Fortnightly Review & Analysis - Neighbourhood Studies (Vol 1 Issue IV)

(August 1-15, 2016)

Pakistan

Diplomatic Gauntlet Thrown Over Kashmir

Pakistan has decided to go on a diplomatic offensive against India to resurrect the Kashmir issue and agitate the international community on this issue. This was apparently also the recommendation made during a three day Envoys conference in Islamabad where Pakistani ambassadors to top world capitals (including New Delhi) and the UN strategized Pakistan's diplomatic posturing. Even as Pakistan has been engaging members of the international community against India – letters have been written to the UN Secretary General and UN Human Rights Commission, envoys of the P-5 have been briefed, the Arab League and other such forums have been contacted – the street in Pakistan has also been activated. The street protests have been spearheaded by jihadist terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen and religious parties. At the political level, anti-India resolutions have been passed by assemblies, both at the provincial and national level.

The SAARC Home Ministers meeting became the first victim of the diplomatic fallout of the hysterical propaganda in Pakistan. Flouting all diplomatic proprieties and violating the SAARC charter, the Pakistani Interior Minister launched into a tirade against India during the conference. The Indian Home Minister, who received an icy reception, cut short his visit to Islamabad and returned home. A cloud is now hanging over the SAARC summit scheduled in November in Islamabad. With the Indian Finance Minister dropping out of the Finance Ministers meeting in Islamabad later this month, and the war of words and a visible hardening of stand in India, the prospects for the SAARC summit appear very bleak.

Quetta Hospital Bombing Wipes out Cream of Balochistan’s Legal Community

In yet another senseless act of terrorism, claimed by both the Islamic State (IS) and Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, around 75 people were killed and over a 100 injured in a suicide bombing at the Quetta Civil Hospital. The bulk of the victims were lawyers who had collected at the hospital in solidarity with the president of the bar association who had been assassinated earlier in the day. The assassination and the bombing were clearly part of the same plot. A day later, a judge of the Federal Shariat Court was targeted in Quetta.

There is as yet no clear answer as to why the legal community has been targeted by the terrorists. The attack however wiped out virtually the entire top rung of the lawyer community in Quetta. The response of the authorities was fairly predictable with the Chief Minister of Balochistan and other top officials declaring within an hour of the attack that it was the handiwork of India. Interestingly, the attack worked quite well for the military establishment which used it to push the envelope on their demand for greater powers (many of which encroach in the domain of the civilian government) to fight against terrorists. So much so that a day after a marathon meeting between the civilian and military leadership, the army chief issued a statement expressing dissatisfaction over the lack of progress in implementing the National Action Plan, a clear indictment of the civilian government. With the civil-military tension once again coming to the surface, the Nawaz Sharif government is once again under pressure to kow-tow to the demands of an assertive and intrusive military.

Remittances and Exports Data Sets Alarm Bells Ringing

Even as Pakistan is trying to solve the problems of laid off and unpaid workers in Saudi Arabia, the Pakistan economy could be facing a serious crisis in terms of falling remittances and that too at a time when exports too have been falling steadily over the last two years. Remittances of around $19 billion are one of the mainstays of the economy. But if the 20% drop year-on-year and a 36% drop month-on-month becomes a trend, the economy could soon find itself facing another Balance of Payments crisis. Remittances from Saudi Arabia, the largest source of remittances, have also shown a drop that is in line with the general fall. Although some analysts believe that a drop in remittances in July was because of Eid, if this trend holds then Pakistan could be forced to approach the IMF once again. Even though the IMF has given a clean bill of health to the economy and cleared the last tranche of the EFF programme, it has cautioned that the economy could face go into a tailspin if the reforms process was reversed.

Afghanistan

NUG Under Strain as Abdullah-Ghani Split Widens

Even as the two year period for formalising the political arrangement worked out between President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah is coming to an end without any progress, the acrimony between the President and the CE has worsened. Coming at a time when the threat from the Taliban is becoming ever more serious, it doesn’t augur well for political stability in Afghanistan.

