'..... the throne of the Maldives isn't something I should just give away and forget about, don't you think, Vizir?', asked ex-King Dirty Hassan. He then promised to take back the throne.
The burning pain in his leg began once again. Although cooling medications were applied, there was no relief. He screamed continuously and couldn't sit or lie down.
Maldives restores relations with Israel:
26 September
2009
The Maldives has re-established diplomatic relations with the State of Israel after 29 years, on the eve of the Jewish Sabbath on 7 Tishrei,
Anno Mundi 5770 (25 September,
Anno Domini 2009). Praise be to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob!
This web site has campaigned relentlessly for this since we went online. Israel was the first country to send an ambassador to the Maldives in modern times, in 1965
>>read more
Obituary to a classical dancer:
7 July
2009
Xavier Romero-Frias, author of
Maldive Islanders: A study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom writes an obituary to his late Maldive mother-in-law in English, Spanish and French.
>>read
Iran in renewed throes of an ancient struggle :
17 June
2009
Omar to Yazdgird III: "I do not foresee a good future for you and your nation save your acceptance of my terms and your submission to me. There was a time when your country ruled half the world, but see how now your sun has set? On all fronts your armies have been defeated and your nation is condemned to extinction. I point out to you the path whereby you might escape this fate...."
Yazdgird III to Omar: "You admonish me to become monotheistic in faith. Ignorant little man! For thousands of years we Iranians have, in this land of culture and art, been monotheistic and five times a day have we offered prayers to God's Throne of Oneness. While we laid the foundations of philanthropy and righteousness and kindness in this world and held high the ensign of "Good Thoughts, Good Words and Good Deeds", you and your ancestors were desert wanderers who ate snakes and lizards...What have you, in the name of your "Allah-u-Akbar", taught these armies of Islam besides destruction, pillage and murder that you now presume to forcibly summon others to your god?.."
>> read on
Demanding respect without offering it:
25 May
2009"We want people to show us respect", said Manal Mohamed, a Syrian Muslim in Greece, following Islamic riots in Athens after allegations that a Greek policeman tore up a Koran and stomped on it. Mohamed added "we want the officer or officers involved to be prosecuted, and the [Greek] government to issue an apology." Like the aggrieved Muslims in Greece, expatriate Maldivians demand and receive respect and religious rights in non-Islamic countries in Asia and the West. The Golden Rule of treating others as you would expect others to treat you is a concept totally alien to them. For these supremacists the ethic of reciprocity is a one-way street- in their favour.
>> read on
The Maldives still disrespects what is holy to others:
3 May
2009
What sort of reaction will a British news item such as "HM Customs seizes and destroys a Koran" have? Let me guess. Churches in Iraq will be razed to the ground; Christian school girls in Indonesia will be beheaded in front of their mothers who will be forced to eat their entrails; Coptic pig farmers in Egypt will have their entire herds incinerated; luxury hotels in Bombay will be suicide-bombed; Hindus in Bali will be impaled; Baha’is in Iran will have nails driven through their heads. The list will go on and on. The Islamic dictatorships that hog the seats in the United Nations Human Rights Council will be accusing Great Britain and the world of insulting Islam. And yet a heading in a leading Maldive online newspaper late last week could be paraphrased as "Maldive customs seizes a Buddha used for worship".
>> read on
MALDIVES: Reform excludes freedom of religion or belief:
18 February
2009
Mohamed Nasheed's election as President of the Maldives was hailed as the dawn of a new era of democracy and freedom in the Indian Ocean country. Under former President Gayoom, the once religiously tolerant Maldives – which tended towards folk Islam – was changed into a society intolerant of all beliefs except state-approved Sunni Islam. President Nasheed has, taken no steps to dismantle the Gayoom legacy of continuing religious freedom violations. Indeed, the scope for violations has been increased by the creation of a new and powerful Ministry of Islamic Affairs.
>>read more
Racism in 100% Islamic Maldives rivals that in Nazi Germany:
23 January 2009
Khadija, a client in the waiting room of the Malé Health Centre told
Haveeru Daily that she was there to vaccinate a child and that she was dissatisfied because of the large number of foreigners who share the services of the Centre. "When we come to vaccinate our young babies it is unsatisfactory to have to sit next to dirty foreigners", Khadija told
Haveeru.
