Oh, to be in Maldives!

When China invaded India in the early sixties, the then Prime Minister , Jawarharlal Nehru, made  a statement which became famous later on. He said India “was shocked into reality”. I myself was shocked into reality when the calm and placid Maldives, hit world headlines with an assassination attempt on the first democratically elected President, Mohammed Nasheed. He was originally the first elected president by ballot but due to the turmoil that followed, he was arrested. When he went to the UK for treatment of his illness, the UK government mercifully offered him refugee status. Once parliamentary democracy was matured, Mohamed Nasheed returned to the Maldives to become the Speaker, and the rest is now internationally well-known and presents a striking contrast to the tranquil atmosphere of the country, of which all Maldivians were proud about.

“Oh, to be in England, now that the spring is here” sang Bill Forbes in the early sixties. I would like to substitute the name  “ Maldives” instead of “EngIand”. I was offered a teaching post in Maldives in 1985, by my past pupil, who offered it on a silver platter, without my having to pay him a few lakhs or so. I went as an English teacher. I went in May 1985.

When the plane landed there, I was enchanted by the beauty of the place, the turquoise sea, the distant islands and the neatly colour-washed government buildings, usually one or two storeyed the most. As I was being taken to my residence, I was struck by the silent and hum-drum atmosphere. Speeding of vehicles was not allowed as  was the tooting of horns. Horns could be tooted only to avoid an accident, not otherwise. Vehicles proceeded at a slow pace, because the drivers had to consider the children crossing the road. All this was in stark contrast to Sri Lanka, where the opposite of what  I described took place. 

Maldives, hit world headlines with an assassination attempt on the first democratically elected President, Mohammed Nasheed

As I began living there, I realised that we as Sri Lankans had lots in common with the Maldivians. The language they speak called Dhivehi, has a Tamil sound when spoken at a distance. The Dhivehi language was full of words that were sometimes connected to the Sinhala words or a corrupt form of the word. The numbers one to ten were exactly similar. When I went about, I heard the words ‘sai bone’ which I thought was the nick name given to me by Maldivians. I was pleased to hear  that it meant ‘Let’s have some tea.’ I was thankful that they were patronising our Sri Lankan national industry,Sri Lankan made milk food and a brand of nice biscuits were extremely popular there. Food served in hotels were cheap and clean. Cleanliness of hotels was a legal requirement.

Another striking contrast was that there was no lawlessness there; rowdies and beggars were non-existent.   Some of the Sri Lankans were caught staggering along the road after liquour They were deported the following day. Liquour was forbidden for Maldivians. Foreigners could drink after betting a license. This was a major contributing cause for the peaceful atmosphere there.

In spite of the striking contrasts, a large number of students went to Sri Lanka for English medium education. Many others went for medical treatment. In many ways, the Maldivians were leaning heavily on Sri Lanka. Their dry fish exports are still highly popular in Sri Lanka. Some Americans have told me that Maldivians speak English with a Sri Lankan accent. Sri Lankans were the pioneer teachers of English there.

Fishing is their national industry. Dry fish and boat-building are subsidiary industries. Tourism is thriving there. The tourists are left alone there; the touts don’t so and bother them. Our Sri Lankan government can learn a lesson from them.

"As I was being taken to my residence, I was struck by the silent and hum-drum atmosphere. Speeding of vehicles was not allowed as  was the tooting of horns. Horns could be tooted only to avoid an accident, not otherwise. Vehicles proceeded at a slow pace, because the drivers had to consider the children crossing the road. All this was in stark contrast to Sri Lanka, where the opposite of what described took place"

In the eighties and nineties, there was a representative government but no opposition was allowed. Now all that has changed. There is a vibrant democracy functioning, with an effective opposition, all elected by the ballot. Sometime back, the Male’ currency was devalued. This sent the prices of imports up. But the Maldivian government raised the salaries of the citizens , so that they could afford the imports. Nobody talks of high cost of living there. I hope the Sri Lankan government could learn a lesson from there. Tourists are going in large numbers there, for scuba diving and also for relaxation. Tourism is now a major form of income there.

During the beginning of my stay there, there were no buses. Only taxis plied. Now all that has changed. Buses with A/C have been introduced and only sitting accommodation is allowed. Nobody is allowed to stand when travelling. The sex-maniacs and the pick-pockets don’t have a chance. Now taxis are also air-conditioned. Neither the drivers nor the conductors could shout at the passengers, because they could be reported to the Police, who are very efficient unlike their counterparts in the neighbouring countries. They are all English-speaking as well.

In the eighties a month’s tuition could cost Male’ Rufiya fifty. Now the cost of one hour tuition is Male Rufiya 1000. This latest bit, I heard form Maldivians themselves; the doctors there are advising Maldivians to settle down in Sri Lanka, because of the healthy diet we consume. I’m personally aware of  one doctor who recommended the patient to stay in Sri Lanka merely to consume Gotukola , which is a  cure for a type of eye- disease.

The Maldivians are a friendly lot. If you stay there long enough they would shower gifts on you and expensive ones at that.  My daughter grew up there since the age of 10; she often scoots off to Maldives. Free stay and food are provided by the friends. One thing about them,it is easy to make up with them in case of a serious problem.
 Shall  conclude this article narrating a funny incident during the early stages of my stay there. I stayed on for 16 years and returned only in 2001.

As mentioned earlier, I was invited by a pupil of mine .He took me to  his island which was 7 hours by boat.  While at the beach one evening, I had fallen asleep in my chair. I was awakened by the noise of a Maldivian talking to me in his language, Dhivehi. For courtesy’s sake, I kept nodding in agreement to what he was saying. At some stage, I must have nodded for something foolish that he said. His eyes opened wide. Thinking I was deaf, he came near me and started yelling in my left ear. My relaxed mood changed to discomfiture, by his shouting which I did not understand .Fortunately there were some pupils of mine around. I called them and told them that I didn’t know Dhivehi. His eyes widened again, when he realised his mistake. He went off and I was greatly relieved.

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