.

If only my grandfather was alive today he would have performed many Sunnah as it is now only that many people are coming to know the Islamic faith better.

And perhaps now is the time to take a neutral look at the issues concerning Islam.

At no time in Maldives history have we seen a time when local Islamic scholars are at loggerheads even with trivial issues like the growing of beards or wearing ankle length pants.

With the loosening of the Government’s control over religion, a new generation of self-proclaimed Islamic scholars have emerged, providing a wide range of information about the faith while at the same time engaging in heated and divisive debates about certain Islamic principles.

If people still do not want to believe that we have already fallen into a hellhole of internal religious strife, at least it might be safe to say that we are at the edge of an abyss and about to fall down into it.

Islamic scholars in Maldives can now be divided into two camps; those who are linked to the Government or are friends with President Gayoom; and those who oppose the Government and the President and claim that the Government over the past 30 years spread “misinformation” about Islam to the Maldivian public. The latter camp is of the view that the Government and the President have done nothing good for the spreading of Islam in the country.

The recipients of this information are of course us, the public. When Islamic scholars have become so polarized in their views, no general member of the public can help but take an interest in this national debate on religion.

The Islamic scholars themselves seem now to be divided into two camps in which one accuse the other of spreading the wrong information about the Islamic faith. These self-proclaimed Islamic scholars are so self-righteous that in their opinion, anyone who has alternative views are deemed to be heretics.

There is a more sinister side to this trend: Do these self-proclaimed Islamic scholars have a political agenda?

As we hear and listen to the raging debates, I can’t help but become confused with a zillion questions regarding our faith. Have I and my close friends all these days been practicing what some may term the “real” Islam? Have we all this time prayed in mosques that have been built on graveyards? Does state broadcaster Television Maldives make people tune off their faith? If I listen to music, am I committing a sin? Is criticizing the Government and Islamic scholars an act of creating public disharmony? Is it wrong to criticize both the Government and the Islamic scholars as well?

EDITORIAL: Religious rulings are not to be taken lightly

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| DATE: 2007-10-22 | HNS

MALE, October 22, 2007 (Haveeru News Service) – Information is not something that can be withheld whether it be even science and technology. However, such liberalism is not something that is traditionally approved by Islamic scholars as far as religious rulings are concerned.

There are conditions attached with regard to Islamic rulings. If people do not restrain from voicing whatever thoughts they have about religion, it will soon result in discord among society. Such examples can be seen around the Islamic Ummah (nation) today.

Consequently, many Islamic countries entrust certain authorities to give religious decrees to the people. In countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, such authorities are headed by muftis. While Islamic scholars are allowed to debate on issues, a final ruling on any religious matter falls into the hands of the supreme Islamic authority of that country. In other words, the final word lies in the hands of the mufti.

This does not however close the doors to interpretation of Islamic principles among scholars, nor does it mean that the mufti’s rulings are not open to debate.

The ultimate Islamic authority falls on the ruler of the country but he or she can delegate the authority to an appointed person or institution.

Maldives itself can come to consensus with regard to Islamic principles with the help of local Islamic scholars. But this does not mean that we cannot seek help from foreign scholars. However, it will be more appropriate that local solutions be found to local problems whether it is regarding religion, society or politics.

There are qualified local professionals who are now specialized in both worldly and spiritual matters. Like the implementation of science and technology, local solutions can be found to religious principles which are open to debate. Now may be the time that local scholars take the helm of spreading the right Islamic ideas across the country just as scientists have done in disseminating their information to the world at large. It is important then that local Islamic scholars meet and debate on contesting issues so that consensus can be reached and social harmony continue to exist as it traditionally has over the past centuries.

EDITORIAL: Religious rulings are not to be taken lightly

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| DATE: 2007-10-22 | HNS

MALE, October 22, 2007 (Haveeru News Service) – Information is not something that can be withheld whether it be even science and technology. However, such liberalism is not something that is traditionally approved by Islamic scholars as far as religious rulings are concerned.

There are conditions attached with regard to Islamic rulings. If people do not restrain from voicing whatever thoughts they have about religion, it will soon result in discord among society. Such examples can be seen around the Islamic Ummah (nation) today.

Consequently, many Islamic countries entrust certain authorities to give religious decrees to the people. In countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, such authorities are headed by muftis. While Islamic scholars are allowed to debate on issues, a final ruling on any religious matter falls into the hands of the supreme Islamic authority of that country. In other words, the final word lies in the hands of the mufti.

This does not however close the doors to interpretation of Islamic principles among scholars, nor does it mean that the mufti’s rulings are not open to debate.

The ultimate Islamic authority falls on the ruler of the country but he or she can delegate the authority to an appointed person or institution.

Maldives itself can come to consensus with regard to Islamic principles with the help of local Islamic scholars. But this does not mean that we cannot seek help from foreign scholars. However, it will be more appropriate that local solutions be found to local problems whether it is regarding religion, society or politics.

There are qualified local professionals who are now specialized in both worldly and spiritual matters. Like the implementation of science and technology, local solutions can be found to religious principles which are open to debate. Now may be the time that local scholars take the helm of spreading the right Islamic ideas across the country just as scientists have done in disseminating their information to the world at large. It is important then that local Islamic scholars meet and debate on contesting issues so that consensus can be reached and social harmony continue to exist as it traditionally has over the past centuries.

Scholars Defy Government On Veil Ban

By Minivan News October 21, 2007 Religious scholars are openly questioning President Gayoom’s right to define Islam in the Maldives, as the country divides over how to deal with religious extremism. The government appointed Supreme Islamic Council, “has not yet decided,” whether to implement an instruction from Gayoom to ban the full veil. The Adhaalath Party has called on supporters to defy the ban, the first time the conservative Islamic party has called on supporters to disregard a Government directive. The crisis has been precipitated by draconian measures proposed by President Gayoom in response to the September 29 explosion in Male' which injured twelve tourists. Gayoom has called for a ban on foreign clerics preaching in the Maldives, and a law to criminalise words or actions likely to encourage extremism. In a speech last Saturday he warned extremism will not be tolerated, “in the name of freedom and human rights,” But ten days after the Supreme Council received a letter from the President instructing it to enforce a ban on women covering every part of their skin, the scholars’ body says it has not decided how to respond. Gayoom, himself an Egyptian educated Islamic scholar, rode to power in 1978 promising to establish true Islam in the Maldives. He set up the Supreme Council to promote state approved Islam and has controlled religion in the Maldives since. But the Government’s response to the apparent Islamist attack on the Maldives’ lucrative tourism industry has led several scholars to call for a fundamental change in the relationship between the Maldives state and mosque. Last week Sheikh Rasheed, the Supreme Council chief, said presidential control has left his body powerless to fight extremism. Rasheed has backed a private members’ bill to make the Supreme Council independent with statutory powers of its own. The call has been echoed by the Adhaalath Party, who say the Government must empower scholars to reform religious dissidents rather than criminalising them. The conservative Islamic party has called on supporters to ignore the ban on the full veil, saying it amounts to an attack on Islam. Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari, who is head of Adhaalath’s scholars committee as well as a Supreme Council member said the veil is, “a part of Islam,” with disagreement only about whether it is “required or optional.” Doubts have surfaced within other Government agencies charged with fighting extremism, about the effectiveness of the President’s proposals. Fayyaz Ali Manik, dean of the Government’s Sharia Law Faculty, which the President’s office claims harbours extremists, said he was “surprised” by the allegations. He said the Government’s use of the word extremism lacked clarity. “If wearing black dresses and veil is extremism then it should be said clearly.”

