By Minivan News | February 5th, 2011 | Category: Politics | 13 comments The Maldives votes today in its first local council elections. Minivan News will provide rolling coverage throughout the day (scroll down). Local Council Election Guide (English) 10:00 - The countrys ballot boxes opened from eight this morning without any major disruptions across the country and are expected to remain in use until 4:00pm this afternoon, according to Elections Commission (EC) President, Fuwad Thaufeeq.Thaufeeq told Minivan News that there were no reports of delays or closures at any of the countrys polling stations, with an additional two ballot boxes opened in Trivandrum, India and Colombo, Sri Lanka, for Maldivian nationals overseas.All the [polling] stations were opened on time and many were staffed from about 45 minutes before operating to ensure they were fully ready, he said. We also have the two boxes in Sri Lanka and India that will also open between 8:...

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axaje has added a photo to the pool: Creation of Maldivian Skinny "Hulk"

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Mohamed Malik has added a photo to the pool: Holidays are over studies have resumed again so im back in male..this picture was taken sometime in Dec last year. Special thanks for Abdullah Shathir, Easa Moosa & Abdullah Ali...For Posing for this picture.....

By Minivan News | February 3rd, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | 5 comments Maldivian staff at the proposed Lithuanian Blondes only resort will wear wigs, Olialia Brand Manager Lauryna Anuseviciut has confirmed in an interview with Associated Press.Anuseviciute told AP that staff who are not blond will wear a blond wig to make everyone look similar.Companies in the Maldives are required to employ at least 50 percent local staff, few of whom have blonde hair.Plans for the resort are still at an infant stage, but early designs show the island will be shaped as a gigantic high-heeled shoe.Anuseviciute insisted to AP that Olialia had already secured financing for the plan, however the Maldivian government says it has yet to issue a permit or even see a proposal.

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Mohamed Malik has added a photo to the pool: Sunsets In Ungoofaaru Capital Of Raa Atoll

By Ahmed Nazeer | February 3rd, 2011 | Category: Politics | 1 Comment The ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has condemned the Elections Commission in strongest possible terms for canceling the Addu City council election.The Elections Commission announced that the Addu City Council election was canceled after the Civil Court invalidated the criteria established by the Local Government Authority to determine cities.The Local Government Authority was established when the Civil Court recently ruled that president does not have the authority to declare Addu as a city before a Local Government Authority was established, and before the Authority determines whether Addu meets the requirements to be a city.In the public referendum held, Addu citizens in Maradhu area have already decided that they want to hold the Addu City Council elections, said MDPs Maradhoo branch in a statement. The citizens of this area were extremely concerned when Elections Com...

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By Minivan News | February 2nd, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | No Comments Indias state-owned National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) is examining the potential for solar projects in the Maldives.The company is currently conducting a feasibility study within the islands, which it expects to complete within 3-4 months.NTPC chairman and managing director Arup Roy Choudhury declined to offer specifics about the investment that Indias biggest power generator would potentially make in the island nation, until the completion of the study.

By Ahmed Nazeer | February 2nd, 2011 | Category: Society | 1 Comment The Peoples Alliance Party (PA) led by Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom has today issued a statement condemning attempts to influence and threaten the judiciary, following protests in Male and Addu Atoll over the Civil Courts decision to stop Addu from becoming a city.The party said there were reasonable grounds to believe that there were political links in the attempts to block entrance to court, based on reports in the media of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Alhan Fahmys comment Alhan stating that Adduans would not let courts in Addu open.The PA, which is in coalition with the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), accused the MDP of trying to influence the judiciary and judges.The party added that it had sent a letter to the police and Prosecutor Generals Office requesting they investigate the attempts to influence the judiciary the attempts to threaten judges.In the rece...

