Two old rivals now duel for Maldives presidency

Maldives' first free presidential race on Friday became a duel between Asia's longest-serving leader and the pro-democracy activist he jailed dozens of times, who said he now has a unified opposition behind himself.

Even before the electoral commission announced early on Friday that President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and challenger Mohamed Nasheed would go to an Oct. 29 runoff, thousands of supporters of the two rivals took to the streets to celebrate.

Gayoom, the 71-year-old incumbent seeking a seventh term, got 40.6 percent of the votes in this week's poll, beset by rigging allegations and delays that stretched it into a second day. Nasheed, known as Anni, came second with 25.1 percent.

The Oct. 29 date puts it well outside the 10-day limit prescribed in a new election law, part of a series of democratic reforms Gayoom put in effect this year that culminated with the poll on islands that until 40 years ago were a sultanate.

Diplomats and a Commonwealth observation team praised the 85 percent turnout and said the overall exercise was credible despite the hitches.

"They did about as well as they could have, given this was their first time, and they did it all on the back of an envelope two weeks beforehand," said a Western diplomat who observed the polls. "The proof will be in the pudding in the second round, because it's head-to-head."

Nasheed, known popularly as Anni, was at the centre of pro-democracy protests in 2004 that led to a heavy-handed crackdown by Gayoom and drew rare international attention to politics in the sleepy Maldives.

"We support Anni because he's our Nelson Mandela," activist Ahmed Hameed, 47, said. Many Nasheed supports draw that comparison to the former South African president and longtime political prisoner.

'I HAVE YOUR LOVE'

The string of 1,192 mostly uninhabited coral atolls 800 km off the tip of India is mostly famous as a tropical idyll of azure waters and Robinson Crusoe-like isolation where a one-night stay can cost thousands of dollars.

A little less than two-thirds of the islands' 300,000 people, all Sunni Muslims by law, took part in the election.

Early on Friday morning, hundreds of supporters wearing the trademark yellow of Nasheed's Maldivian Democratic Party chanted "60 percent want change!" as he addressed them outside the party headquarters, a tin building where he was arrested many times.

He said that the other four opposition candidates had rallied behind him on a common platform of change.

"We are ready for a runoff even tomorrow," Nasheed told rapturous supporters who gathered around an enormous yellow cake to celebrate.

Across town, several thousand Gayoom supporters watched as dancing girls gyrated to loud music, the women wearing multi-coloured headscarves, until the president addressed them as his image shone over the crowd on large video screens.

"It is evident I have your love. Maldivians want reform. We want change, but we don't want to change the president," he said.

Gayoom was at the helm as the Maldives transformed from a fishing-dependent economy into a high-end tourism destination which now has the highest per capita income in South Asia.

Tourism accounts for 28 percent of GDP directly, with some estimates placing its total contribution as high as 70 percent.

"Whatever we see in this country is because of him. He built this country from scratch. It is a volatile time and we need an experienced and dedicated leader," consultant Mariyam Mohamed, 32, said.

But critics say Gayoom has been quick to clamp down on opposition and ruled the palm-dotted archipelago like a personal sultanate, where only a small clique around him became rich.

Source: in.reuters.com