President Gayoom must bear responsibility for emerging extremism in Maldives - Dr. Munavvar

MDP Press

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Source: MDP Press, 22 October 2007

In a formal statement issued on 16 October 2007, MDP President Dr. Mohamed Munavvar has underlined that President Gayoom must bear responsibility for emerging extremism in the Maldives.

Speaking to reporters on 16 October 2007, Dr. Munavvar said that President Gayoom's public statement to bring people responsible for detonating an improvised explosive device in Male' on 29 September 2007, to justice "as soon as possible" was unacceptable, adding that such cases ought to go to court immediately.

"This is not a time to find excuses to delay and halt the democratic process. Public order can only be gained by implementing reforms and ensuring justice for all. Those should be our present aims", Dr. Munavvar said.

Dr. Munavvar criticized President Gayoom's call for a survey into how some Maldivians turn to extremism, saying that the status of the nation had come to the culmination of extremist acts due to government abuses and failures the past 29 years. "A man completing 29 years as ruler of the nation is saying he still does not know, and that he needs to find out", Dr. Munavvar said.

Analysts note that President Gayoom began campaigning as a politician by conducting ostensible acts of symbolic intolerance. He launched the pseudo-Arab scholar image first while attending a UN session in 1976 as co-representative when he reported to the then President Mr. Ibrahim Nasir that his colleague (presently MDP Representative to the UK, EU and USA Mr. Ahmed Naseem) had been in the hall when the Israeli delegate made his speech. (Mr.Ahmed Naseem had taken a break before the said speech and had returned to the hall after some moments).

He then moved to make another highly symbolic gesture, tantamount to a call for a tourism boycott, by publicly stating that those who permit the sale of liquor are equally guilty as those who consume it. He was convicted and banished for seven months for this condemnation of the government and the tourism industry.

After assuming power in 1978, he acted to fire a government hired foreign philatelic artist because the artist was a Jew. He then moved to sever existing diplomatic relations with the state of Israel. Maldivian ships, which earlier passed the Suez Canal unhindered, were caught up in bomb hits in the Abian Gulf, leading to losses of Maldivian lives.

Large rallies were organized throughout the country in support of the PLO and to condemn the West including the U.K and USA to promote the Quds Fund.

Analysts believe that President Gayoom's desire for the position of grand-mullah to consolidate judicial power in the executive presidency, had led him to extricate religious studies from the mainstream syllabus to two separate institutes created by him. At these institutes, President Gayoom foisted himself on final year students as a teacher, indoctrinating them for the President to wield influence in controlling the dispensation of justice. President Gayoom took steps early in his rule to incorporate the power of justice, a mandate formerly held by the Chief Justice, in the executive presidency.

President Gayoom had then begun promoting "Divine Rights" to rule, by awarding himself the prerogative of being the final authority and propagator of the tenets of Islam in the Maldives. In 1978, one of the first government orders was for the closure of two ice-cream parlors in Male', stating that they promoted "western" values. This was because they had Maldivian musicians performing live, and had dance floors.

The type of social engineering that the President began implementing led to a state of growing disquiet and gave rise to various sectarian minorities and hate groups in Maldives, one of the most harmonious and peaceful societies in the world for the past hundreds of years. Preachers were encouraged to promote xenophobia because it helped keep the country's lucrative tourist industry isolated to government licensed resorts awarded through a strictly controlled patronage system.

One of the incidents to be officially described an act of sectarian violence, designed to allow him incriminate other religious scholars in the 1980s was when an incendiary device burnt a room in his wife's home. No one was hurt in the blaze code named "White Shark", although it gave him the opportunity to round up and harass a number of people seen as supporters of rival Islamic scholars and opponents.

In the early 1990s the librarian at the Islamic Centre in Male' was implicated for detonating a crude improvised explosive device in the vicinity of the centre.

A concerted campaign was continued to encourage Maldivians into thinking that the country's head of government should be an Islamic scholar, a job for which only he was qualified. Opposing his rule was made to seem impossible without outbidding him for Islamic credentials.

At the start of the present reform struggle in 2003 President Gayyoom declared that those who are opposing his government, calling for democratic reform and trying to bring it to disrepute are funded and brainwashed by Christian missionaries from around the world. He went on to state that the activities of reformists were not only illegal, but sacrilegious (un-Islamic). He then instructed the high ranking staff of National Security Service (NSS) that they must hunt down those in the Maldives who are participating and supporting these illegal, immoral and sacrilegious activities.

The MDP has repeatedly stated that the best mechanisms for preventing the emergence and spread of extremist intolerance were the establishment of democratic institutions, the implementation of specific policies and the strengthening of democracy in the country.

President Gayoom must bear responsibility for emerging extremism in Maldives – Dr. Munavvar

20 October, 2007
Posted by Administrator in Human Rights, Politics.
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In a formal statement issued on 16 October 2007, MDP President Dr. Mohamed Munavvar has underlined that President Gayoom must bear responsibility for emerging extremism in the Maldives.

Speaking to reporters on 16 October 2007, Dr. Munavvar said that President Gayoom’s public statement to bring people responsible for detonating an improvised explosive device in Male’ on 29 September 2007, to justice “as soon as possible” was unacceptable, adding that such cases ought to go to court immediately.

“This is not a time to find excuses to delay and halt the democratic process. Public order can only be gained by implementing reforms and ensuring justice for all. Those should be our present aims”, Dr. Munavvar said.

Dr. Munavvar criticized President Gayoom’s call for a survey into how some Maldivians turn to extremism, saying that the status of the nation had come to the culmination of extremist acts due to government abuses and failures the past 29 years. “A man completing 29 years as ruler of the nation is saying he still does not know, and that he needs to find out”, Dr. Munavvar said.

Analysts note that President Gayoom began campaigning as a politician by conducting ostensible acts of symbolic intolerance. He launched the pseudo-Arab scholar image first while attending a UN session in 1976 as co-representative when he reported to the then President Mr. Ibrahim Nasir that his colleague (presently MDP Representative to the UK, EU and USA Mr. Ahmed Naseem) had been in the hall when the Israeli delegate made his speech. (Mr.Ahmed Naseem had taken a break before the said speech and had had returned to the hall after some moments).

