Beginning of my Journey as a Human Rights Defender (HRD)..!!!

After the semester exam I was thinking about a way to make my vacation a productive one. On 17^th April, my friend Xef sent me a link via facebook. It was an event (Human Right Defenders Training) organized by Maldivian Democracy Network. As it is an area where I have interest, I thought of joining. And with the help of Xef I registered there.

On 22 ^nd April at 9 am I went to SHE building for the 1^st session of HRD training. Xef was the only one I knew. All others were totally new to me. I was thinking of how I am going to bear it from 9 am to 6 pm every day till 28^th April.

Sessions started with around 23 members. At the very first day it was a blast. When the lecturers gave group activity, everyone started to talk and became friends. For every activity there will be a new group. Therefore at the very first day we started to know each other.

During the sessions every participant was allowed to talk and express views regarding the topic. This was one of the best and open discussions in which I have participated so far.  Discussions were so interesting that time was so limited.

Lunch and evening tea was provided to all of us from MDN. We had discussions and fun talks during the lunch and tea break. Taking different issues and talking about it during these breaks, as the discussion time was limited.

At the end of the training all members were evaluated and successful candidates were accredited as Human Rights Defenders. Responsibilities of HRDs (we) include advocating human rights locally on a continuous basis, reporting human rights violation to MDN and other related bodies, guiding and providing information to victims of human rights violation, and assist MDN in conducting their nationwide assessments and activities.

In this training sessions we were trained in the following areas;

 Ø  Philosophy and history of Human Rights

   Ø  Rights enshrined in the 2^nd chapter of the Constitution

   Ø  The democratic system of the Maldives

   Ø  Local legal redress mechanisms

   Ø  Maldivians and human rights (Islam and human rights / Maldivian culture and human rights)

   Ø  International law and international legal redress mechanisms

   Ø  Monitoring and reporting human rights

First year at Villa College

  

       After completing the high school, I had two choices; whether to continue studies or to start working. It was my decision to continue studies. First thing I explored was the quality of education and the course fee or tuition fee of different colleges in Maldives. When I was satisfied these of Villa College, I came to a decision to enroll in this course (Bachelor of Human Resource Management) by Villa College.
 Once I enrolled in this course, I had a lot of expectations towards the college as it is my first year of college. First thing I could think about was the college campus or the environment in which I am going to study. I imagined big class rooms with loads of students. In simple words I look forward to quality education in a sophisticated learning environment.  As being a verbal learner I always wanted lectures to be impressive. Therefore I expected efficient teachers in Villa College.

It’s been an year since I started my education at Villa College with 14 class mates. The environment of the campus is good, but it is small and therefore crowded. Overall things were good yet there were difficulties in few things like slow processing of requests (result notifications, reference letters etc), classes gets cancelled out often, registers are not checked well etc. My first year was good though it did not meet up with each and every expectation of mine.

Happy New Year 2012 !

“Cheers to New Year and another chance for us to get it right.” - Oprah Winfrey

With the beginning of each year, there will be new dreams, possibilities and hopes. Every year teach us some important lessons. Therefore it’s on our hand to learn from it and put our step forward into the New Year.

When I glimpse into 2011, I faced tons of things. This includes positive and negative scenarios as well.

When considering the positive aspects, in 2011 I started my college life. I learned how to live alone without my parents (something important). I have got some awesome new comers into my life yet sticking with me. . . .

When turning to the negative side, it is the worst year of my life. I have been through loads of problems which were difficult to solve. Some people walked away from my life and also few things caused my life to take a totally different turn, which I have never expeected even. . . .

There were so many firsts happened in my life during 2011. But overall, it was not a good year for me. Hence, I am looking forward for a better and successful year ahead. 

Wish you all a very happy New Year 2012. 

There are so many predictions about the year 2012. Let’s see how things turn out!

NIGHT FUSION - MY NEW ADDICTION !!

One night in September, a friend called and asked me to tune into Capital Radio 93.6 FM. There was an interview going on with an artist. So, for the first time I tuned into a radio channel from my phone. This is how I knew about Capital Radio 93.6 FM.

I was looking for an English show. And soon I knew about an English show which comes from Capital Radio 93.6 FM. Name of the show is Night Fusion sponsored by Wataniya. This show is hosted by an awesome RJ, RJ Bad Boy.

Night Fusion is a show which plays all the latest and hottest English songs. The show airs on every night Saturday to Thursday at 21 hours to 23 hours. Every night a topic is included in the show and participants share their views about the topic.

From Saturday to Wednesday participants can request any song they like. But Thursday is the playlist night. Bad Boy will bring on a playlist and participants have to choose a song from the list, therefore no new requests on Thursdays.

