A tale of neighbours

FOR Sri Lankans regional politics is dominated by India. But last week President Sirisena undertook a visit to celebrate the independence and 50 years of diplomatic relations with Maldives, a neighbour so small it is usually overlooked but has grappled with challenges to its democracy familiar to many of us.

This year has been anything but tranquil in paradise. In March, after a prolonged period of tension in the Maldives – the Indian Ocean island nation better known as a honeymoon paradise – a panel of judges found the former president, Mohamed Nasheed, guilty of terrorism and sentenced him to 13 years imprisonment.

The international community has condemned Nasheed’s trial as a farce. The charges against him were highly dubious, he was denied the right to legal counsel, given just a few days to prepare his defence – and two of the presiding judges even testified on behalf of the prosecution. Amnesty International labelled the trial as “a travesty of justice.”

As numerous UN reports have shown, the Maldivian judiciary is highly corrupt. It is a judiciary that is loyal not to the rule of law, but to the regime that has been in charge since a coup d’état in 2012. Nasheed was tossed back into the same jail where he spent years as a prisoner of conscience during the former Maldives dictatorship before being released under house arrest. International lawyers including Amal Clooney have come forward to fight for his freedom and the international community has routinely condemned Yameen’s Government.

Not only Nasheed but many opposition leaders have been jailed in previous months. A May Day rally saw over 100 people arrested and protests against Government suppression have seen brutal police crackdowns. Islamist extremism is on the rise and many fear the Maldives will slip back into the days of Mohammad Gayoom, the half-brother of the current president who ruled the Maldives for over three decades before being forced to hold democratic elections that ousted him from power in 2008.

Adding to the alarm, the Maldives is also moving closer to China. The Maldives Government has already created specialised investment zones and signed agreements with China to build a bridge connecting the airport island with the capital Male.

Just a few weeks ago Parliament voted to allow foreigners to own land in the Maldives provided it came with a $ 1billion investment. There is also talk of opening up the economy to Chinese hotel investors and allowing a Chinese State-owned company to build a port on one of its many islands.

The parallels between Sri Lanka and Maldives are striking even to a casual observer. A deteriorating democracy can result in the worst infringements on the rights of a population. As its international image dims, the Maldives Government has vamped up the rhetoric against “conspirators” and has urged the UN and others not to interfere in its “sovereignty.” All these phrases will sound as a warning to moderate-minded Sri Lankans.

Unlike its neighbor, Sri Lanka seemed to have turned the corner against authoritarianism and family rule in January. Yet now it is facing a second battle to consolidate this victory and turn it into a sustainable push for good governance.

As Sri Lanka treads on this hard road it is best to keep an eye on Maldives to remind itself of how deep the fallout of a broken democracy can be and how rich the rewards when it is regained.