He then moved to make another highly symbolic gesture, tantamount to a call for a tourism boycott, by publicly stating that those who permit the sale of liquor are equally guilty as those who consume it. He was convicted and banished for seven months for this condemnation of the government and the tourism industry.

After assuming power in 1978, he acted to fire a government hired foreign philatelic artist because the artist was a Jew. He then moved to sever existing diplomatic relations with the state of Israel. Maldivian ships, which earlier passed the Suez Canal unhindered, were caught up in bomb hits in the Abian Gulf, leading to losses of Maldivian lives.

Large rallies were organized throughout the country in support of the PLO and to condemn the West including the U.K and USA to promote the Quds Fund.

Analysts believe that President Gayoom’s desire for the position of grand-mullah to consolidate judicial power in the executive presidency, had led him to extricate religious studies from the mainstream syllabus to two separate institutes created by him. At these institutes, President Gayoom foisted himself on final year students as a teacher, indoctrinating them for the President to wield influence in controlling the dispensation of justice. President Gayoom took steps early in his rule to incorporate the power of justice, a mandate formerly held by the Chief Justice, in the executive presidency.

President Gayoom had then begun promoting “Divine Rights” to rule, by awarding himself the prerogative of being the final authority and propagator of the tenets of Islam in the Maldives. In 1978, one of the first government orders was for the closure of two ice-cream parlors in Male’, stating that they promoted “western” values. This was because they had Maldivian musicians performing live, and had dance floors.

The type of social engineering that the President began implementing led to a state of growing disquiet and gave rise to various sectarian minorities and hate groups in Maldives, one of the most harmonious and peaceful societies in the world for the past hundreds of years. Preachers were encouraged to promote xenophobia because it helped keep the country’s lucrative tourist industry isolated to government licensed resorts awarded through a strictly controlled patronage system.

One of the incidents to be officially described an act of sectarian violence, designed to allow him incriminate other religious scholars in the 1980s was when an incendiary device burnt a room in his wife’s home. No one was hurt in the blaze code named “White Shark”, although it gave him the opportunity to round up and harass a number of people seen as supporters of rival Islamic scholars and opponents.

In the early 1990s the librarian at the Islamic Centre in Male’ was implicated for detonating a crude improvised explosive device in the vicinity of the centre.

A concerted campaign was continued to encourage Maldivians into thinking that the country’s head of government should be an Islamic scholar, a job for which only he was qualified. Opposing his rule was made to seem impossible without outbidding him for Islamic credentials.

At the start of the present reform struggle in 2003 President Gayyoom declared that those who are opposing his government, calling for democratic reform and trying to bring it to disrepute are funded and brainwashed by Christian missionaries from around the world. He went on to state that the activities of reformists were not only illegal, but sacrilegious (un-Islamic). He then instructed the high ranking staff of National Security Service (NSS) that they must hunt down those is the Maldives who are participating and supporting these illegal, immoral and sacrilegious activities.

The MDP has repeatedly stated that the best mechanisms for preventing the emergence and spread of extremist intolerance were the establishment of democratic institutions, the implementation of specific policies and the strengthening of democracy in the country.

Concerns of justice for Himendhoo detainees increase

MDP Press
Source: MDP Press, 21 October 2007

The Maldivian Democratic Party has expressed concerns over the prolonged custody and delay in being produced in court of over 63 people arrested from the island of Himendhoo on 07 October 2007.

"Every individual, every island is important to us", Dr. Munavvar said referring to the recent visit to Himendhoo Island by an MDP fact-finding team. "As one of the biggest political parties, it is our duty to ascertain the facts and look into violations of peoples basic rights", he said.

The Police operation at the Al-Khair mosque in Himendhoo Island by the Police and later by the army on 7 October was conducted ostensibly to look for two men implicated in investigations into the detonating an improvised explosive device in Male' on 29 September 2007. 12 tourists were injured in the blast.

A group of people in Himedhoo a few years ago had rejected the government's authority on religious matters after complaining that the island's mosque was constructed on a cemetery. They had then built their own mosque, the Al-Kahir, in a private housing compound. Speaking to journalists during the stand-off, the group who had masked themselves and wore motorcycle helmets said they were defending the mosque as the Police had demolished the same mosque the previous year. Journalists on the scene question their readiness to face off the assault as people in the break-away group vehemently deny any involvement in the blast.

"So far police has not found any one who has any connection to the detonation among them; however they were arrested because they were obstructing the work carried out by Police", a Police statement on 16 October 2007 said. The Police have now said that the investigation of those arrested in Himandhoo would be conducted as a separate investigation.

Despite several operations, including raids on residences in Male', Police have not been able to apprehend to date two more men implicated in the investigations Mr. Abdul Latheef Ibrahim (of Laamu Kalhaidoo Island) and Mr. Ali Shameem (of Shaviyani Komandoo Island). Police reports last week said Mr. Moosa Inas, 20, (of Finihiyaage, Kalhaidhoo Island, Laamu Atoll) and Mr. Ahmed Naseer,21, (of Saadhunaa Manzil, Kaduhulhudhoo Island, Gaaf Alif Atoll) have confessed to Police that they carried out the attack. Mr. Mohamed Sabah, 19 from Male Villingili has confessed to constructing the device, Police reports said.

Ukulhas on verge of becoming another extremist den

UKULHAS ISLAND, North Ari atoll, October 20, 2007 (Haveeru News Service) - After landing on Ukulhas island in North Ari atoll, one of Maldives\' top tourism zones, Haveeru Daily reporters found that like neighboring Himandhoo, this island may be on the verge of becoming another den for Islamic extremists.

As we came on to the island, we passed a woman and asked her where the island\'s mosque was.

\"There is no mosque,\" she replied. \"We have only one mosque built by the government but that has been closed because we found out that the mosque was constructed on top of a graveyard.”

The mosque called Masjid Al-Thaqwa has been closed down for almost three years now. Ever since the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs shut down the mosque on 3 November 2005, the issue has been hotly contested among the 700 residents in this island.

After the closure of the official mosque, a radical extremist group emerged in this island, and they have been conducting prayer congregations at a makeshift mosque which is illegal under Maldives\' laws.

After closing the official mosque, the Government asked the people to use a social center called Kanbaafaanu Maalan (hall) but differences rose again, and a group of people now pray at an illegal mosque set up at a house called Heenaamaage.

A local told Haveeru that the reason why most people boycotted the social center was because of the presence of a television providing cable TV services.

\"Cable TV shows programs which promotes other religions,\" a resident told Haveeru.

He said that in addition, the social center was not constructed in a way in which it faces the Kaaba, Islam\'s holiest shrine in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, towards which Muslims face during prayers.

The issue of extremism has been in the limelight ever since the Police and the Army clashed with an extremist group over an illegal mosque in Himandhoo during an operation to search for key suspects in the island following the September 29 bombing of the Sultan Park in the capital Male in which 12 foreign tourists were injured.

