He was the Nawab of Pataudi, an inspirational cricket captain, especially considering that he overcame the loss of an eye to forge a successful career- an illustrious life came to an end Thursday marking end of an era for Indian cricket.
He was born into royalty, educated in England, transformed the Indian cricket and became it's youngest caption at the age of 21. He was India's first cricket superstar.
He is survived by his wife Sharmila Tagore, his actor son Saif Ali Khan and his two daughters Soha and Saba Ali Khan. His entire family was at his bedside when the end came at 5.55pm this evening. "He passed away around 5.55pm. His condition had deteriorated since yesterday. He was suffering from interstitial lung disease (interstitial pneumonitis) which worsens rapidly inspite of the best treatment available," Dr S. P. Byotra, Department of medicine in Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, where Pataudi was admitted, said. (Link)
"He was unable to maintain his oxygen level in spite of maximal treatment. He continued to remain in the ICU for nearly a month. He had this disease, which had been static since the last three months and worsened very acutely over the last four weeks,” the doctor said.
Tributes to Patudi on ESPN cricinfo
Showing posts with label Leadership. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Leadership. Show all posts
Friday, September 23, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
When Politics Gets In The Way of Reform
Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged to fight the “the wrong-headed ideas, bureaucratic nonsense and destructive culture” that led to riots across England earlier this month. David Cameron said a sense of personal responsibility had been eroded over many years by a welfare system that reduces incentive to work and “the twisting and misrepresentation of human rights.”
“The former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair responded saying the “muddled-head analysis” of the riots risks producing the wrong policy prescriptions. He dismissed the argument that Britain is in the grip of a “moral decline,” saying that problems lie with individuals and communities rather than society as a whole.
Critics of the Cameron Conservative coalition government argue that they want to introduce policies to reverse the welfare system.
Geoffrey Wheatcroft, a British journalist and author wrote:
"For the left, and for liberal papers like Guardian, the culprit was the Tory-led government and its “cuts,” the program of rigorous reduction in public spending in response to unprecedented public debt. But it’s hard to see what effect these cuts can really have made in the little more than 15 months since the coalition government took office under David Cameron.
A more telling (if not quite logical) response is the good old tu quoque: look who’s talking. How can the poor be condemned for looting household goods while bankers and financiers have been looting from the public on a far vaster scale than any teenage gangsta could dream of? This is a variant of Brecht’s “What is the crime of robbing a bank compared with the crime of owning one?” and it must be admitted that in the age of AIG, the Royal Bank of Scotland, and Madoff, most of us have our Brechtian moments. And all of us here bridle when anyone is upbraided for greed and dishonesty by our Members of Parliament, who turn out to have been pilfering the taxpayer for years with their fraudulent expenses. "
The state has to punish those who break the law- whether they are looters on the street or greedy officials who robbed public finance or made money out of decisions which have had a profoundly damaging impact on innocent people.
The IPPR, the Institute for Public Policy Research, - the UK’s leading progressive thinktank gives an analysis of the ideological differences and outlines the case of the present coalition government's assault to cut the universal benefits and services.
“The former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair responded saying the “muddled-head analysis” of the riots risks producing the wrong policy prescriptions. He dismissed the argument that Britain is in the grip of a “moral decline,” saying that problems lie with individuals and communities rather than society as a whole.
Critics of the Cameron Conservative coalition government argue that they want to introduce policies to reverse the welfare system.
Geoffrey Wheatcroft, a British journalist and author wrote:
"For the left, and for liberal papers like Guardian, the culprit was the Tory-led government and its “cuts,” the program of rigorous reduction in public spending in response to unprecedented public debt. But it’s hard to see what effect these cuts can really have made in the little more than 15 months since the coalition government took office under David Cameron.
A more telling (if not quite logical) response is the good old tu quoque: look who’s talking. How can the poor be condemned for looting household goods while bankers and financiers have been looting from the public on a far vaster scale than any teenage gangsta could dream of? This is a variant of Brecht’s “What is the crime of robbing a bank compared with the crime of owning one?” and it must be admitted that in the age of AIG, the Royal Bank of Scotland, and Madoff, most of us have our Brechtian moments. And all of us here bridle when anyone is upbraided for greed and dishonesty by our Members of Parliament, who turn out to have been pilfering the taxpayer for years with their fraudulent expenses. "
The state has to punish those who break the law- whether they are looters on the street or greedy officials who robbed public finance or made money out of decisions which have had a profoundly damaging impact on innocent people.
The IPPR, the Institute for Public Policy Research, - the UK’s leading progressive thinktank gives an analysis of the ideological differences and outlines the case of the present coalition government's assault to cut the universal benefits and services.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Indian High Court Judge Impeached for Corruption
Fighting corruption in India has been a monumental task.
BBC correspondent Soutik Bishwas explores the question. "Is India serious about fighting corruption? Going by some striking data put together by the country's respected, independent watchdog PRS Legislative Research, it doesn't appear so.
India's government officials charged with corruption can be prosecuted only after an approval by the federal or state government. However, by simply sitting on requests from prosecuting agencies, governments can easily slow down prosecutions or make sure that the offenders are never prosecuted."
The revolution in communication – with the 24×7 news channels and instant information sharing on the Internet has liberated content from the control of media houses and governments. The power of civil movements led by activists like Anna Hazare whose hunger strike is turning out to be a hunger fest. In the world's largest democracy, action against political and bureaucratic corruption is painfully slow.
India's upper house of parliament- the Rajya Sabha impeached a High Court justice on corruption charges on Thursday, against a backdrop of mass anti-graft protests across the country.
As reported in India Times, In a first, the Rajya Sabha on Thursday impeached Calcutta high court judge Justice Soumitra Sen on charges of corruption. Justice Sen could go down in history as the first judge to be removed if Lok Sabha gives its consent next week to the motion for his impeachment.
This is first time a sitting judge was found guilty by parliament's upper house of 'misappropriating' large sums of public funds in an abuse of his position as a justice of the Kolkata High Court.
BBC correspondent Soutik Bishwas explores the question. "Is India serious about fighting corruption? Going by some striking data put together by the country's respected, independent watchdog PRS Legislative Research, it doesn't appear so.
India's government officials charged with corruption can be prosecuted only after an approval by the federal or state government. However, by simply sitting on requests from prosecuting agencies, governments can easily slow down prosecutions or make sure that the offenders are never prosecuted."
The revolution in communication – with the 24×7 news channels and instant information sharing on the Internet has liberated content from the control of media houses and governments. The power of civil movements led by activists like Anna Hazare whose hunger strike is turning out to be a hunger fest. In the world's largest democracy, action against political and bureaucratic corruption is painfully slow.
India's upper house of parliament- the Rajya Sabha impeached a High Court justice on corruption charges on Thursday, against a backdrop of mass anti-graft protests across the country.
As reported in India Times, In a first, the Rajya Sabha on Thursday impeached Calcutta high court judge Justice Soumitra Sen on charges of corruption. Justice Sen could go down in history as the first judge to be removed if Lok Sabha gives its consent next week to the motion for his impeachment.