>> click to read on
Malé-based
Maldive Muslim implicated in the Islamic assault on Mumbai:
7 December 2008
A senior
Lashkar-e-Toiba operative, Faisal Haroun
attempted to smuggle arms into India with the help of Malé-based
Maldive citizen Ali al-Shaam
>>more
Maldives
independence hero dies:
22 November
2008
The hero of Maldive independence, Peer of the
former Realm and first president of the second Maldive republic
has died at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore today at
9:32 pm local time. Ibrahim Nasir Rannabandeyri Kilegefan;
K.C.M.G; N.G.I.V. is survived by two sons and a daughter.
Rannabandeyri Kilegefan was 82. He was the son of Velaanaage
Ahmed Didi of Malé and Nayaage Aisha Didi of Fua Mulaku
who were both descendants of the Royal House of Diyamigily.
He died two weeks short of reaching three decades of self-exile
in Singapore, having left Malé on 7 December 1978.
His funeral is scheduled to take place in Malé. Asked
if he will ever return to his homeland, he told a close friend
that he will, when a just government returns to the Maldives.
His successor as president of the republic was defeated in
the first democratic elections in the Maldives and was replaced
just two weeks ago. It is ominous that, even in death, Kilegefan
is going to keep his word.
>>our
main article on Nasir written in 2001
All-powerful and merciful
God,
we commend to you, Ibrahim Nasir, your servant.
In your mercy and love, blot out all the sins he has committed
through human weakness.
In this world he has died: let him live with you for ever.
Moomina
returns home:
17 November
2008
Her grandfather was exiled and was told to beg
for mercy if he wished to return home. Others who were exiled
with him did as they were bid and were reunited with their
families within four months. Like Moomina Haleem, her grandfather
did not beg for mercy and stayed in exile for 8 years until
recalled to join a new government in 1934. Moomina was the
first Maldive woman cabinet minister and served in the government
of President of the Republic Ibrahim Nasir Rannabandeyri Kilegefan;
K.C.M.G; N.G.I.V. She was hounded out of her country by Maumoon
Abdul Gayoom who now holds the dubious distinction of the
first Maldive head of state ever to be defeated in an election.
Gayoom regarded Moomina as a serious threat as she used to
give away her entire ministerial salary to charity. When Gayoom
faced his humiliating defeat, Moomina has returned home, for
the first time in 28 years. Moomina's mother and this site
editor's aunt Tuttudon Sitti was a formidable thorn on Gayoom's
side until she died about a year ago. At age 85 Sitti was
still a prominent street activist for the burgeoning democracy
movement that finally drove Gayoom to his humiliation. Welcome
home, worthy daughter of a proud family!
What happened to Hassan Farid Didi?
6 May 2008
This is a question
that has intrigued Maldivians since early in 1944. A number
of conspiracy theories have been put forward by many people
over the years but no one has been able to produce a definitive
answer.
>>find
out
Oldest
member of the Royal House of Huraagey and Hilaaly dies:
11 March 2008
The Princess
Maandhoogey Tuttudon Goma died at her residence in Malé
today, 11 March 2008 at about 9:30 am local time. She
was aged 93. She was a Senator in the bicameral Parliament
of the Maldives during the short-lived first republic of 1953-54.
The Princess was the last surviving member of the Maldive
Senate.
>>full
article and photos
Historic
photos:
16 January 2008
Another page of historic photographs circa 1890s to 1930s
>>view photos
Maldives First Republic-
a who's who:
14 January
2008
The first Maldive republic came into being on
1 January 1953 and lasted until 7 March 1954, when the monarchy
was restored. The following were important political and judicial
positions in the republic and the names of the people who
held those positions.
>>more
Was
Bhutto a champion of democracy?:
1
January 2008
A death is always tragic, particularly
when it is untimely and brought on by acts of criminals. A
family has lost a mother and wife in such manner and that
is a colossal misfortune. Does that make Pakistan’s Benazir
Bhutto a champion of democracy? The short answer is no.