Ukulhas\' Island Chief Mohamed Khalid told Haveeru today that efforts to dismantle the makeshift mosque has been unsuccessful so far.

\"Over the past three years, staff of the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs and even the Police came to this island to convince the breakaway group to rejoin official congregations. But their efforts have been unsuccessful,\" he said.

Khalid said that the Supreme Council\'s Usman Abdulla twice arrived in the island to advice the extremists on the importance of following the true moderate path.

\"But the community would not listen to him,\" Khalid said.

One reason why Ukulhas has been unable to tackle with rising extremism is the mistrust the community has in the Government.

\"Since Usman was a public servant, the people feel that he will only give the Government\'s view on Islam rather than the truth about Islam,\" Khalid said.

He named certain self-proclaimed Islamic scholars like Sheikh Fareed, late Sheikh Mohamed Ibrahim, Sheikh Ilyas, Sheikh Idris and a person named Abdulla Ali as having the trust of Ukulhas people.

\"When there is a contesting issue, residents telephone them and get their advice\" rather than seek the Government\'s advice, Khalid said.

\"The scholars do not come here to give sermons but residents keep in touch with them through mobile phones,\" he said.

Khalid expressed concern that many of the extremists were youths, and that many more young people are on the verge of being brainwashed by extremists.

\"They are self-proclaimed Islamic scholars. They do not have formal training. They refer to dubious extremist books and CDs to find out more about the Islamic way of life,\" Khalid said.

Many residents here fear that the island could become another Himandhoo as the breakaway group now number around 80. In Himandhoo, the breakaway group numbered around a 100.

Six women in this island are defying the Government by wearing the abaya which covers their faces. President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom recently declared that it is illegal to don clothing which hides the identity of the person. Hence, it is not clear how the Government will deal with the situation in this island.

And what is ironic is that among those six women wearing the veil, three are daughters of Khalid, which has led to some residents accusing Khalid of facilitating extremists.

However, Khalid denied the charges and said that he has no control over his daughters because they were married.

\"Their husbands wanted my daughters to wear the abaya after they were married. So there is nothing I can do about it,\" he said.

The breakaway group joins in illegal congregations at Heenaamaage quite openly and even write down their own sermons for Juma (Friday) prayers which is again illegal as the Government requires only official sermons to be read in all mosques across the archipelago.

After such prayers, the congregation even distributes leaflets supporting extremist ideas, according to residents.

There is also no official imam to lead the prayers and the group\'s members take their turns in calling for prayers and conducting them.

Some residents say that no study has been conducted to find out whether the official mosque was really built on a graveyard. Hence, they claim that they don\'t believe that the mosque is sitting on top of a graveyard.

\"But we closed down the mosque after testimony by some people,\" Khalid insisted.

\"Some people wanted to dig under the mosque. We need to dig at least eight feet but there is a fear that the mosque may collapse, so we didn\'t want to dig under the mosque,\" Khalid said.

While the official mosque has been closed for years, there are no signs that the Government is planning to set up another mosque away from any graveyards.

Some residents feel that the official mosque has to be built in the harbor area but there are people who are against it.

Sources said that the same self-proclaimed Islamic scholars who spread extremism in Himandhoo were responsible in taking Ukulhas also along the tragic path of extremism.

(Translated from an article by Ahmed Hamdhoon, Haveeru News Service)

ބުރުގާއާއި ދެކޮޅަށް މަތީ މަޖިލިހުން އިއުލާނު ނެރެފިނަމަ އެއްވެސް ބަޔަކު އަމަލު ނުކުރުމަށް ޢަދާލ