Abdullah has publicly called Ghani ‘unfit for presidency’ and blamed him for the failure to bring about the promised political and electoral reforms. He has also accused the president of not even meeting his own CE for the last three months to discuss the affairs of state and the reforms process. The President’s office has however tried to paper over and play down the differences by announcing that ‘serious and substantive’ discussions would take place very soon. But clearly, at a time when the Afghan government is struggling on the security front and trying to restore confidence of the people, the last thing it needs is political squabbling which will only divide the anti-Taliban forces in Afghanistan.

Taliban Offensive in North and South Afghanistan

Despite the change in terms of engagement of US troops giving them the operational freedom to assist the Afghan forces, and notwithstanding the recent four-nation (China, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan) intelligence cooperation agreement brokered by China, the Taliban offensive against the Afghan government has continued apace in both north and south of the country. Taliban forces not only captured a district in the Northern province of Baghlan but also have pushed ahead with their offensive in the Southern province of Helmand, virtually bringing the capital Lashkargah under siege. Thousands of people have been forced to shift from their homes to escape the fighting around the provincial capital.

Meanwhile, there are reports of an informal understanding/ceasefire being struck between the Taliban and the IS fighters in Eastern Afghanistan so that both the terror groups can target the Afghan forces and the foreign troops assisting the government. While this informal deal is not expected to be durable, it nevertheless complicates the security situation for the government forces. Worse, it releases the pressure on the IS which was increasingly the focus of air-strikes and drone attacks by the US troops even as it was having to contend with ground attacks by both the government and Taliban forces.

China

Chinese Foreign minister Wang Yi‘s visit to India (12-14 August 2016)

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi paid a three day visit to India; his second since 2014, from 12-14 August 2016. The main agenda of the visit was to discuss the preparations relating to the two upcoming important summits, G20 to be held in China (Hangzhou) and the BRICS in India (Goa). Wang Yi directly arrived in Goa and met Chief Minister Parsekar. He reportedly discussed the preparations for the BRICS summit in October. Later, in New Delhi, he called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and held discussions with, Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj.

Apart from the agenda, the visit came in the backdrop of growing friction in Sino-Indian relations primarily over the Nuclear Supplier’s Group (NSG) and the South China Sea (SCS) issues. Despite all the efforts from the Indian side, China did not support India’s candidature. Similarly, after the Permanent Court of Arbitration award on the China-Philippines dispute, China is apprehensive of a negative Indian stands on the issue. Until now, India has not taken any side and believes in the freedom of navigation in the region. The Ministry of External Affairs of India issued a statement, “India has noted the Award of the Arbitral Tribunal constituted under Annex VII of the 1982 United Nation Convention on the Law if Sea (UNCLOS) in the matter concerning the Republic of the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China”. The Chinese Foreign minister, it is assessed, came to urge India not to raise the SCS issue during the G20 summit next month and to only focus on economic issues.

It may also be noted that next month, PM Narendra Modi will visit Vietnam (one of the claimants in the SCS dispute) after the 11th East Asia Summit in Laos (6-8 September). Strategically, Vietnam is a vital country for India in its ‘Act East policy’. Earlier, Vietnam had given Indian company ONGC Videsh drilling rights in the SCS’s block 127 and 128. China is skeptical about the bilateral visit to Vietnam.

The major outcome of Wang Yi’s visit was an agreement to hold talks between the two countries on India’s candidature for the NSG. It was agreed that a focused dialogue would take place between the Indian Joint Secretary dealing with disarmament and international security and China’s Director-General of Arms Control and disarmament. Additionally, to deal with other irritants in the bilateral relations it was agreed to establish a mechanism between the Indian Foreign Secretary and his Chinese counter, Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui.

Wang Yi also took this opportunity to make China’s stand clear on the recent Chinese activities in the POK, China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Masood Azhar issue. The visit exemplifies the growing maturity in Sino-Indian relations. Overall, it shows that China can no longer afford to let the Sino-Indian relations ebb further.

Developments related to THAAD

On 3 August 2016, DPRK fired one of the longest ballistic missile off the North’s east coast. This was the first ballistic missile test-launch since DPRK tested a Scud-type short-range missile and two mid-range Rodong ballistic missiles on 19 July 2016. Developments over the THAAD deployment have increased the tensions within ROK, friction between China and South Korea and overall tension in Northeast Asia.

