 This 500-mile-long string of 1,200 islands in the Indian Ocean gained independence in 1965 after 78 years as a British protectorate. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was elected as president in 1978 and ruled until 2008. In a landmark event, Maldives’ first multi-party presidential elections were held on October 8, 2008. According to the official count, President Gayoom won the largest share of the votes of the six candidates. Since the results were not enough for an outright victory, however, a run-off election was held on October 29 in which Mohammed Nasheed prevailed. President Nasheed and Vice President Dr. Mohammed Waheed Hassan were sworn into office on November 11, 2008. However, to secure victory, Nasheed's coalition formed a political alliance with the Islamic fundamentalist Adhaalath party. Adhaalath now controls the Ministry of Islamic Affairs. In August 2008, President Gayoom ratified a new constitution designed to bring key democratic reforms to the country, including a bill of rights. However, the new constitution was based on the common Maldivian assumption that any citizen of the Maldives is automatically a Muslim, stating that “a non-Muslim may not become a citizen of the Maldives.” As a result, approximately 3,000 Maldivians (0.85 % of the population) were stripped of their citizenship and thus deprived of basic citizen rights, including freedom of speech. The constitution also stated that “no law contrary to any tenet of Islam shall be enacted in the Maldives.” The measure led several human rights organizations to name Maldives as one of the world’s worst in regard to religious freedom. It is estimated that Christians make up 0.1 percent of Maldives’ population. The government denies the existence of any religion other than Sunni Islam. In 1998, all known Christian foreigners were expelled from the country, and all known Maldivian Christians were arrested and released only after intense international pressure. Maldivians who become Christians abroad have been known to disappear when they return home, never to be heard from again. On November 29, 2008, Maldives’ Ministry of Islamic Affairs announced that it would block access to a Dhivehi and English language website upon claims that it promoted Christianity amongst Maldivians. Influential Islamic scholars claimed that the act of censorship was warranted due to the country’s status as a wholly Muslim society. On October 7, 2009 Maldivian authorities deported a South African, Robert Willeman, who had been found with Dhivehi language Christian material: six video CDs, six books, 17 leaflets and one Bible. Despite democracy, Maldives is still not free. Prayer Requests- Pray for protection and safety for Christians living in Maldives.
- Pray that those Christians in the country will be wise and yet bold in the way they share the Gospel of Christ with those around them.
- Pray that the religious freedom of Maldivian Christians will be recognized.
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