~' Dhivehi Vindhu `~ For the People ~ From the Pleople

A new democratic dawn in Maldives

A revolution of sorts has taken place in Maldives. Democracy has overthrown three decades of one man rule and the country looks forward to a better future. The ties with India are strong, historical and enduring. Understandably, it is expected that India will play a significant in rebuilding Maldives.

When the 41-year-old Mohamed 'Anni' Nasheed, a former Amnesty International prisoner of conscience, took oath last month as the first democratically-elected president of the Maldives, an Indian Ocean nation known for its luxurious hideaways and pristine beaches, Maldivians burst into frenzied dancing and singing on the streets of the capital Male. They were celebrating a new democratic dawn in their life that broke through the long night of three decades of one-man rule. At least that’s how Maldivians, especially the young who comprise more than 50 per cent of Maldives’ population, saw it.

Nasheed, a formal political prisoner who was detained at least 13 times and tortured by his predecessor Maummon Abdul Gayoom who ruled the country for three decades, also brought with him a new team of pro-change politicians in the Maldives who promise to make the Maldives a democratic, economically vibrant nation. But for the man who was relentlessly persecuted by the Maumoon regime, Nasheed is remarkably free of partisan sentiments of revenge or bitterness that was echoed in the campaign leading to the first multi-party elections in October. In his swearing-in speech, he struck a statesman-like tone: "No flowers will bloom, no birds will chirp and no butterflies will flutter in the flames of hatred, jealousy and rancour.”

No wonder Nasheed has morphed into a national hero ever since he dislodged Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Asia's longest-serving ruler, in the watershed elections in October. He has become a symbol of hope and endurance for young Maldivians. Comparisons are being generously made with Nelson Mandela, who ended decades of apartheid in South Africa, and the new charismatic US President-elect Barack Obama, who has come to symbolise change not in the US but the world over.

People’s affection for Nasheed is almost spontaneous. Nobody refers to the boyish-looking Nasheed, who studied at John Moores University in Liverpool before he became an uncompromising critic of Gayoom and co-founded the Maldivian Democratic Party along with his comrade-in-arms Mohammed Latheef in 2003, by his name. Everyone calls him Anni - his nickname since his college days.

Maldivians are clearly expecting a lot from the new democratic dispensation. Just before Nasheed’s swearing-in at Majlis, cobbled streets of the Maldivian capital sported flags bearing scales of justice, the symbol of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) that led the pro-democracy alliance to victory in the historic polls last month.

Will the new democratic order deliver on these soaring hopes? That’s the question everybody is asking. With the global economic downturn affecting the flow of tourist dollars into the Maldives economy – tourism contributes 40 per cent of Maldives GDP – people are, however, prone to temper their enthusiasm with caution. But still they are expecting a lot. The youthful Nasheed set a robustly optimistic agenda in his maiden speech after he was sworn in the presence of foreign dignitaries and scores of diplomats.

"Our republic today is decorated with the new hues that mark this historic moment in time, the age we live in and the circumstances of the nation," the president said while capturing the mood of optimism and renewal among people of the Maldives. "Today we can all sense that the time has come for the people to realize their long-cherished dreams," he said.

He also promised to deliver on the five promises made by his Maldivian Democratic Party and the pro-democracy alliance he led to power, including better transport facilities in remote islands, controlling the cost of living, providing better housing and healthcare, and banning drugs from the country. In a populist vein, he also announced a stipend of nearly $200 for people over 65 years of age - a measure that is aimed at winning the older people who were more inclined towards supporting Gayoom.

In a veiled dig at his predecessor, who chose to live in $60 million presidential palace, Nasheed hinted at more austere living and transparent governance. "It is human to be consumed by the trappings of office and its lures... I pray to the almighty to keep me steadfast in honoring the responsibilities of my office and in protecting the rights of the people," he said. Nasheed has promised to convert the presidential palace into a university and live in a more modest place.

Over the years, the Maldives, which has the highest per capita income in South Asia, has morphed into a luxury holiday getaway and honeymoon nest where Hollywood celebrities don't mind spending thousands of dollars for a few days of peace and bliss.

