SOCIETY OF THE MALDIVES
Island identity is very strong. Marriages generally take place between couples that are from the same island because island rivalry is so strong it is considered sort of treasonous to marry someone from a different island. Residents of one island often don't like other islands and it is difficult to move.
The inhabitants of small islands often have little knowledge of the outside world. Some fear strangers. Everybody knows everybody in their island world. There is little that is new.
Maldives society has strong social divisions. In the old days there were three primary ranks of people, mostly in Male and the large southern islands. Descendants of the old elite class still wield a lot of political power. Otherwise rank is largely determined by wealth. Women have traditionally been expected to stay at home and take cares of the household, while the men made all the major decisions and were the bread winners for the family.
Some social stratification exists on the islands but is not rigid and rank is based on a variety of factors, including occupation, wealth, perceived Islamic virtue, and family ties. Members of the social elite are concentrated in Malé. [Source: “Countries of the World and Their Leaders” Yearbook 2009, Gale]
A disproportionate share of government expenditures goes directly to Malé and residents there tend to have a much higher standard of living than residents in the atolls, except for those with tourist facilities. Status is derived primarily from wealth rather than family, although family ties and connections are important in determining the availability of opportunities. One's position with the government also confers status, while education is less important. [Source: “Countries and Their Cultures”, The Gale Group Inc., 2001]
In the 1990s, the United Nations Development Program identified the Maldives as being one of just two countries in the South Asian region to be a medium human development country. Between 1977 and 1995, the life expectancy of the average Maldivian increased by 20 years to 71 years, a remarkable feat for a country classified at the time as a developing country. [Source: “Worldmark Encyclopedia of National Economies”, The Gale Group Inc., 2002]
Social Structure in the Maldives
Maldives was a caste society well into the 1920s. Modernization efforts however, have helped make Maldives more homogeneous in the early 1990s. Traditionally, a significant gap has existed between the elite living on Male and the remainder of the population inhabiting the outer islands — those atolls distant from Male. President Gayoom's development philosophy has centered on decreasing this gap by raising the standard of living among the 75 percent of Maldivians who live in the outer atolls as well as making Maldives more self-sufficient. Fortunately, social tensions that might have affected these two distinct societies were lessened by the isolation of the outer islands. The geographical advantage of having many islands, for example, has enabled Maldives to limit the impact of tourism to special resorts. [Source: Helen Chapin Metz, Library of Congress, 1994 *]
Male, the traditional seat of the sultans and of the nobility, remains an elite society wielding political and economic power. Members of the several traditionally privileged ruling families; government, business, and religious leaders; professionals; and scholars are found there. Male differs from other island communities also because as many as 40 percent of its residents are migrants.*
The island communities outside Male are in most cases selfcontained economic units, drawing meager sustenance from the sea around them. Islanders are in many instances interrelated by marriage and form a small, tightly knit group whose main economic pursuit is fishing. Apart from the heads of individual households, local influence is exerted by the government appointed island khatib, or chief. Regional control over each atoll is administered by the atolu verin, or atoll chief, and by the gazi, or community religious leader. Boat owners, as employers, also dominate the local economy and, in many cases, provide an informal, but effective, link to Male's power structure.*
Social Organization in the Maldives
According to the “Encyclopedia of World Cultures”: “Social Organization. In the old society there were three ranks, mostly in Male and the large southern islands, and though descendants of the old elite class still hold most Political power and property, they have no hereditary privileges or titles now. Rank today is determined mostly by wealth. Divehis comprise a single tight sociopolitical system with no significant ethnic minorities, though there are minor cultural differences among the atolls, particularly the three southern atolls. [Source: Clarence Maloney and Nils Finn Munch-Petersen, “Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume 3: South Asia,” edited by Paul Paul Hockings, 1992 |~|]
“The people of Maliku have been under separate administration for two centuries, and there is little outside knowledge of the society because India does not allow foreigners to visit there. India administers it along with the Lakshadvip Islands and expects the people to go to school in Malayalam, though they still speak Divehi. |~|
“In the Maldives, just one castelike group has been described. This group is the Giravaru, Aborigines who formerly ruled Male. They lived on an eroding island, so the government moved them to Hulule, the airport island, from where they have again been displaced; now they have again been partly absorbed by another island community. They have consciously retained differences in dress, have claimed that unlike the other Divehis they had no divorce or widow remarriage, and have said their ancestors were Tamils, though they have no knowledge of such people and have never traveled outside their atoll. They have also claimed to be strictly endogamous. Other Divehis Traditionally have thought of the Giravaru as dirty, while they have thought of other Divehis as morally corrupt. |~|
Disparity of Income in the Maldives
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10 percent: 1.2 percent; highest 10 percent: 33.3 percent (fiscal year 2009-2010). Data on household income or consumption come from household surveys, the results adjusted for household size. Nations use different standards and procedures in collecting and adjusting the data. Surveys based on income will normally show a more unequal distribution than surveys based on consumption. The quality of surveys is improving with time, yet caution is still necessary in making inter-country comparisons. [Source: CIA World Factbook, 2020]
Income Inequality:
World Bank rich-poor (R-P): 20 percent: 7 to 1 (compared to 5.4 to 1 in Japan. 9.4 to 1 in the U.S., and 11.8 to 1 in Bolivia).
