Author: Ahmed Nazeer

MDA Leader ‘Sun’ Shiyam denies alcohol smuggling charges in court

Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) leader Ahmed ‘Sun’ Shiyam has denied the charges of alcohol possession before the Criminal Court.

The prominent businessman and MP for Dhaalu Meedhoo constituency was allegedly with the illegal bottle of liquor by customs official on his arrival airport on his arrival in Malé in March 2012.

Lawyers from the Prosecutor General’s Office told the court that when customs officers searched his luggage, officers discovered the bottle inside before running tests on its contents. The PG’s Office announced it was pressing charges against Shiyam for possession of alcohol and smuggling alcohol into the country.

Shiyam denied the charges and his lawyer requested that the court give him more time to research the case before the next hearing on April 10.

Newspaper ‘Haveeru’ reported that Shiyam was brought to court by police in compliance with an arrest warrant issued after the MP had failed to comply with the court summons.

According to Haveeru, Shiyam was kept in the guest area of the court – unlike other suspects brought to court – and unlike other MPs under the same circumstances.

Online newspaper Sun Online – run by a company owned by Shiyam – today quoted Shiyam’s legal team saying that it was a set-up to destroy the MP’s reputation.

His legal team told Sun that Shiyam was the owner of many resorts and there was no reason Shiyam should try to bring in an alcohol bottle from abroad. Shiyam was not hiding from the courts and will fully obey all laws, Sun was informed.

The Criminal Court last week ordered the police to arrest and summon both Shiyam and Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) former Special Envoy to President Mohamed Nasheed, Ibrahim Hussein Zaki.

Zaki is facing trial after he was arrested from the island of Hondaidhoo in Haa Dhaalu Atoll while he was allegedly in possession of cannabis and alcohol in November 2012.

The speedy prosecution of MDP members in relation to the Hondaidhoo incident – in comparison to delays in the Shiyam case – was highlighted by Nasheed last October as his party filed a no-confidence motion against then Prosecutor General Ahmed Muiz.

On October 31, 2013, the Criminal Court sentenced MDP MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor to six months for contempt of court after he refused to comply with court summons – though the charge was later overturned in the High Court.

On February 20, MDP MP Abdulla Jabir was sentenced by the Criminal Court to one year for refusing to provide a urine sample to police to run a drug test.

Both Hamed and Jabir’s prosecution were in relation to the November 2012 Hondaidhoo raid.

Police have informed the court today that they were unable to arrest Zaki as he was abroad.

The penalty for alcohol possession in the penal code is either a fine of between MVR1,000 to MVR3,000 or imprisonment, banishment, or house arrest for up to three years.

Shiyam’s MDA formed an alliance with the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) in August, 2013, to back the eventual winner of the presidential election, Abdulla Yameen.

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Juvenile Court postpones order to summon HRCM members

The Juvenile Court has postponed an order summoning all members of the Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) to discuss their alleged misleading of the public over the court’s work.

An official from the Juvenile Court has today confirmed to local media that it has now asked all members to produce themselves to the court next Monday (March 17) at 9:30am.

The official told local newspapers that the decision was made in compliance with the commission’s request made due to three members being out of town and the other two also unable to attend.

The Juvenile Court has previously sent letters to the commission on two occasions asking them to discuss a report made regarding a 15 year old minor charged for fornication in 2012.

The court has claimed the report contained misleading information that gave a “negative impression” of the court’s conduct. The report was also said to contain statements that could be considered as attempts to influence the court’s work.

In a matter relating to criticism of the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz has this week said that the maintenance of the respect and the positive reputation of the courts was a constitutional responsibility of all state authorities.

Following the HRCM members’ failure to comply with the court requests last Sunday (March 9), the court issued the summons for today.

The report in question came during the trial of a 15 year-old girl who had given birth to a baby which was later discovered buried in the outdoor bathroom at her residence. Her stepfather was subsequently charged with sexual abuse of a child and committing premeditated murder.

The 15 year-old was convicted of premarital sex at the Juvenile Court on February 26 and sentenced to 100 lashes and eight months of house arrest  after confessing to fornication with another man.

The Attorney General’s Office appealed the case on March 27 last year following appeals from international human rights advocacy organisations and Avaaz.org, which launched an online petition that gained over two million signatures.

On August 21, 2013, the High Court decided to overturn the minor’s sentence after she denied having confessed to consensual sex with an unknown partner during the Juvenile Court trial.  Authorities have previously said the minor had confessed to having consensual sex during a separate investigation into her abuse.

