LDS PRESS RELEASE

LINYON DEMOKRATIK SESELWA

PRESS RELEASE

LDS propose process for Perseverance to become an Electoral Area immediately

LDS met with representatives of the Electoral Commission today, April 29, to discuss the issue of declaring Perseverance an Electoral Area in time for the forthcoming National Assembly elections.

Chairman Hendricks Gappy and Legal Counsel Samantha Aglae who represented the Commission said the meeting was to get the proposals of the parties on how this could be done in view of the time constraints imposed by the provisions of the Constitution and the Elections Act.

The proposal to declare Perseverance an electoral area was contained in a Draft Order passed by the National Assembly in October 2015. The Draft Order needs to be approved by the President and gazetted. This has not yet been done.

Under article 116 (5) of the Constitution , Perseverance will become an Electoral Area only at the dissolution of the present National Assembly for the next elections. The procedures for registration of voters under the Elections Act can take several weeks.

These provisions mean that they will not be registered in time to vote at the National Assembly elections.

The block of parties in Linyon Demokratik Seselwa have made proposals for legal amendments to overcome the present obstacles.

1.      Article 116 (5) of the Constitution to be amended for Perseverance to become an electoral area immediately when the Order is gazetted, not waiting for the Assembly to be dissolved.

2.      The  Elections Act to be amended for residents of Perseverance to be registered based on the existing list of residents used in the 2015 elections.

LDS have said the legal steps to establish the electoral area can be concluded within a week, and registration of voters can be concluded in time for the Assembly elections.

What is required is for the National Assembly to be called into session to pass these amendments and for the President to approve the Order and have it published.

The responsibility falls on James Michel to have these steps taken immediately. Not doing so will mean disenfranchising the residents of Perseverance by denying them the right to register in an electoral district in which they live and denying them the right to vote for a member of the National Assembly to represent their district.

Roger Mancienne

Chairman. Linyon Demokratik Seselwa

Victoria                                                                                   April 29. 2016

Mahe

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED TO FELIX MAUREL?

Private investigator insinuate foul play, inquiry to move to Farquhar.

A private investigator engaged by the Maurel family to help determined what happened to Felix Maurel who disappeared on Farquhar in April of 2010 has said his investigation suggest that was foul play involved given the circumstances of the disappearance.

The South African gave evidence in court on the third day of the hearing late last month, when the court concluded that it needs to retrace the footsteps of Mr Maurel on location at Farquhar itself in order to have a clearer insight into what could have happened.

The cost for the expedition is to be shouldered by the Maurel family, the same people who ordered the inquest initially and arrangements are ongoing for all parties concerned to go to Farquhar sometime later this month. 

In his statement to the court the South African investigator said he does not believe Mr Maurel went into the sea, or that he drowned for that matter as a result of that.

Most deponents in the case has suggested theoretically that Mr Maurel wnet into the sea at some point during the walk, as it was a very hot day and the sea was calm and inviting.

But the investigator said according to an experiment he carried out on his visit on the island, the body of Maurel would have remained afloat had he drowned, and would have been spotted by the search parties during the early days of the search.

Other testimonies adduced before the court so far state that Mr Maurel disappeared after abandoning a walk fifteen minutes into it accompanied by a bunch of friends he was holidaying with on Farquhar. 

Witnesses say he left the group to go back to where the boat was anchored, stating he was tired and not feeling well. 

But the skipper said Mr Maurel never made it back to the boat, stressing that he never left the boat out of view at any given time as he waited for group to return.

Source: Regar 2010

WHO BENEFITS FROM TOURISM ON FARQUHAR?

The Island D e v e l o p m e n t Company (IDC) has signed another deal for tourism on Farquhar Island. A company based in the UK specialising in fishing holidays, FlyCastaway, is now advertising packages offering a week’s stay on the island together with fishing, for the coast of US$7000 per person. These are offered for groups of 10, putting the weekly turnover at $70,000.

Prices have increased

These offers are being made to prospective clients all over the world, putting Farquhar tourism on a larger scale than it has been. How much the IDC will get out of this is not known yet but it can be expected to beat the $30,000 per week it has been getting from Mauritian tourists for years.

The new arrangement starts in February 2011, according to the advertisement. But this comes without the questions on Farquhar tourism being answered.

The first question is whether the island’s tourism business is legal and compliant with standards in the industry. IDC chief executive Glenny Savy has admitted that the establishment there does not have a licence. He has said this is not necessary because it is primarily a rest house intended for government officials or even other Seychellois who want to spend time there. But, we have never heard of such guests for Farquahar while groups of Mauritian tourists paying $3000 each have been regular.

After the mysterious disappearance of Mauritian Felix Maurel last year, the IDC has not come up with any assurances on the safety of visitors. Should it expand its activities without better safeguards?

FlyCastaway obviously intends to enlarge the scale of fishing that tourists can do. It offers both fly-fishing from the flats and sand bars and also fishing in the waters of the lagoon for grouper, tuna, sailfish and marlin. It will bring in four motorized skiffs for, in ots own words, “unleashing the offshore opportunities that await there”.