World Bank Gini Index: 31.3 (2016) 1 (compared to 32.9 in Japan. 41.4 in the U.S., and 42.4 in Bolivia);
CIA Gini Index: 37.4, 2004
The rich-poor (R-P) ratio is the ratio of the average income of the richest 10 percent to the poorest 10 percent or the richest 20 percent to the poorest 20 percent.
The Gini index, a quantified representation of a nation's Lorenz curve. A Gini index of 0 percent expresses perfect equality, while index of 100 percent expresses maximal inequality.
[Source: United Nations Development Programme, CIA World Factbook, World Bank Wikipedia Wikipedia ]
According to the “Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations”: “There is no organized social welfare system. Assistance is traditionally provided through the extended family. [Source: “Junior Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations”, Thomson Gale, 2007]
Poverty and Poor People in the Maldives
Percentage of Population Living in Poverty: Under $1.90 per day: 7.3 percent; under $3.20 per day: 24.4 percent; under $5.50 per day: 54.3 percent. [Source: 2009, World Bank, Wikipedia Wikipedia ]
Population below poverty line: 15 percent (2009 estimated) National estimates of the percentage of the population falling below the poverty line are based on surveys of sub-groups, with the results weighted by the number of people in each group. Definitions of poverty vary considerably among nations. For example, rich nations generally employ more generous standards of poverty than poor nations. [Source: CIA World Factbook, 2020]
According to the Asian Development Bank: Poverty in the country is related to remoteness of the islands from the center and a lack of services in the atolls. ADB's 2002 poverty partnership with Maldives aimed to reduce absolute poverty from 43 percent in 1998 to 25 percent by 2015.” [Source: Asian Development Bank, February 15, 2005]
According to the “Worldmark Encyclopedia of National Economies”: In the 1990s, it was “estimated by the Maldives Ministry of Planning and National Development that almost 50 percent of children suffer, to different degrees, from stunting and wasting in their physical development. This is due to malnutrition in the more remote and less easily accessible islands. This is mainly caused by limited agricultural potential and the high cost of imports. Consequently, the majority of Maldivians consume a relatively restricted range of foodstuffs, with rice, fish, and coconut being the staples. A 1993 survey found that less than 30 percent of children ate fruits and vegetables. On the other hand, the annual average intake of protein rose from 69 grams (1980-82) to 94.6 grams (1995-97), and over the same period caloric intake improved from 2,194.3 to 2,505.1. [Source: “Worldmark Encyclopedia of National Economies”, The Gale Group Inc., 2002]
Life in the Maldives
Traditionally the island communities of the Maldives have been very close-knit. This togetherness still prevails in the small island societies. Where these traditions still exist, men are mainly engaged in fishing, carpentry, coconut processing and toddy tapping and women are mainly engaged in household duties and raising families. Certain rituals and practices have traditionally been followed on the islands on special occasions like weddings. Some of these rituals survive to this day.