The dawn of democracy in the Maldives also brought much cheer in India. Underlining its special ties with the Maldives, India sent its Vice-President Hamid Ansari to felicitate the new president-elect and to bear witness to this moment of historic transformation in the atoll nation.

With hundreds of Maldivians cheering the president-elect as a backdrop, the Indian vice-president held talks with the young president in the presidential palace on the seafront, signaling a new era in ties between the two countries.

Keen to help its smaller but strategically important neighbour, Ansari assured the new leadership that India will help the Maldives in tiding over the current financial crisis and struck an optimistic note about diversifying ties in new areas that include IT, science and technology and energy.

The Maldives has sought New Delhi’s help in building an ambitious marine transport system and invited Indian companies to participate in an international tender that will be floated soon. The pan-nation transport network will be a major step in closer integration in a country where over 200,000 people are scattered in nearly 200 out of 11,190 islands that have no choice but to use ferry service to travel from one place to another.

In a clear message that India’s relationship with the Maldives transcended the political divide, the vice-president also made it a point to pay a courtesy call on Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, a long-standing friend of India who is widely credited with putting the Maldives on the global tourism map. In 1988, India sent troops to Male to thwart an attempted coup led by Sri Lankan mercenaries.

Maldives Foreign Minister Ahmaed Shaheed, who played a key role in the democratic transition of the country, is upbeat about the future of India-Maldives ties and the centrality of India to Maldives’ view of the world. "Our primary strategic interests lie with India. And there is nothing that can change this plain fact," Shaheed said in an interview. "We have always been able to identify our interests with those of India. The 400 miles (640 km) between Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram) and Male is never going to change. That simple geographical fact is the cornerstone of our foreign policy," Shaheed, a self-confessed Indophile who has visited India at least 20 times, said memorably. "Our foreign policy is convergent to that of India," he stressed.

India, on its part, will be focusing on science and technology and IT that have the potential to spawn a tech-savvy generation of young Maldivians. With democracy introducing a culture of transparency and accountability in the island nation, Indian companies plan to scale up their investment in schools, hospitals and infrastructure in that country that is sorely in need of these facilities.

The stage is, therefore, set for beginning a new chapter in India’s relations with a democratic Maldives,

More than 25,000 Indians living in the atoll nation share Maldivians’ enthusiasm for change and hope for renewal in days to come. Robust people-to-people contacts form the enduring human bridge between the two countries. Doctors, teachers, chartered accountants, bank managers, business executives, travel trade professionals - Indians have left their imprint in just about every walk of life in this country.

Building upon their professional success, they have now formed the India Club - an umbrella organization that brings together all Indians, cutting across caste and language divides, living in the Maldives.

"We want to bring the Indian community together to give them a sense of oneness. Our Independence Day function was a great success," says Aparna Faujdar, wife of a hotel executive based in Male. Faujdar came to the Maldives nearly four years ago and has fallen in love with this country replete with sun-drenched islands, pristine beaches and turquoise lagoons. "I love the country. It's so peaceful. It's hard to experience this sense of peace anywhere," she says.

Almost every Maldivian can recall with affection what he learnt from his Indian teacher. Over 6,000 Indian teachers teach at various schools and colleges in the Maldives. India has helped set up the Faculty of Engineering College and Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism Studies. The only government-owned hospital in the Maldives has been set up by India and is named after former prime minister Indira Gandhi which has become an enduring symbol of Indo-Maldives friendship.

Maldivians feel a sense of affinity for Indians. The moment you say you are from India, Maldivians’ eyes light up with recognition. Shops catering to tourists in the Maldives have two rates – one for European tourists and one for visiting Indians, which means hefty discounts for bargain-loving Indians. Bollywood songs are a rage in this 100 per cent Sunni Muslim country, underlining the borderless language of music and films. As democracy washed across the shores of the country, young Maldivians toasted this new moment in their nation’s history by swaying to the beats of hippest Bollywood numbers. This music in Indo-Maldivian relations is going to last, no matter who is in power in Male.