Man tried in Criminal Court for Blasphemy and Apostasy.

A man was prosecuted in the Maldives Criminal Court today for denying the existence of Allah and the prophethood of Mohamed. The case of disbelief and blasphemy was filed against Shub'hi Ismail (M.Glory, Male', Maldives) by the state, and was also accused of verbally abusing the prophet of Islam with foul language.

Judge Mohamed Moosa sentenced that the defendant was in a state of intoxication when he said those things and therefore he cannot be ordered to repent. This sentence was based on his father's testomony, who also accused his son still uses drugs of abuse.

Judge Mohamed Moosa said that during the trial Mr.Shub'hi has confessed that Allah exists and Mohamed is the prophet of Allah. After the sentence the Judge made Sub'hi recite the Shahadah (profession of the Islamic creed) and asked him to embrace it strongly. The Judge also warned him that apostasy is the gravest of all sins and Allah may punish a person instantly for it. He recommended that; since it is a matter related to creed, it would be better if such cases are sent to the Ministry of Islamic Affairs instead of the court.

Source: Haveeru Daily

Cross shape on Taza bottles was an accident - Island Beverages Maldives.

Island Beverages Maldives Pvt.Ltd; the manufacturers of 'Taza' packaged drinking water assured in an interview to the local daily news paper that the cross shaped mark on their small size water bottles was not made on purpose but was due to a misfunction of the machinery used to produce the plastic bottles. According to Jazeera daily there was a line raised near the neck of the bottle and this verticle line cuts through the horizontal ridges on the bottle; forming the cross shape.

The assistant marketing manager of the company Hassan Mughnee said that only one batch of products went out like that and now they have ground the broken shaft (which was creating the shape) so that there wont be any cross shape in future products. "The machine cannot be repaired in Maldives. We are working on it" he said. Mr.Mughnee said that despite the grinding, of the part creating the cross; there would still be a mark on the bottle but assured it wont be in the shape of a cross.

Source: Jazeera Daily.

Immigration Officer involved in Sultan Park bombing pardoned.

The Immigration Officer who received a one-year prison sentence for helping two of the plotters of the Sultan Park bombing escape the country was among the 69 people who were pardoned by President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom last Wednesday (6 Aug 2008).

Warahumath Ahmed, 21, of M. Radium Kokaa, was sentenced on 21 February. The two Sultan Park bomb-plot suspects that Warahumath had allowed to escape the country are Abdul Latheef Ibrahim of Green Villa, Laamu atoll Kalhaidhoo, and Ali Shameem of Dhoores, Shaviyani atoll Komandoo. The two men were the people were among the first suspects that the Police had started hunting following the detonation of the home-made bomb in Sultan Park in September 2007. The Police are still looking for them and have even issued a Red Notice through Interpol to find them.

source: Haveeru Online.

Dr.Hassan Saeed's book on apostasy creates controversy.

Islamic Council Bans the Book.

The Maldives Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs has banned on freedom of religion and apostasy on the grounds that it "violates islamic principles". Freedom Of Religion, Apostasy and Islam, co-authored by the presidential candidate Dr.Hassan Saeed with his brother Abdullah Saeed was banned by a public notice issued by the supreme council.

It is the first time the Council has banned a specific title since a short-lived bar on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 2005, which was retracted a week later.

The ban was requested by the Islamic Democratic Party (IDP), which has now called for Saeed to stand down as a presidential candidate – but denies its action was politically motivated.

read more on: minivannews.com
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The Saeeds' Denial and Umar's refutation.


Several attempts have been made by Hassan Saeed, his brother Abdulla Saeed (co-author of the book) and others who supported him to justify that they are indeed not against executing apostates of Islam.

Speaking at a talkshow hosted by the government media, Dr.Saeed denied the accusations and said that he have worked to ensure that there is no space for anything unislamic even in protecting human rights. He said that this and the general policy of the current government, that no religion other than will be allowed in the Maldives is shaped by himself and 'new Maldives' team of which he was a part. He accused that the ban is politically motivated and that the Islamic scholars at the supreme council does not have enough knowledge of english language to read and criticize the book. Dr. Hassan stressed the point that the legal reform minister Mohamed Nasheed's opinion that there is no way this book could be banned according to the current constitution and laws of Maldives.

Responding to the criticism from Umar and others who accuse him of straying from the limits of Islam, Hassan has reassured that he is with everyone else in the issue of religious freedom. In a press release (14 may 2008) he said that his book does not permit apostasy and he is against religious freedom.

"I have said before that I will not give any chance for a religion other than Islam in my government. And in my manifesto i have important policies like strengthening the islamic creed of Maldivians, reforming the islamic methodology and (academic) syllabus, improving the quality of the Islamic knowledge received by the people, empowering the religious scholars, and establishing an independent fatwa council to issue religious verdicts on religious issue regarding which there are disagreement among people. " Saeed's press release said.

