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RR RUEHLMC
DE RUEHLM #2124/01 3600519
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 260519Z DEC 06 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY COLOMBO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5013
INFO RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0411
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA 9729
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 6667
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 4727
RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI 2089
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI 7231
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1639
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 002124 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DRL/IL FOR LAUREN HOLT 
 
STATE FOR SCA/INS 
 
MCC FOR S GROFF, D NASSIRY AND E BURKE 
 
GENEVA PASS USTR 
 
 
E.O 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV ECON PHUM SOCI EAID PREL MV
 
SUBJECT:  MALDIVES REFORMS MAKING SLOW PROGRESS 
 
COLOMBO 00002124  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  Assistant U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to 
South and Southwest Asia Ambassador Douglas A. Hartwick and Special 
Assistant Manpreet Anand traveled to Maldives on December 5-6, 2006, 
to meet with President Gayoom and other government officials to 
discuss US-Maldives bilateral economic ties.  Ambassador Hartwick's 
discussions of trade and investment issues will be reported septel. 
In the course of discussions, officials from the Government of the 
Republic of Maldives (GORM) highlighted proposed political reforms 
and potential constitutional revisions.  While many ministers seem 
genuinely committed to strengthening democracy, the government has 
failed to deliver on most reform commitments to date.  End Summary. 
 
Ambassador Hartwick Meets with GORM Officials 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Ambassador Hartwick met with President Gayoom and with 
GORM Ministers of Tourism and Civil Aviation, Finance and Treasury, 
Economic Development and Trade, Atolls Development, Foreign Affairs, 
and with the Attorney General.  Ambassador Hartwick primarily 
focused on the USTR's interest in strengthening bilateral economic 
links and trade opportunities between the U.S. and the Maldives 
(septel).  All government interlocutors took the opportunity to 
describe Maldives' progress in its reform agenda in light of the 
March 2006 publication of a "Reform Roadmap."  (Embassy note: 
Opposition activists have accused officials of making cosmetic 
corrections to impress the international community while little 
materially changes for citizens who still have limited civil 
liberties.  The GORM has employed the British public relations firm 
Hill and Knowlton since late 2003 and has come under intense 
criticism from the opposition for using national funds for the 
endeavor.  End note.)  In meetings with Ambassador Hartwick, GORM 
officials highlighted positive changes but did not address key human 
rights shortcomings such as restricted freedoms of assembly and 
press. 
 
Reformist Ministers Reiterate Commitments to Change... 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) GORM officials opined that given the need for a major 
overhaul of the Constitution in a short amount of time, it is 
natural that the changes will meet resistance and discomfort among 
the citizens.  The Attorney General, (AG) Hassan Saeed, complained 
that the GORM is in a difficult position as it is expected to 
institute a democratic framework, compliant with modern 
international standards, within only two years while most countries 
had generations to develop political institutions.  The AG added 
that the younger, western-educated reformists in the GORM must 
contend with the older, less-educated cadre of officials who are 
still entrenched in the traditional, one-party system.  Foreign 
Minister Dr. Ahmed Shaheed echoed similar views in a separate 
meeting.  He added, however, that the opposition should accept the 
government's reforms instead of blindly challenging them.  According 
to Shaheed, there are less than 15 opposition representatives out of 
50 Majlis (parliament) members.  (Embassy Note: Political parties 
were not legally recognized at the time parliamentary elections were 
held, limiting the opposition's ability to contest openly.  End 
note.)  Shaheed said he supported continued dialogue with the 
opposition party, but believed they were reluctant to engage because 
they did not want to be perceived as lending legitimacy to the 
current government. 
 
... But the Pace of Reforms Drags 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (U) Saeed told Ambassador Hartwick that he is pro-actively 
pushing forward the GORM's March 2006 Reform Roadmap.  He said that 
the biggest obstacle to implementing the reforms is the lengthy 
period of time for the Majlis to discuss and pass legislation in an 
efficient manner.  The Majlis has no time regulation that restricts 
discussion. 
 
¶5.  (U) According to the AG, the GORM is faced with the challenge of 
 
COLOMBO 00002124  002 OF 003 
 
 
training a new government and civilian workforce to support the 
draft laws and programs.  The AG's office sent twenty students 
abroad in 2006 to be trained as judges; another twenty will be sent 
in early 2007.  These students are attending Saeed's alma mater, the 
International Islamic University in Malaysia, where they study both 
Western and Islamic legal systems.  The students also serve brief 
internships in Australia and Singapore.  The training is 
considerably shorter than international judicial education 
standards, but given the Maldives' lack of a specialized workforce, 
it is critical that the GORM develop its judicial infrastructure 
quickly, Saeed said.  In addition, the AG assessed that lawyers, 
clerks, prosecutors, and other legal professionals need to be 
recruited and trained.  Ambassador Hartwick suggested that the GORM 
invite foreign legal experts to conduct seminars and workshops in 
the Maldives. 
 