Within ROK there is growing disenchantment about the deployment. Protests have occurred in the Seongju country where THAAD is proposed to be deployed. The Park Geun hye government is thinking of shifting the designated area within the county. There have been sharp reactions from China over the decision of THAAD deployment. In response to Chinese criticism, South Korea’s Kim Seong-u, chief presidential secretary for public affairs, affirmed on 7August 2016, “Chinese media are putting the cart before the horse in insisting that Seoul’s decision to deploy the THAAD system in its territory is the cause of Pyongyang’s successive ballistic missile launches and other military provocations.” “The fundamental reason for the decision to deploy THAAD lies in the rising nuclear and missile threats from North Korea. If such threats from the North disappear, THAAD won’t be needed.” China has also repeatedly opposed the deployment of THAAD. On 8 August 2016, six lawmaker of the main opposition party of the Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) flew to China to discuss the deployment of the THAAD with the Chinese experts. In terms of regional security, on 11 August 2016, the UNSC failed to agree on a US drafted statement that condemns North Korea’s latest ballistic missile launch. Japan is also thinking of installing THAAD anti-missile system. China and Russia may cooperate on the joint work of developing strategic offensive weaponry and acquire and overwhelming advantage against the US anti-missile system. Notably, despite the regional responses and increasing tension between China and South Korea, the US and South Korea will conduct their annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian military exercises from 22-25August 2016.

China holds live ammunition drill in the East China Sea

Amid increasing tension in the South China Sea, on 1 August 2016, the Chinese navy held a live fire drill in the East China Sea. The date is important as it marks the 89th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).The drill comes just within fortnight after the PCA award on the South China Sea which China has rejected calling it a “waste paper”. The East China Sea is yet another disputed region between China and Japan. In 2013, China had declared ADIZ in this region. The drill involved naval aviation forces, including submarines, ships and coast guard troops, dozens of missiles and Torpedoes. As many as 300 ships and dozens of warplanes from the fleets of East Sea, South Sea and North Sea from People’s Liberation Army took part in the drills troops which are responsible for communications, electronic warfare and maritime defence. Radars were also part of the exercise. The Chinese defence ministry said in a brief statement, “An information technology- based war at sea is sudden, cruel and short, which requires fast transition to combat status, quick preparation and high assault efficiency.” One of the Chinese Navy officer said the drill was aimed at honing the assault “intensity, precision, stability and speed” of troops amid heavy electromagnetic influences. Playing down on the drills China called the drill as a ‘routine’ exercise.

Gradually, tensions have started building in the East China Sea region. On 5August and 9 August about 300 Chinese fishing boats along 28 government ships intruded Senkaku/Diaoyu islands. Later, these ships were warned by a Japanese patrol vessels and asked to go away.

President Tsai Ing-wen apologies for centuries of injustice to the Aboriginal People

On 1 August 2016, President Tsai Ing-wen apologised formally to the people of aboriginal origin for the long centuries of “pain and mistreatment” they have suffered. She chose this date because on this day 22 years ago, the term “shanbao” (mountain people) in the Additional Articles of Taiwan Constitution was replaced with the name “indigenous people”. President Tsai is the only President until now with the aboriginal blood. Her grandmother was from the Paiwan indigenous tribe. During her election campaign she had mentioned about the atrocities over these people as the nation was ruled by a number of foreign regimes and promised to help them if she was elected. In 2005, during the last DPP reign the Indigenous People’s Basic Law was already adopted but after that due to change in the regime nothing much was done on this aspect.

She apologized to the indigenous people because their four hundred years ago culture and lifestyle was destroyed by the foreigners. The Dutch coloniser’s began importing Chinese labourers in large number on the island. Today, they still form 2 percent of the population. Many of them are unemployed and others are earning wages as low as 40 per cent less than the national wages. Much of their land is now designated national park, leading to clashes over hunting, fishing and foraging in areas where permits are needed.