This is first time a sitting judge was found guilty by parliament's upper house of 'misappropriating' large sums of public funds in an abuse of his position as a justice of the Kolkata High Court.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Gangs and Looters to Blame
Britain has begun to pick up the pieces of the violent anarchy that took hold of their cities. Terrified communities experienced unprecedented scenes of mob violence, with homes and businesses going up in flames. Senseless looting and theft carried out mostly by young people with no specific demands defies logic and every social value. An 11-year-old girl is among the 1,500 arrested in four days of rioting and violence in Britain, police said Thursday.
Britain is an advanced nation and has a strong tradition of welfare culture. Prime Minister David Cameroon cut short his vacation and recalled parliament from recess. Looking for the root cause of the mayhem, the prime minister told the parliament: "There are pockets of our society that are not just broken but, frankly, sick. For me, the root cause of this mindless selfishness is the same thing that I have spoken about for years. It is a complete lack of responsibility in parts of our society, people allowed to feel that the world owes something, that their rights outweigh their responsibilities, and that their actions do not have consequences."
As reported in VOA News, Geography Professor Chris Hamnett, of King’s College, lives in North London, not far from some of the worst rioting. He said:
"Essentially, what we've seen is rioting for fun and profit. This is not people expressing their anger against an oppressive state," said Hamnett. This is people thinking it would be nice to get a slice of the action.”
In other words, the looters set fire to buildings just to see how it looked like. It seems these youth live in a different world from law abiding citizens. They have no regard for other people's property. It is repulsive to see criminals robbing from and injured person while lying on the road needing help.
The breakdown of the traditional family unit has made it difficult for many single parents to provide the love and discipline children need growing up. These children grow up believing they can do whatever they wish to do without any consequence. This is the result of physical and emotional chaos at dysfunctional homes. On top of the chaos from broken homes, when governments are unwilling or when they fail to take stern action against drug traffickers, drug abusers and criminals gangs who thrive on such chaos- the result is in the words of prime minister David Cameroon, pockets of not just broken but sick society.
A social segment of this first world economy has gone morally bankrupt.
Britain is an advanced nation and has a strong tradition of welfare culture. Prime Minister David Cameroon cut short his vacation and recalled parliament from recess. Looking for the root cause of the mayhem, the prime minister told the parliament: "There are pockets of our society that are not just broken but, frankly, sick. For me, the root cause of this mindless selfishness is the same thing that I have spoken about for years. It is a complete lack of responsibility in parts of our society, people allowed to feel that the world owes something, that their rights outweigh their responsibilities, and that their actions do not have consequences."
As reported in VOA News, Geography Professor Chris Hamnett, of King’s College, lives in North London, not far from some of the worst rioting. He said:
"Essentially, what we've seen is rioting for fun and profit. This is not people expressing their anger against an oppressive state," said Hamnett. This is people thinking it would be nice to get a slice of the action.”
In other words, the looters set fire to buildings just to see how it looked like. It seems these youth live in a different world from law abiding citizens. They have no regard for other people's property. It is repulsive to see criminals robbing from and injured person while lying on the road needing help.
The breakdown of the traditional family unit has made it difficult for many single parents to provide the love and discipline children need growing up. These children grow up believing they can do whatever they wish to do without any consequence. This is the result of physical and emotional chaos at dysfunctional homes. On top of the chaos from broken homes, when governments are unwilling or when they fail to take stern action against drug traffickers, drug abusers and criminals gangs who thrive on such chaos- the result is in the words of prime minister David Cameroon, pockets of not just broken but sick society.
A social segment of this first world economy has gone morally bankrupt.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Burning with Rage in Britain
A peaceful protest that was staged in Tottenham Saturday by supporters of Mark Duggan, who was shot and killed last week, has now blown into a violent rampage of looting and burning across several cities.
Across the Atlantic in 1992, a similar situation of violence broke out in Los Angeles, in the case of the excessive force used by police on the African American Rodney King.
In each incident, violence that shocked these cities broke out just from the starting point of a single incident. Social media- facebook, twitter and instant communication of the Internet helped flame the passions and gather people.
The use of social media helped to gather and rally people in Egypt, ushered in the Arab Spring and brought down Husni Mubarak's dictatorship of 30 years.
In a commentary about the rioting in Britain, the Christian Science Monitor writes:
'Whether it is rooted in the ills of urban poverty (20 percent or more unemployment among youths 16-24) or represents simple criminal lawlessness is just one of the soul-searching debates now under way. Like many nations Britain has undertaken austerity measures that will cut welfare payments and thousands of government jobs in coming years. Job prospects for most urban youths are bleak.
Two girls who took part in the rioting Monday night boasted to a BBC journalist that they were showing police and “the rich” that “we can do what we want.”
As is often the case with urban riots, the poor neighborhoods themselves are taking the worst hit. “Tottenham [where Mr. Duggan died] didn’t have much, now [it’s] got a lot less,” said a British journalist who lives in that mixed-race neighborhood.
The rioting also provides yet another referendum on social media. Hooded and masked vandals are using social networks – Twitter and Facebook but especially Blackberry messages, which can’t be traced by police – to coordinate looting of a street. They then are tipped off by message if police are about to arrive and they vanish.
But honest Britons have been using social media for good, too. The Twitter hashtag #PrayForLondon asks people to “Please Pray for the protection of lives and properties in London, and Peace in the UK.” And #riotcleanup has become a rallying point for those who want to help. It has motivated people to take to the streets with trash bags and brooms to tidy up the mess the looters leave behind. '
Across the Atlantic in 1992, a similar situation of violence broke out in Los Angeles, in the case of the excessive force used by police on the African American Rodney King.
In each incident, violence that shocked these cities broke out just from the starting point of a single incident. Social media- facebook, twitter and instant communication of the Internet helped flame the passions and gather people.
The use of social media helped to gather and rally people in Egypt, ushered in the Arab Spring and brought down Husni Mubarak's dictatorship of 30 years.
In a commentary about the rioting in Britain, the Christian Science Monitor writes:
'Whether it is rooted in the ills of urban poverty (20 percent or more unemployment among youths 16-24) or represents simple criminal lawlessness is just one of the soul-searching debates now under way. Like many nations Britain has undertaken austerity measures that will cut welfare payments and thousands of government jobs in coming years. Job prospects for most urban youths are bleak.
Two girls who took part in the rioting Monday night boasted to a BBC journalist that they were showing police and “the rich” that “we can do what we want.”
As is often the case with urban riots, the poor neighborhoods themselves are taking the worst hit. “Tottenham [where Mr. Duggan died] didn’t have much, now [it’s] got a lot less,” said a British journalist who lives in that mixed-race neighborhood.
The rioting also provides yet another referendum on social media. Hooded and masked vandals are using social networks – Twitter and Facebook but especially Blackberry messages, which can’t be traced by police – to coordinate looting of a street. They then are tipped off by message if police are about to arrive and they vanish.
But honest Britons have been using social media for good, too. The Twitter hashtag #PrayForLondon asks people to “Please Pray for the protection of lives and properties in London, and Peace in the UK.” And #riotcleanup has become a rallying point for those who want to help. It has motivated people to take to the streets with trash bags and brooms to tidy up the mess the looters leave behind. '
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Mubarak's trial: A Victory for Democracy
A CNN Global public square report on this stunning humiliation for the the former president who was Egypt's military dictator for nearly 30 years.
