On Sunday, January 7, former Maldives Presidents Mohamed Nasheed and Ibrahim Mohamed Solih condemned the derogatory language used by some of the country’s officials against India and PM Narendra Modi. The former presidents issued the condemnations after Mariyam Shiuna, Deputy Minister of Youth Empowerment, Information and Arts, recently made insulting remarks against PM Modi.
Mohamed Nasheed said that the language used by the minister Mariyam Shiuna was “appalling” and said India is a “key ally” for the security and prosperity of Maldives. Nasheed is the the first democratically elected president of the Maldives who served from 2008 to 2012.
Nasheed posted, “What appalling language by Maldives Government official @Shiuna_M towards the leader of a key ally, that is instrumental for Maldives’ security and prosperity.”
What appalling language by Maldives Government official @shiuna_m towards the leader of a key ally, that is instrumental for Maldives’ security and prosperity. @MMuizzu gov must distance itself from these comments and give clear assurance to India they do not reflect gov policy.
— Mohamed Nasheed (@MohamedNasheed) January 7, 2024
The former President further asked the current President Mohamed Muizzu and his government to distance itself from these comments and give clear assurance to India they do not reflect govt policy.
Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, the seventh president of Maldives who served from 2018 to 2023, also condemned hateful messages against India by Maldives ministers and officials. He tweeted, “I condemn the use of hateful language against #India by Maldivian government officials on social media. India has always been a good friend to Maldives and we must not allow such callous remarks to negatively impact the age old friendship between our two countries.”
I condemn the use of hateful language against #India by Maldivian government officials on social media. India has always been a good friend to Maldives and we must not allow such callous remarks to negatively impact the age old friendship between our two countries.
— Ibrahim Mohamed Solih (@ibusolih) January 7, 2024
Notably, minister Shiuna earlier posted, “What a clown. The puppet of Israel Mr Narendra diver with a life jacket #VisitMaldives,” while trying to insult the Indian PM.
The post was deleted after backlash on X, formerly known as Twitter, where Indian social media users slammed the Maldives government officials, including Shiuna, for their crass remarks against the Indian Prime Minister for sharing pictures of his visit from the Lakshadweep Island. It is worth noting that PM Modi did not mention the Maldives anywhere in his tweets.
Similarly, other ministers, officials and prominent personalities too have taken to social media, making obnoxious remarks against India and Indians. Deputy Minister Mahzoom Majid in a tweet said that India’s culture is bad, and India can’t compete with Maldives in tourism. Another deputy minister Malsha Shareef also made deragotary comments against India and PM Modi. The three deputy ministers have now been suspended for their hate comments against India and PM Modi.
On Friday, January 5, Zahid Rameez, a Council member of the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) took to the microblogging site X to mock Indians. The PPM member’s highly racist remark against Indians came in response to a post by popular X user Mr Sinha, where he shared pictures of PM Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Lakshadweep and hailed the islands as a viable option to Maldives.
On January 4, PM Narendra Modi shared some pictures of his recent visit to Lakshadweep as he exhorted people to explore the scenic island in what could be seen as a push to his ‘vocal for local’ slogan, and an effort to give a boost to tourism in the island.
Following PM Modi’s tweet posting stunning vistas from the Lakshadweep Islands, several social media users in India called for Indians to visit the place over foreign destinations, including the Maldives, which shares similar geographical characteristics as the Lakshadweep Islands. That touched off bitter reactions from Maldivian counterparts, including governmental functionaries and prominent citizens, many of whom resorted to making churlish remarks against India, Indians, and the Indian PM.