In her speech, she acknowledged that without the knowledge of Yami tribe the government stored nuclear waste on Orchid Island for which they suffered negative consequence and promised compensation to them. She announced setting up of an indigenous Historical Justice and Transitional Justice Commission under the Presidential Office. From 1 November 2016, they will begin to delineate and announce indigenous traditional territories and lands.

Nepal

Political Developments:

Dahal Elected Prime Minister of Nepal, Forms 9-Member Cabinet:

CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal was elected 39^th prime minister of Nepal on August 3, securing 363 votes with 210 votes cast against him. Of the total parliamentarians, 573 lawmakers participated in votingduring. This is Dahal’s second tenure to the country’s top executive post. Dahal took the oath of office and secrecy from President Bidya Devi Bhandari on August 4 and formed a six-member cabinet, with Bimlendra Nidhi of Nepali Congress and Krishna Bahadur Mahara of CPN (Maoist Centre) as Deputy Prime Ministers.

Dahal, on August 8, expanded his cabinet, inducting three ministers from two fringe parties—Rashtriya Prajatantra Party and CPN (United). The Nepali Congress is set to have 12 ministries in the Dahal-led government, including Ministry of Foreign Affairs. NC, the key coalition partner in the government, so far, has nominated only two ministers to the government—Deputy Prime Minister Nidhi and Minister for Home Affairs and Ramesh Lekhek as Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport. As per understanding CPN (Maoist Centre) will get eight portfolios.

External Relations:

Dahal Gets Modi’s Invitation as Congratulations Pours In:

India, China, United States and Japan congratulated Pushpa Kamal Dahal on being elected as the new Prime Minister, wishing him success for his new term. The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi telephoned Dahal some minutes after the Parliament announced his victory and congratulated him and assuring full support. PM Modi also extended invitation to PM Dahal to visit India.

DPMs to Visit Delhi & Beijing:

The Nepali government at its cabinet meeting, on August 11, decided to send Deputy Prime Ministers Bimlendra Nidhi and Krishna Bahadur Mahara as special envoys to India and China respectively. Besides, Deputy Prime Minister Mahara, who also looks after the Ministry of Finance, embarked on a special mission to China, on August 15.

Dahal Keen to Welcome Chinese President Xi in Nepal:

The new Prime Minister (Aug-9) told a visiting Chinese delegation that he was keen to welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kathmandu. It is expected that the Chinese President would come to Nepal on an official visit in October. Xi is scheduled to attend a BRICS Summit along with the heads of State of Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa, on October 15-16, in New Delhi.

Bhutan

Internal Developments:

Former Foreign Minister Acquitted of All Charges:

The Supreme Court, on July 28, overturned the High Court’s ruling and exonerated both appellants; the former Foreign Minister Rinzin Dorje and former project manager Wangchuk Tshering, affirming the lower court’s verdict. Last year, on September 3, the High Court had convicted Rinzin Dorje to a year in prison with a penalty of NU 111,640 for misusing government property.

External Relations:

Bhutan-China Boundary Talks Begin:

The 24^th round of boundary talks between Bhutan and China began, on August 11. The talks will review and adopt the report of the Joint Technical Field Survey of the disputed areas in western sector of Bhutan-boundary, among others. The Joint Technical Field survey of the areas in the western sector was carried out jointly in June and September 2015.

Bangladesh

Political Developments:

BNP Executive Committee Formed:

BNP announced a 502-member National Executive Committee, on August 6 that included 19 Standing Committee Members, 73 Advisors, 34 Vice-Chairmen and 7 Joint Secretaries General. Incongruities and anomalies in the committee, announced after four and a half months of council session, bred resentments and frustrations in the party. A number of leaders alleged that many senior and dedicated leaders were deliberately excluded while junior level leaders were placed in the NSC.

War Crimes: Shakhawat Gets Death Sentence:

The International Crimes Tribunal, on August 10, sentenced former Jama’at MP from Jessore, Md Shakhawat Hossain, to death for committing crimes against humanity in 1971. The tribunal also awarded imprisonment till natural death to seven associates of Shakhawat.

