Monday, January 16, 2006

We Need To Build Bridges With Each Other

I've already posted "the case of my missed flight." With tmi staff not supportive and as we were too early for a "Riyaa Cafe" breakfast at 6.40 am on 5th decemebr 2005, I decided to do the next best thing. Read a book. I picked up a tma magazine "niyaama' no: 4. One sentence instantly caught my attention.

"Mohamed Thakurufanu The Great liberated Maldives in the latter part of the 16th Century."

I must confess I do not know enough about Maldivian history to make a crtical assessment of this liberation. But when I look at the social injustices that are prevailing in our society now, another more startling question comes to my mind.

"If infact we were liberated in the 16th century, how did we manage to get ourselves enslaved again." You can debate that this is a subjective opinion, each person entitled to his as I am to mine. For all I know, when I arrived Daalu Meedhoo an island with 1200 hard-working self confident individuals, there wasn't a single cyber cafe from where I could post this piece earlier.

On 5th december2005, evening I had gone in a launch to Faaf Nilandhoo, the capital island of that atoll, with 1600 inhabitants. Although there was one small cyber cafe, it was not opened even on 6.12.05 morning as not many people ever used it. The lingering question in my mind was, " when we came this far to nearly a developed country in Male', how and why did we leave the islands so far behind. This piece will run too long if I were dwell on the various social issues that are horribly wrong in these islands.

In order to maintain the social fabric of a unified people we need to learn to reach out to each other. We need restore trust between individuals and community leaders. We need to unlearn some of the corrupt practises that have crept into our society, which superficially give us a pseudo-western lifestyle while conveniently calling ourselves a 100 percent muslim nation.

The Case Of My Missed Fight

I had slept well passed midnight and woke up at 3.45 am on 5th december 2005,. when my alarm rang off. Here's the sequence of events that followed.
  • 4.45 am arrive at the Hulule Ferry Point at Male. I was in group of three others.
  • 5.00 am Depart Male' by dhoni to Hulule'
  • 5.20 am. Arrive and wait at the counter to take Sea Plane to Vilu Reef Island.
  • 5.25 am counter staff comes in without the key to the counter locker.
  • 5.30 am Counter key received, locker opened. Passengers names cheked and baggage tags issued. Thereafter we were fereried by bus to tmi seaplane terminal.
  • 5.45 purcased our tickets and await boarding for flight leaving at 6.10am
  • At 6.05 we were told by tmi staff that the plane has departed without us. We were furious and not in a mood to give in tmi duty staff nonsense. They said we were wait listed and showed thier passenger list and our four names at the very top had been struck off.
  • 6.20 am we knew we were at the mercy of these liars but decided to take our breakfast and cool off while waiting for the next flight at 7.10 am
  • 6.22am. We approached the "Riyaa Cafe" counter. Counter staff told they could serve tea/coffee with traditional roshi with fish etc. But the food is being prepared and we had to wait a while. We took a table nearby, our frayed tempers still getting the better of us as we were talking only about how the tmi duty staff lied to us without slightest feeling of an apology on their part for the inconvenience caused to us.
  • 6.45 am Food from the Cafe still not ready. We decided we should approach the departure counter and make sure we did not miss or better put that we shall not allow the tmi plane to depart without us.
  • 6.55 am. Cafe' staff approached us. Food is ready! It was too late to have breakfast when you know you are at the mercy of tmi. On hindsight we should atleast have taken a coffee even though food was not ready. Well, we can do better next time on that.
  • 7.15 am. Left by fight number 53 PNR number 491636. Feeling angry at the Tmi lousy service who seem to think, that only the tourists they take are important while they can neglect the maldivians as it appears there is no one to protect their interests. This is stupid and arrogant thinking and hopefully we can put sense into these people sooner than later.

The Importance Of Positive Values


What is a value?
A value is generally understood to be something that society has a strong belief in its goodness or otherwise. Examples of positive values are:

  • Freedom
  • Education
  • Generosity etc.

Examples of negative values are:

  • Cruelty
  • Crime
  • Injustice etc.

The criteria used to determine the value effect on society i.e, whether a value is positive or negative depends on the norms or the standards acceptable to that society. For example, killing someone for an unjustifiable verdict is strongly unacceptable to any civilized society. However, we know of some tribal societies who would be willing to take someone else's life for a trivial reason.

Now let us look at the business sector. In the 1960s, 70s, and 80s the Japanese have surpassed the western economies through use of Quality Control Circles (QCC) and Total Quality Management(TQM). The Japanese economic model of development puts emphasis on worker attitudes, his loyalty and his service to the customer. The west has been engrossed in personal accomplishments through their innovative management techniques.