ލިޔުނީ އިބްރާހީމް މުހައްމަދު ބުރާސްފަތި, 18 އޮކުޓޫބަރު 2007

ކޮންބައެއްކަން އޮޅުން ނުފިލާފަދަ ގޮތްގޮތަށް ހެދުން އަޅައިގެން އުޅުން މަނާކަމަށްބުނެ މޫނުބުރުގާ އެޅުން މަނާކޮށް އިސްލާމީ ކަންތައްތަކާ ބެހޭ އެންމެ މަތީ މަޖިލިހުން އިއުލާނެއް ނެރެފިނަމަ މިއިއުލާނަށް އެއްވެސް ބަޔަކު އަމަލު ނުކުރުމަށް ޢަދާލަތު ޕާޓީން ގޮވާލައިފިއެވެ. ޕާކިސްތާނުގެ ޖާމިޔާ ސަލަފިއްޔާއިން އަދި ސައޫދީ އަރަބިއްޔާގެ މަދީނާ ޔުނިވަސިޓީން މަތީ ތައުލީމް ހާސިލްކޮށްފައިވާ ޢަދާލަތު ޕާޓީގެ އިސްތަރުޖަމާނު ޝައިޚް މުހައްމަދު ޝަހީމް އަލީ ސައީދު ރޭ ދަރުބާރުގޭގައި ބޭއްވި އެޕާޓީގެ ޢާއްމު ޖަލްސާގައި ވާހަކަދައްކަވަމުން ވިދާޅުވީ ޢަދާލަތު ޕާޓީގެ އެންމެ ފަހު މީހާޔާޖެހެންދެން ޢަދާލަތު ޕާޓީ އޮތީ އެޕާޓީގެ އުހުތުންނާއި އެކުގައިކަމަށެވެ. “ޢަދާލަތުގެ ފަހުމީހާއަށް ޖެހެންދެން މިތިބީ އުޚުތުންނާއެކު” މޫނު ބުރުގާ އަޅައިގެން ޢާއްމު ޖަލްސާއަށް ވަޑައިގެންނެވި މެމްބަރުންނަށް މުހާތަބް ކުރައްވައި ޝައިޚް ޝަހީމް ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. ހަރުކަށި އުސޫލު ޑރމަޖީދުގެ ދުލުން ހަރުކަށި އުސޫލުތަކާ ބެހޭގޮތުން ޢަދާލަތު ޕާޓީގެ އިލްމުވެރިންގެ މަޖިލިހުގެ ރައީސް އަދި އިސްލާމީ ކަންތައްތަކާ ބެހޭ އެންމެ މަތީ މަޖިލިހުގެ ޑިރެކްޓަރ ޑރ.އަބްދުލް މަޖީދު އަބްދުލް ބާރީ ވާހަކަ ދެއްކެވިއެވެ. ޑރމަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވީ ސަރުކާރުން ހަރުކަށި އުސޫލުތައް ހުއްޓުވުމަށް ފިޔަވަޅުތަކެއް އެޅުމަށް ސަރުކާރުގެ ބައެއް ވުޒާރާތަކަށް ސިޓީއެއްގެ ޒަރިއްޔާއިން އަންގާފައިވާކަމަށާއި މިކަން ޚަބަރުފަތުރާ ވަސީލަތްތަކުން ގިނަ ބަޔަކަށް މިހާރު އެނގިފައިވާކަމަށެވެ. “މީހަކަށް ބައްޔެއް ޖެހުމުން ފުރަތަމަ ދެނީ ބޭހެއް ނޫން” ތަފްސީރުގެ ރޮނގުން ސައޫދީ އަރަބިއްޔާއިން ޕީއެޗްޑީ ހައްދަވާފައި ހުންނެވި ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. “ނަމަވެސް ބަލި ތަހުލީލުކޮށް ދެނެގަނެ އެބައްޔަކީ ކޮބާތޯބަލައި ބޭހެއްދެނީ” މިހެންވެ ހައްދުފަހަނަ އަޅާދިޔުމާމެދު ފިޔަވަޅު އެޅުމުގެ ކުރިން މައްސަލަތައް ދެނެގަންނަން ޖެހޭކަމަށް ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. އަދި މިއަމަލުތަކާ ބެހޭ ގޮތުން ދުނީޔޭގެ ބައެއް ގައުމުތަކުގައި ދިރާސާތައް ހެދިފައިވާކަމަށާއި މި ދިރާސާތައް ހެދުނީ 1950 ގެ އަހަރުތަކުގައި، މި އުސޫލުތައް ދުނިޔެއަށް ފާޅުވުމުންކަމަށް ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. މިދިރާސާތަކުގެ އަލީގައި ހައްދުފަހަނަ އަޅާދިޔުމަށް ދިމާވި ސަބަބަކީ އިސްލާމްދީނަށް ބަޔަކު މީހުން އުޅެން ދަތިކުރުމާއި ދީނަށް އުޅެން ބޭނުންވާ މީހުންނަށް ދީނަށް އުޅެން ފުރުސަތު ނުދިނުމުންކަމަށްވެސް ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. ދީނީ އިލުމުވެރިންގެ އިތުބާރު ގެއްލެން ދިމާވި ސަބަބު އޮޅުން ފިލުވައި ދެއްވަމުން ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވީ ބައެއް ސަރުކާރު ތަކުން ދިޔައީ އިލްމުވެރިން ބޭނުންކޮށްގެން ފަތުވާތައް ނެރެމުންކަމަށެވެ. މިހެންވެ ހުރިހާ ދީނީ އިލްމުވެރިންގެ އިތުބާރު ގެއްލި އިލްމުވެރިން ދޫކޮށް ފޮތްފޮތާއި އިންޓަނެޓަށް ބަރޯސާވުމުން ދީނުގެ ހަޤީޤީ އިލްމް ނުލިބުނުކަމަށް ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. “ދީނީ އިލްމު އުނގެނެވޭނީ އިލްމުވެރިއެއް ކައިރިޔަށްގޮސް ނޫނީ އިންސްޓިޓިއުޓަކަށް ގޮސް ނޫނީ ޔުނިވަސިޓީއަކަށް ގޮސް” ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. ޑރ.މަޖީދު ފާހަގަކުރެވިގޮތުގައި އިސްލާމީ އުއްމަތުން ހެދި ދިރާސާތަކުން ދެއްކިގޮތުގައި ހަރުކަށި އުސޫލު ތަކުގެ މީހުންނަށް ހަރުކަށި އަދަބުތައް ދީގެން މިކަންތައްތައް ދިޔައީ އިތުރުވަމުންނެވެ. “ބައެއް ގައުމުތަކުން ގޯސްތަށް ހެދިފައިވޭ. އަޅުގަނޑުމެން ޖެހޭނީ ގޯސްތައް ތަކުރާރުކުރަންތަ؟” ޑރ.މަޖީދު ސުވާލުކުރެއްވިއެވެ. ވަކިބަޔަކަށް ނޭންގޭގޮތަށް ހެދުން އެޅުމާއި ޓެރަރިޒަމް ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިގޮތުގައި ރައީސް އޮފީހުން މަތީ މަޖިލިހަށް ފޮނުވި ސިޓީތަކުގެ އިބާރާތްތަކުން ދޭހަކޮށްދެނީ ޓެރަރިޒަމްގެ އަމަލުތައް ހިންގަނީ ވަކިބަޔަކުކަން ނޭންގޭ ގޮތަށް ހެދުންއަޅައިގެން އުޅޭ މީހުންނެވެ. އަދި ރާއްޖޭގައި އަންހެނުން މޫނު ބުރުގާ އަޅަން ފަށާފައިވަނީ 1990ގެ އަހަރުތަކުގައި ކަމަށް ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. އަދި މިފަހުން މޫނު ބުރުގާއަޅައިގެން އަންހެނަކު ވައްކަން ކުރީކަމަށް ތުހުމަތު ކުރެވުނު ކަމަށާއި އެކުއްޖާއާ ބައްދަލުކޮށް ވާހަކަ ދެއްކުމުން ވާހަކައިގެ ހަޤީޤަތް ވިސްނުނު ކަމަށްވެސް ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. “މިވޭތުވެދިޔަ 20 އަހަރު މިފަދަ ވާހަކައެއް އިވިފައިވޭތޯ ބަލާ” ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. “ވައްކަން ކުރިކަމަށް ތުހުމަތު ކުރެވުނީ. ނަމަވެސް ސާބިތެއް ނުވޭ. ނަމަވެސް ކުށްތަކުގައި ސާބިތުވާމީހުން، ހުކުމް ކޮށްފައި ތިބޭ މީހުން ދޫކޮށްލުމުން މިފަދަ ވައްކަންކުރުންފަދަ އަމަލުތައް ގިނަވަނީ” ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިގޮތުގައި ހައްދުފަހަނަ އަޅާދަނީ މީހެއް ލައިގެން ހުންނަ ހެދުމާއި މަލަމަތި ހުންނަ ގޮތަކުން ނޫންކަމުގައެވެ. “މިއަކަށް ހައްލެއް ނާންނާނެ ބުރުގާ މަނާކުރުން، މޫނު ބުރުގާ އެޅުން މަނާކުރުމުން. ތުނބުޅިލާފައި ތިބޭ މީހުން ހައްޔަރުކޮށް ތުނބުޅި ބޭލުމުން ކަންތައްތައް ދާނީ ގޯހުން” ޑރ.މަޖީދު ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. ޖަމާލް އަބްދުއްނާސިރުގެ ޓެރެރިޒަމް ރާއްޖޭގައި ރޭ ޖަލްސާއަށް ހާޒިރުވި އެތައްސަތޭކަ މީހުންނާ މުހާތަބް ކުރައްވައި ސައޫދީ އަރަބިއްޔާއިން މަތީ ތައުލީމު ހާސިލް ކުރެއްވި ޢަދާލަތު ޕާޓީގެ ރައީސް ޝައިޚް ހުސެން ރަޝީދު އަހުމަދު ވިދާޅުވީ ރައީސް މައުމޫނު ރާއްޖޭގައި މިހާރު ހިންގަމުންދަނީ މިސްރުގެ ކުރީގެ ރައީސް ޖަމާލް އަބްދުއްނާސިރުގެ ޓެރަރިޒަމް ކަމަށެވެ. “އޭނާގެ ދަރިވަރެއް ރައީސް މައުމޫނަކީ” ޝައިޚް ހުސެން ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. ޝައިޚް ހުސެން ވިދާޅުވިގޮތުގައި ރައީސް މައުމޫނު މިސްރުގައި ކިޔަވަން އުޅުނު ދުވަސްވަރު މުޒާހަރާ ކޮށްގެން އޭރު ރާއްޖޭގެ ރައީސް ވެލާނާގޭ އިބްރާހީމް ނާސިރު އަޒްހަރުގައި ހުރި ދިވެހި ކުދިން ރާއްޖެ ގެންނަން މަސައްކަތް ކުރިއެވެ. “މިހެންވެ ކިޔަވަން އުޅުނު 16 ކުއްޖަކު ރައީސް ޖަމާލް އަބްދުއް ނާސިރުގެ ހިމާޔަތް ހޯދީ” ޝައިޚް ހުސެން ވިދާޅުވިއެވެ. “އެ ޓެރެރެރިޒަން އޭނާ މިހިންގ

