Bedridden boy at children’s shelter dies after a decade under state care

A young boy with severe disabilities died on Sunday, after over a decade at Fiyavathi, a state-run children’s shelter located in Hulhumale’.

A credible source informed Sun that the young boy, originally from an island in northern Maldives, was taken into state custody around 10 years back. The boy suffered from debilitating disabilities and was bedridden when taken to state custody.

He died of natural causes at the age of 15 on Sunday.

The young boy had been among children who had been at the shelter the longest, and was well-loved by the shelter’s staff. He had previously been taken to India for treatment at state expense as his condition deteriorated.

His funeral on Sunday night was attended by dozens of people mourning his loss, including senior former state officials. This included former Maldivian vice president Faisal Naseem, former gender minister Aishath Mohamed Didi, former home minister Imran Abdulla, and former in-charge of Fiyavathi, Zeena Qasim.

The Social and Family Development Ministry has not issued an official statement regarding the death. And efforts to get a comment from the ministry have been unsuccessful.