Male is the only city. The islands that are inhabited are mostly the largest ones and the ones with the best fishing. They are grouped into 21 administrative atolls. Individual islands serve as social and administrative units. Everyone is officially registered on their home island. They can not change residence to a new island until they have lived there for 12 years. Islanders are often partial to their home island: insisting it has the best land, best fishing and best people.
On one hand you will find many devout Muslims who pray five times a day at the nation’s many mosques. But on the other hand you will also find festivals with give way to fun-loving, talented men and women singing and dancing. [Source: Oceana Maldives Holidays visitmaldives.info ]
The advent of tourism in the 1970's accelerated the modernization process of the country. Today an increasing number of women hold crucial positions within the public and private sector. As a result of economic growth, dramatic lifestyle changes were introduced.
Homes in the Maldives
For the most part no buildings outside the capital of Malé are higher than a coconut tree. Houses have traditionally been made of local materials: palm leaves for thatch roofs, coral stones for walls. Some have roofs made of iron or some other metal. A house generally has several rooms and a kitchen. An effort is made to make sure its tidy. Great care is taken to set up houses and organize in an orderly manner along streets. Garden plots are often marked off with stick fences. The poorer houses are walled from the street with mats, called cadjan, or palm leaves. [Source: Clarence Maloney and Nils Finn Munch-Petersen, “Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume 3: South Asia,” edited by Paul Paul Hockings, 1992 |~|]
According to the “Worldmark Encyclopedia of Nations”: “Some of the houses on Malé are built in imitation of those in Colombo. Most residential units throughout the country have brick walls, some of which are also plastered, and roofs of galvanized metal sheets. The poorest homes are made from thatch and sticks. According to a 2000 housing census, there were about 43,556 residential units nationwide. About 96 percent were detached dwellings and around 325 were apartments. The average dwelling size is from three to six rooms. About 48 percent of all dwellings were built from 1990–2000. Nearly 68 percent of the population relies on rain water as a primary source of water; 43 percent of all dwellings have septic tanks. About 84 percent of households have electric lighting, but firewood and oil are the primary heating and cooking fuels. [Source: “Worldmark Encyclopedia of Nations”, Thomson Gale, 2007]
Urban Life in the Maldives
Urbanization: urban population: 40.7 percent of total population (2020, compared to 90 percent l in Great Britain and 13 percent in Ethiopia). Rate of urbanization in the Maldives: 2.93 percent annual rate of change (2015-20 estimated) [Source: CIA World Factbook, 2020]
Major urban areas — population: Malé, 177,000 people in 2018. Location of the largest settlements outside the Malé area: Baa Atoll, Seenu Atoll. According to the “Encyclopedia of World Cultures”: “Male is the only city, with some multistoried buildings of coral stone neatly whitewashed and mostly built along the straight sandy streets. It has a pious air, with thirty-five mosques and many tombs. Nearby is the airport island of Hulule, with a runway extending on the reef. Some 60 "uninhabited" islands are now built up as profitable tourist resorts, which especially attract Europeans in winter, but the government tries to minimize their cultural influence. [Source: Clarence Maloney and Nils Finn Munch-Petersen, “Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume 3: South Asia,” edited by Paul Paul Hockings, 1992 |~|]
According to “Countries and Their Cultures”: Malé is the center of political and economic life. It has a maze of narrow streets with over twenty mosques and markets. Poor people live in houses built from thatched palm with tin roofs, and the more prosperous have houses made of crushed coral with tile roofs. The main attractions are the National Museum, which displays items from Arab, Sri Lankan, and Dravidian cultures; Sultan Park; the Islamic Centre; and the gold-painted Grand Friday mosque. The oldest mosque, Hukuru Miski, is known for its intricate stone carvings. [Source: “Countries and Their Cultures”, The Gale Group Inc., 2001]
Migration in the Maldives
The Maldives has one of the world’s highest rates of migration out of the country. Net migration rate: -12.7 migrant(s) per 1,000 population (2020 estimated); compared with other countries in the world: 221 This figure represents the difference between the number of persons entering and leaving a country during the year per 1,000 persons (based on midyear population). An excess of persons leaving the country as net emigration is expressed by a negative figure. The net migration rate indicates the contribution of migration to the overall level of population change. It does not distinguish between economic migrants, refugees, and other types of migrants nor does it distinguish between lawful migrants and undocumented migrants. [Source: CIA World Factbook, 2020]
