BAA EYDHAFUSHI

I was provided an air ticket on Indian Airlines from Trivandrum to Male for late December 2005. The academic year would start only in mid January 2006. To avoid spending idle days on the island, I tried to change the date of my flight. Indian Airlines informed me that all flights for the next few weeks were fully booked and it was not possible to change the flight date. I bought another ticket on Sri Lankan Airlines. Only first class tickets were available and I had to pay extra for it. There was a stopover at Colombo and I reached Male in the evening. No rooms were available at Athama Palace. They suggested I try Buruneege Residence. I got a room there. 

Next day, I visited the Ministry of Education and deposited my passport as required. They gave me a receipt and arranged my travel to Baa Eydhafushi. When I got on the speed boat, I met two other expatriates who were headed for the same island. They were Sri Lankans. We reached Baa Eydhafushi in the evening. The island is located in Baa Atoll. There was nobody to receive us. I realised then, that I could not expect the same kind of hospitality that I was used to in Raa Meedhoo.

The Sri Lankans who were returning after their vacation arranged a room for me. It was a big room with a toilet and a small kitchen. There was something amiss. The room was cleaned a few minutes before my arrival. There were cracks on the walls and cockroaches were coming out of the cracks. I told the owner about it and they sprayed some insecticide. I did not like the room and had to find a better place to stay. Later on, I came to know that the owner of the building was an administrator of the Baa Atoll Education Centre. He had told the Sri Lankans to take me to this room.

A few days later, I located a better room in a building called Violet Villa. I packed my bags and arranged a taxi that night. I paid my dues and left for the new room. I would stay there for the next four years.

Baa Atoll Education Centre is located at the centre of the island. There was a Mosque nearby and a burial ground across the road. The Principal was an overseas educated Maldivian. On some days, he would stand at the gate to welcome the staff and students in the morning. He would shake hands with them and wish them ‘good morning.’ When he was free, he would sit with us in the staff room and discuss school matters. He expected everyone to speak English fluently. Those who were not fluent were transferred. Sometimes new recruits who did not meet his expectations were sent back to the ministry without being given a chance to enter the classroom. On Teacher’s day, there was a party and a buffet dinner. I saw the principal handing out plates to all the guests.

In the report book under the heading ‘conduct’ there were three options for the class teachers to choose from. They were ‘excellent’, ‘good’ and ‘needs improvement.’ The principal insisted that all students should be given excellent or good. He felt he was encouraging all the students. 

One day, I saw a Sri Lankan lady teacher in casual dress correcting student’s assignments in the staff room. The supervisor asked her to go to class, since she had a class at that time. She told the supervisor that she was on leave and will not be going to the class. We could not understand how a person on leave could be correcting assignments in the staff room.

I saw one Indian Teacher marking the student’s examination papers in the staff room. He placed one marked paper aside and told me that student got the highest marks. He also said that student is the daughter of a high official in the school. I was surprised since he had not marked the other papers yet. He had obviously decided to give the highest marks to this student to please the high official.

Baa Eydhafushi had a population of about 2000 people. It was a small island and you could reach anywhere on the island by walking a few minutes. It was more developed than Raa Meedhoo. There was a bank, a post office and a hospital. There were a few small restaurants and several shops. A few taxis and pickup trucks were also available. They had a police station, a radio station and two mobile phone towers. There was a small movie theatre.

Whenever we left for vacation or returned after vacation, we had to make our own arrangements to transport our luggage. Unlike in Raa Meedhoo, the local staff provided no help. Also expatriates were generally not invited to weddings and other functions on the island. Sometimes an invitation to a wedding was placed on the notice board. In Raa Meedhoo, they used to personally invite each expatriate for weddings.

We visited the Bank of Maldives on the island once a month, when our salary was credited to our account. We withdrew some money for our use and arranged to transfer some amount to our accounts in India. The staff at the bank was polite and efficient. 

The hospital was located on the western side of the island. It was a small hospital with about ten beds. Doctors were mostly from India. There were a few Maldivian and Russian doctors as well. It was a clean and neat place. Once, I had a fever and consulted a Maldivian doctor at the hospital. I think I had chickengunya. A small white mosquito bit me. I killed it but felt a reaction in my body. It was not a usual mosquito bite. The doctor prescribed some tablets to be taken for a few days. I asked him for a leave letter. He told me to meet him after I get well. It took about five days for me to recover. I then realised that he knew a one day leave letter would not be sufficient. There were no dentists on the island. When I had a toothache, I had to visit Male to see a dentist.

In 2008 a new principal took charge. He was an Indian. He kept aloof for a few days and then started building a close relationship with a select group of teachers. He never entered the staff room and had a different attitude. His communication with the teachers was mostly through the head of departments.

I never went swimming in Baa Eydhafushi. The water was not clean. People threw waste into the sea. I tried swimming at the boat jetty but it was too deep for me. I was not a good swimmer. Football is the most popular sport in the Maldives. The English Premier League is widely followed. Their favourite teams were Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool. In Baa Eydhafushi you can see the emblems of these teams painted on the walls. During the world cup large screens are set up outside and people watch the matches together through the night. 

It was during my stay at Baa Eydhafushi that the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) grew in popularity and its leader Mohammed Nasheed won the election to become the new president. People expected more freedom and less corruption. Though the people are generally not corrupt, some of the earlier political leaders were suspected to have diverted government funds to their personal accounts. President Gayoom’s photo which was hanging on the walls of every government office was taken down when he lost the election.

During the end of 2009, I submitted my resignation and informed the authorities that I would not be returning for the next academic year. I had spent four years in Baa Eydhafushi.