The sight of Egypt's one-time most powerful man brought on a hospital bed into defendants' cage, made of iron bars and metal mesh was quite a spectacle. With him in the cage were his nine co-defendants, including his two sons — one-time heir apparent Gamal and wealthy businessman Alaa — his former interior minister Habib el-Adly, and six top former police officials.
There is no doubt that these proceedings will be closely watched by the Arab world where there is no tradition of democracy.
Sunday, January 09, 2011
Hate Speech does have Tragic Consequences
All too often, we hear about gun violence in the United States of America.
The American nation is shocked in horror yet again. Today, a lone gunman opened fire in front of a supermarket called Safeway in the Arizona city of Tuscon. The gunman killed six people (including a nine-year-old girl) and wounded a United States Congresswoman.
It is not clear why the gunman went on this terrifying rampage.
But whatever his reasons, the local sheriff - who is coordinating the investigation with the FBI - believes it is time for America to do some soul-searching.
Sheriff Clarence Dupnik, speaking about Arizona: (Link)
"When you look at unbalanced people, how they respond to the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government. The anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous. And, unfortunately, Arizona I think has become sort of the capital. We have become the Mecca for prejudice and bigotry.
"It's not unusual for all public officials to get threats constantly, myself included. And that's the sad thing of what's going on in America. Pretty soon, we're not going to be able to find reasonable, decent people who are willing to subject themselves to serve in public office."
He later added:
DUPNIK: Let me just say one thing, because people tend to poo-poo this business about all the vitriol that we hear inflaming the American public by people who make a living off of doing that. That may be free speech. But it's not without consequences."
Freedom of speech is a sacred right guaranteed by the First amendment of the US constitution.
For countries that follow this model of the freedom of speech, should hate speech be criminalised in order to deter such horrible crimes?
The American nation is shocked in horror yet again. Today, a lone gunman opened fire in front of a supermarket called Safeway in the Arizona city of Tuscon. The gunman killed six people (including a nine-year-old girl) and wounded a United States Congresswoman.
It is not clear why the gunman went on this terrifying rampage.
But whatever his reasons, the local sheriff - who is coordinating the investigation with the FBI - believes it is time for America to do some soul-searching.
Sheriff Clarence Dupnik, speaking about Arizona: (Link)
"When you look at unbalanced people, how they respond to the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government. The anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous. And, unfortunately, Arizona I think has become sort of the capital. We have become the Mecca for prejudice and bigotry.
"It's not unusual for all public officials to get threats constantly, myself included. And that's the sad thing of what's going on in America. Pretty soon, we're not going to be able to find reasonable, decent people who are willing to subject themselves to serve in public office."
He later added:
DUPNIK: Let me just say one thing, because people tend to poo-poo this business about all the vitriol that we hear inflaming the American public by people who make a living off of doing that. That may be free speech. But it's not without consequences."
Freedom of speech is a sacred right guaranteed by the First amendment of the US constitution.
For countries that follow this model of the freedom of speech, should hate speech be criminalised in order to deter such horrible crimes?
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Gandhi's Seven Deadly Sins
Mahatma Gandhi said that seven things will destroy a society. (Link)
1)Wealth without work
2)Pleasure without conscience
3)Knowledge without character
4)Commerce (business) without morality (ethics)
5)Science without humanity
6)Religion without sacrifice
7)Politics without principle
All of these conditions are evident in the social and political fabric of our society today.
Now we have freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. We have the separation of powers and we have independent institutions, still in the early stages of the democratic process. With the new found freedoms our society is on the brink of anarchy.
What is the price to pay for a free society?
Parents can no longer raise their children with sound values. Illegal drugs and violence have become rampant in our society. Personal morality is in a state of flux, with social pressures causing individuals to define "good" and "bad" as they deem fit. This is having a profound negative effect on our culture regarding the individual character development of our younger generation.
Now we want security and freedom from fear. We want a civil society to live in. We need the enforcement of law and order. We want our elected officials and politicians to be honourable in their words and conduct.
That would be a good starting point to restore honour into our community.
1)Wealth without work
2)Pleasure without conscience
3)Knowledge without character
4)Commerce (business) without morality (ethics)
5)Science without humanity
6)Religion without sacrifice
7)Politics without principle
All of these conditions are evident in the social and political fabric of our society today.
Now we have freedom of speech and freedom of assembly. We have the separation of powers and we have independent institutions, still in the early stages of the democratic process. With the new found freedoms our society is on the brink of anarchy.
What is the price to pay for a free society?
Parents can no longer raise their children with sound values. Illegal drugs and violence have become rampant in our society. Personal morality is in a state of flux, with social pressures causing individuals to define "good" and "bad" as they deem fit. This is having a profound negative effect on our culture regarding the individual character development of our younger generation.
Now we want security and freedom from fear. We want a civil society to live in. We need the enforcement of law and order. We want our elected officials and politicians to be honourable in their words and conduct.
That would be a good starting point to restore honour into our community.
Sunday, April 04, 2010
Freedom of Speech and Hate Speech
Maldives has embraced freedom of speech as espoused by the democracies of the western Europe and the United States of America. For the citizens of these countries, this type of democracy- the liberal democratic model requires effective guarantees of freedom of speech, press, religion, assembly, petition and of equality before the law.
The First Amendment of the United States constitution prohibits the government from regulating the content of speech, subject to a few recognized exceptions such as defamation and incitement to riot. Even in cases where speech encourages illegal violence, instances of incitement qualify as criminal only if the threat of violence is imminent. In Canada, Europe and other countries, hate speech is, outside the law, any communication which disparages a person or a group on the basis of some characteristic such as race or sexual orientation. In law, hate speech is any speech, gesture or conduct, writing, or display which is forbidden because it may incite violence or prejudicial action against or by a protected individual or group, or because it disparages or intimidates a protected individual or group.
In Maldives, those who pushed for the multi-party system for political governance did so because of the popular revulsion against the previous all-encompassing domination by the same government that remained in power for 30 years.
Now we have political parties and we do have freedom of speech. Political parties and their politicians are the catalytic agents that make democracies workable.
The two main political parties in Maldives, the ruling MDP and the opposition DRP and their allies disagree about nearly every issue, just for the sake of disagreement. The parliament is in gridlock and no beneficial work gets done. It polarizes the public who are supporters of these political parties. As we saw recently, the country was on the verge of erupting into violence consequent to the fist fighting inside the parliament. Cynics claim that every speech, every vote, every single thing these politicians do is for the sake of political posturing to help them get elected the next term, or help their party motives.
Journalists of the free media have an important responsibility to educate the public about various issues from all sides, using logic, reason and analysis to determine the different points of view. The public can then make informed decisions about the policies of the different political parties. The opposition political party should compete by offering better ideas and solutions rather than just becoming the party of saying 'no' to everything that the government does.
Maldives needs to find a way stop the the hate speech mostly driven by politics between the political parties. One way to do this is by the enforcement of legislation against hate speech. Our members of the parliament in the interest of the public good need to legislate to determine the acceptable boundaries of free speech. Also what kinds of speech should be considered out of bounds subject to prosecution.
Read this article "When free speech means hate speech" to understand how bad this situation is in the United States of America. There are hate-mongers both on the left and the right of the political divide in America who make a living by spewing hatred in the name of free speech.