Mohamed aTk has added a photo to the pool: Have been trying to get a shot like this for sumtime, n here v have the best dragonfly shot i have eva had ;)

By Ahmed Nazeer | February 2nd, 2011 | Category: Politics | No Comments Protesters temporarily barred entry to the Justice Building of the Maldives last night, in response to the Civil Courts ruling that the Addu city criteria were invalid, forcing the Elections Commission (EC) to cancel the local council election in Addu this Saturday.Today the Department of Judicial Administration said that the court of Hulhudhoo in Addu Atoll was also locked this morning, and had to be opened with the assistance of police.Local radio station SunFM reported Alhan Fahmy, aMaldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP in Addu Atoll, as saying that he would not let courts in Addu to be opened.Fahmy was present at protests in Addu, SunFM reported, as Adduans expressed fury overthe Civil Court ruling.The Judicial Administration Department meanwhile said that it had requested additional security from police following media reports of further protests.The department said it had i...

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By JJ Robinson | February 1st, 2011 | Category: Politics | 1 Comment The Civil Court has ruled that the governments criteria to declare Addu a city are invalid, days before the local council elections are due to take place.Local newspaper Haveeru reported that Civil Court Judges Aisha Shujoon Mohamed, Hathif Hilmy and Ali Naseer had examined the case, before ruling that the criteria established by the Local Government Authority consisting solely of Home Minister Hassan Afeef were invalid. According to court documents cited by Haveeru, this ruling came from a case filed by Hassan Nasir of Annaaru Villa/Addu Atoll Hulhudhoo.Establishing the criteria required unanimity of the board, the Court said, as if a law requires a certain decision to be taken by a particular council or a committee, the decision should be taken by the unanimity of the council or the committee unless interpreted otherwise.Afeef said he was unable to comment as he had not yet se...

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By Minivan News | February 1st, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | 1 Comment The Islamic Foundation of the Maldives (IFM) will host a two-day Islamic workshop (Nadwa Islamiyya) on Tawheed and Shirk conducted by Islamic scholars including Sheikh Aboobakr Ibrahim (Hinnavar), Sheikh Ibrahim Fareed Ahmed, Sheikh Mohamed Ibrahim (Naifaru) and Sheikh Mohamed Moosa (Naifaru).A statement from the IFM noted that the session would examine the division of Tawheed into its components, which are Unity of Lordship, Unity of Worship, Unity of His Names and His Attributes, and Unity in following the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).Scholars will also teach the the basis of Shirk creeping into Islamic doctrine or forms of polytheism, which include invoking or supplicating to a false deity besides Allah, with the purpose and intention of worshipping a deity other then Allah. Obeying any created being against the command of Allah, and loving a created being or an object more tha...

SnorkelRach has added a photo to the pool: flying into Male over the northern atolls

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nattu has added a photo to the pool: Haggaha, Hikee haffaro edaagoho.

HISAAN Photography has added a photo to the pool: Re-branding tourism Slogan Tourism Industry Power players criticize the governments decision to rebrand Maldivian tourism slogan as an unnecessary measure. Last year, the government had announced their intention to throw aside the age old tourism trade mark for Maldives the sunny side of life to another, yet undisclosed slogan. Speaking at DhiTVs Khabaru Therein programme about the re-branding of the Maldivian Tourism industry, Vice President of the Maldives Association for Travel Agents and Tour Operators Mohamed Haleel and Executive Committee Member Ibrahim Naazim said that, while there is no problem in re-branding, they do not see how it is relevant for the time being. Managing Director of Inner Maldives Holidays Mohamed Firaq said that, he accepts that they have been using the slogan sunny side of life for 11 years, but noted that there is a time and place for changes. He said that he does not believe that re-branding should be do...

By Minivan News | January 31st, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | No Comments Police have arrested several suspected gang members during a sweep of 14 guest houses.Haveeru reported Chief Inspector Hamdoon Rasheed as saying that police had gathered evidence in gang violence cases during the operation over the last 2-3 weeks.After gang violence activities, members of the gangs do not stay at the same place. Even though they are registered in Male they are moving to rented rooms, he told the press.He also appealed to local landlords and guest house owners to be aware of the problem when renting rooms.

