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THIS IS PARADISE?

FOR ALL HIS talk of political reform, President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has once again demonstrated a reluctance to loosen his absolute grip over the Maldives. Following a protest against his regime in the capital city of Male on August 12 and 13, President Gayoom proclaimed an Emergency and jailed several prominent figures in the country's incipient pro-democracy movement, including the former Secretary-General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, Ibrahim Hussein Zaki. Such a response is characteristic of a police state rather than a nation that counts itself as a respected member of the international community. It causes justifiable concern that Mr. Gayoom is not serious about the constitutional reform process he announced in June 2004, months after anti-government riots took place in Male. The week-long rioting in September 2003 was the first open expression of dissatisfaction with the Gayoom regime. The resulting international spotlight on governance in the Maldives seems to have been one of the reasons for the President's sudden decision to bring about democratic changes in the Constitution. But his open hostility to the energy with which people began mobilising for the promised changes gives the lie to his self-proclaimed commitment to democracy. Much before he cracked down earlier this month, a government ban on public meetings raised serious doubts about Mr. Gayoom's sincerity towards the reform process.

In a country where political parties are banned but elections are routinely held to re-elect a ruler who has been in power for 26 years, the proposed constitutional reforms are nothing less than radical: a President will not serve more than two five-year terms and will lose the right to appoint members to the Majlis or Parliament; people will enjoy freedom of association; women can contest elections; there will be separation of powers between the executive and the legislature; and there will be a Prime Minister. A Constituent Assembly was recently set up to debate the reforms. President Gayoom says he was forced to proclaim the Emergency in order to thwart an "orchestrated attempt" to scuttle his reforms agenda. But such an explanation raises more questions than it answers, considering that those who stand to lose the most from the proposed reforms are the President and his supporters (among whom are several members of his immediate and extended family) and certainly not the pro-democracy activists who now find themselves behind bars. The real test of Mr. Gayoom's commitment to the reform process lies in his willingness to lift the Emergency, reconvene the Constituent Assembly — some of its members were arrested in the crackdown — and begin the debate on reforms at the earliest.

The alacrity with which the regime dispatched emissaries to various countries to "clarify" the situation shows that despite the cool exterior President Gayoom projects, he is rattled enough by the prospect of attracting international opprobrium. The special envoy to India, the Maldivian Health Minister, Ahmed Abdulla, returned from his meeting with the Minister for External Affairs, K. Natwar Singh, with an assurance of New Delhi's continued friendship. For sure, India recognises Mr. Gayoom's contribution to the development of the Maldives over the past two decades and more. In the interests of good neighbourliness, India has refrained from saying anything about his variant of guided democracy. But the President's continued reliance on repressive methods to rule his country makes it increasingly embarrassing for India to proclaim its support for his regime. The popular movement for democracy in the Maldives cannot be suppressed; the harder Mr. Gayoom tries, the more it will blow back on him.

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