The First Amendment of the United States constitution prohibits the government from regulating the content of speech, subject to a few recognized exceptions such as defamation and incitement to riot. Even in cases where speech encourages illegal violence, instances of incitement qualify as criminal only if the threat of violence is imminent. In Canada, Europe and other countries, hate speech is, outside the law, any communication which disparages a person or a group on the basis of some characteristic such as race or sexual orientation. In law, hate speech is any speech, gesture or conduct, writing, or display which is forbidden because it may incite violence or prejudicial action against or by a protected individual or group, or because it disparages or intimidates a protected individual or group.
In Maldives, those who pushed for the multi-party system for political governance did so because of the popular revulsion against the previous all-encompassing domination by the same government that remained in power for 30 years.
Now we have political parties and we do have freedom of speech. Political parties and their politicians are the catalytic agents that make democracies workable.
The two main political parties in Maldives, the ruling MDP and the opposition DRP and their allies disagree about nearly every issue, just for the sake of disagreement. The parliament is in gridlock and no beneficial work gets done. It polarizes the public who are supporters of these political parties. As we saw recently, the country was on the verge of erupting into violence consequent to the fist fighting inside the parliament. Cynics claim that every speech, every vote, every single thing these politicians do is for the sake of political posturing to help them get elected the next term, or help their party motives.
Journalists of the free media have an important responsibility to educate the public about various issues from all sides, using logic, reason and analysis to determine the different points of view. The public can then make informed decisions about the policies of the different political parties. The opposition political party should compete by offering better ideas and solutions rather than just becoming the party of saying 'no' to everything that the government does.
Maldives needs to find a way stop the the hate speech mostly driven by politics between the political parties. One way to do this is by the enforcement of legislation against hate speech. Our members of the parliament in the interest of the public good need to legislate to determine the acceptable boundaries of free speech. Also what kinds of speech should be considered out of bounds subject to prosecution.
Read this article "When free speech means hate speech" to understand how bad this situation is in the United States of America. There are hate-mongers both on the left and the right of the political divide in America who make a living by spewing hatred in the name of free speech.
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Democracy is not enough
Looking at the problems we face in Maldives today, it now seems that getting to the democracy is the easy part. This is only the beginning of the democratization process, i.e., the separation of powers and the building of independent institutions that reinforce democratic values. We now have the separate powers, but each power has more than sufficient to still cause tyranny to the people who gave them the power.
Reducing the civil servants pay while the commissioners of the independent commissions decided to increase their wages and while the elected members of the parliament refused to even consider to take a pay cut stands out as a glaring injustice forced out on the ordinary civil servants.
Recently the Ministry of Economic Development pushed to permit sale of alcohol in inhabited islands against strong opposition from the Islamic Ministry and several civil society organisations and many members of the public who petitioned the government against such permit because of the widespread problems of drug abuse, violence and killings that even the president has acknowledged. Granted that we are on a learning curve of the multi-party pluralistic system of governance, what we saw in this case is still an appalling level of incoherent behaviour between two ministries of the same government. Under pressure from the mass public protest, the government had to heed the battle cry against the sale of alcohol in inhabited islands and was forced to change policy.
Today, civil servants are back on the street protesting to restore their pay cut, hoping that the government would take cue from them and heed their call as well.
To be a democratic country, a country has to choose its leaders through fair and competitive elections, ensure basic civil liberties, and respect the rule of law.
After a free and fair election of the country's first multi-party presidential contest, we have had a peaceful transition in 2008. Rewind 30 years back, in 1978 we also had a peaceful transition in the nation's top job. We have since learnt that everything good in a democracy does not come just by changing the political guard in a peaceful transition. Disingenuous politicians, their ignorance and careful evasion of issues have left behind for future generations a host of intractable challenges. On top of the social list, an illegal drug epidemic affecting more than 30,000 youth most of whom are addicted to drugs. The present government needs to do more to provide care and rehabilitation to the addicts. In order to tackle the illegal drug business, stricter deterrent sentences have to given to those who are trafficking and selling illegal drugs. Unfortunately, the judiciary that is not functioning as it should is making this woeful legacy even worse by not meting out stricter deterrent sentences against hardcore drug trafficking criminals.
History has shown us that the democratization takes time because it requires the development of new institutions and widespread trust in them by the citizens. In the United States and Britain, it took well over a century before all the institutions and democratic practices were firmly in place. In Maldives in order for the nascent democracy to take roots, our government has to initiate the process of inculcating democratic ideals of trust, tolerance, and cooperation starting with young children from homes and schools. The challenge to build a culture of peace depends on the ability of a community to settle disagreements and resolve conflicts without waging violence.
We have a long way to go, but we are on our journey of the democratization process.
Reducing the civil servants pay while the commissioners of the independent commissions decided to increase their wages and while the elected members of the parliament refused to even consider to take a pay cut stands out as a glaring injustice forced out on the ordinary civil servants.
Recently the Ministry of Economic Development pushed to permit sale of alcohol in inhabited islands against strong opposition from the Islamic Ministry and several civil society organisations and many members of the public who petitioned the government against such permit because of the widespread problems of drug abuse, violence and killings that even the president has acknowledged. Granted that we are on a learning curve of the multi-party pluralistic system of governance, what we saw in this case is still an appalling level of incoherent behaviour between two ministries of the same government. Under pressure from the mass public protest, the government had to heed the battle cry against the sale of alcohol in inhabited islands and was forced to change policy.
Today, civil servants are back on the street protesting to restore their pay cut, hoping that the government would take cue from them and heed their call as well.
To be a democratic country, a country has to choose its leaders through fair and competitive elections, ensure basic civil liberties, and respect the rule of law.
After a free and fair election of the country's first multi-party presidential contest, we have had a peaceful transition in 2008. Rewind 30 years back, in 1978 we also had a peaceful transition in the nation's top job. We have since learnt that everything good in a democracy does not come just by changing the political guard in a peaceful transition. Disingenuous politicians, their ignorance and careful evasion of issues have left behind for future generations a host of intractable challenges. On top of the social list, an illegal drug epidemic affecting more than 30,000 youth most of whom are addicted to drugs. The present government needs to do more to provide care and rehabilitation to the addicts. In order to tackle the illegal drug business, stricter deterrent sentences have to given to those who are trafficking and selling illegal drugs. Unfortunately, the judiciary that is not functioning as it should is making this woeful legacy even worse by not meting out stricter deterrent sentences against hardcore drug trafficking criminals.
History has shown us that the democratization takes time because it requires the development of new institutions and widespread trust in them by the citizens. In the United States and Britain, it took well over a century before all the institutions and democratic practices were firmly in place. In Maldives in order for the nascent democracy to take roots, our government has to initiate the process of inculcating democratic ideals of trust, tolerance, and cooperation starting with young children from homes and schools. The challenge to build a culture of peace depends on the ability of a community to settle disagreements and resolve conflicts without waging violence.
We have a long way to go, but we are on our journey of the democratization process.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Pushing the Religious Envelope
A day after the Ministry of Economic Development lifted the ban on sale of alcohol in the inhabited islands, the President's Office has weighed in under public pressure. President's Office says it will not be implemented until it is published in the government gazette. Critics see this as a cynical move fearing a public uproar as they say that the Economic Development Ministry's position is the government's stand on this highly sensitive and polarising issue.