On outsiders in the Maldives, the United Nations reports: Migration plays a the key role in the Maldives economy, where migrants mainly from South Asia, but also from the Philippines, Egypt, Iran and the Russian Federation, represent nearly a third of the country’s population of 378,000. Migrants – an estimated 63,000 of whom are believed to be undocumented – are particularly dominant in the tourism, construction, health and education sectors. In construction, one of the key engines of Maldivian economic growth, migrant workers, primarily from Bangladesh, account for about 88 per cent of the workforce. [Source: “Maldives Migration Profile Highlights Key Role of Foreign Migrant Workers”, United Nations, June 28, 2019]
In regard to internal migration, “ nearly half of the country’s population has moved to Male – the capital – from outlying islands within the last few decades.” Concerns include “excessive recruitment fees, migrants’ misconceptions about working and living conditions, a lack of pre-departure employment information, unlawful subcontracting of workers, unsafe working conditions, ineffective monitoring of recruitment and employment practices, and weak sanctions for labour law violations.
The growth rate in Malé atoll has been high as a result of employment opportunities offered by growth in the service sector. According to ”Countries and Their Cultures” and the “Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations”: : “Even though income in Malé is significantly higher than that in the atolls, the resulting rural-urban migration has led to increasing unemployment. Emigration from the republic is rare except for educational purposes or to work as a crew member on Maldivian ships...People migrate between islands mainly to settle in Malé. Between 1967 and 2000, the population in the capital rose from one-tenth to more than one-quarter of the national total. The total number of migrants in 2000 was 3,000. In 2005, the estimated net migration rate was zero. [Source: “Countries and Their Cultures”, The Gale Group Inc.. 2001; “Worldmark Encyclopedia of Nations”, Thomson Gale, 2007]
Clothes, Beauty, and Hairstyles in the Maldives
The swimsuit part of the 2000 Miss World contest was staged at the Full Moon Resort on Furana Fushi Island in the Maldives.
Young women wear head scarves and “faaskuri hedhun” — long-sleeve, shoulder-to-ankle length dress like that worn in Malaysia. Older women prefer sarong-style skirts under a long-sleeve knee-length dress with a tropical pattern and embroidered with symmetrical patterns with gold thread and wrap their hair in cloth or tied in a bun over the right ear. In some places women tie their hair into a neat bun on the right side of their head: in other places they tie it on the left side.
Some wear a partial head covering. Others wear more of a full covering veil. Women traditionally wore ankle-length dresses but didn't cover their heads. Schoolgirls may wear knee-length dresses without a head covering. Probably more women cover their heads now than they did in the past. Some women wear a salwar khamez, similar to women's garb in Pakistan or a sari like that worn in India.
Some men wear sarongs. Most poor men wear a shirt and the traditional sarong, an ankle-length cloth fastened around the waist. Many educated men now wear Western-style clothes. Some men wear a head cloth, which also serves as covering during worship. [Source: “Worldmark Encyclopedia of Religious Practices”, Thomson Gale, 2006]
Conservative Islam in the Maldives
The Maldives does not allow freedom of worship and Sunni Islam is the state religion. In 2008, a constitutional amendment denied non-Muslims the right to be Maldivian citizens. Alcohol beverages and pork products available only at the airport and resorts employing only foreign workers. "Idols" from other religions are also not allowed into the country. [Source: asianews.it, May 23, 2014]
Mary Boland wrote in the Irish Times: “The island paradise’s faltering experiment with democracy has given way to increasingly repressive measures that have curtailed the lives of Maldivians and facilitated the rise of Islamic extremism. “The official line is that tourists — and their polluting, infidel views — should be kept away from the Maldivian people for the sake of the people’s Islamic faith. [Source: Mary Boland, Irish Times, August 16, 2014]
But there is another side to it,” says Azra Naseem, a Maldivian who is visiting fellow at the International Institute of Conflict Resolution and Reconstruction at Dublin City University, where she is researching the Islamic radicalisation of her country. The truth, she says, is that the Maldives has been transformed from a moderate Islamic nation into an increasingly fundamentalist regime led by opportunists who have gained politically by allowing religious radicals to dictate state affairs. The changing of an entire population’s religious beliefs and practices within the space of a decade — in ways that roll back almost all progressive ideas that it has embraced over centuries — is extremely serious,” says Naseem.