This show is mainly focused on youths in Maldives and also to those who are studying or living in abroad. Night Fusion is the best English show airing on in Maldives.

I have been listening to the show from October. And now I am a big fan of the show and a big fan of Bad Boy as well. I can say I am addicted to the show.

In order to participate in the show, you can call, text or even join to the shout box by login into www.capitalradio936.com. And also you can request any song and you can contribute topics for the show via Bad Boy’s fan page on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/rjbadboyfanpage). 

Follow Bad Boy via twitter @RJBadBoy.

Increase in expatriate workers in Maldives - A plague? (1)

Maldives is a small nation consisting of a population of 350,000 people. Recently, the population of expatriate workers has increased s to 80,000. This means 25% of the population is covered by them. Simply, for every 3 Maldivian there is one expat. Most of this foreign-born population consists of Indians and Bangladeshi. This increasing rate of expatriate workers in Maldives is much higher than the rate of some developed countries like Dubai. This hasty increase in expatriates has got a lot of problems in Maldives including social, economical and political as well. Before highlighting these problems first we should know why the expatriates appeared.

Traditionally fishery was the main occupation in the Maldives. Economy was based on fishing industry. Transformation to a modern economy was never in our ancestors mind. This is because Maldives is not blessed with many natural resources other than its beauty and rich seas. And also there was not much connection with the outside world. This narrow thinking has kept them in a ‘nut shell’ until the Maldivian economy started propelling into a modern economy from a fishing economy. This rapid change has occurred within a generation. This fast transformation of economy left a serious gap between the skill needed to operate a modern economy and the amount of nationals trained up to the required skills. In order to fill this gap expatriate workers turned up.

In addition to this, construction is one of the most important economic sectors in Maldives now. This sector has grown rapidly in recent years due to tourism sector and other developments. Contractors mostly rely on foreign labour markets (India, Bangladesh, Nepal etc). This is because number of locals engaged in these works was low. According to the information provided by Ministry of higher education employment and labour, by the year 2003, 6,502 expatriates have brought to Maldives for constructions work. Higher education and high skill levels are not required in this sector. Therefore, this is how less educated or low skilled expatriates started to appear in Maldivian economy.

Furthermore, Tourism is the most dynamic economic sector in Maldives. The country mostly depends on this sector. When tourism sector started in Maldives, there were fewer locals educated in the same field. Therefore, for this sector also there was a need of expatriates. Here the only difference compared to the other two sectors is, expatriates employed in this sector should be highly educated. Ministry of higher education employment and labour says that, by the year 2003, the amount of expatriates brought for this sector was 9,420. This is how expatriates appeared in Maldivian economy through this sector.

Other than economy, expatriates have appeared in our social life as well. Recently people in Male’ or people in capital islands of atolls use to accommodate children from islands in order to educate them. These children do almost all the household works. But from recent years, families are moving to developed islands. Because of this, those people were not getting locals to do those simple household works. As a result people started seeking for foreign people who would do these works. For this works, most number of females was brought. Other than the females, most of the males engaged in these works are doing it for part time.

Expatriates have appeared into our politics as well. When the number of expatriates increased rapidly, there is little percentage of people disobeying the law. Number of illegal expatriates was increasing day by day. There are around 30,000 illegal expat workers in Maldives today. These expats are working in the black market for low prices without informing to their local employer. 

To be continued . . . .

Refuse, Reuse and Recycle !!

Nuzha Naashidh
[ECOCARE Maldives]


http://ecocare.mv/

Plastic is a well known obsession which is made out of oil by a chemical process. This is light in weight and is used to make different objects. Since 1852, the discovery of plastic by Alexender Parkes, it has become an irrefutable part of human life. Plastic bags are made of a petroleum product which is known as polythene. The shopping bag which we get from the super market is a good example of plastic which almost everyone uses daily. Around 90% of grocery bags are made of plastic. This small and light object creates an huge impact on the environment and as well as its inhabitants. These impacts are being discussing from long ago, yet the usage is not affected much.

How many? Why is it an environmental hazard?

Plastic bags are very familiar with both retailers as well as the customers. This is because plastic bags are cheap to produce, easy to carry, abundant in supply etc. It is a hygienic means of carrying food and other goods. Annualy almost one hundred billion plastic bags are being used in United States of America itself. Its being thrown away on to road, garbage area, parks, waterways and beaches, due to the excess supply and low cost. As a result, our landscape gets messed. And when these bags are burned out, it produces a toxic substances leading to air pollution.