This is the government's way of pushing the envelope to test the limits of public acceptance of a 100 per cent Muslim society. Until now alcohol is freely available in all the tourist resorts. It is a perverse logic for the Economic Ministry to say that lifting the ban to allow sale of alcohol in authorised hotels of inhabited islands will bring an end to the black market created by the permits given to foreigners to buy and consume alcohol in their homes. We already have an epidemic of substance abuse and drug addiction affecting more than one-third of our youth. With such weak laws and even weaker implementation and enforcement of them, lifting the ban will only lead to another complicated phenomenon- alcoholism, another devastating social problem.
This is the government's way of pushing the envelope to test the limits of public acceptance of a 100 per cent Muslim society. Until now alcohol is freely available in all the tourist resorts. It is a perverse logic for the Economic Ministry to say that lifting the ban to allow sale of alcohol in authorised hotels of inhabited islands will bring an end to the black market created by the permits given to foreigners to buy and consume alcohol in their homes. We already have an epidemic of substance abuse and drug addiction affecting more than one-third of our youth. With such weak laws and even weaker implementation and enforcement of them, lifting the ban will only lead to another complicated phenomenon- alcoholism, another devastating social problem.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
A struggle to find the truth
Like many other societies that needed to achieve closure on a past of oppression while simultaneously working toward national reconciliation and nation building, Maldives too has to face this difficult challenge. Both President Nasheed and Vice President Waheed have publicly spoken about this difficult task faced by the government. There are many Maldivians who feel that past injustices and human right violations should be dealt with properly, in order to avoid a repeat of such cruel behaviour. As the Spanish philosopher George Santayana said, "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it." But just how does a nation take the very painful and challenging road to the truth?
When South Africa emerged from more than four decades of apartheid, they turned to the concept of a truth commission. South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) is one of the best examples of restorative justice. Established in 1995, the TRC was charged with investigating gross human rights abuses that occurred between 1960 and 1994 so as to create as complete an accounting as possible of the atrocities of that period. Perpetrators were offered amnesty in exchange for full disclosure about their past crimes. This was part of a political compromise between the African National Congress and the outgoing apartheid government led by the National Party that was deemed necessary for a peaceful transition to democracy. This form of restorative justice emphasized reconciliation between perpetrators and victims built ideally on a perpetrator’s repentance and a victim’s forgiveness. Ultimately, it was hoped, the South African nation as a whole would likewise become reconciled.
This concept of a truth commission despite criticisms from some human rights and victims groups has worked for South Africa that went through tremendous upheaval, and needed to heal old wounds and bring closure.
East Timor also known as Timor-Leste, the first new nation of the 21st century is going through a painful struggle to bring national reconcilliation after the country suffered some of the worst atrocities of modern times during the Indonesian occupation. Timor-Leste’s president José Ramos-Horta, who survived an assassination attempt in February 2008, fears that prosecuting those responsible for atrocities could create serious instability in the fledgling state, as well as damage relations with its main trading partner Indonesia.
In a lecture at the MIT's Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship, Ramos-Horta who won 1996 Nobel Peace Prize said:
“I’m happy to endure criticism from the ultrapatriots of international justice who want to make East Timor a guinea pig of international justice. I will not be part of that. ... Let’s put all the past behind us -- look after the victims, the wounded, in their minds, bodies and souls, build a country that is deserving of so much sacrifice. Chasing the ghosts of the past leads us nowhere.”
During President Ramos-Horta's recent visit to Maldives, the Maldivian leaders would have learnt about the reconciliation process of Timor-Leste. Such a process acknowledges past mistakes including regret and forgiveness as a product of a path inherent in the process of achieving justice. It is also a process which should break the cycle of accusation, denial and counter-accusation. This process needs to be seen only for conflict resolution and truth should be the final outcome. It seeks justice and not retribution. It should not be used as a political tool to gain political advantage by political parties.
When South Africa emerged from more than four decades of apartheid, they turned to the concept of a truth commission. South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) is one of the best examples of restorative justice. Established in 1995, the TRC was charged with investigating gross human rights abuses that occurred between 1960 and 1994 so as to create as complete an accounting as possible of the atrocities of that period. Perpetrators were offered amnesty in exchange for full disclosure about their past crimes. This was part of a political compromise between the African National Congress and the outgoing apartheid government led by the National Party that was deemed necessary for a peaceful transition to democracy. This form of restorative justice emphasized reconciliation between perpetrators and victims built ideally on a perpetrator’s repentance and a victim’s forgiveness. Ultimately, it was hoped, the South African nation as a whole would likewise become reconciled.
This concept of a truth commission despite criticisms from some human rights and victims groups has worked for South Africa that went through tremendous upheaval, and needed to heal old wounds and bring closure.
East Timor also known as Timor-Leste, the first new nation of the 21st century is going through a painful struggle to bring national reconcilliation after the country suffered some of the worst atrocities of modern times during the Indonesian occupation. Timor-Leste’s president José Ramos-Horta, who survived an assassination attempt in February 2008, fears that prosecuting those responsible for atrocities could create serious instability in the fledgling state, as well as damage relations with its main trading partner Indonesia.
In a lecture at the MIT's Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship, Ramos-Horta who won 1996 Nobel Peace Prize said:
“I’m happy to endure criticism from the ultrapatriots of international justice who want to make East Timor a guinea pig of international justice. I will not be part of that. ... Let’s put all the past behind us -- look after the victims, the wounded, in their minds, bodies and souls, build a country that is deserving of so much sacrifice. Chasing the ghosts of the past leads us nowhere.”
During President Ramos-Horta's recent visit to Maldives, the Maldivian leaders would have learnt about the reconciliation process of Timor-Leste. Such a process acknowledges past mistakes including regret and forgiveness as a product of a path inherent in the process of achieving justice. It is also a process which should break the cycle of accusation, denial and counter-accusation. This process needs to be seen only for conflict resolution and truth should be the final outcome. It seeks justice and not retribution. It should not be used as a political tool to gain political advantage by political parties.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
When Top Egos Clash..
First it was the reduction of the bloated bureaucracy that created the bad blood between the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and the Ministry of Finance. The CSC then felt short changed when they realised that only the civil servants had agreed to reduce their salaries while the other independent commissions and the members of the parliament had refused to do so. Now the gigantic egos of the two powerful bodies,- the CSC and the Ministry of Finance has met with a headlong collision over the restoration of the civil servants pay cut. Given this worsening situation in relations, the spirit of negotiation and compromise has come to a dead end.
Without consulting the Ministry of Finance, the CSC has announced that the Finance Ministry’s agreement to reduce civil servants’ salary for three months is now over, and that all civil servants must receive their full salary starting from January. The CSC has directed the permanent secretaries to send the salary sheets to the Finance Ministry with the restored wage levels, warning that employees who do not comply with this directive will be held liable for their failure. The Finance Ministry hit back by threatening legal action against government payroll officers who failed to fill out a reduced salary sheet, charging that the "special circumstances" which made it necessary to reduce the civil servants salaries are still not over. Both agencies have failed to carry out the review of the three month-period of this special circumstance. It appears the CSC has jumped the gun and restored the salary. Not only have both government agencies forgotten to keep their egos in check, they also have threatened to take action against the payroll officers. The payroll officers are in a no win situation, whether they prepare the wage sheets with increased salaries as demanded by the CSC or if they prepare the wage sheets with the reduced salaries as demanded by the Finance Ministry.