““Salafi and Wahhabi ideologies have become not just dominant but almost the only religious ideology in town. Counter-narratives are non-existent,” he says. “An increasing number of parents are opting to home- school children rather than ‘spoil’ them with education. Little girls are being made to wear headscarves, sexualising them as early as five or six. But to foreign observers it’s not serious because people aren’t killing each other — yet. Perhaps now that Maldivians have been found fighting in Syria with some of the most violent Islamists there may be more attention paid to the desperate situation in the country.”
“A relatively relaxed version of the religion was practised under Gayoom until 2004, when an influx of preachers, funded mainly by Saudi Arabia, arrived after the tsunami. It had caused widespread damage and killed some 100 people. “It was a turning point in the radicalisation process,” says Naseem. “Local Islamists were very clever in their use of the tragedy to convince Maldivians that the tsunami was punishment from Allah for not practising the ‘right’ Islam — which is the ‘purist’ Islam that Salafis and other fundamentalists want all Muslims to turn to.” The result is a society transformed beyond recognition, says Velezinee: “A decade ago, women wearing the veil were a minority and women wearing the full black hijab were hardly seen. Today the Arab-style full veil is common.”
“Maldivian women in their 20s and early 30s recall how they could stroll around Malé as teenagers wearing strappy tops and shorts. “Now you just couldn’t do it,” says one. “You’d be shouted at and chased.” Opponents of the new ideology criticise the government on social media sites but dare not do so openly because their comments risk being construed as unIslamic, thus unconstitutional and liable to severe punishment. Under the constitution Maldivians must be Muslim to be citizens, and Sunni Muslim to run for political office. Religion, a taboo subject, is avoided even by journalists.”
Sex in the Maldives
Sex before marriage is a punishable offense. But after marriage is a different story. Ibn Battuta (1304-1369) is regarded as the greatest traveler of all time. He visited the Maldives and even though he stayed there only a few months he married and divorced six times. Ibn Battuta called the Maldives "one of the wonders of the world." He wrote: "Most women wear only a loincloth. In this fashion they stroll in the markets...As a judge in the islands...I tried to order...the women to dress, but without success." He attributed the islanders "extraordinary vigor in lovemaking" to a diet of coconuts and fish. "As for me, It had four wives, not counting the concubines. Each day I made a general tour...and I passed the night with each in their turn." [Source: Thomas Abercrombie, National Geographic, December 1991]
Contraceptive prevalence rate: 34.7 percent (2009, CIA World Factbook, 2020 =). Contraceptive use (any method, women ages 15-49): 19 percent in 2017 (compared to 12 percent in Sudan and 84 percent in the United Kingdom) [Source: World Bank ]
Types of birth control used (2015); female sterilization: 12.7 percent; male sterilization: 0.6 percent; pill: 5.8 percent; injectible: 1.5 percent; Implant: 0.6 percent; IUD: 1.0 percent; male condom: 11.7 percent; early withdrawal: 3.5 percent; rhythm method: 4.3 percent; traditional: 0.1 percent; total: 42 percent [Source: Trends in Contraceptive Use Worldwide 2015 — the United Nations un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications ]
Types of birth control used (1994): female sterilization: 5.1 percent; male sterilization: percent; pill: 12.6 percent; injectible: 2.5 percent; implant: 0 percent IUD: 1.3 percent; male condom: 2.5 percent; early withdrawal: 3.7 percent; rhythm method: 4.8 percent; traditional: 0.6 percent total: 33.2 percent. [Source: Trends in Contraceptive Use Worldwide 2015 — the United Nations un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications ]
The government in the has done little to push birth control and family planning because of Islamic traditions. Despite rapid population growth, family planning programs in Maldives did not begin in a well-funded and planned manner until the UN implemented several programs in the 1980s. These programs focused on improving health standards among the islanders, including family planning education emphasizing the spacing of births and raising the customary age of marriage among adolescents. Abortion was not a legally accepted method for child spacing in Maldives. In the mid-1980s, a World Health Organization (WHO) program monitored the extent and use of various contraceptive methods over a four-year period. As of the early 1990s, the government had taken no overt actions toward limiting the number of children per couple or setting target population goals. [Source: Helen Chapin Metz, Library of Congress, 1994]