Not aware of facilitating extremism: Law Faculty Dean

Oct 18th, 14:48 0 Comments Jazeera

Dean of the Sharia and Law Faculty has said that he was unaware of any activities facilitating religious extremism taking place at the faculty.

During an interview with Jazeera, dean Fayyaz Ali Manik the college has been officially asked by the College of Higher Education to put a stop to what they have been told as acts facilitating religious extremism.

"Such acts have been not been taking place to my knowledge. If such things are happening without my knowledge it should be investigated". Fayyaz said that he would be able to make an official statement after meeting with the executive committee.

Fayyaz said that the letter from the President's Office to the Higher Education Ministry stating that there were activities at the Law Faculty supporting religious extremism would change people's opinion of the faculty.

"This has been a surprise to the faculty staff and students. Everyone should know the truth. So we will very soon begin work to find out how much truth there is to this. If it is true we will take steps to stop it" he said.

Jazeera has learned that most of the students at the faculty have come after finishing Mauhadh. Some of the girls wear black dresses while some male students keep a beard.

"I do not understand what they mean by extremist activities. When we are accused of such, instead of being saddened we just have more questions" said a displeased student.

"Even a committee from the cabinet should be more clear when making accusations such as these. If wearing black dresses and veil is extremism then it should be said clearly".

A lecturer at the faculty said that he was surprised at the accusation and that he was unaware of any truth to it.

Behaviour of Himandhoo breakaway religious group shows signs of religious extremism – Adhaalath Party

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| DATE: 2007-10-11 | PRINT | BOOKMARK

Some of the severe religious practices adopted by the breakaway religious group in North Ari atoll Himandhoo have nothing to do with true religion and are the result of religious extremism, Adhaalath Party (AP) has said.

Speaking at news conference held at the Adhaalath Party’s offices, President Sheikh Hussain Rasheed said that forming separate congregations to pray, illegal marriages and keeping children from getting an education were not endorsed by religion. He said that they believed it such practices because they didn’t really know their religion or because they had taken it to extremes.

The President of the AP’s Religious Scholar’s Council Dr. Abdul Baaree Abdul Majeed said that the actions of both the security forces, who were there to locate wanted suspects in the Sultan Park bombing case and others wanted for other criminal offences, and the breakaway religious group in Himandhoo, who said that they were only trying to protect their makeshift mosque, were not the most appropriate under the circumstances. He said that the problem could have been solved without turning it into a military operation.

“If the military is used against them it might cause serious civil disturbances throughout the country,” he said. “The best option is to talk to them and change their way of thinking and their stand on some of their practices.”

He said that locking them up in jail would not solve anything and the best thing to do was to teach them what religion really said about some of their strict beliefs.

“The religious group in Himandhoo who had made a separate mosque to hold prayers and had adopted their own beliefs about religion aren’t educated about religion,” AP spokesperson Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed said. “They are confused about the real beauty of the Islamic beliefs and way.”

He also faulted the Government for giving opportunity for such extremism to grow in the society due to lack of adequate resources to inform the public about religion.

Maldives militant move condemned

BBC

President Gayoom is accused of over-reacting

A Maldives opposition group has strongly condemned moves announced earlier this week by the president to curb Islamic militancy in the country.

A spokesman for the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said the move was would "exacerbate extremism".

They argue that innocent people are being affected by the crackdown.

President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom said that measures to combat Islamic extremism were necessary to protect the country's lucrative tourism industry.

Special permission

Last month the country was hit by a bomb attack in a park near the main mosque in the capital, Male.

Two Britons, two Japanese and eight Chinese tourists were hurt by the bomb - reported to have been homemade.

In an order made on Tuesday, President Gayoom said extremist elements should not be allowed to operate in the country, and that foreign clerics would not be able to enter the country without special permission.

In a wide ranging decree, the president ordered:

• A new dress code which outlaws women from being covered from head-to-toe
• Moderate Islamic views to be promoted in schools and colleges
• Action against anyone suspected of being a religious extremist
• Research into why some Muslims have become more radical
• A new law that bans words or actions likely to encourage extremism

Ahmad Moosa, a spokesman for the MDP in London, accused the president of "using a sledgehammer to crack a nut".

In an interview with the BBC, he said that the president himself must bear some responsibility for the rise of militant Islam in the islands.

Fifty suspected militants were arrested last month

"As early as 1980 he was inviting radicals from abroad to visit our country in addition to setting up Islamic schools. He has only himself to blame."

Correspondents say that September's bombing has unsettled the Maldives, a nation of over 1,000 islands scattered across some 850k (550 miles) off the southern coast of India.

Officials say that President Gayoom is eager to stem militant violence, which many fear could detract from the country's position as a top destination for tourists.

Police arrested nearly 50 people last week on a remote island in connection with the Male blast.

Those detained were all Maldivians belonging to an Islamic militant group, according to a government spokesman.

ހިމަންދޫ މައްސަލަ ހައްލުކުރުމުގައި ސަރުކާރުގެ އިހުމާލެއް ނުވޭބާ؟

Jazeera އިސްމާއީލް ރަޝީދު އޮކްޓޫބަރ 10، 16:14 0 ޚިޔާލު

”އެ ރަށަކީ އއ. އަތޮޅުގައި މީހުން އުޅޭ ރަށްރަށުގެ ތެރެއިން އެންމެ ރަނގަޅު ރައްޔިތެއް އުޅޭ އެއް ރަށް. އަދި ވަރަށް ކިޔަމަންތެރި ރައްޔިތުން ތަކެއް އުޅޭ އެއްބައިވަންތަ ރަށެއް އެއީ ވަރަށް ފަހަކާ ޖެހެންދެން. ނަމަވެސް މިހާރު އެރަށް އެވަނީ ހަލާކުވެފައި. ބައިބައިވެފައި. އެރަށުން ފެންނަނީ ބައިބައިވުމާ ދެކޮޅުވެރިކަން,“ އެންމެ 500 އެއްހާ މީހުން ދިރިއުޅޭ އއ. ހިމަންދުއާ ބެހޭ ގޮތުން އެ އަތޮޅުގެ ވަރަށް އިސް ބޭފުޅަކު ވިދާޅުވި އެވެ.