>>more
Historic photographs :
8
July 2007
New additions to a collection of rare historical
Maldive photographs of the last two centuries. There are two
pages of photos
>>click
to view the first new page
The Máldive Islands by C.W. Rosset
(1886):"They are very ingenious and expert in their manufactures,
and display great aptitude in the imitation of any European
articles they may come across, such as knife handles, scales,
and other small articles of daily use amongst us."
>>more
Fua Mulaku genealogy: A solitary island in
the Equatorial Channel, Fua Mulaku was where important royal
and political prisoners were exiled. The last head of government
to be transported there was the Prime Minister Ahmed Zaki
in 1975, after he was dismissed and the office of prime minister
was abolished. Before that the Sultan Mohamed Shamsuddine
III Siri Kula Sundura Katthiri Bavana and his son the Prince
Henveyru Ganduvaru Manippulu were exiled there in 1933. In
the early 19th century the Prince Ibrahim Faamuladeyri Kilege,
son of the last monarch of the Diyamigily Dynasty was sent
there. A large majority of Fua Mulaku islanders of today are
descended from him.
Click
here to view a comprehensive and rare genealogy of that line
on the island today.
Historical photographs:
Click
to view new additions to a collection of rare historical
Maldive photographs of the last century. Velaanaage family
photograph and coronation proclamation.
Other recent
additions were
Kakaage
and
Ibrahim
Habeeb Manippulu etc.
Kakaage family photographs. The Kakaage were
among the most powerful political families in the Maldives
in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The
Kakaage have a reputation of being totally honest and loyal
with a pathological aversion to corruption. Most recently
the trademark Kakaage integrity was displayed by Arif Hilmy
who served the current Maldive regime as its minister of finance
until resigning in order to choose integrity over position.
>>album
Fish of Minicoy: Some decorative fish found
in Minicoy island and northern Maldives, with their English,
Divehi and scientific names
>>more
Historical photographs:
Click
to view new additions to a collection of rare historical
Maldive photographs of the last century
From our archives:
A structure built
on loose sand: In September 2001 we predicted that
the then much-heralded constitution of the Maldives was doomed
to fail. All sides now acknowledge that it has failed
>>more
Beginning of the Fall: In July 2004 we stated
the obvious by saying that "Established institutions,
political maturity, and strong leadership would prevent structural
disintegration." Has it happened, or did we really herald
the beginning of the Fall? We concluded the article by saying
that "Those who advocate democracy ought to conduct themselves
in accordance with the democratic traditions that they seek
others to embrace."
>>more
Muslim by law- right or violation of rights?
In a 59-page dissertation, Shirley Jory (email:
jory2616@hotmail.com)
examines this question. Chapter one introduces the discussion
about the universality of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (UDHR) and relates this to the Maldive context. Chapter
two portrays the Maldive government’s concerns and position
on human rights issues. Chapter three presents the research
findings into potential human rights violations mainly of
Article 18 but also of Article 19 of the UDHR in the Maldives.
Chapter four is a critique of the Maldive government’s
position by using evidence from recent cultural research and
contemporary Islamic literature. Chapter five identifies the
implications of the findings of this research for the Maldive
context, discusses the validity of cultural relativism in
relation to the UDHR and gives personal recommendations for
people involved in the reform process in the Maldives and
the wider community.
>>read
summary page or
>>go
straight to pdf file
Some practical steps to preserve peace and harmony
in the Maldives: Recently Islamic terrorists struck
again in Bali. They killed innocent tourists and bystanders
just when the people in Bali thought that tourism had finally
recovered. Now all those whose livelihoods depend on the tourist
industry face an uncertain future there. Let no one think
that this does not affect the Maldives. At any time Islamic
terror could strike. The militants are already there and tourists
are visiting its many beautiful resorts, unaware of the extreme
level of Islamic militancy in the Maldives. On 31 October
2005, the Maldive authorities bowed down to militant demands
and, for the fist time, allowed a woman clad in the barbaric
burqa to appear as the anchor on state TV. Find out
the seven danger signs of Islamic militancy
>>more
Maldives
Culture publishes translation of the the state approved and
sanitised version of Maldive history: "In 1902,
during the reign of King Mohamed Imaaduddine VI, the monarch
wanted a 'History of Maldives' written in Divehi tana script,
so he assigned a committee to the task. The chronicles started
by judge Hassan Tajuddine and afterwards compiled by various
Islamic judges writing in Arabic, along with other records
written in Divehi at different times, were given to that committee.
