Recommended reading:
Sinking Streets Chapter 01 - The Male’ City Swimming Track
TVM Haze
Mohamed Nazim’s 2010 confession - a turning point for Maldivian minorities
A collection of Yameen Rasheed's writings on Maldives, Secularism, Standing up for Maldivian Minorities, and Fighting Religious Radicalism
The Sustainable Fishing Practices of Dhivehi Reef Fishermen (and how the resort industry is screwing them over)
A timeline of religious extremism, minority struggles, and human rights abuses in contemporary Maldives
My Experience Dealing With Maldives Police Service
The Greatest Maldivian Visual Artists of the 21st Century
Splinters Act I - The Akasha Frontier
Is there an easy answer to this question? Primarily I think I speak and write in English because it has been necessary for my survival. Most people from the Maldives are bilingual because of this reason. Our language, Dhivehi, is only spoken by us. And of us there are not many.
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The recent launch of the Maldivian version of the hit "Idol" format by TVM is one of the most significant events in Maldivian TV history. The show is by no means perfect, but it is one of the first times that Maldivians from all over the country have had a platform to show their talents. It is inspiring to see the joy on the faces of contestants who make the cut. Part of its purpose also seems to be to give the impression that the Maldives is a lot more progressive than it actually is. Probably a move by the Yameen administration to improve it's image abroad. Whatever the case, the show is commendable for sticking to it's progressive values. Predictably the backlash from the conservative crowd has already begun, with many calling to boycott the show for being "laadheenee" or irrelgious and "against Islam".
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The world has changed so much in the past few decades. The sheer amount of information we have accessible at our fingertips is sometimes hard to comprehend. If you are a person who has the privilege of internet access, the only excuse you have for your ignorance is yourself.
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All the while the rushing would intensify as if heading towards some grim crescendo. As this feeling grew and I drowned in feelings of utter helplessness, so did a growing panic that something... bad.... was about to happen. This jinni, this being, was going to take my life - or worse - take my sanity and run screaming with it all the way to hell.
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"Let me now turn to the recommendations we received from Member States. As we have stated at the UPR Working Group, for over eight hundred years, Maldivians have embraced and maintained our Islamic values. Islam forms the basis of our Constitution, and all our laws. Any efforts to introduce practices contrary to the values of Islam, will not be entertained by the people of Maldives. Of the sixty recommendations the Government has rejected, and thus taken note of, are mostly those that contradict with the Islamic faith and our Constitution. The people of Maldives, through a democratic process, have rejected freedom of religion, LGBT, and non-traditional forms of family. However, as previously stated, non-Maldivians are allowed to practicetheir own faith in private. We have also provided explanations on the recommendations in the Addendum submitted to the Council." - Dr. Ali Nazeer
What democratic process?
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This is the final chapter of Xavier Romero-Frias' "The Maldive Islanders". With the direction the Maldives appears to be heading in, it is perhaps even more relevant now than when it was first written. If you wanted to know why so little is done to preserve Maldivian culture and heritage, this is why.
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A girl walks along a narrow road. The sun beats down on her from above, as heat rays rise from ground. Her steps echo loudly along the narrow streets and the sounds of traffic and horns blaring can be heard in the distance. The road smells of petrol and concrete. On both sides there were buildings either too small to house those that lived within or ones so ambitiously large that they were never finished being built. There is a sudden rush of air through the road as a flock of roosting pigeons take off. The flurry of sound from their many beating wings gives her a jolt. She looks up to see the blur of wings disappear to reveal a cat walking along the gutter. It looks down at her and meows. She breathes a sigh of relief. As she keeps looking clouds roll over from above, casting the road into shadow.
Drops begin to fall, some of them hitting her eyes; making her squint and look away. The soft pitter-patter crescendos into a thundering roar that drowns out all the sounds of the city. She hurriedly ducks under the cover of a low balcony. The cat appears beside her. It meows and rubs against her leg. She bends down and ruffles its neck. As she scratches its ears the rain stops; just as suddenly as it started.
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