Komodo Island remains in New7Wonders of Nature campaign, as do the islands of Maldives

On Saturday, readers of Minivan News were greeted with the headline: “Indonesia joins Maldives in withdrawing from New7Wonders competition”.

Now, a good headline is an essential component of good journalism, but headlines don’t always reflect the complexity of a story. An alternative title for the article could have been, “Komodo Island remains in the New7Wonders of Nature campaign, as do the Islands of the Maldives”. Here’s why.

On August 11, the new Official Supporting Committee (OSC) for Komodo Island in the New7Wonders of Nature campaign was announced in Jakarta, Indonesia.

P2Komodo is led by Ms Emmy Hafild, the leading independent Indonesian environmentalist, recognised by Time magazine and the UN for her successful environmental campaigning in the past against the Suharto dictatorship. P2Komodo is an alliance of positive and forward looking members of Indonesian civil society, who are keen to ensure that Komodo Island has a fair chance of participating in the New7Wonders of Nature.

Four days later, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MCT) of Indonesia organised a somewhat surreal press conference in Jakarta to announce the MCT’s “withdrawal of Komodo Island” from the New7Wonders of Nature.

But the MCT had no authority in this matter as it ceased to be the legitimate New7Wonders representative in Indonesia in February, so the announcement was absurd. Naturally, New7Wonders of Nature has no issue with the Indonesian MCT’s right not to be involved in the Komodo Island campaign, in the same way that we have no issue with the MMPRC agency resigning as the OSC for the islands of the Maldives in May.

By the way, the 41 Official Supporting Committees from 37 countries representing the 28 Finalists in the New7Wonders of Nature were invited, all expenses paid (including flights and accommodation) by the Indonesian MCT, to attend the press conference. Only one accepted the generous offer, Mr Simon Hawkins, the British head of the MMPRC agency. Does this mean that Maldives tourism policy is now being influenced by the money of another country? We do not know. However, the MMPRC agency shares with the Indonesian MCT the dubious distinction of both being former OSCs in the New7Wonders of Nature.

Despite a series of malicious attacks on New7Wonders by the MCT, the public and media opinion consensus in Indonesia is that the MCT should not interfere in the democratic right of the Indonesian people to vote for Komodo Island in the New7Wonders of Nature. Voting for Komodo Island itself has increased dramatically since the events of the past few days, showing quite clearly how the people of Indonesia are viewing this matter. As Emmy Hafild has said, “Indonesia is a democratic country, so the government must not prevent the Indonesian people from voting for Komodo and making it one of the New7Wonders successfully”.

We believe the same democratic rights should be extended to the people of the Maldives. Three months have passed since we accepted the resignation of the MMPRC agency, and since then we have received reports of many Maldivian people and organisations that are willing to form a new OSC, but who feel threatened and unable to exercise their civil right of freedom of expression and organisation. That’s why we recently wrote to the government of the Republic of the Maldives, requesting the assurance that it will not interfere with or threaten the formation of such a new OSC for the Islands of the Maldives, and respecting the democratic principles that now guide the nation of the Maldives. We are pleased to say that the government of the Republic of the Maldives has agreed to our request, and we received this assurance in writing on August 20.

Because we believe the time has come for everyone to move on constructively we will not comment again on the many misleading statements that have been made about New7Wonders by the MMPRC agency. Instead, we urge the positive and forward thinking members of Maldivian society to exercise their democratic right to actively support the Islands of the Maldives in the New7Wonders of Nature, like the enlightened majority members of Indonesian civil society are now doing for Komodo Island.

So, here’s the story in a headline: “Komodo Island remains in the New7Wonders of Nature campaign, as do the islands of the Maldives”.

Top 5 Reasons to Travel to the Maldives

As this idyllic island getaway destination continues to soar in popularity, we all know there are many reasons to travel to the Maldives, and each individual traveller will have his own list of wishes and priorities, but here are a few of the best reasons we know of to travel to Maldives.

1. Maldives Beaches

Travel to Maldives will give you the chance to come face-to-face with some of the most incredible beaches in the world. The Maldives comprises hundreds of islands, each surrounded by perfect white sand, swaying palm trees and incredible turquoise blue sea.

All travel in Maldives is done either by boat or plane, both of which give you plenty of time to soak up the amazing beach views. When you’re not dashing about the islands, you’ll enjoy lounging around on these incredible Maldivian beaches or enjoying the view of the Maldives beaches either from your hotel room, swimming pool or scuba diving liveaboard.

2. Maldives Scuba Travel

Maldives scuba travel is widely considered to be some of the best dive travel in the world. The Maldives have been known as a scuba diving destination for many years now so you will find all dive crews and boat captains to be extremely experienced and knowledgeable about Maldives dive travel. There are many Maldives travel books and Maldives travel websites that will give you a good idea of what to expect from your Maldives scuba travel experience before you leave home and that will help you find the best deals and learn about the best time to visit. Just to give a quick overview of what to expect from Maldives diving travel, here are a few pointers.

The best Maldives dive travel experiences, and one of the main reasons people travel to Maldives is the liveaboard diving concept. A Maldives liveaboard trip involves divers living aboard a cruising yacht for any length of time (usually 1 – 2 weeks) and doing a couple of dives a day from the liveaboard. When you’re not diving, you can enjoy other aspects of Maldives travel, including sunbathing, going to the beach, island hopping, fishing and generally relaxing. Maldives liveaboards come in a range of styles; you’ll find that whatever your budget and personal preference, there’ll be a scuba diving liveaboard waiting for you in the Maldives.

3. Aerial Views from Maldives Air Travel

One of the most enjoyable aspects of travel to the Maldives is the incredible views when travelling from the airport to your hotel or liveaboard, if you have the chance to travel by air. When researching your Maldives holiday on any Maldives travel blog, you’re sure to see many aerial photos of the islands, taken during Maldives air travel, which are simply spectacular. Aerial views of the islands really put into perspective how remote of a destination each of the islands really are and just how the colour of the ocean contrasts perfectly with that of the land. It really is the quintessential image of the tropical “islandscape”.

4. Visiting Secluded Maldives Islands

Following on from the idea of the quintessential island image is the opportunity to visit some of the Maldives’ desert islands. Many of the islands are completely uninhabited, or perhaps inhabited only by very small villages of people, who are only to happy to show you around their pristine island and introduce you to their way of life. Villagers will treat you to dances, feasts and other shows of their individual culture and visits to these islands are a very common part of Maldives cruise travel.

5. Incredible Maldives Marine Life

Fascinating Coral Formations and Marine Life
As you would expect from a world-class diving destination, the marine life in the Maldives is nothing short of spectacular. Expect to see brilliantly coloured coral formations, vibrant shoals of reef-dwelling fish, incredibly large pelagic species and, of course the magnificent whale shark. The Maldives is one of the few places in the world where you can expect to glimpse a whale shark throughout the year, which means that travel to Maldives is possible 365 days a year.

When it comes to planning travel in Maldives, there are thousands of resources to help you make the best decisions. Online you will find a selection of Maldives travel agents all offering a wide variety of travel deals to Maldives. It can be difficult finding the best travel agent to book holiday to Maldives, so in these days of social media, the best advice is to ask around, check out blogs on Maldives travel and ask fellow travellers their own experiences and opinions.