No one expects the rival political parties who cordially despise each other's policies, character and integrity to soft-pedal on this type of controversy. The political knives are out to increase the heat, embarrass and cause the maximum damage to the government. With the vested interests of the opposition parties vying for political power, what we see is bitter partisanship and political wrangling. Instead of building our democracy based on the values of freedom, equality and justice, our society has become more polarised than ever before . The hopes of seeing the dawn of a new liberal age are fast fading away. Antagonistic politics can quickly lead to volatile social problems. Unless cooler and responsible heads can prevail, there is a danger that the building blocks of our nascent democracy could spin out of control.
Without consulting the Ministry of Finance, the CSC has announced that the Finance Ministry’s agreement to reduce civil servants’ salary for three months is now over, and that all civil servants must receive their full salary starting from January. The CSC has directed the permanent secretaries to send the salary sheets to the Finance Ministry with the restored wage levels, warning that employees who do not comply with this directive will be held liable for their failure. The Finance Ministry hit back by threatening legal action against government payroll officers who failed to fill out a reduced salary sheet, charging that the "special circumstances" which made it necessary to reduce the civil servants salaries are still not over. Both agencies have failed to carry out the review of the three month-period of this special circumstance. It appears the CSC has jumped the gun and restored the salary. Not only have both government agencies forgotten to keep their egos in check, they also have threatened to take action against the payroll officers. The payroll officers are in a no win situation, whether they prepare the wage sheets with increased salaries as demanded by the CSC or if they prepare the wage sheets with the reduced salaries as demanded by the Finance Ministry.
No one expects the rival political parties who cordially despise each other's policies, character and integrity to soft-pedal on this type of controversy. The political knives are out to increase the heat, embarrass and cause the maximum damage to the government. With the vested interests of the opposition parties vying for political power, what we see is bitter partisanship and political wrangling. Instead of building our democracy based on the values of freedom, equality and justice, our society has become more polarised than ever before . The hopes of seeing the dawn of a new liberal age are fast fading away. Antagonistic politics can quickly lead to volatile social problems. Unless cooler and responsible heads can prevail, there is a danger that the building blocks of our nascent democracy could spin out of control.
Monday, January 18, 2010
At Stake is Not Only Justice
The real political drama that brought the change of government in Maldives after President Nasheed won the first multi-party presidential contest over a year back, has begun to unfold last week with the launch of the 'Torture Victims Association', a Non Governmental Organisation(NGO).
The new President, himself a torture victim has not been able to get the independent Human Rights Commission of Maldives(HRCM) to look into the grievances of the alleged custodial torture victims and human rights violations that took place before 2002. The newly formed NGO seeks to build up pressure, calling for justice and accountability. The HRCM is concerned on the divisive impact of such an investigation on the national unity of our society, especially if it is done on political party lines.
The idea of a South African-style Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), with powers to conduct investigations has been suggested. A TRC would need the cooperation and participation of all political parties, if we are to move beyond the acrimonious manner in which we have dealt with our past presidents- Our first president Mohamed Amin Didi is credited for introducing modern education and our second president Ibrahim Nasir took the country forward in tourism and development. Mohamed Amin was lynched by the mob in Male' and battered to death in 1954. After Ibrahim Nasir handed over power in a peaceful transition to the third president in 1978, he was hounded off the streets of Male' and forced into exile. In both incidents, some of the older generation politicians fed into the anger and frustrations of disgruntled citizens who resorted to street violence and mob justice. Now it is the opportunity for a new generation of leaders to rise up to the occasion and view things in a more civilized manner. How should justice be meted out to the outgoing regime for the serious allegations levelled at them? There has to be an independent process including the judicial system for those who are seeking redress for torture and violations of their human rights.
Why has our society become so intolerant when seeking justice? What is at stake is not only justice, but also our ability as a nation to up hold the rule of law- given our chequered reputation for politically motivated violence.
Here is what is stated on the Thomas Paine Blog -On Politics vs. Leadership worth some reflection.
"A little matter will move a party, but it must be something great that moves a nation."
-Thomas Paine, Rights of Man
Political polarization is not the path to true leadership. When politics refuses to go beyond party at all costs, it remains small, unable to lead. Greatness and leadership is usually found outside the boundaries and comfort of party.
The new President, himself a torture victim has not been able to get the independent Human Rights Commission of Maldives(HRCM) to look into the grievances of the alleged custodial torture victims and human rights violations that took place before 2002. The newly formed NGO seeks to build up pressure, calling for justice and accountability. The HRCM is concerned on the divisive impact of such an investigation on the national unity of our society, especially if it is done on political party lines.
The idea of a South African-style Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), with powers to conduct investigations has been suggested. A TRC would need the cooperation and participation of all political parties, if we are to move beyond the acrimonious manner in which we have dealt with our past presidents- Our first president Mohamed Amin Didi is credited for introducing modern education and our second president Ibrahim Nasir took the country forward in tourism and development. Mohamed Amin was lynched by the mob in Male' and battered to death in 1954. After Ibrahim Nasir handed over power in a peaceful transition to the third president in 1978, he was hounded off the streets of Male' and forced into exile. In both incidents, some of the older generation politicians fed into the anger and frustrations of disgruntled citizens who resorted to street violence and mob justice. Now it is the opportunity for a new generation of leaders to rise up to the occasion and view things in a more civilized manner. How should justice be meted out to the outgoing regime for the serious allegations levelled at them? There has to be an independent process including the judicial system for those who are seeking redress for torture and violations of their human rights.
Why has our society become so intolerant when seeking justice? What is at stake is not only justice, but also our ability as a nation to up hold the rule of law- given our chequered reputation for politically motivated violence.
Here is what is stated on the Thomas Paine Blog -On Politics vs. Leadership worth some reflection.
"A little matter will move a party, but it must be something great that moves a nation."
-Thomas Paine, Rights of Man
Political polarization is not the path to true leadership. When politics refuses to go beyond party at all costs, it remains small, unable to lead. Greatness and leadership is usually found outside the boundaries and comfort of party.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Pork barrel politics in Maldives?
As we see happening in several representative democracies of the world, Maldives too has embraced the concept of pork barrel politics at the expense of broader public good. The term "pork barrel" - which originated in United States refers to "appropriations secured by Congressmen for local projects." Typically, "pork" involves funding for government programs whose economic or service benefits are concentrated in a particular area but whose costs are spread among all taxpayers. (Wikipedia)
The Rf11.9 billion mid-term budget for 2010 has been passed by the parliament, the legislative body, after including Rf800 million which was added following a parliamentary committee review. This is in addition to the Rf4 billion deficit in the budget proposed to parliament by the government. The Minister of Finance has informed the parliament that he will not be responsible to secure funds for the additional expenditure included by the parliament.
A responsible government budget is necessary to maintain economic stability of the country. If the government spends more than it gets and continues to print money to make up for shortfalls, it will eventually lead to inflation and set off a serious decline of the rufiyaa.