Sex Laws in the Maldives
Mary Boland wrote in the Irish Times: “Bikinis, alcohol sales and consumption, unmarried and homosexual sex are all permitted in tourist resorts but they are all crimes outside resorts. Punishment for such transgressions is harsh. More than 100 public floggings are carried out each year for “fornication”, the majority on women and girls. In 2013 an international outcry saved a 15-year-old rape victim from 100 lashes. [Source: Mary Boland, Irish Times, August 16, 2014]
The Independent reported: The Maldives “pre-marital sex is a crime and those found guilty are often flogged. In September 2012, a court ordered the public flogging of a 16-year-old woman who had confessed to premarital sex, while in the summer of 2009 a pregnant 18-year-old woman received 100 lashes in public after she admitted to having sex with two different men.
The Maldives Times reported: “In another rape case that happened on 15th May 2013, was of a girl that was gang raped in an island in the Maldives. The police had arrested three 17 year old males and one 19 year old man who had raped a 20 year old girl. The four boys and the girl were friends and they hung out all the time. The girl wasn’t a well-disciplined girl and it seems that, it was unlikely that anyone would rape her, it would be easier than that, said the councillor of the island. The girl had reported it to the police as gang rape because the rapists had filmed the incident. [Source: Maldives Times, May 1, 2017]
A survey by Avaaz found that 92 per cent of Maldivians want a reform of national laws to protect women from sexual assault, while 73 per cent are opposed to punishments for women for “sexual crimes”. One in three women between the ages of 15 and 49 has suffered either physical or sexual abuse over the past five years.Nine out of 10 sentences for flogging in the Maldives in 2011 were given to women, while no one has been convicted of rape in the past three years. [Source: Jane Merrick, The Independent, August 24, 2013]
One In Seven Maldives Teenagers Say They Have Been Sexually Abused
Almost one in seven children of secondary school age in the Maldives has been sexually abused at some time in their lives, according to an unpublished 2009 study on violence against children. Hawwa Lubna wrote in Minivan News: “Gut-wrenching details of heinous child sexual abuse cases grabbing headlines in the past few years eventually gathered enough public pressure in the Maldive for the authorities to pass a law stipulating stringent punishments for sexual predators. Since the passage of “Stringent Punishments for Perpetrators of Sexual Violence Against Children Act’ in 2009, several paedophiles have been incarcerated for 10 to 20 years of life.According to Prosecutor General Office (PGO), 46 cases of sexually abusing a minor were submitted to the courts in 2011. In 2010, 35 cases were submitted. The year before, 41 cases [Source: Hawwa Lubna, Minivan News, June 14, 2012]
“Some high profile cases make headlines but often cases go under-reported. With no public statistics on the number of incarcerations, the total figures on how many cases are successfully prosecuted and who has been put behind bars are unknown. Yet, more cases are being reported and investigated. In 2010, the magistrate court on Ungoofaaru island alone convicted eight people in relation to 10 different child abuse cases from Raa Atoll. Among them were fathers who raped their daughters, a mother who hid her husband’s sexually deviant crimes, and men who abused little boys no older than 10.
“Article 77 of the aforementioned legislation not only obligates the authorities to publicise the identity of the offenders convicted under the law, but also tells the authorities to create a website through which the can public know who the sexual offenders are. Were the system stated in law to be established, people can even retrieve information on sex offenders by sending a text. Almost four year after the law has been passed, the Gender Department says the system “is still under maintenance.”
