Price: $70.04
The Maldives, an idyllic archipelago located south of India, is more commonly associated with exclusive luxury resorts than political experimentation. Yet, beneath its surface, it’s a land of stark paradoxes. Here, tourists languidly sip cocktails on pristine beaches, while only a short distance away, local women face public flogging for extramarital affairs and blackmarket vodka commands a staggering $140 per bottle.
Up until 2008, this nation was under the iron fist of Asia’s longest-serving dictator, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. His reign was unexpectedly toppled by Mohamed Nasheed, a former political prisoner, who emerged as a fervent environmental activist, journalist, and politician. Nasheed’s victory in the Maldives’ inaugural democratic elections marked the end of Gayoom’s thirty-year autocracy.
As a young, progressive, and charismatic President, Nasheed propelled the Maldives into the global spotlight. His nation stood as a symbol of the battle against climate change and the quest for democracy and human rights, even within the confines of one of the world’s strictest Islamic societies.
However, the shadow of dictatorship lingers, embedded in the country’s institutions and the psyche of those conditioned to autocracy over three long decades. The advent of democracy stirred the pot, leading to unrest, protests, violence, and extreme political polarization. Nasheed’s government was overthrown in February 2012 by the ousted dictatorship, backed by Islamic radicals and rebellious security forces. Amidst an intricate web of intrigue, the fight for democracy was only just beginning.