Men: Voting began in the Maldives on Sunday in parliamentary elections to test President Mohamed Muizzou’s shift from China and India, a traditional philanthropy to a far-flung luxury tourist destination.
Among the first to vote was Muizzu, 45, who voted at Tajuddin Boys’ School in the capital.
Chief Electoral Officer Fouad Thaufeeq invited 284,663 voters to vote in the morning. Polling stations throughout the archipelago will be open for nine and a half hours.
Originally known as one of the most expensive holiday destinations in South Asia, this atoll country of beaches and white resorts has become a geopolitical hotspot in the Indian Ocean.
The global east-west shipping route crosses a chain of 1,192 small atolls that stretch 800 kilometers (500 miles) across the equator.
Muizzu won the presidential election last September as the representative of pro-China ex-President Abdullah Ameami, who was released after a court commuted his 11-year prison sentence for corruption.
This month, as the parliamentary election campaign continues, Muizzu has awarded a high-profile infrastructure contract to a Chinese state-owned company.
His administration also sent a garrison of 89 Indian troops operating surveillance aircraft donated by New Delhi to monitor the Maldivian maritime border.
The current parliament, dominated by the pro-India Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) of Muizzou’s predecessor, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, has sought to block efforts to reform the archipelago’s diplomacy.
“He came to power with a promise to send back Indian troops and he is working on it. Parliament has not worked with him since he came to power.”
Since Muizzu took office, MPs have blocked three of his Cabinet nominations and rejected several spending proposals.
Divisions in all major political parties, including Muizzu’s People’s National Congress (PNC), are expected to make it difficult for any party to win a clear majority.
But Muizzu’s future hangs in the balance after his mentor Ameami was released from house arrest on Thursday.
The Capital Court ruled that Amami was sent to prison after losing his bid for re-election in 2018 and was charged with money laundering.
While in power, Yameen advocated closer ties with Beijing, but that belief prevented him from running in last year’s presidential election.
Instead, he represented Muizzu and said that after he left the Supreme Court, he would continue the anti-Indian campaign that helped his allies win.
