A Twitter campaign thought up by Maldives tourism chiefs to try to boost the popularity of the country as a holiday destination has been hijacked by users tweeting about police brutality, political coups and social unrest.
The Maldives tourism authorities urged the islands’ tourism businesses to help make #SunnySideofLife a global trend, but activists used the hashtag to tell the world about the darker side of life in the Maldives.
While @myvisitmaldives boasted: “Maldives has been awarded as the Most Romantic Destination in the World #SunnySideofLife”, Ali Adil tweeted: “#SunnySideOfLife: Pristine white sandy beaches, crystal clear lagoons filled with blood of its citizens who are fighting for democracy”. And there have been hundreds of other tweets echoing Adil. “#SunnySideOfLife: A place where a chicken is not allowed to cross a road without being intimidated by Police,” tweeted @gaanagaa. Others posted pictures of alleged victims of police brutality.
In fact, of the hundreds of tweets using the #SunnySideofLife tag, the majority have been negative.
Many of the tweets are aimed at the government, installed after the ousting of President Mohamed Nasheed in February. Nasheed claims he was forced to resign at gunpoint.