With the separation of powers, the Legislature or the Parliament makes the laws, and supervises the activities of the other two arms- the Executive and the Judiciary-with a view to changing the laws when appropriate.
Now that the parliament has forced the hand of the of government compromising the separation of powers and adding to increasing political chaos, how does the parliament wish to hold the government accountable for the Rf800 million included by them? Parliament wants the government to spend this money- public money on among other things to restore civil servants pay and subsidise private media.
If the opposition in the parliament is doing this to derail government efforts to secure financing from international institutions, it creates a more dangerous tendency. It may lead the way for members of the parliament to practice the US style pork-barrel politics, to carry out their pet projects using government funds in return for their constituents loyalty.
Although we now have the framework for a representative democracy-i.e., elected individuals representing the people, our society is more sharply divided on political party lines. The political parties engage in a bitter adversarial struggle to regain power or to remain in power. Rather than a simple dynamics - involving only voters, candidates, and issues - we get a dynamics based on competing factions. Political parties compete for funding, support and for voter loyalty; grassroots movements, special-interest groups, and wealthy elite factions compete amongst one another to influence public opinion and government policy, etc. People have no control over what their "representatives" do. Wealthy elites, with their ability to fund campaigns - and in various ways to influence candidates, the economy, the press, and government officials - end up having a distinct advantage in the competition among factions.
The Rf11.9 billion mid-term budget for 2010 has been passed by the parliament, the legislative body, after including Rf800 million which was added following a parliamentary committee review. This is in addition to the Rf4 billion deficit in the budget proposed to parliament by the government. The Minister of Finance has informed the parliament that he will not be responsible to secure funds for the additional expenditure included by the parliament.
A responsible government budget is necessary to maintain economic stability of the country. If the government spends more than it gets and continues to print money to make up for shortfalls, it will eventually lead to inflation and set off a serious decline of the rufiyaa.
With the separation of powers, the Legislature or the Parliament makes the laws, and supervises the activities of the other two arms- the Executive and the Judiciary-with a view to changing the laws when appropriate.
Now that the parliament has forced the hand of the of government compromising the separation of powers and adding to increasing political chaos, how does the parliament wish to hold the government accountable for the Rf800 million included by them? Parliament wants the government to spend this money- public money on among other things to restore civil servants pay and subsidise private media.
If the opposition in the parliament is doing this to derail government efforts to secure financing from international institutions, it creates a more dangerous tendency. It may lead the way for members of the parliament to practice the US style pork-barrel politics, to carry out their pet projects using government funds in return for their constituents loyalty.
Although we now have the framework for a representative democracy-i.e., elected individuals representing the people, our society is more sharply divided on political party lines. The political parties engage in a bitter adversarial struggle to regain power or to remain in power. Rather than a simple dynamics - involving only voters, candidates, and issues - we get a dynamics based on competing factions. Political parties compete for funding, support and for voter loyalty; grassroots movements, special-interest groups, and wealthy elite factions compete amongst one another to influence public opinion and government policy, etc. People have no control over what their "representatives" do. Wealthy elites, with their ability to fund campaigns - and in various ways to influence candidates, the economy, the press, and government officials - end up having a distinct advantage in the competition among factions.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
UN Chief Warns of Increasing Global Hunger
U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon opened the three-day UN World Food Security summit in Rome Monday, warning the international community that the world cannot achieve food security without first tackling global warming.
Mr. Ban said the human cost of the food crisis has been enormous. Millions of families have been pushed into poverty and hunger. In the past year, food insecurity has affected about 30 countries.
The U.N. secretary general said there can be no food security without climate security.
"The food crisis is a wake-up call for tomorrow. By 2050 our planet may be the home of 9.1 billion people, over two billion more than today," he said. "At a time when the global population is growing, our global climate is changing. By 2050 we will need to grow 70 percent more food, yet weather is becoming more extreme and unpredictable," he said.
Mr. Ban said a comprehensive agreement is needed at a climate change summit next month in Copenhagen. Such an accord, he said, must provide a firm foundation for a legally binding treaty on climate change.
FAO Director General Jacques Diouf gave a clear picture of the numbers involved.
"One billion hungry people, that is one of every group of six persons in the world, 105 million more than in 2008, five children dying every 30 seconds. Beyond numbers this means suffering for each of these human beings," he said (Link)
As the world's top leaders including the US President Barack Obama have not turned up for this summit, there are fears that the new commitments to deal with the food crisis may not materialise. The Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is the only leader of a G8 country attending the summit. Italy of course is hosting the summit.
Mr. Ban said the human cost of the food crisis has been enormous. Millions of families have been pushed into poverty and hunger. In the past year, food insecurity has affected about 30 countries.
The U.N. secretary general said there can be no food security without climate security.
"The food crisis is a wake-up call for tomorrow. By 2050 our planet may be the home of 9.1 billion people, over two billion more than today," he said. "At a time when the global population is growing, our global climate is changing. By 2050 we will need to grow 70 percent more food, yet weather is becoming more extreme and unpredictable," he said.
Mr. Ban said a comprehensive agreement is needed at a climate change summit next month in Copenhagen. Such an accord, he said, must provide a firm foundation for a legally binding treaty on climate change.
FAO Director General Jacques Diouf gave a clear picture of the numbers involved.
"One billion hungry people, that is one of every group of six persons in the world, 105 million more than in 2008, five children dying every 30 seconds. Beyond numbers this means suffering for each of these human beings," he said (Link)
As the world's top leaders including the US President Barack Obama have not turned up for this summit, there are fears that the new commitments to deal with the food crisis may not materialise. The Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is the only leader of a G8 country attending the summit. Italy of course is hosting the summit.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Maldives holds underwater cabinet meeting
The government of the Maldives has held its first underwater cabinet meeting to attract international attention to the dangers of global warming.
President Mohamed Nasheed, dressed in full scuba gear (above photo by AFP), conducted the 30-minute meeting at a depth of 20 feet off the coast just north of the capital Male.
Most of the island nation, a tourist paradise featuring coral reefs and white sand beaches, lies less just over three feet above sea level and scientists have warned it could be uninhabitable in less than 100 years. (Link Telegraph)
This marks an important step in the quest for survival against a predicted sea level rise due the effect of global warming.
Sunday, October 04, 2009
Is it time to pass legislation for children to look after aged parents?
Until recently, elderly people in Maldives enjoyed considerable status, respect, care, and support from their families and the community. But due to migration, changes in values and life styles, and the breakdown of the traditional family system, it is now reported that more elderly people are turning to the state for assistance and care.
Maldives is a 100 per cent Muslim country. In Islam children are obliged to take care and be kind to their parents.
What would be the reasons why some children forsake their parents?
Is it because of a financial burden, lack of filial piety or a complete disregard of children's responsibility to parents?
Our government has the responsibility to find non-legal ways to help people who need assistance to take care of their aged parents. Since we are seeing a growing neglect of the elderly, is it also time to enact legislation mandating care for the elderly with punitive measures for those who fail to do so?
Maldives is a 100 per cent Muslim country. In Islam children are obliged to take care and be kind to their parents.
What would be the reasons why some children forsake their parents?
Is it because of a financial burden, lack of filial piety or a complete disregard of children's responsibility to parents?