Dr.Hassan Saeed has on another occassion said that he only wrote the Chapters relating to the way Islamic Shariah is implemented through Malaysian law and the parts relating to Islamic Shariah and religion were written by his brother Prof.Abdulla Saeed. Umar Naseer refuted this claim in a press conference saying that the introduction to the book was written by both the authours and in that the brothers have "challenged the religion of Islam". Umar read out parts of the introduction to the book in dhivehi to support his claim but refused to read the whole introduction fearing that "common Maldivians may turn towards other religion" after hearing it as the new conference was broadcasted live by DhiFM radio.



The Salafi report.

Jamiyyatul Salaf (a registered local wahhabi/salafi NGO) released a report/verdict on the matter; saying that the book contradicts the 'correct islamic view and principles of islam' in many ways.

In this report published on their website (PDF in dhivehi) the salafi scholars (most of them educated in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan) mentioned that even if Umar Naseer is not qualified to understand or criticize the book, their sholars are. The report criticized the brothers for describing the age old Islamic Shariah as "pre-modern Islamic law" throughout the book. They also marked that the book criticized Caliph AbuBakr's war against apostates saying that the actions of the prophet's companions are to be accepted as evidence that it is in fact the way in Islam. The Salafi NGO condemned the brothers for trying to spread secularism among muslims.

Maldives warned by US on freedom of religion.

The US government has cautioned the Maldives over new wording in the constitution in progress which means non-Muslims could lose their Maldivian citizenship, US ambassador Robert Blake said at a Tuesday press conference.

“[The wording is] in conflict with some international obligations Maldives has already signed up for,” Blake said, in a probable reference to the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, which enshrines freedom of religion.

The clause is one of 200 issues identified as potentially needing amendment, in a review by the attorney general’s office (AGO) prior to finalisation of the constitution.

A group from the US House Foreign Relations Committee who visited Maldives in February were also rumoured to have spoken to government on the issue, whilst a 2005 international religious freedom report by the committee said that “freedom of religion remains severely restricted” in Maldives.

“The U.S. Government discusses religious freedom issues with the Government as part of its overall policy to promote human rights,” the report added.

However as the new constitution was developed, the Special Majlis (constitutional assembly) voted to amend wording on citizenship from the current constitution, to add the words: “A non-Muslim may not become a citizen of the Maldives.”

Information minister Mohamed Nasheed said on his personal blog that this wording “will operate to take away the citizenship from citizens of Maldives who may have a faith different from Islam.”

The existing constitution stipulates individuals must be Muslim in order to vote in elections, but not in order to be a citizen.

Blake said on Tuesday the US had discussed the new wording with Maldivian ministers. “The government is aware of the inconsistency, and exploring how to resolve that,” he said, adding: “I would reiterate that we believe very strongly in freedom of religion.”

Of the 200 issues raised by the AGO, the citizenship wording is one of around ten “policy issues” over which “discussions are going on in government”.

Along with the other issues, these will be discussed by a reduced version of the constitutional drafting committee before suggestions for amendments are considered by the Special Majlis.

It is believed the wording, if retained, could affect children of Maldivians with non-Muslims as well as those who choose to change their religion.

But Nasheed said on his blog, “It will be very difficult for Maldives mentality to accept Maldives citizens may belong to a different faith. It will be seen as an offense to the state of Maldives and an insult to being Maldivian, thus demanding serious reprisal.”

Therefore, he added, “No Maldives leader would want to rock the boat” by advocating a change to the wording.

[a minivannews.com article]

Guraidhoo school library closed following the discovery of a 'christian' story book.

K.Guraidhoo school library was closed following the discovery of a story book 'based on stories of christianity' ; jazeera daily reports. The local news paper reported that this story is about a child who was not accepted in to school and was educated in a church, and basically the story was about how great a religion christianity is.

The assistant headmaster of the school; Hussein Habeeb confirmed this saying that they discovered a story book with the symbol of christianity (cross) on it and the library was closed after that.

"We have now checked all the books in the library, but haven't found any other book like that" Jazeera quoted Habeeb as saying. He assured that the school management did not know about the book before this and they have acted as soon as they knew about it. He noted that the books in their library come from UNICEF and schools in the capital Male'.

Habib said it was reported to the school office that two of their students had the symbol of cross on their school bags and they have now erased those. Jazeera reported that some of the islanders claim this book have been frequently read by students of that school and some foreign teachers have been narrating 'stories of christianity' to them.

Jamiyyathul Salaf, a local Islamic NGO (of wahhabi school of thought) claims that it was not just one book but several books, and they were taken home and was read by the students.Theey also say the books had the school stamp on them ; hinting that there might be and involvement of the school management in this. The organisation which recently declared music to be illegal in Islam have now (on 3rd May 2008) sent an investigation team to the Island along with a journalist from Jazeera daily.

sources: Jazeera Daily , Jamiyyathul Salaf.