Obviously, this is on a much bigger scale than has been going on. But who gets the money? IDC executive Glenny Savy has never given any clear answer on how the money collected from Mauritian visitors over the past years has been accounted for. Auditors are supposed to be looking closely at the accounts of state-owned companies, but this part remains obscure.

If IDC is to engage in tourism on the islands it manages, it must do so within the rules and standards of the industry and with full transparency. Until it does that, its dealings will remain questionable.

Source: Regar 7-9-10

Amnesty Newsletter; SEYCHELLES EXILED LEADER KILLED

The murder of exiled Seychellois opposition leader Gerard Hoarau outside his home in London, England on 29 November 1985 was the latest in a series of incidents in which at least nine opponents of the government of President Albert Rene are reported to have been murdered or have "disappeared".

The current Government of the Seychelles came to power following a coup d'etat in June 1977. The following August, Hassan Umarji Ebrahim, a 45-year-old businessman and known government critic, "disappeared". He left his house after receiving a phone call from an unknown person. His empty car was discovered an hour later with the engine still running. His shoes were found nearby. Amnesty International (AI) later received detailed allegations suggesting that Hassan Umarji Ebrahim had been abducted and killed by members of the security forces because of his political views. A former police officer told AI that police files on the case had vanished from the archives as a result of an intervention by senior officials.

STRANGE

In October 1982 and July 1983 a further four people died in strange circumstances. The two victims in 1982 were Simon Desnousse, a Seychellois student leader, and Mike Asher, a South African, said by the authorities to have blown themselves up with a homemade bomb. In July 1983 Michael Hoffman, a former policeman, and Tony Elizabeth, were killed after their car was attacked at night by unknown assailants. A third man, Brian Victor, was left for dead hut subsequently recovered and claimed that he and his companions had been attacked by members of the security forces. Al has received reports that all of these killings were carried out for political reasons by members of the security forces who had tried to disguise them either as accidents or as the work of common criminals.

VICTIMS

The latest "disappearances" reported in the islands occurred in August and September 1984. The victims were Jean Guillaume, a 22-year-old labourer, and Alton Ah-Time, a known government opponent. Al again received reports that both had been abducted and killed by members of the security forces because of their actual or suspected political activity. Their bodies are said to have been dumped at sea.

On 3 October 1984 Alton Ah-Time's mother, Simone Ah-Time, wrote an open letter to a local newspaper in which she claimed that her son had been followed and intimidated by security officers on several occasions in the previous eighteen months. Since then, at least two members of the Ah-Time family have been detained and allegedly beaten by security officers.

AI has appealed a number of times to the Seychellois authorities to establish an impartial inquiry into this series of deaths and "disappearances" but without response.

LEADER

Shortly before he was killed, Gerard Hoarau, leader of the exiled Seychelles National Movement, claimed that the Seychellois Government had planned to kill him in France. He alleged that the French police had been informed of the plan: that it was to have been carried out by a professional gunman hired by an associate of President Rene, and that the weapons for the assassination were to have been smuggled into France in the diplomatic bag.

Gerard Hoarau was a former immigration officer in the Seychelles. In November 1979, he was one of about 811 people detained on suspicion of organizing an underground opposition movement which had circulated literature criticizing the government. The authorities also claimed that Hoarau was involved in a plan to overthrow the government by force, although he was never charged with any offence. He was released untried after eight months' detention. In March 1980 Hoarau was one of several detainees visited by an AI delegate, Kenyan lawyer Amos Wako, who recorded a conversation with Hoarau in prison.

This echo from the past is brought by the Voice, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) focused on Human Rights in Seychelles and defending victims of fundamental rights abuses. The launch of the NGO is imminent.

https://www.facebook.com/thevoiceseychelles/

“VICTORY IS OURS” LDS

Linyon Demokratik Seselwa held its first public meeting in Victoria yesterday.

The Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS) or ‘Seychellois Democratic Alliance’ which brings together four existing political parties, held its first public meeting yesterday to outline its strategies particularly for the forthcoming National Assembly elections. The meeting was also aimed at reassuring party supporters that the LDS remained united despite speculation that various groups were at odds with each other over a common list of candidates for the elections. Leaders called on party supporters to give their unconditional support to candidates presented by the LDS in each district.

The leader of the Seychelles National Party, Wavel Ramkalawan announced that the LDS will put forward new candidates from all groups within the movement. He mentioned in particular, the LDS candidate for Perseverance, Mr Wavel Woodcock. Lawyer Clifford Andre will stand in the Anse Aux Pins constituency. Ahmed Afif of Lalyans Seselwa will represent the LDS in the Anse Etoile district and Godfra Hermitte will stand in the Port Glaud electoral area.

Mr Ramakalwan said it was vital that the LDS secures a majority in the National Assembly to carry out the changes that is required in the country.

The four parties that make up the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa are the Seychelles National Party (SNP), Lalyans Seselwa (LA) the Seychelles Party for Social Justice and Democracy (SPSD) and it also has the support of the Seselwa United Party (SUP). Roger Mancienne of the SNP is the leader of the party. Lalyans Seselwa’s Clifford Andre is the Secretary General whilst Roy Fonseka of the Seychelles Party for Social Justice and Democracy is the treasurer.

Source: Today in Seychelles