According to Islamic Fiqh scholars, a confession of fornication can be retracted before the resulting sentence is carried out in full, the High Court statement added.

It was further noted by the court that there were discrepancies in the statement given by the girl to the Juvenile Court. The High Court concluded that the minor – found to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder – was unable to correctly define pre-marital sex according to the law.

The High Court argued that its verdict had been based on evidence that the girl was “unfit for trial” during investigations into her alleged abuse and the subsequent Juvenile Court hearings.

The court said that the minor had provided her original statement in the capacity of a victim and not a suspect, and that authorities had therefore not given her the fundamental rights legally required of a suspect in a crime.

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Assaulted inmate flown to Sri Lanka for medical treatment

Officials from the Home Ministry have confirmed to local media that Ibrahim Azar – critically injured during a jail fight in Maafushi prison last month – has been sent to Sri Lanka for medical treatment.

According to a report on the incident shared by the Maldives Correctional Services (MCS) with parliament’s government oversight committee earlier this month, Azar had requested to be transferred from his cell more than an hour before the assault.

A person familiar with the matter told Minivan News that Azar was attacked by his cell mates after calling prison officers when a fight broke out between two of his cell mates on February 24.

“Azar was kept in A-B/Unit-3 of Maafushi Prison with two other inmates, and that day the two inmates had an issue and started fighting,’’ the source said.

“Azar called the prison officers and the prison officers talked to the two that were fighting and resolved the issue – but as soon as the prison officer left they started fighting again.’’

He added that Azar called the prison officers once more, though the fighting had stopped by the time officers arrived and so the guards left the cell again.

“It repeated three times, and after the fourth time prison officers were called Azar was attacked by his two cell mates,’’ the source said.

The source alleged that Azar’s cell mates attacked him using a razor blade. He received multiple wounds to his body, and his head was allegedly banged against the cell wall or the metal fence.

However, officials from the MCS had denied that any “sharp objects” were used in the assault when asked by MPs at the oversight committee meeting.

The source meanwhile said that the hospitalised inmate was “very skinny” and “very weak.”

“After the attack the prison officers had to wrap him inside a mat to carry him outside due to bleeding, his head was smashed,” he said.

“The inmates have to shake the metal fences to alert the prison officers if anything is happening otherwise they will pretend they did not hear,’’ he said.

“If one cell starts shaking the fences all the other cells will start shaking the metal fence.’’

MCS report

According to the one-page MCS report, on February 24, Prison Corporal Mohamed Mujthaba, the ranking duty officer at the time of the incident, was informed by guards of unrest in cell number 12 of unit three, wing one, at about 5:25pm.

Mujthaba questioned the prisoners and was asked by two of the three inmates in cell 12 – Ali Ashwan of Ma. Oasis Villa and Azar – to be transferred to a different cell.

“However, when [the inmates] were asked to explain the reason for wanting to change cells, they refused to do so until they were taken out of the cell,” the report revealed.

At about 6:00pm, the report stated, instructions were given to transfer the inmates, but the third inmate in cell 12 – Ahmed Liushan, also from Ma. Oasis Villa – obstructed prison guards who attempted to take the other inmates out of the cell.

At about 6:50pm, Mujthaba and Emergency Support Group officers made their way to the cell upon hearing a commotion from the unit, finding the “severely beaten” Azar inside.

Negligence in the prison was also reported to have led to violence in December 2010 after inmates attempted to inform prison officers of the illness of a cell-bound inmate.

After officers failed to respond to pleas from inmates, prisoners reportedly shook the bars to gain the attention of officers – who were subsequently alleged to have beaten the inmates causing the disturbance.

“Nobody cares for the inmates, only some politicians speak about it, but only for political purposes and not with the intention of correcting anything,” said a source close to the incident at the time.

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Fishermen to protest EU fish import policy

Vice President of the Maldives National Chamber Of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI) Ismail Asif has today said that Maldivian fishermen are going to stage a protest against the EU.

The protest is to express concern regarding the decision made by the EU not to extend the duty-free status of imported fish from the Maldives, following the country’s failure to comply with international conventions concerning freedom of religion.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday Asif claimed that the EU was attempting to take advantage of the country’s delicate economy and force certain policies on the Maldives.

”The MNCCI had tried to talk with the EU regarding the issue but the EU declined to go for negotiations,” he said, adding that the EU was trying to spread policies that Maldivians do not accept under the guise of human rights.