“According to Police Sergeant Abdul Jaleel fromt the police Family and Children Protection Department (FCPD), discussions are underway between the authorities to create the database of offenders. He admitted, “the delays are unfortunate and we need to make it a priority issue.” Stressing on the importance of such a database, Jaleed recalled an incident in Meemu Atoll where a man who had a record of child abuse was found to have committed the same crime against another child. “This man was banished to an island onto an island in Meemu Atoll. When we were investigating a child abuse case in 2009, we found that this man was responsible and he even had a previous record of abusing children.” Jaleel noted. “But the islanders did not know that.”
“He noted that the dispersion of the 300,000-strong population over 190 islands made it easier for perpetrators to switch islands, and blend in among people unaware of their crimes. “Therefore, a central website where sex offenders can be tracked, monitored and public can find about the convicted offenders is crucial to safeguard children and adults from such perpetrators.” Sergeant Jaleel observed. “It would also definitely expedite our investigations with better coordination between authorities on different islands.”
“Aishath Ibrahim, the mother of a five year old working as a teacher in Malé says, “It will be very easy for parents to identify potential threats and protect our children if we can know who the offenders are.” “Today we don’t even know who is our neighbor,” she added. In the crowded capital Malé, people live closely together in rented housing or shared apartments within large family units, a factor that has been identified as contributing to instances of child sexual abuse.
Betel Nut and Drugs in the Maldives
Betel nut is chewed by many people. It is often consumed with a betel leaf, cloves, and lime — in a concoction known as foh — is shared after meals. According to Lonely Planet: “The Maldivian equivalent of the after-dinner mint is the areca or betel nut, chewed after a meal or snack. The little oval nuts are sliced into thin sections, some cloves and lime paste are added, the whole lot is wrapped in an areca leaf, and the wad is chewed whole.”
See Separate Article BETEL NUT: HISTORY, USE, BUZZ, BOTANY, PRODUCTION AND HEALTH factsanddetails.com
Cannabis use: percentage of the population aged 15–64: 0.5 percent (1994, compared to 27 percent in Israel, 16.2 percent in the United States and .3 percent in Japan [Source: World Drug reports of 2011 and 2006 by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Wikipedia Wikipedia ]
Opiates use: percentage of the population aged 15–64: 1.34 percent (compared to 3.31 percent in Iran, 1.04 percent in the United States and .004 percent in Singapore. [Source: World Drug reports of 2011 and 2006 by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Wikipedia Wikipedia ]
Cocaine use: percentage of the population aged 15–64: 0.042 percent (2012, compared to 2.2 percent in Spain, 2.1 percent in the United States and .0002 percent in Singapore. [Source: World Drug reports of 2011 and 2006 by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Wikipedia Wikipedia ]
Drug use deaths (per 100,000 people): 0.49 (compared to 15.93 in Ukraine and 0.30 in Japan. [Source: World Health Organization, World Life Expectancy worldlifeexpectancy.com ]
Smoking in the Maldives
Cigarette Consumption per Capita: 560, compared to 6330 in Luxembourg and 89.3 in India. The Maldives ranks 91st out of 181 nations. [Source: Wikipedia ]
Old people smoke guduguda, an elongated pipe that goes through a trough of water. Adult men who smoke: 44.5 percent; Adult women who smoke: 11.6 percent [Source: WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic (2008) Wikipedia ]
Lung cancer rate (age-standardized rate per 100,000 people): men: 13.51; women: 3.57; men and women: 8.77 (compared to men: 77.4; women: 41.4; men and women: 56.7 in Hungary and men: ; women: 30.8; men and women: 35.1 in the United States [Source: World Life Expectancy worldlifeexpectancy.com ]
Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons
Text Sources: New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Lonely Planet Guides, Library of Congress, Republic of Maldives Department of Information, the government site (maldivesinfo.gov.mv), Ministry of Tourism Maldives (tourism.gov.mv), Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC, visitmaldives.com), The Guardian, National Geographic, Smithsonian magazine, The New Yorker, Time, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP, Wikipedia and various books, websites and other publications.
Last updated February 2022