Universal suffrage at 18?

Despite government attempts to sabotage, parliament has decided that everybody above the age of 18 is going to be able to take part in the referendum to find out which system of government the Maldives should have. What does this really mean to the everyday teenager in this country? Is everybody above 18 really going to get so excited and run out to the poll booths so that they can be heard? And add 20,000 new voters in the country? And if they do, is this country at a level of political maturity that the teenage voting populace should really influence the lives of the rest of the population? Does it also mean that everybody above the age of 18 is also going to be allowed to vote in future elections of this country as well and not just this one time referendum?

Is this country ready for this likely scenario? Is this not asking for trouble when this country is ruled by dominating conservatives? I for one support universal suffrage at the age of 18. I believe that we should throw caution to the wind and find out in practice what sort of effect such a drastic change would have on this small community. Maybe things wouldn't really be so bad. Of course there would be a teething period, as there is for all new things. But it would surely work itself out in time.

The law in this country already treats 18 year olds as adults. We get prosecuted at 18. We can can married at 18. And if we are going to be allowed by law to vote at the age of 18, then the question that also begs an answer is why are we not allowed to join political parties when we turn 18? The current law that says that you have to be 21 to join political parties is certainly robbing a large number of "legal adults" from actively being involved in the political affairs of our country. Only if they are allowed to join political parties would we truly be letting the youth get involved in the politics of this country. In return we would be creating a new generation of young Maldivians who are concerned about their country, out of which will emerge much younger more energetic leaders who could lead this nation into the future.

If these changes are not brought in soon, the youth of this nation will simply be a tool to be used by their elders when they want votes on issues that matter to them. Where does that leave them? I dont think they want to be that much of a 'tool'.

*Image taken from Minivan News