2 May. The government of the Maldives had decided to hold a celebration in honour of World Press Freedom Day, and had chosen a state-of-the-art slogan: 'Press Forward Maldives'. President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was on the dais, under a banner that proclaimed World Press Freedom, and Minister for Information Mohamad Nasheed was at the podium, emphasising the need for "free and responsible media to promote the presidential agenda for reform and democracy".
Press freedom, declared Minister Nasheed, clearly a bright-eyed boy of the ageing president, "cannot be used to whip up divisions and disaster, cannot dehumanise and destroy the delicate fabric of our small community". He stressed the need for professionalism and "decorum".
There is obviously some discontent with regard to the 'presidential agenda' in the atolls; and in the hall, there were some journalists present who did not want to feel all that 'responsible'. In the back, placards were unsheathed and quietly held aloft, calling for press freedom and an end to government harassment of journalists and media organisations. It all seemed a highly civilised affair, for those of us from more-cynical northern climes, where authority is challenged with rants and raves, zindabads and murdabads.
This was said to be the first time that President Gayoom had been challenged face-to-face by dissidents in the country. It was history being made, and certainly a lot of decorum was being displayed.