މިދިޔަ ހަފުތާތެރޭގައި އެ ރަށުން ފެނިގެންދިޔަ ހާދިސާތަކަށް ބަލާއިރު އެ ވާހަކަތައް ގަބޫލުކުރަން ޖެހެ އެވެ. އެ ރަށުގައި ވަކިން މިސްކިތް ހަދައިގެން ނަމާދުކުރަމުންދިޔަ ބަޔަކާ ގައުމީ ސަލާމަތީ ބާރުތަކާ ދެމެދު ހިނގި ހަމަނުޖެހުމުގައި ވަނީ 46 މީހަކަށް ތަފާތު އަނިޔާތައް ލިބި, 63 މީހުން ހައްޔަރުކޮށްފަ އެވެ. އަނިޔާ ލިބުނު މީހުންގެތެރޭގައި 34 މީހުންނަކީ ގައުމީ ސަލާމާތީ ބާރުތަކުގެ މުވައްޒަފުންނެވެ. އަނެއް 12 މީހުންނަކީ ފުލުހުންނާއި ސިފައިންނަށް އަމާންނުދީ އުޅުނު މީހުންގެ ތެރެއިން ބައެކެވެ.

ވަކިން މިސްކިތް ހަދައިގެން ނަމާދުކުރުމާއި ރަސޫލާގެ ސުންނަތާ އެއްގޮތަށް އަމަލުކުރާ ކަމަށް ބުނާ މީހުންނާ މެދު ހިތްހަމަނުޖެހިގެން ހިންގާ ހަމަނުޖެހުމުގެ ސަބަބުން އެ ރަށްވަނީ ނުރައްކަލަށް ވެއްޓިފަ އެވެ.

މިދިޔަ މަހުގެ 29 ވަނަ ދުވަހު ސަލްޓަން ޕާކުގައި ގޮއްވާލި އިންޕްރޮވައިސް އެކްސް ޕްލޯސިވް ޑިވައިސް)އައިއީޑީ( ގެ މައްސަލައި ސުވާލުކުރުމަށާއި ހައްޔަރުކުރުމަށް ބޭނުންވާ މީހުން ހޯދުމަށް ފުލުހުން ފަށާފައިވާ ހާއްސަ އޮޕަރޭޝަނުގައި ގައުމީ ސަލާމާތީ ބާރުތަކުން ވަނީ އެރަށުގައި ހަރަކާތްތެރިވާން ފަށާފަ އެވެ. ގިނަ އަދަދެއްގެ ފުލުހުންނާއި ސިފައިން އެރަށުގައި ހަރަކާތްތެރިވާން ފެށުމާއެކު, ވަކިން މިސްކިތް ހަދައިގެން އުޅޭ މީހުން ވަނީ އެ މީހުން ނަމާދު ކުރުމަށް އެރަށު ”އަލްހައިރު“ގައި ހަދާފައިވާ މިސްކިތް ހިމާޔަތްކުރާނެކަމަށް ބުނެ އެ މިސްކިތް ހުރި ސަރަހައްދަށް ޖަމާވެފަ އެވެ. ކޮން ބައެއްކަން ނޭނގޭގޮތަށް މޫދުގައި ފޮތި ބަދެގެން ބޮލުގައި ހެލްމެޓް އަޅައިގެން ލަޓިބުރި ހިފައިގެން ތިބި މީހުން ގޮވަމުންދިޔައީ ފުލުހުން ބޭނުންވާ ބަޔަކު ހޯދުމަށް ހަރަކާތްތެރިވުމަށެވެ. ނަމަވެސް ފުލުހުން ބޭނުންވީ މިސްކިތް ކައިރި އަށް އެއްވެފައިވާ މީހުންތައް ރޫޅާލުމަށެވެ. އަދި އެ އެއްވުމަކީ ގާނޫނު އަސާސީއާ ހިލާފަށް އެއްވެފައިވާ އެއްވުމެއް ކަމަށާއި އެހެންވެ އެ ގޮތަށް އެއްވެ ނުތިބެވޭނެ ކަމަށް ބުނަމުން ނެވެ.

ފުލުހުންގެ ވާހަކަތަކަށް އިޖާބަނުދިނުމުން ފުލުހުންގެ ފައުޖުން އެ މީހުންނާ ކުރިމަތިލި އެވެ. ނަމަވެސް ވަރަށް ކުޑަ ހިދުކޮޅަކަށް ފަހު ފުރަތަމަ ފަހަރަށް ދިވެހި ފުލުހުންގެ ފައުޖުވަނީ ފަހަތަށް ޖެހި ފަ އެވެ. އޭގެ ފަހުން ސިފައިންގެ ބަޔަކާއެކު އެ މީހުންނާ ދިމާކުރި އެވެ.ނަމަވެސް އެ ދެބައި މީހުންގެ ކުރިމަތީގައި މަދު މީހުންކޮޅު އަމާންނުދިނުމުން ގައުމީ ސަލާމާތީބާރުތަކުން ފަހަތަށް ޖެހުނެ އެވެ. އެ ކުރިމަތިލުމުގައި ވަރަށް ގިނަ ބަޔަކަށް ވަނީ ބޮޑެތި ގެއްލުންތަކެއް ލިބިފަ އެވެ.-

އެއީ މި ހަފުތާގައި ހިނގި ކަންތައްތަކެވެ. އޭގެކުރިއަށް ޖެހިލާއިރު މިދިޔަ ރޯދަ މަހު ވެސް ވަނީ އެ މީހުން ނަމާދުކުރާ ތަން ބަންދުކޮށް 16 މީހުން ހައްޔަރުކޮށްފަ އެވެ. ބަންދުކޮށްގެން ފުލުހުން ގެނައި މީހުންގެ މައްޗަށް ދައުވާކުރި ނަމަވެސް އެ ދައުވާ ނިމުމަކަށް ނާދެ އެވެ. އެ މައްސަލަ ނުނިމެނީސް އިތުރު މައްސަލައެއް މިވަނީ ފެންމަތިވެފަ އެވެ.