Haanee Naeem has added a photo to the pool: Rising sea levels and coastal erosion are causing widespread damage in the Maldives. Our leaders have had their message sent across the world, hope the world has listened to our plight. Kyoto divided the world. It divided us between rich and poor, developed and developing, Annex 1 and non-Annex 1. Our task now is to unite the world, behind the shared vision of low-carbon growth. The Maldives is trying to lead the way. I call on every country in the room to join us, not just for the sake of the Maldives, but for all of us who live on this beautiful planet President Mohamed Nasheed in his Statement to the Joint High-level segment of COP15 and CMP5 in Copenhagen in September 2009. It is not too late to save the world. It is not too late to save the Maldives and other low-lying island nations. Only the vital collective commitment is missing President M. A. Gayoom at the 42nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly on the Special Debate o...

By JJ Robinson and Neil Merrett | January 30th, 2011 | Category: Politics | 2 comments Mobile security solutions vendor Nexbis has announced it will be taking legal action against parties in the Maldives, claiming that speculation over corruption was politically motivated in nature and had wrought irreparable damage to Nexbis reputation and brand name.Although we understand that the recent media frenzy and speculation of corruption are politically motivated in nature and not directly related to Nexbis, it has had an indirect impact on our reputation and brand name, the company said in a statement provided to Minivan News.Nexbis shareholders own and manage multi-trillion dollar assets globally and will not jeopardise their reputation for an investment return, the company stated.The Malaysian-based technology firm signed a concessionaire contract with the Department of Immigration in October 2010, to install an advanced border control system that is h...

By Ahmed Nazeer | January 30th, 2011 | Category: Politics | 5 comments The collapse of longstanding dictatorships in Tunisia and Egypt, leaders of which were classmates of former Maldivian President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, carried moral lessons for the Maldives, claimed Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) parliamentary group leader Reeko Moosa Manik.Today the citizens of Arab countries have stood up against their leaders classmates of [former President] Maumoon, in fact who were practicing dictatorship like Maumoon, said Reeko Moosa. Take a look at the situation in Tunisia, take a look at the situation in Egypt, where Maumoon received his education.Moosa said the citizens of the Maldives should see the moral in the situation in these countries.The citizens of the Maldives should see the moral in the situation in these countries, ahead of the local council elections, and should not let Maumoons regime reinstate their power, Reeko Moosa said. I call citi...

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By JJ Robinson | January 30th, 2011 | Category: Politics | No Comments The Maldives is a powerful symbol of a tolerant and democratic Muslim society, US Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg said yesterday during a visit to the country.Steinberg was responding to a question regarding the extensive US interest in a such a small and isolated island nation in the middle of the Indian Ocean an interest apparently not extended to nearby countries such as the Seychelles.We have very practical interests in common, such as dealing with the challenges of climate change and piracy security in this region is of enormous importance to us, Steinberg said, in likely reference to US military interests in Diego Garcia, south of the Maldives.However as importantly, Steinberg said, the Maldives embrace of democracy showed that convictions such as democracy and freedom of expression are universal values that transcend culture, history and religion.The Maldives ...

By Yameen Rasheed | January 30th, 2011 | Category: Society | No Comments Just two weeks ago, the authoritarian regime of Hosni Mubarak seemed as firm and immovable as the great timeless pyramids that symbolise his country of Egypt.Today, the whole world is watching in suspended disbelief as tens of thousands of Egyptians openly defy Mubaraks security forces ignoring curfews, braving tear gas shells and water cannons, and tearing down giant posters of the powerful dictator that ruled over them for 30 years.In parts of Cairo, law enforcement has melted away before the protestors, and the army has been called in to wrest back government control as Mubarak faces the largest public uprising since the Egyptian monarchy was overthrown in 1952.Meanwhile, a sudden clamour for freedom is also posing serious challenges to despotic regimes elsewhere in the Arab world.This unlikely revolution began with a humble Tunisian fruit-seller, Muhammad Al Bouazizi who,...

fleckchen has added a photo to the pool: youtu.be/Yzr2pQnwmTs Blick auf Male. Male ist die kleinste Hauptstadt der Welt. Hier leben und arbeiten ca 130 000 Menschen auf nur 2 Quadratkilometer. Look at times. Times is the smallest capital of the world. Here approx. 130,000 people on only 2 square kilometres live and work.