Government orders closure of All ‘Peace Schools’:

Ministry of Education, in a statement released, on August 2, urged the Home Ministry to initiate immediate measures to close all ‘Peace Schools’ operating without approval. It has also ordered the Dhaka Education Board to cancel approval of the ‘Peace International School’ in Dhaka. The government has already banned Peace TV in the wake of allegations against Zakir Naik that at least two of the Dhaka Bakery attackers were inspired by him.

Terrorists’ Activities:

TK 40 Lakh Bounty On Top Two Militants:

On August 2, police released photographs, permanent addresses, last whereabouts, passport numbers of the two top militants, Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury and sacked Major Syed Ziaul Haque. The police have declared a bounty of Tk 20 lakh each on the masterminds of the Gulshan and Sholakia attacks.

Police Foiled Suicide Attack Bid by JMB:

Members of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police claimed to have foiled a suicide attack attempt by arresting five suicide squad members of the banned militant outfit Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from Dhaka’s Mirpur area, on August 11. As per information received by the CTTC unit, the militants had arrived in Dhaka from the northern region to carry out suicide attack in the city.

Islamic State Magazine Mentions Terror Attack on Dhaka Café:

The latest issue of Islamic State’s propaganda Magazine Dabiq has included the recent terror attacks in Bangladesh, including the murder of a university professor and the Gulshan café attack. The 15^th issue, titled ‘Break the Cross’ is the third mention of attacks perpetrated by the ‘Soldiers of Caliphate’ in Bangladesh. The terror group had claimed responsibility for a number of ‘machete murders’ in the past one and half years in Bangladesh, even as the government continued to deny its presence in the country.

External Relations:

BD Home Minister Skips SAARC Meet in Islamabad:

Bangladesh Home Minister did not participate in the SAARC conference held on August 3 and 4 in Islamabad. Relations between Pakistan and Bangladesh have not yet improved after the diplomatic row following war crimes trials and expulsion of each other’s diplomats in a tit for tat reply in the past months.

North Korean First Secy. Expelled:

Bangladesh government has expelled Han Son-ik, First Secretary of North Korean Embassy in Dhaka for alleged illegal activities violating diplomatic norms. The foreign ministry asked the diplomat to leave Dhaka by August 8. Government took the decision as per recommendations of the National Board of Revenue which had found the diplomat having not follow due processes while bringing in a consignment of tobacco and electronic products worth of Tk 3.5 crore through the Inland container Depot at Kamalapur last month. Earlier, Bangladesh had expelled another North Korean diplomat in March last year after he was caught smuggling around 27 kg gold worth of $1.4 million.

Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit Dhaka in Oct:

Chinese President Xi Jinping is likely to visit Dhaka in October. Bangladesh and China are working to finalise a suitable date convenient to the two countries. The visit may take place before or after the BRICS summit which will be held in India on October 15-16 which will also be attended by the Chinese President.

Sri Lanka:

Joint Opposition holds Protest March:

The Joint Opposition which is a group of parliamentarians headed by former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse, held a rally in Colombo on August 1 to ‘challenge’ the ruling alliance of President Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. The march could be seen as an attempt to re-install MR by mounting a right-wing campaign to try to exploit the hostility toward the government’s attacks on the democratic rights of the working people. The 100-kilometre march from Kandy preceded the Colombo rally was expected to be joined by one million people. Police estimation however put it at 10,000 that could be deliberately low.

The rally was marked by slogans and placards against increased taxes, subsidy cutbacks, postponement of local government elections, opposition to power-sharing with the Tamil elites, and alleged imprisonment of war heroes and Buddhist monks. Addressing the rally, MR declared: “This march is only a dress rehearsal. Next time we will come to go the whole hog.”

The Unity Government seems trying to contain the intensifying political crisis. On the evening before the march, President Sirisena called an emergency meeting of the MR faction of the SLFP and warned that no one would be permitted to “form new movements, forces or parties while remaining in the SLFP.” Yet the march went ahead.

The MR group’s right-wing campaign and the government’s deepening austerity measures are feeding each other, and in the light of these developments; the possibility of formation of a new political party under MR’s leadership cannot be ruled out.

