29 Oct 2010

Couple called ‘infidels’ during Maldives ceremony

A video of a couple being verbally abused while renewing their vows in the Maldives has emerged. Channel 4 News has learnt that the man who carried out the service has conducted other such ceremonies.

The couple in the video thought they were going to the Maldives to renew their wedding vows in a traditional, local ceremony.

Instead they were called “swines”, “infidels” and told they were “not legitimate to be married in a legal marriage”.

Footage of the service appeared on YouTube and has sparked fears for the islands’ economy which depends largely on tourism.

Channel 4 News has learnt that the man in the video, who carried out the ceremony, had conducted other similar services in the past.

The head of Sun Investments which owns the resort where the couple renewed their vows has apologised to the couple.

Ahmad Shakir told Channel 4 News he was surprised by the men’s behaviour: “Actually they have been very loyal staff who have been working in the hotel…we would never has suspected something like this.”

We depend on tourism for everything..it’s the goose that laid the golden egg for us. High Commissioner for the Maldives

Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed announced his government will introduce strict guidelines for wedding ceremonies.

“All tourist hotels without exception will be required to follow the new guidelines which will be issued shortly,” the president’s office said in a statement.

Nasheed expressed “disgust” at the incident and described the behaviour of those involved as “absolutely disgraceful”.

He appealed to hotel staff to be “vigilantly professional” and said “bad behaviour, such as that depicted in the YouTube video, can cause enormous damage to the country’s tourism industry.”


The Maldives in a popular destination for weddings and honeymoons (Reuters)

Shock in the Maldives

The High Commissioner for the Maldives in the UK told Channel 4 News the video was hugely damaging for the islands’ economy.

Dr Farahanaz Faizal said: “We depend on tourism for everything really it’s our number one industry: it’s the goose that laid the golden egg for us.

“It is extremely damaging in one sense because we have managed to build up a reputation in the Maldives over a long period of time and one incident like this, which is totally despicable, could lead to a number of people being worried about going to the Maldives.”

Police in the Maldives have arrested two men in connection with the video. It is unclear what they will be charged with because this is thought to be the first incident of its kind in the Maldives.

Dr Faizal said she thought the hotel staff were playing a prank rather than something more sinister: “I think they probably thought they were just being funny but it’s totally uncalled for..I don’t think there’s an ulterior motive.

“It’s definitely a one off, we have thousands of people who renew their wedding vows in the Maldives and we haven’t had anything like this is the past.

“Judging by the comments in the local media, the Maldivian people, the whole nation is shocked and disgusted by what happened. This is definitely a one off.”

The couple in the video are thought to be from Switzerland. The Maldivian Government has offered them an apology and instructed a diplomatic mission in Geneva to contact them face-to-face. They could also receive compensation from the hotel where the ceremony took place.

85,000 people from the UK have visited the Maldives so far this year (reuters)

Impact on tourism

More than 85,000 people from the UK have visited the Maldives so far this year.

Tourism accounts for 27 per cent of the Islands’ Gross Domestic Product and is their main industry.

It’s not going to wipe out tourism in the Maldives but it won’t help. Prof John Fletcher

Professor John Fletcher is director of the International Centre for Tourism and Hospitality Research at Bournemouth University.

He told Channel 4 News that the video will have a negative impact: “I think in the short term it will have a measurable effect, a significant effect.

“Tourism is as competitive as its ever been and you don’t need things like this happening. There are plenty of other destinations people can go to get married or renew their vows.

“In the medium to long term, provided the Government reacts in a decisive way, then confidence will be restored.

“It could take 12 to 18 months, or even two years, for the negative impact to work its way through. It’s not going to wipe out tourism in the Maldives but it won’t help.”

Professor Fletcher said the Maldives Government should also investigate if this really is a one off event or whether locals have become frustrated with the level of tourism: “When tourists first go to a destination they get a spontaneous welcome but then that moves onto a commercial basis and then becomes mass tourism.

“In the Maldives this could be a sign that tourism is causing local people problems rather than bringing benefits.

“I hope this is an isolated incident where someone hasn’t engaged their brain rather than a sign tourism has exceeded its threshold.”