This book is the result."
It is worth having a look
| Preface
| Part
1 | | Part
2 |
Slavery in the Maldives: Slavery was never
abolished in the Maldives and is still legally enforceable
by Maldive courts. This web site calls upon the Maldive ruling
mullahs to abolish slavery formally by Act of Parliament.
We also call upon the Maldive President of the Republic, his
fellow mullahs, the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party
(MDP) and any other political party to be registered soon
to condemn the practice of slavery and the ideology that legitimizes
it.
>>more
Maldive Name Nazis: By insisting that a child's
name registered at birth be changed, the Republic of Maldives
may be contravening Paragraph 1 of Article 7 and Paragraph
1 of Article 8 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
which it ratified on 13 March 1991.
>>more
Freedom
of Religion- a timeline: "I announce that I
will respect the traditions, customs and religions of the
nations of my empire and never let any of my governors and
subordinates look down on or insult them as long as I shall
live. From now on, while Ahura-Mazda lets me rule, I will
impose my monarchy on no nation. Each is free to accept it
, and if any one of them rejects it, I shall never resolve
on war to reign.......Today, I announce that everyone is free
to choose areligion."
-Cyrus the Great, King of Persia (580-529 BC)
>>more
"....machchah mi lavva
hutti boaga imaaraaiy kulha konme mu u min mus limaku
saalihu shaheedu naai eh hen suvaruga vadhuna hu....."
An extract
from a royal grant to build a mosque dated AD 1696
|
Divehi (Divess) script: was in use until
early in the 20
th century. The phasing out of the
script began in the 17-18
th century, to be gradually
replaced by the modern Gabuli Thaana script. Unlike Divehi,
Thaana is written from right to left, and was a compromise
with the Islamic mullahs who wanted to abandon the Maldive
heritage and adopt the Arabic script. For a long time the
agenda of the mullahs have been to make the Maldives a cultural,
ideological and spiritual appendage of their Arab heartland-
to be reduced to an "Arab Republic" like the once-proud
civilisations of Egypt and Syria.
>>more
The Bank Notes of the Maldives:
On
12 August 1947 the People’s Majlis passed Bill No. 2/66
......concerning the Maldivian monetary system. The committee
consisted of Government Ministers and Members of the People’s
Majlis.
>> Article
by Peter Symes and Murray Hanewich
Maldive flags: Before the beginning of the
1900's a real national flag of the Maldives didn't exist.
The colour of the royal house was red since very old times,
a colour that was selected as the ensign because of its visibility
when contrasted with the blue backdrop of the sea. Thus the
royal flags were plain red.
>>more
Maldives- Ethnography: A new web site strongly
recommended to our visitors:
"The language spoken in the Maldives is Divehi, belonging
to the group of Indo-Aryan languages, but having many affinities
with the Dravidian languages of the geographical area in which
the country lies. Present-day Divehi has borrowed many words
from Arabic. Besides the main form of Divehi, known as Malé
Bas, this language has three markedly different variants which
are located in the second group, in the South. The people
of the third group live in great isolation, for Minicoy is
totally off-limits for Maldivians since 1957. Only Indians
are allowed to travel to Minicoy. Thus, Minicoians are steadily
undergoing a process of acculturation owing to lack of contact
with the remaining Divehi people and pressure to use other
languages (Malayalam, English and Hindi)."
>>more
Maldive national anthem: Until the late 1940s
the state anthem of the Maldives was a melody with no lyrics.
It was called the Salaamathi.....and then came Auld Lang Syne.
>>more
Veiled women: The old Maldive word for the
women's veil is
dholhi, the same word used for the
piece of cloth tied around the head of a human corpse to prevent
the mouth from opening. This probably indicates the oppressive
view of the garment held by early Maldivians.
>>more
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