MALDIVES CONTINUES TO WORK ON DEMOCRATIC REFORMS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 001295

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/25/2015
TAGS: PGOV PHUM MV
SUBJECT: MALDIVES CONTINUES TO WORK ON DEMOCRATIC REFORMS

REF: A. COLOMBO 1189


B. COLOMBO 1212

Classified By: AMBASSADOR JEFFREY J. LUNSTEAD FOR REASONS 1.4(b) and (d
)


1. (U) Summary. The Government of the Republic of Maldives
(GORM) is continuing its efforts to institute multi-party
democracy and human rights reforms. On July 14, the
President announced a massive shift in the Cabinet, with
young, progressive Ministers replacing those opposed to
reform. The Ambassador visited Male July 20, where he
discussed democratic reforms with government officials and
members of the opposition party. End summary.

-------------- --------------
THE NEW FACE OF MALDIVIAN POLITICS: A YOUTHFUL CABINET
-------------- --------------


2. (SBU) The projected reorganization of the President's
Cabinet in the Maldives (Reftel A) came about on July 14,
when 18 new Ministers were announced. A number of Ministers
who were resistant to reform have been replaced, but those
former Cabinet Ministers have been asked to serve as
Presidential Advisors. Former Government Spokesman (and
longtime Embassy contact) Ahmed Shaheed was named as the new
Foreign Minister. During the Ambassador's July 20 visit to
Male, Shaheed reiterated a commitment to democratic reforms.
He said that the real indicator of success will be
transparent, free, fair, multi-party elections, with the
current Constitution calling for Presidential elections in
2008 and Majlis (Parliamentary) elections in 2009.


3. (C) During a meeting with the Ambassador, Foreign
Secretary Abdul Hameed Zakariyya noted that four of the new

SIPDIS
Ministers, including those with the portfolios for Education
and Planning, are all graduates from the American University
of Beirut, where they studied with the help of USAID
scholarships in the 1980s. Likewise, a number of other new
Ministers are widely reported to be young, Western-educated,
and reform-minded. Attorney General Hassan Saeed told the
Ambassador that the new cabinet has a high degree of public
approval, with commensurately high expectations that the new
Ministers will bring about further democratic progress.

--------------
PARTY ANIMALS: DEMOCRACY TAKES A FOOTHOLD
--------------


4. (C) As of July 25, the President's political party is not
yet registered, and the opposition Maldives Democratic Party
(MDP) remains the only official party (Reftel B). In a July
20 meeting with the Ambassador, President Gayoom said that
his party had submitted its registration papers to the Home
Ministry and is awaiting recognition. In a separate meeting,
Attorney General Saeed said that some parties had asked him
to extend the deadline for registration. Saeed said that he
may reduce the required number of signatures (currently set
at 3000, or roughly 1% of the population) and extend the
deadline. Saeed told the Ambassador that the number of
signatures had initially been set high in order to weed out
fringe parties, but he may lower the signature threshold
slightly in order to draw dissenters into the political
mainstream.


5. (C) Both Foreign Minister Shaheed and President Gayoom
told the Ambassador that the Maldivian public remains
unfamiliar with democratic processes, so civic education is a
high priority for the government. The President said that he
was seeking assistance from Commonwealth countries, and
Shaheed mentioned that the GORM was asking the UN Human
Rights Committee in Geneva to send an advisor.

--------------
REFORMS: A TIME FOR CHANGE
--------------


6. (C) Saeed outlined a number of imminent reforms. He said
a new penal code, including police and armed services acts,
is slated for discussion at the next session of parliament
(due to begin in December). Labor laws, including those
permitting unions, are also set to go forward in parliament.
Furthermore, Saeed is attempting to set up an independent
Judicial Commission to oversee the judiciary, newly separated
from the executive branch of government. Saeed mentioned
that the parliament publishes commentary along with the new
laws, and the government tries to provide training for
lawyers and judges to help them understand and implement the
reforms.