¶6.  (U) Government interlocutors said that the reform roadmap 
incorporates recommendations from a variety of independent, 
multi-national organizations, including the UN, WTO, and ADB. 
Further, the GORM is adopting the University of Pennsylvania's Law 
School draft of a Penal Code which will serve as a model of modern 
law comprised of both democratic and Shari'a law.  According to the 
AG, the new policy legislation pending approval at the Majlis 
includes the establishment of a human rights task force, the 
elimination of more arbitrary detentions, greater freedom of speech, 
English translation of government documents, and a more transparent 
investigation process. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Embassy Note: American law professor Paul Robinson drafted 
the new penal code with funding from the UN.  GORM officials have 
praised the new code to Emboffs and the international community for 
over 18 months, but it has not been implemented.  Although the AG 
criticized arbitrary detentions to Ambassador Hartwick, Maldivian 
police arrested over 150 opposition activists in November for 
planning to attend a demonstration.  US Ambassador Blake, resident 
in Colombo and accredited to the Maldives, sent a letter outlining 
these and other human rights concerns to Foreign Minister Ahmed 
Shaheed late November 2006.  End note. 
 
Political Dissent Still Penalized 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Ministers told Ambassador Hartwick that the GORM is 
attempting to revise the constitution in accordance with the "Reform 
Roadmap," trying to institutionalize political pluralism and 
strengthen human rights protection, media freedom and judicial 
reform.  Nevertheless, the GORM has continued to prosecute 
opposition leaders on a variety of charges, leading Ambassador 
Hartwick to mention to President Gayoom and several ministers that 
there is an appearance that political dissent is penalized in 
Maldives.  GORM officials responded that the media offers an 
inaccurate picture. 
 
Atolls Minister's Plan: Unifying 1,190 islands 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶9.  (SBU) The Minister of Atolls Development, Mohamed Waheed Deen, 
told Ambassador Hartwick that in order to institute better 
governance policies and provide basic financial, educational, 
social, health and governmental services to a population spread out 
over hundreds of islands, the GORM plans to consolidate the 
population around 14 'safe' or 'focus' islands.  Though this 
regionalization policy was introduced ten years ago, there has been 
little development to date.  The UNDP is conducting a study on 
regional planning in Maldives and will present the report to the 
GORM in March 2007.  The GORM intends to relocate people from 
islands with less than 300 people to one of the safe islands.  Each 
of these respective islands will serve as an urbanized hub for its 
surrounding islands and provide social and economic services.  The 
inhabitants of each atoll will have the right to elect members of 
their respective councils.  The GORM hopes that this devolution of 
power will create more economic opportunities for people and ease 
 
COLOMBO 00002124  003 OF 003 
 
 
the population congestion in Male', which is home to a third of all 
Maldivians and has one of the highest population densities in the 
world.  The GORM has yet to announce these safe island plans to the 
public. 
 
Rise in Islamic Extremism 
------------------------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Maldives, which many interlocutors have historically 
hailed as a liberal and moderate Islamic country, is now facing a 
rise in Islamic fundamentalism.  Most Ministers told Ambassador 
Hartwick that this trend is visibly evident in Male', with a number 
of new mosques built and a majority of women donning veils. 
Government officials cited several potential reasons for the turn to 
more orthodox Islam, including poverty, inertia, perceived 
immorality of visitors, and Maldivian students' increased exposure 
to more extremist Islamic nations by attending madrassas in Pakistan 
and Afghanistan.  The liberals in the government identified this 
phenomenon as a major obstacle to a democratic transition, and 
posited fears that it directly counteracts their pursuit of a 
modern, democratic society. 
 
¶11.  (SBU) Comment:  Many of Ambassador Hartwick's meetings were 
with young, technocratic ministers who make up the "The New 
Maldives" group, the face Maldives usually presents to the 
international community.  These government leaders are articulate, 
knowledgeable and western-educated, and many seem genuinely 
committed to reform.  However, as GORM's actions repeatedly fail to 
match the rhetoric, it is unclear how much sway these ministers 
actually hold.  They are clearly facing challenges in changing a 
government and society long familiar with autocracy.  The officials 
anticipated many of Ambassador Hartwick's questions, perhaps in 
light of Ambassador Blake's letter to the Foreign Minister.  As the 
New Maldives group vies for changes with hard-liners in the cabinet, 
it remains to be seen whether promised reforms will actually be 
implemented.  Meanwhile, the potential draw of fundamentalism as an 
alternative to democratization remains a threat.  We should continue 
to bolster Maldives in its reform process in order to assist this 
pro-western Islamic nation achieve an optimal outcome. 
 
¶12.  (U) This cable was cleared by Ambassador Hartwick.