Office of Missing Person’s Bill Passed by Parliament:

Sri Lanka’s parliament has recently passed legislation that allows for an Office of Missing Persons to be created. This is one of the four key pillars of Colombo’s transitional justice agenda. This independent office will ascertain whether those who went missing are still alive and provide other pertinent information surrounding those disappearances. The international community, especially the US, has been quick to praise this development. Global Tamil Forum, a London-based diaspora group, has also welcomed it.

Some analysts have noted that there were serious problems with the way in which the OMP was created. Many others, including Human Rights Watch, had previously raised concerns about the lack of proper public consultations related to the OMP’s establishment; potentially an important step in the direction of reconciliation. Sirisena has already made it clear that the OMP’s creation isn’t an attempt to go after the Sri Lanka Army. Unlike what the title of Bill suggests, not only missing but also enforced disappearances have been included in OMP’s mandate.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mangala Samaraweera said the new legislation would provide for the setting up of a Truth Commission next month to ascertain the circumstances under which people went missing and also pointed that the legislation fulfilled the commitment made to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and was in line with the mandate received by President Sirisena.

There are conflicting figures with regard to the number of people gone missing under various circumstances and that it was important to confirm the actual number. The ICRC, in its latest report, had placed the number at 16,008, the UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances at 12,000 and the Paranagama Commission at 24,000. Of the number mentioned by the UN Working Group, 5,100 were from the security forces.

The funds would be raised from internal and external sources; the latter would be channeled through the External Resources Department of the Central Bank. Foreign experts might be consulted by the OMP when carrying out its duties and it would have accesses to any of the detention centers without prior notice. Amendment by the JVP to notify the police within 48 hours after such a visit was incorporated in the Bill and added that one of the clauses provided for the protection of confidentiality of those giving information.

PM Wickramasinghe’s China Visit:

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is on a six-day official China visit from August 13, to underline the new relationship with Beijing. This is widely seen as a major foreign policy shift by the National Government. On the eve of Wickremesinghe’s China mission a new agreement was signed in Colombo for the controversial Colombo Port City Project which is now being described as the Colombo Financial City Project with extensive facilities for business, offshore Banking and leisure.

Meanwhile, the government is reported to have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China with the assurance to encourage Chinese investments and to implement key projects including the Colombo-Ratnapura Expressway. Among the proposed Chinese investments to be implemented on a priority basis are the Hambantota Integrated Development Project, the Hambantota Port Phase II, Hambantota Port Dockyard, the Mattala International Airport Integrated Project, Sothern Railway Project from Beliatta to Hambantota, the International Technology Institute and the construction of a part of the Central Expressway. Oil refinery and feasibility study on water reservoirs for Economic Development of Hambantota and Moneragala will also be carried out on a priority basis under the MoU.

The two sides have agreed to encourage and support financial institutions to fund and facilitate the execution of these projects. Loans with preferential conditions will also be made available.

Maldives:

Maldives Adopts New Defamation Law:

The Majlis has passed a law that criminalizes defamation and provides for jail terms and steep fines for media outlets, journalists and social media users. The government had promised to have a multiparty parliamentary committee study the bill and to take suggestions from media and other stakeholders. However the ruling party dominated committee on August 8 ignored objections and decided to send the bill back to Parliament for voting. It was passed with a 47-31 vote and now goes to the President for ratification, which is expected soon.

According to the law, media companies and individual bloggers and social media users convicted of criminal defamation can be fined from $1,620 to $130,000. Journalists working for registered media outlets can be fined up to $ 9,730 in addition to the fine imposed on their employer. Failure to pay the fine can result in jail term of up to six months. There is no provision for appeal the fines until they are paid, and the law also requires reporters to reveal their sources of information. The law puts the burden of proof on defendants and allows for revoking the licenses of media companies convicted of defamation.

This bill has been severely criticized by human rights organizations and civil society within the Maldives and outside. The European Union and the embassies from the U.S., Britain, Norway, Germany and the Netherlands, had urged the government not to pass the law. Even former President and head of the Progressive Party of Maldives, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has said that passing of this bill is not something he wants to see done.