7. (C) In addition, Saeed discussed the Special Majlis, a
Parliamentary group that is supposed to work on
Constitutional reform. Saeed called the Special Majlis
"pathetic" because the members have spent the majority of
their time on procedural, rather than substantive issues.
According to both Saeed and Shaheed, on July 19, the Special
Majlis spent the whole of the day discussing dress codes for
women within the context of Islam. Saeed characterized the
discussion as sexist in tone. Saeed expressed concern that
if the Special Majlis did not produce effective
recommendations, the GORM might "steamroll" the group.
President Gayoom said that the Special Majlis was acting
slowly, but he was hopeful they would create a framework of
rules by July 24. As of July 25, the Special Majlis still
had not drafted any proposals.


8. (C) Members of the Human Rights Commission have been
seeking parliamentary recognition (rather than existence by
presidential decree) since the Commission's inception in 2003
(Reftel B). On July 21, the Majlis voted to codify the Human
Rights Commission and referred the bill to the legal drafting
committee for final preparation. The bill will then go to
the President, who can ratify it and sign it into law. Yet
according to the Human Rights Commission's Secretary-General
Rashida Ali, the Commission has only received an unofficial
copy of the current bill from a parliamentarian. Ali is
worried that the Majlis has hampered the Commission by
removing some of the original bill's text. Ali said the
amended Clause 21 prevents the Commission from accessing
certain documents, and the elimination of former Clause 22
now prohibits the Commission from investigating human rights
abuses if the abuses pertain to a case that is in court.

--------------
"THE OPPOSITION WILL CONTINUE TO OPPOSE"
--------------


9. (C) According to Attorney General Saeed, "The Opposition
will continue to oppose," meaning that the MDP will always
find fault with the government, regardless of how much
progress the GORM makes. The Ambassador met with the MDP
leadership at their new party headquarters in Male. The MDP
members have not accepted any of the GORM reforms at face
value. Mohammed Nasheed, party Chairperson, insisted that
the President's reforms are purely cosmetic and the new
Cabinet Ministers were only appointed to offer the GORM more
seats in the Special Majlis. Nasheed and his colleagues were
adamant that true reform would require President Gayoom to
leave, so the MDP's single focus is forcing the President out
of power. The Ambassador pointed out the perils of a
platform based solely on opposition to an individual and
encouraged the MDP to publicize their own specific vision for
the future. The MDP members mentioned that if elected, they
will try to limit corruption in government.


10. (C) Earlier, MDP International Spokesperson Mohamed
Latheef had told poloff he feared that recognition of parties
was a hollow gesture that would not be backed by multi-party
elections. Nasheed and Ibrahim Ismail, MDP Councilor and
Member of Parliament, both told the Ambassador that the MDP
enjoys widespread popular support from Maldivian citizens
clamoring for immediate elections. Ali Hashim,
Vice-Chairperson, informed poloff on July 21 that the MDP is
demanding elections within 90 days. MDP leaders said they
were trying to refrain their followers but feared trouble
holding them back. The Ambassador replied that violent
confrontations with the government would threaten all of the
reforms.

--------------
COMMENT
--------------


11. (C) We find that the GORM has made noticeable strides
forward in instituting democratic processes. Although a
small minority in the government remains resistant to change,
a number of officials have both expressed and demonstrated a
real commitment to reform. The Cabinet shuffle removed some
of the members most resistant to change and brought in some
pro-reform faces. While much work remains to be done, we are
hopeful that the Maldives will continue to move forward, and
perhaps even become an example of peaceful democratization
for other Islamic countries to follow. We should continue to
look for ways to assist this process. President Gayoom and
others have expressed strong interest in having the National
Democratic Institute (NDI) or a similar group work in
Maldives, perhaps by helping the new political parties learn
how to organize and operate. One danger continues to be an
agressive MDP which appears ready, and perhaps eager, to
confront the President.


LUNSTEAD