By Minivan News | January 29th, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | No Comments Floating properties are to be developed on Five lagoons within the Kaafu Atoll that will include a convention centre and an 18-hole golf course as part of a joint venture agreement between the government and Netherlands-based developer, Dutch Docklands.As part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the government last year, the developer has now established a joint venture company known as Dutch Docklands Maldives that will hope to gather additional investment of about US$500m into the country, Haveeru has reported.The Maldives government will hold a five percent share in the joint venture, which is expected to begin work on the five floating developments this year with a projected completion date of 2015, the report added.During a signing ceremony held at the Ministry of Toruism, Arts and Culture on Thursday, Dutch Docklands claimed that the five developments w...

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axaje has added a photo to the pool: Fullmoon as observed from Herathera Chennel

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By Neil Merrett | January 27th, 2011 | Category: Society, Travel & Arts | 2 comments Police have confirmed that a safe containing thousands of rufiyaa has been taken during a burglary at the Kihaadhuffaru resort in Baa Atoll on Tuesday, but insist that security at other lucrative tourist destinations in the country should not be a concern for staff and visitors.Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said that a safe containing around Rf5,000 had been stolen from an office area at the resort and that no serious injuries had been reported by staff caught up in the theft.Shiyam added that investigations were continuing into the incident and that it was currently working to corroborate different reports it had received regarding Tuesdays theft.A spokesperson for Kihaadhuffaru said they were also unable to reveal details about the incident at present, though confirmed a burglary had taken place.Haveeru today reported that a group of masked men brandishin...

By Ahmed Nazeer | January 27th, 2011 | Category: Politics | No Comments The political Adhaalath Party led by State Islamic Minister Sheikh Hussein Rasheed has accused the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) of attempting to destroy the sanctity of the Party by misleading the public over its work.Although the Adhaalath Party is an institute in the current government, [it] is a party that supports justice and rights, and has expressed its opinions under the responsibility of integrity, the group said in a statement. Even if we were not an institute of the government, we will always keep our work to this policy.The party statement claimed that it was very concerned that some MDP officials were trying to misrepresent its work as the ideas of just a few specific individuals rather than an entire party in a manner that could damage the sanctity and honour of the party.Adhaalath Party will never just follow the decision of individuals, we will always ...

By Minivan News | January 27th, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | No Comments The Modern Academy for Professional Studies (MAPS) institute has promoted itself to college status this week and commenced the academic year.The college has introduced new courses in the field of accounting and said it was scheduled to introduce further areas of study later this year.MAPS college claimed that it was looking forward to introducing degree-level courses in the future and added that it was currently seeking for affiliates from the UK and Australia in order to achieve its goal to teach such programmes.The college currently offers management courses in Travel and Tourism, Human Resources, Business and IT to the level of Diploma and Advance Diploma.

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Husain+9607773925 has added a photo to the pool: Small Luxury Island Natural Beauty" at Gaafu Alif Atoll Maldives. Maldives ranks second among World's most Beautiful Countries: The Patogonia Times.

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By Minivan News | January 25th, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | No Comments Cabinet held its first meeting outside the capital of Male today, on Kulhudhuffushi in Haa Dhaal Atoll.All ministers attended the meeting apart from Islamic Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari, who was overseas.Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair told Haveeru that meeting focused on deciding the date for the establishment of a National University, and issues raised during an early workshop concerning development projects for the Upper North Province.These included developing roads on the island, harbours, house construction, utilities and how to use recently reclaimed land on the island.

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peter_sherriff2003 has added a photo to the pool: ... before the light softens as the sun descends a little further...

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By Minivan News | January 25th, 2011 | Category: News in Brief | No Comments The Maldives has fallen from third to fifth place on the New Seven Wonders of Nature listing.Haveeru reported Director of the Maldives Tourism Promotion Board (MTPB) Mohamed Adam as saying that the board was preparing new activities to generate more votes for the Maldives.We will participate in several fairs in order to get more votes to the Maldives, Haveeru reported Adam as saying.At current pace the MTPD predicts Maldives with finish seventh on the list when voting ends in November 2011.Only 10 percent of the votes for a seven wonder coming from inside its country are considered 90 percent must originate from outside the country containing the wonder.People wishing to vote for the Maldives can do so by calling +44 203 347 0901 (international call) and entering 7718 after the automated message. Votes can also be lodged here.