އެ ރަށުގެ ގިނަ ބަޔަކު ގަބޫލުކުރާގޮތުގައި މުޅި ރަށް ބައިބައިވެ ވަކިން ނަމާދުކުރާ މީހުންނާ އެއް ގަލަކަށް ނޭރި މައްސަލަ ހޫނުފެނުގެ ތެރެ އަށް ގެނބިގެންދިޔައީ ސަރުކާރުން އަޅަން ޖެހޭ ފިޔަވަޅުތައް އެންމެ އެކަށީގެންވާގޮތުގައި އެޅިފައިނުވާތީ އެވެ. ”އެއީ ދީނީގޮތުން ވަރަށް ތަފާތު ބައެއް އަހަރުމެންނާ. އެކަން ފެށިގެން އައިސް މިހިސާބަށް ދިޔައިރު ވެސް ސަރުކާރުން އެކަން ހުއްޓުވައި އެ މީހުންނާ ވާހަކަ ދައްކާ ރަނގަޅުގޮތެއް ހޯދާކަން މަސައްކަތެއްނުކުރޭ. ކޮންމެ ފަހަރަކު ފުލުހުން އައިސް މީހުންތަކެއް ހައްޔަރުކުރުމަކުން މިކަމެއް ނުނިމޭނެ. މި އުޅެނީ ގަބޫލުކުރާ އުސޫލާއި ގޮތްތަކެއްގެ މައްސަލައެއް,“ ނޫހުގައި ނަން ޖެހުމަށް ބޭނުންނުވާ އެރަށު މީހަކު ބުންޏެވެ. އޭނާ ބުނީ ރަށުގެ އެއް ބަޔަކު ނަމާދަށް އަރާ މިސްކިތަށް ނަމާދަށް ނާރާ ވަކިން ނަމާދުކުރަން ފެށީ ތަފާތު މައްސަލަތައް ޖެހެމުން ގޮސް ހައްލުނުވެގެން ކަމަށެވެ.

”ދީނުގެ ކަންތައްތައް އެމީހުން ކުރަނީ ރަސޫލާގެ ސުންނަތުގައިވާ ގޮތަށްކަމަށް ބުނެގެން. އެއީ ސައްހަގޮތެއް ނޫން ނަމަ އެކަން ދަދީލުކޮށްދީ އެ މީހުން ރަނގަޅުކުރަން ބޮޑެތި މަސައްކަތްކުރަން ޖެހޭނެ. އެކަމަކު އެކަމަށް މާ ބޮޑުކަމެއްނުކުރޭ. މަތީ މަޖިލިސް އޮތީ އޮތްތަނެއްގައި,“ ސަރުކާރުގައި ވަޒީފާ އަދާކުރާ ފިރިހެނަކު ބުންޏެވެ.

ދީނީ ނަސޭހަތް ދިނުމަށް ސަރުކާރުން އެ ރަށަށް ޓީމުތައް ފޮނުވި ނަމަވެސް އެ ރަށުގައި ވަކިން ނަމާދުކުރާ މީހުންގެ ކަންތައްތައް ހުރި މިންވަރަށް ބަލާއިރު ސަރުކާރުން އެކަން ހައްލުކުރުމަށް ކުރި މަސައްކަތާ މެދު ހިތްހަމަނުޖެހޭކަމަށް އޭނާ ބުންޏެވެ.

”ދީނީ ނަސޭހަތް ދިނުމުގެ ކަންތައްތަކެއް ހިންގުނު. ނަމަވެސް އެ މީހުން ކަންތައްތައް އޭރު ވެސް ވަނީ ވަރަށް މަތީގައި. އެ މީހުންގެ ކަންތައްތައް އެ ހިސާބުގައި ހުރި އިރު އެ ފަދަ ބަޔަކު ރަނގަޅުކުރުމަށް މަސައްކަތްކުރަން ޖެހޭވަރަށް މަސައްކަތްނުކުރެވޭކަމަށް އަޅުގަނޑުވެސް ގަބޫލުކުރަން. އެންމެ ފުރަތަމަކޮޅު ވަރަުގަދައަށް ޖެއްސުނުނަމަ މިހާ ހިސާބަށް އެކަންތައްތައް ނުގޮސް ހައްލުވާނެ,“ އއ. އަތޮޅުގައި ވަރަށް އިސްކޮށް މަސައްކަތް ކުރާ ވެރިއަކު ވިދާޅުވި އެވެ.

ނޫހުގައި ނަންނުޖެހުމަށް އެދި ވާހަކަ ދައްކަވަމުން އޭނާ ވިދާޅުވީ ދީނީ މައްސަލަތައް ހައްލުކުރުމުގައި ބާރުގެ ބޭނުންކުރުމަކީ ހައްލެއްކަމަށް ނުދެކޭ ކަމަށާއި ދީނުގެ ނަމުގައި ބަޔަކުނުކުމެ އުޅެމުންދާއިރު ހަތިޔާރަށް ނުގުނޑާނެކަން ސަރުކާރުން ގަބޫލުކުރަން ޖެހޭ ކަމަށެވެ.

”ދީނަން ޓަކައޭ ބުނެ އެ ތިބަ ޖާނު ގޮއްވާލަނީ އެކި ގައުމުތަކުގައި. އެ ފަދަ ހިސާބަށް ކަންތައްތައް ގޮސްފައިވާ އިރު ރާއްޖޭގައި ވެސް އެ ފަދަ މީހުން ތިބެދާނެ. ބާރުގެ ބޭނުންކުރުމަކީ އެ ކަހަލަ ކަމެއް ހައްލުކުރުމަށް އެންމެ ރަނގަޅު ވަސީލަތައް ނުވެދާނެ. ކުޑަކުދިން ވެސް އެ ބުނަނީ ތިމަންނަމެންނަކީ މުޖާހިދުންކަމަށް. އެ ވަރަށް ގޮސްފައިވާ އިރު ހަތިޔާރާއި ބާރު ބޭނުންކުރުން އެއީ ގޯހެއް,“ އޭނާ ވިދާޅުވި އެވެ.

ފަހަކަށް އައިސް ކޮންމެ ރޯދަ މަހެއްގައި ހިމަންދޫގައި ހިނގާ ހަމަނުޖެހުމުގެ ސަބަބުންނާއި އެރަށުގައި ވަކިން ނަމާދުކުރާ މީހުންނާއި ރަށުގެ އެހެން މީހުންނާމެދު އޮންނަ ގުޅުން ކުޑަކަމުގެ ސަބަބުން ގިނަ ބަޔަކު ތިބެނީ ބިރުވެރިކަމެއްގެތެރޭގަ އެވެ. ނަމަވެސް މަދު އާބާދީއެއް ހިމެނޭ އެ ރަށު މީހުން މިއަދަކު ކުރާނެކަމެއް ނެތެވެ. ދެތިން އަހަރު ދުވަސްވީ އިރު ވެސް ހައްލުނުކުރެވުނު މައްސަލައިގެ ޒިންމާ ނަގާނީ ކޮން ފަރާތަކުން ބާވަ އެވެ؟