On June 21, 2022, an angry mob disrupted a Yoga Day celebration in Male, Maldives. Maldivian police suspect the involvement of local Islamic scholars and the opposition Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) in the violence.
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This unpleasant part indicates the terrorist challenges and threats that the Maldives supports. Although subsequent Maldivian governments have expressed concern about extremism in recent years, they have maintained and strengthened extremist ecosystems for their own political gain.
An Overview of Extremism in the Maldives
Traditionally, the Maldives has a tolerant version of Islam. However, from the late 1970s and late 1980s, the definition of Saudi Wahhabism and Deobandism took root in Maldivian society. This was due to two reasons: college, education, and mosque funding from Saudi Arabia, as well as students returning with extremist interpretations of Islam after religious education abroad. These Islamists have often tried to put pressure on later governments to implement policies based on their extremist interpretations.
Gayoom's political dictatorship (until 2008) limited the activities and influence of these organizations in the Maldives. But their tourism-oriented policies and curbing of extremists also brought them together. The Dar-ul-Khair Mosque became a center for radicals and extremists who opposed the Maldivian dictatorship. His relentless activities and organization have repeatedly contributed to the number of Maldivian foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs) traveling between Pakistan and Afghanistan, including parts of domestic violence and terrorism. However, the rise of democracy in 2008 opened up socio-political space for these elements to seek legitimacy and propagate their ideology, often disguised as Islamic debates and teachings.
Maldivian activists have also maintained close ties with organizations such as al-Qaeda and ISIS, and have strengthened these organizations with young recruits from the Maldives.
For radical youth, Maldives is a land of infidels. He has chosen to work, fight and die for Islam in countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq and Syria. The Maldives, thus, became the largest per capita FTF contributor in the world. Maldivian activists have also maintained close ties with organizations such as al-Qaeda and ISIS, and have strengthened these organizations with young recruits from the Maldives.
Perhaps this external focus of extremism has limited domestic stakeholders from taking the local terrorist ecosystem very seriously. Political parties and politicians have used religion and extremism for their political advantage. This incident has contributed to the continued spread of extremist ideology and terrorist attacks in the Maldives (see Table 1). In fact, in recent years, Maldivian police have brought the total number of extremists in the country to more than 1,400.
Thriving terrorist ecosystem
The use of Islam as a political weapon and flirting with extremists is nothing new in the Maldives. Almost all political parties and affiliates have done this to gain legitimacy and political gain. In 1997, President Gayoom drafted a new constitution outlawing all religions in the country except Sunni Islam. Beyond 2008, the rise of democracy has created a strong bond between politicians and extremists.
Today, extremist political parties such as the Adalath Party (AP) and extremist organizations such as the Jamiatath Salaf (JS) and the Islamic Foundation of the Maldives work or lobby with various political parties to promote extremist policies and ideas. They often (individually or collectively) ask the government to ban alcohol, encourage beatings, enforce strict abortion laws, close massage parlors, censor content, ban arts and culture of other religions, ban music and singing, and ban music and singing. It has demanded a ban on propaganda organizations. Democracy and human rights etc.
It often happens that governments and political parties try to agree to these demands, at least to some extent. In a country with a 100 percent Sunni Muslim population, democratic representatives are eager to avoid the tag ‘ladheni’ (infidel), which often comes at a high political cost. Thus, domestic politics has forced them to cooperate with extremists, at the cost of democracy, human rights and freedom of expression. The situation is so dire that the most ‘democratic’ and ‘liberal’ Maldivian Democratic Party banned the Maldives Democratic Network in 2019 and amended the Hate Crimes Bill in 2021 to meet the extremist demands from its allies-AP and other organizations. .
Validity is another factor that has contributed to this prosperity. Since the first democratic elections, subsequent governments have often shared power with extremists like the AP in order to look more Islamic and avoid religious opposition and rhetoric. For example, since 2008, the AP or its former members have often been nominated to control the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, regardless of the ruling government and the party. This has given rise to more extremist ideologies and policies across the country.
The situation is so dire that the most ‘democratic’ and ‘liberal’ Maldivian Democratic Party banned the Maldives Democratic Network in 2019 and amended the Hate Crimes Bill in 2021 to meet the extremist demands from its allies-AP and other organisations.
The Islamists, including the AP, continue to join and leave alliances based on net opportunism and their ability to influence the government, and continue their agenda. Thus, despite being unable to win a large number of seats, they have proven effective in forming and dissolving governments on many examples. In 2012, the AP and other militant groups played a key role in ousting the Nasheed government through the 'Defending Islam' campaign. The same extremists also took part in the May Day protests against Yamin in 2015. Notably, in both cases, the AP route was part of a coalition government before it split and participated in protests.
After all, politicians and Islamists in the country have close ties to many goons and criminal syndicates. These criminals are appointed by both stakeholders to intimidate, intimidate political opponents, silence liberal voices, participate in demonstrations, and promote physical violence. Most of these criminal extremists also have easy targets to further their extremist goals. As a result, more than 48 percent of the Maldivian FTF in Syria had some criminal record and affiliation in the past. The government’s relationship with Islamists and criminals makes it more complicated to deliver justice or destroy the extremist ecosystem. Subsequently, out of 188 cases of religious extremism, only 14 cases were forwarded by 2019.
Outside India? Terrorists in?
The violence on Yoga Day is also just one example of this thriving and surviving extremist ecosystem. It is an open secret that many extremist groups opposed the Yoga Day celebrations as un-Islamic. But Yamin's anti-India rhetoric gave rise to a strong political dimension.
On June 11, thousands of participants in the Maldives witnessed a mega bike rally and protested against anti-prophetic statements made by some BJP officials. The popularity of the rally may have prompted Yameen to use religion to rally the Maldivians against India. In the aftermath of this event, they have begun to pay close attention to India's domestic problems and communal unrest in their rallies. This maneuver change was necessary for him, as his India Out moment has turned criminal and he has failed to make a broad appeal.
The popularity of the rally may have prompted Yameen to use religion to rally the Maldivians against India.
In this context, it is no coincidence that Mohammed Ismail - a PPM official and a key propagandist for the "India Out" Moment - was arrested along with other local Islamic leaders on charges of involvement in Yoga Day violence. The PPM had also helped the protesters by providing flags and other supplies used in their previous rallies.
Because of these interrelationships and mutual interests, the moment of India Out may have reached a more serious stage or it has begun to take a more radical leap. Since Yamin uses religion for his anti-India rhetoric, extremists see this as an opportunity to ‘Islamize’ and ‘radicalize’ society against the alleged Indian threat of Islam and the Maldives; Or even worse, if Yamin wins the next election to influence his government and policies, thus, the prevailing terrorist ecosystem indicates that the island nation will prosper and survive in the near future.
This does not mean that subsequent Maldivian governments have not accepted or acted on the prevailing terrorist challenges. But, to begin with the basics of success, elites will have to destroy their extremist supply chains and ecosystems. However, given that the ecosystem has more immediate benefits than these stakeholder costs, the prospects seem bleak.
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