Room with a view

It may not look like much, but the view from my hotel window says a lot about the changing times and lifestyles of the Maldives. In the foreground is an old-style Maldivian home, a one-story building with an adjoining garden for banana trees, birds, cats and a swing. I've spent some delightful hours in such a garden at Hilmy's home. But Male is one of the most crowded cities in the world, with more than 100,000 people crammed into one square mile. The demand for housing means that the island-style houses are being crowded out by hi-rise flats that you can see under construction in the background of this picture.Looking in the opposite direction, you can see one of the giant light poles for Male's biggest stadium. It's at the center of a controversy this week. The Islamic ministry planned to bring in a celebrity preacher for a four-day program and requested the use of the stadium. At the last minute, the Youth Minister denied permission, saying the religious rally would interrupt youth sports programs. Maldives is a young country, with one third of the population being of school age, so it was argued that the kids come first. The result was a debate between all the parties on live TV, during the current affairs program that airs on TVM after the 8 pm news. Maldivians were riveted to their TV sets because government business was being conducted in front of cameras, instead of secret deals being cut in a back room.
The impact was felt in my workshop on open government. Participants eagerly re-enacted the televised debate, but included an audience section for the people to ask questions.