Since the advent of the Internet and modern means of transportation, every economic model focuses to satisfy the customer or consumer. The result is that these economies have produced a super rich class of individuals whilst the lower tier in some of these societies live homeless on the streets pounded by the rich and powerful.

A cursory look closer to our hearts at home in Maldives reveals a disturbing situation. Prior to 1970s, we were largely living a life of subsistence dependent on fishing. We lived in a close-knit society where extended families often living under one roof contributed to each other. Community spirit of caring and giving was high. Communal harmony, social justice, love and respect for parents and for each other were distinguishing characteristics of our society. Most of us were poor but we lived honourable lives.

After the 1970s, tourism has become our lifeline. The tourist dollar has brought prosperity with an inequitable distribution of wealth, not only creating a wider gap between the rich and the not so rich`but also harbouring deep resentment between the "haves" and the "have nots." We have given up our traditional sarongs to wear the western dress of trouser and shirt. We have given in to the urge to spend our last cent to wear the latest fashion. The number of shops packed with consumer goods is testimony of how good we are at it.

We are proud to wear "a 100 Muslim nation" as a badge of convenience, though we have managed to suit a liberal lifestyle that is now under pressure to change. Sadly, a large chunk of our younger generation is caught up with addiction to substance abuse and we have not shown the resolve and the will to deal with this deadly problem through suitable medical treatment and firm legislative action.

Unknown to the present generation, Male' used to be a clean and green island with plenty of living space, beautiful gardens and homes. We have even scavenged the burial grounds of mosques disturbing the dead, before the living woke up to reclaim land for a growing society. Our ancestral homes in Male' have been divided up creating a mini urban jungle resembling sardines packed into a can.

How we ended up in this situation, the debate is raging all around us with ferocity and venom, at times unbecoming of the "100 percent Muslim" tag that all of us so proudly wear.

Hmmm...The Religious Scholars Are Talking

At about 7.40 pm on 8.12.05, I sat in my living room, with the TV running a TV Malives program "hidaayathuge magu" loosely translated: Godly path. I'll stand corrected if my translation is incorrect.

Two religious scholars took turns to quote the muslim scriptures, advising a listening audience to refrain speaking about contentious issues. Speak good of everyone and everything, if you must, think before you open your mouth to speak.

How interesting. Why don't you religious scholars direct your advice to individuals who contravene your advice, ie. those who speak good but act against what they speak. Why not name and shame them.

It's time for you scholars to cut out the hypocrisy and come out clean. Here in Maldives, you know that the moral fabric has been badly damaged and requires enormous effort to put it right. If you wish to be taken seriously and more to the point, if you wish others to honour what you say, stop taking cover behind a smoke screen. Our society is small enough for you to know who speaks what publicly like what you do on this progamme. When their actions do not match the words they speak, take them to task and let the chips fall where they may.

Sunday, January 15, 2006

Male': Developing To A Social Disaster

Male', the capital island of the Republic Of Maldives is a community unto its own. This island had the laid back calm of a small town community untill a few decades ago.

At that time, the street lanes of coral sand lined with imposing white-walled houses with spacious gardens. Day and part of the night, the doors of these houses were left open so that neighbours can drift in and out to have a chat or gossip about the day's events.

Ironically the tranquil peace that was so refreshing to the residents as well as to the visitors has changed to what we now call a progressive lifestyle. Tourism has become the lifeline of Mladives since the early 1970s.

The tourist dollar has created an elite class that can, not only afford first class travel but are also able to own property outside the country and control businesses within the country. A community that was driven by their desire to live in harmony is now clamouring to forge a new social order. An order where the increasing gap between the rich and the poor is reduced so that the wealth of the country is equitably distributed, opportunities are available and social justice is assured and meted out to all.

The lack of a sustainable housing policy in Male' since the 1960s has seen the spacious gardens and their enclosed homes divided many times over to give rising cubicle homes to the next two generations, that has jammed Male' almost bursting at the seams. This is the inevitable result of a centralized policy to control everything from running the government to control business and commerce to communication and transportation from Male'.

Lack of adequate living space has brought about shoulder to shoulder living, crammed within the one and half square mile island of Male' creating health hazards and a social nightmare. A culture of drug abuse is prevailing among the younger generation and law enforcemnet agencies are unable to control rampant corruption. The crooks seem to be having a field day putting the law abiding citizens at their mercy.

Superficially we are rich and living a life of abundance in Male'. But this feeling is only skin deep as evident from peoples homes to hospitals to public services and to the way we are struggling to look after an aging population.