HRCM sheikh declares music illegal.

Music is Haraam.
One of the five members of the Human Rights Commission of Maldives have publicly articulated that Music (listening, playing or getting involved with it ) is haraam (completely forbidden, and a sin deserving of punishment in hell fire).

HRCM member Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Kareem was among the 22 Islamic Scholars who was shown declaring music is haraam in a special video presentation at a Jamiyyath-uh-Salaf (a wahhabi islamic NGO) meeting. Several government employed sheikhs; including senior members of the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs, and the Centre for the Holy Qur’an were seen in this video. Among other notable people shown on this video were Adhaalath party president Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari and Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) religious council member Sheikh Adam Naseem.

[The jamiyyathusalaf video presentation]

The 'Human Rights' Sheikh.
Sheikh Ahmed Abdul Kareem is a fundamentalist who cannot write anything without turning it in to an Islamic sermon, be it a newspaper article on international politics or a human rights commission report.

His profile on HRCM official website says that he had his secondary and tertiary education at Jamaia Daarul Salaam, Umar Abad in South India. He obtained his First Degree from the Islamic University of al-Madinah al-Munawarah in Saudi Arabia.

He have always been very active in promoting fundamentalist ideas in Maldives through national Television, Radio and by other means. Since a long time ago he have been writing articles regularly for some local newspapers (Mainly for papers owned by president Gayoom's friends and family members; Miadhu and Aafathis dailies). In these articles he discuss religious and social matters along with international politics in the light of Islam. In his articles on international politics; he will usually be praising terrorists (calling them martyrs of Islam at times) and talking of how muslims have been victims of 'evil forces of America and Europe'. This will be evident if one go through his articles written during the times of Iraq and Afghan war or any article on the Middle East conflict.

According to the HRCM website: "He have also been a lecturer at Kuliyyathul Dhiraasath Al Islamaiyya and Faculty of Education, of Maldives College of Higher Education. He have written several books on Islamic education for students and teachers of primary and secondary schools. He have now started working on producing his own publications on Islamic issues and Islamic education".

It also stated that "Sheikh Ahmed have also been serving as an Imam in the mosques of Male’, and gives religious speeches in mosques through out the country. He have been the external examiner of Islamic Studies at the Department of Public Examinations since 2002. This includes setting and marking Islamic Studies Examination for secondary and higher secondary school leavers."

What does this mean?
This shows how much fundamentalism is rooted into maldives, especially in to the government and political parties. This shows why the recent HRCM annual report looked more like an Islamic sermon than a human rights report, and why it ignored human rights violations related to Islam. The fundamentalists are becoming more and more organised in Maldives while any opposition or any voice to counter their preaching are supressed, even if it is Islamic (Dr.Afrashim?) or not (Aaniyaa?).

Dr. Afrashim Ali who have completed his doctorate studies (in Islamic Fiqh and Usul al Fiqh) at the Islamic University of Malaysia was denied the license to preach publicly by the the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs. He have been accused of blasphemy and humiliating Islam by several fundamentalist scholars and was even attacked by an angry mob after a Friday prayer he did at a Wahhabi dominated mosque in Male'. Information minister Mohamed Nasheed who supports moderate Islamic views have been endorsing him for a long time and even defying the Islamic Council by allowing him to preach on national Radio and Television. But this sheikh have been criticised for this by islamists and general public and also by the media. Several articles against the minister and his 'Sufi' sheikh (who says Music is legal in Shariah) have appeared on Jazeera, Haveeru and other local daily papers.

With fundamentalists (who believe music is haraam, who believe Maldivian citizens who leave islam should have their citizenships revoked and beheaded, who believe muslim women must be covered from head to toe, who believe suicide bombers go directly to heaven, who believe wife beating is ok, who believes fornicators should be stoned to death,who believes criticism of Islam should be punished by death and other such things) in important positions of our country, we are now in great danger. With politicians, news people, human rights commission members , ministers, presidential candidates, law makers, judicial personnel, police and army personnel, teachers and most of the common people turning towards Islamic fundamentalism ; Maldives is now in greatwe danger than the that posed by the rise of sea level. Especially with no way to counter the great force of Islamic fundamentalism.

Maldives at this rate would soon be another Saudi Arabia if not a Talibanic state. Maldives' government, political parties, law makers, judiciary and the HRCM does not see, 'the right to freedom of religion and belief' as a right at all. They believe that, it is a violation of 'our' sacred Islamic right to remain Muslim forever. Now that everything which can be a human right must be legal in Islamic Shariah, one day listening to music might become a punishable crime in Maldives; if some people does not stand up against this madness. Believe it or not, agree with this or not, that is where we are headed now. By the way, did the Taliban government in Afghanistan have a 'human rights' commission? .

Source : [Official Website of HRCM, and Minivannews.com]