Approximately 70% of the world is covered with water. Throwing bags creates a massive impact on our marine eco system. Thrown bags can wash up to thousands and thousands of miles of coastline.

Plastic bags are non-biodegradable which remains forhundreds of years . Each year around 100,000 animals are killed due to plastic bags. Including the turtles, dolphins, whales and penguins . Mostly the death occurs due to the ingestion of bags, which they consume as their food.

As mentioned before, plastic bags are made of polythene which is a petroleum product. Petroleum is lacking its quantity by each passing day. Due to this the whole world is in search of renewable energy. This petroleum is vital for our day to day life. If the petroleum vanishes, it will nearly freeze the whole modern world. Therefore a crucial thing should not be misused in producing harmful substances.

http://ecocare.mv/

To overcome the environmental hazard-how?

One way to prevent this environmental hazard is recycling or reusing it. By doing this disposition of these bags to soil and water bodies will be reduced. Photodegradation is a chemical process used to disgrace plastic bags. But during this process appearance of small toxic forms which causes high impact on our environment. However, by reusing the plastic saves our environment from those substances. To carry out this process, a huge ground is needed where there will be no any harm to biotic life.

In addition to this, one of the simplest things each individual can do is carrying out their own bag to the market. It should be made out of a material which is not harmful to our environment and biodegradable. This can be done by keeping few folded bags, so that whenever something is needed we can acquire it. Some people feel difficult and useless to carry their own bags with them. It is important to provide awareness programs and educate those thinkers. Plus to encourage and motivate those citizens, using their own bags, which is also inspiring for others to do so.

Moreover using a substitute like liquid wood (named as arboform) can be helpful. It is a thermoplastic prepared by using natural fibers, wax and lignin (which is non toxic, rich in renewable source and can be degradable). Arboform is made by using the waste materials of paper factories. However, the carbon dioxide released due to the usage of arboform remains unaffected as it discharges the same amount of carbon dioxide which a plant leaves into the atmosphere. Arboform can be discarded like woods and before disposal it does not need any difficult process to change its chemical position.

LETS BE THE CHANGE!

The planet we live is shared with number of living creatures. A single bag which we throw can remain somewhere on the earth for around thousand years.Which can be disasterous. If each and every single individual practice simple tasks like carrying own disposable shopping bags, reusing bags, moving on substitutes can make a vast difference on plastic bag consumption. As Mahathma Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

Learning Skills for Open Distance Learners

Learning could be defined as “the acquisition of knowledge or skill through education and experience”. As the world is changing, it is our responsibility to learn things and be informed well. There are certain barriers while learning or for a learner. It includes things like having stress, low motivation, time management problems etc. For a student of any college or school it is important to know how to tackle the barriers of learning. In this essay I will be focusing on the important skills I have learnt through ODL (Learning Skills for Open Distance Learners) and how these skills have brought a change in my academic life.

One of the most important things I learned in this module is identifying which type of a learner I am. Everyone has their own learning style and it is beneficial for a student to know about the learning style. This is because; this helps in knowing how to gain information from sources. Knowing about the learning style makes it easier to pinpoint the difficult areas. All these years I have been studying without knowing my own learning style. Now I am able to know in which way I should work in order to do the learning more effectively. This in case helps me in improving my results as well.

Goals are defined as “setting realistic, easily achievable steps in place towards fulfilling something that you want”. Goals can help a person to be focused on a particular thing he wants to achieve. Goal setting is known as the fundamental of attaining success in any endeavor. While studying it is important to set short term goals like, grades he wants to achieve in a semester or trimester. After knowing to set goals it has become easy for me to work towards my destination in achieving good results.

The next thing I learned in this module is managing stress. Stress is defined as “the normal physical response to events that make you feel threatened or upset your balance in some way”. Stress can be caused due to work loads, family problems, finances, health, social relationships, friends, etc. High stress level reduces the concentration level of a person. Therefore, it is important to know how to manage stress in order to be an effective learner. By using the strategies like organizing myself, relaxing, enjoying, having a better environment to study has improved my concentration level and it helped me to reduce the stress.

In each and everything a person do, he should be motivated. This is because without motivation no one can do a task in a better way. Motivation is the desire to achieve something. A student should be well motivated towards studies in order to get good results. In ODL I have learned motivational strategies like setting goals, building positive attitudes, using active learning strategies, etc. These strategies helped me in developing a positive attitude toward my studies.

To be an efficient learner it is important to learn the above mentioned strategies. It helps in building positive attitude towards studies and also these strategies help in gaining better knowledge. Learning cannot be complete without knowing these skills. In a Chinese proverb it is said that “Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere”.