Our government has the responsibility to find non-legal ways to help people who need assistance to take care of their aged parents. Since we are seeing a growing neglect of the elderly, is it also time to enact legislation mandating care for the elderly with punitive measures for those who fail to do so?
Friday, October 02, 2009
Obama praises Gandhi's nonviolent social action
As the world celebrates International Day of non-violence, US President Barack Obama on Thursday said America has its "roots in the India of Mahatma Gandhi."
"His teachings and ideals, shared with Martin Luther King Jr. on his 1959 pilgrimage to India, transformed American society through our civil rights movement," Obama said on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Americans owe enormous gratitude to Gandhi, he said.
"The America of today has its roots in the India of Mahatma Gandhi and the nonviolent social action movement for Indian independence which he led," Obama said in a statement.
On behalf of the American people, Obama said he wants to express appreciation for the life and lessons of Mahatma Gandhi on the anniversary of his birth. "This is an important moment to reflect on his message of non-violence, which continues to inspire people and political movements across the globe," he said.
"We join the people of India in celebrating this great soul who lived a life dedicated to the cause of advancing justice, showing tolerance to all, and creating change through non-violent resistance," Obama said.
As the world remembers the Mahatma on his birthday, Obama said: "We must renew our commitment to live his ideals and to celebrate the dignity of all human beings.
Last month Obama had said that if given a chance he would love to have dinner with Mahatma Gandhi.
Obama expressed his desire in response to a question from a student Lilly during his discussion with 9th graders at Wakefield High School in Arlington Virginia where he, accompanied with the Education Secretary, gave a national speech welcoming students back to school.
Link: The Times of India
"His teachings and ideals, shared with Martin Luther King Jr. on his 1959 pilgrimage to India, transformed American society through our civil rights movement," Obama said on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Americans owe enormous gratitude to Gandhi, he said.
"The America of today has its roots in the India of Mahatma Gandhi and the nonviolent social action movement for Indian independence which he led," Obama said in a statement.
On behalf of the American people, Obama said he wants to express appreciation for the life and lessons of Mahatma Gandhi on the anniversary of his birth. "This is an important moment to reflect on his message of non-violence, which continues to inspire people and political movements across the globe," he said.
"We join the people of India in celebrating this great soul who lived a life dedicated to the cause of advancing justice, showing tolerance to all, and creating change through non-violent resistance," Obama said.
As the world remembers the Mahatma on his birthday, Obama said: "We must renew our commitment to live his ideals and to celebrate the dignity of all human beings.
Last month Obama had said that if given a chance he would love to have dinner with Mahatma Gandhi.
Obama expressed his desire in response to a question from a student Lilly during his discussion with 9th graders at Wakefield High School in Arlington Virginia where he, accompanied with the Education Secretary, gave a national speech welcoming students back to school.
Link: The Times of India
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Build Trust and Increase Tolerance
This year Maldives has marked the International Day of Democracy, a day observed on the 15th of September each year. The UN member countries are expected to commemorate the International Day of Democracy to increase awareness, to respect and promote the values of democracy and human rights.
In his message on the occasion of the International Day of Democracy, Coeur-Bizot, the United Nations resident coordinator said, “Public confidence and trust in the new government and the democratic institutions need to be strengthened through reinforcing strong mechanisms for transparency and accountability.” He also called to strengthen the civil society as well as the free media- an important institution in a free society that has the task to scrutinise and debate public policy reflecting the views of the people. He went on to point out that both the UN Special Rapporteurs on Freedom of Religion or Beliefs and on the Freedom of Expression and Opinion have noted the absence of the freedom of religion in the Maldives.
In a statement from the government marking the day, vice president Mohamed Waheed said, “First of all, it is very important that political philosophies of parties become clear,” he said. “Today what we are seeing from most parties is that they are formed around their leaders.” He also said different philosophies of political parties should be known to the public for it to be debated and built upon.
The declared ideology that all political parties hold in Maldives is that Maldives must remain an Islamic state and that all Maldivians must be Muslims as required by the constitution. Maldives is on the path of building a democracy with the separation of powers and independent institutions. Presently political parties do not engage the citizens in any meaningful dialogue regarding any political philosophy or the various issues facing the country. There is no bipartisan agreement among the lawmakers while crafting policies to tackle the nation's problems.
Although we are following the US model of the presidential system of governance, we do not follow the civil decorum that we see in the US Congress. On few occasions in our parliament chamber, members' heckling and unruly behaviour became so bad, the speaker had to call off the session. Our parliament needs to determine what is their acceptable decorum and make it a more productive institution.
We are a nascent democracy trying to find our foothold in a fast changing global world.
As Thomas Jefferson, a founding father and third United States president said, "Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves, therefore, are its only safe depositories."
Therefore, the people of Maldives have to be empowered and kept informed, enabling them to keep a watchful eye on their government while trusting the elected leaders to do their job and deliver the results. An unbiased free media has an important role to play to achieve this objective.
A lot depends on the elected officials to create a more equitable system to distribute wealth even within the context of the capitalistic free market economy. Lot of work also needs to be done to move beyond the political apathy which is so widely prevalent in our society, build trust within the community and with the leaders and become a more tolerant society.
In his message on the occasion of the International Day of Democracy, Coeur-Bizot, the United Nations resident coordinator said, “Public confidence and trust in the new government and the democratic institutions need to be strengthened through reinforcing strong mechanisms for transparency and accountability.” He also called to strengthen the civil society as well as the free media- an important institution in a free society that has the task to scrutinise and debate public policy reflecting the views of the people. He went on to point out that both the UN Special Rapporteurs on Freedom of Religion or Beliefs and on the Freedom of Expression and Opinion have noted the absence of the freedom of religion in the Maldives.
In a statement from the government marking the day, vice president Mohamed Waheed said, “First of all, it is very important that political philosophies of parties become clear,” he said. “Today what we are seeing from most parties is that they are formed around their leaders.” He also said different philosophies of political parties should be known to the public for it to be debated and built upon.
The declared ideology that all political parties hold in Maldives is that Maldives must remain an Islamic state and that all Maldivians must be Muslims as required by the constitution. Maldives is on the path of building a democracy with the separation of powers and independent institutions. Presently political parties do not engage the citizens in any meaningful dialogue regarding any political philosophy or the various issues facing the country. There is no bipartisan agreement among the lawmakers while crafting policies to tackle the nation's problems.
Although we are following the US model of the presidential system of governance, we do not follow the civil decorum that we see in the US Congress. On few occasions in our parliament chamber, members' heckling and unruly behaviour became so bad, the speaker had to call off the session. Our parliament needs to determine what is their acceptable decorum and make it a more productive institution.
We are a nascent democracy trying to find our foothold in a fast changing global world.
As Thomas Jefferson, a founding father and third United States president said, "Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves, therefore, are its only safe depositories."
Therefore, the people of Maldives have to be empowered and kept informed, enabling them to keep a watchful eye on their government while trusting the elected leaders to do their job and deliver the results. An unbiased free media has an important role to play to achieve this objective.
A lot depends on the elected officials to create a more equitable system to distribute wealth even within the context of the capitalistic free market economy. Lot of work also needs to be done to move beyond the political apathy which is so widely prevalent in our society, build trust within the community and with the leaders and become a more tolerant society.
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