Maldives has long maintained a stand of remaining a moderate Islamic country. In all travel guides that gives advice to tourists visiting Maldives, our country is still declared as having very little crime.
The recent homemade bomb that went off in Sultan Park causing injury to 12 tourists has shocked our government and shaken our community. It has made headline news around the world drawing negative publicity to our idyllic sunny islands.
On crimes, we now know that some of the crimes committed in Maldives have become major crimes, way beyond petty crimes. The government, all the political parties and the people have condemned the attack on tourists in the strongest terms as they rightly should. Now it is time to look inward and seek answers why things have come to this stage.
Looking on the crime side, there are horrific crimes that has been committed in Maldives in the recent past. In Jan, 2000- In Thinadhoo a father-in-law was brutally killed in broad daylight by a son-in-law who attacked him mercilessly with a knife. 'He threatened to kill anyone who came near,' claimed by standers who watched in horror. More recently, on Himandhoo island last year, Wahabbis barricaded the island mosque saying that it was constructed on a burial ground. Later, an island official was found dead on the island's beach in December, after enforcing a government decision to close a breakaway mosque.
Looking at this Ramadan alone, we find that crime and violence has gone through the roof. Even the guards keeping watch on shops have not been spared and they have not been able to stop the theft. Now the shopowners themselves are losing sleep trying to keep vigil to protect their property and assets. We have come a long way from a country that has little crime.
On the moderate Islam front, in the recent past we have seen different factions of Islam making there presence felt in our society. We see the increasing Wahabi influence by men whose trousers are worn well above the ankle, and who keep long beards. They gang up in difference places spreading their brand of Islam. There is an outburst of extremism and religious intolerance. The violence that is happening in Addu makes the place look like a war zone.
On the political front, our country is going through a dramatic change when democracy and reform and setting up the institutional framework is the priority of the national agenda. Presently we have fractious unity between political parties , the government and the parliament. Nothing gets done without inordinate delays and the country is heading down on a slippery path. The only reason there is a huge outrage and a call for firm action against the perpetrators of bombing in Sultan Park is because it caused injury to 12 foreign tourists and therefore may hurt tourism. The same standard must be applied to every injustice and every abuse of the right of Maldivians. The same standard must also be applied to stop the import of drugs and eradicate drugs from our society. If it were the case we would never have come to this stage.
Unless we stop this shift to radical Islam and increasing violence, we will destroy tourism and hurt other industries and no one will be able to find any joy living in Maldives. Unless we wrench our country out of the grip of this madness more doom and destruction will follow. It is time for politicians, law enforcement agencies and the people to step up and face this daunting task.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
In my view this development of radicalism has allot to do with detachment of people from each other and national policies not being in touch with real issues of real people.
We could have and we can even now start a conversation at national level to think and rethink of what we do and believe in the name of religion.
Post a Comment