”But they never directly tell us that their issue is that the Maldives does not have religious freedom,” Asif said.

“They always say under this article of that convention or something like that.”

Asif questioned the capacity in which EU was here in the Maldives and said he will ask the government why the EU was brought here and why the government had given opportunity for such a dangerous group of people.

The EU yesterday revealed details of its first full EU Election Observation Mission to take place in the Maldives, with around 30 observers working to compile a comprehensive report on the entire Majlis elections process.

Asif said the EU delegation might go back and write another report and start taking actions against the country. He suggested that democracy – which he argued was more than observing elections and criticising – could only be strengthened after stabilising the economy of the country.

Businessmen in the Maldives are very concerned that an EU delegation had come to the Maldives after taking measures that would harm the economy of the country, Asif said.

”While they had taken these actions against us they did not consider that the Maldives is the country that does fishing the most environmentally friendly way,” he said.

The EU was doing anything they want to the Maldives because it is a small country, he argued, adding that all they do is provide funds for local NGOs to spread their propaganda.

”Maldivians can decide anything they want to decide when they want to decide it,” he said.

The Maldives exports 40 percent of its US$100 million fishing industry to the EU, its single largest export partner by value.

Until January 2014 those exports were duty-free under the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) program, a non-reciprocal trade agreement extended to developing countries.

The Maldives applied for an extension under the ‘GSP+’ program, a unilateral trade concession of the EU given to a limited number of countries on the basis of good implementation of human rights are labor conventions, officials said, however did not qualify due to the country’s reservations to ICCPR on religious freedom and CEDAW concerning women’s rights.

The total fish catch has been declining each year since 2006 reaching 83.1 thousand metric tonnes in 2011, leading to fears about the impact of climate change and overfishing by better equipped fishing fleets on the borders of the Maldives’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

In November last year, the government said that the Maldives will look to alternative fish export markets, including the middle-eastern and the Malaysian market.

Asif was unavailable for comment when contacted by Minivan News today.

Under the Maldivian constitution all citizens are required to be Sunni Muslim and the practice of other religions is criminalised. Customs authorities forbid the import of religious items and scan the baggage of tourists arriving at the airport, while politicians frequently use allegations of ‘consorting with missionaries’ as a political attack.

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Deputy PG calls on authorities to take religious extremism more seriously

Deputy Prosecutor General Hussein Shameem has called on authorities to take terrorism issues more seriously, noting the most common source comes from religious extremism.

”We should become more proactive and stop complaining about the missing laws,” he told Minivan News today. ”There are things we can still do to curb crimes although some of the necessary laws are still not passed.”

Shameem noted that the current Terrorism Act was adequate, but the lack of laws such as the Evidence Act was an issue.

Speaking at a ceremony held to commence a police terrorism-training course last night, Shameem told attendees that past incidents of terrorism occurred in the Maldives due to a lack of discussion on the issue of religious extremism.

While the absence of  laws to stop some types of crimes was a problem, Shameem stated that it was not a reason for police to stop work on combating them. He advised authorities to follow international best practice in a manner that respects suspects’ constitutional rights.

He also said that the police must be two steps ahead when laws pertaining to the issue come into existence in the Maldives.

Shameem’s comments echoed those of the Minister for Islamic Affairs Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed,who has also suggested that religious differences in the country could be solved “if we sit down and share religious information”.

The minister’s comments followed Malé City Council’s closure of the Dharumavantha Rasgefaanu mosque after the council received complaints from the Home Ministry that the mosque was being used by an extremist congregation who had been advocating for the destruction of the current government.

The congregation were praying that Allah would give victory against the “irreligious” government which attempts to obstruct the spreading of Allah’s message and to shut down mosques. Requesting victory, they also asked Allah to destroy and send his wrath upon military and police officers implementing the government’s orders.

In August 2013, Sheikh Shaheem had expressed concern that Friday prayers conducted in the mosque were not conducted by state authorised Imams.

Terrorist risk

In May 2013, the then-Chief of Defence Force Major General Ahmed Shiyam warned of a rising risk of terrorist attack in the Maldives, during a joint local and US military inauguration to establish a level of alerts for terrorism in the country.

Shiyam cautioned against assuming the country was completely safe from terrorist attacks simply based on the fact that no major terrorist activities have been uncovered in the country to date, warning there was an increased risk attacks stemming from “religious extremism and political turmoil”.

“Some [Maldivian] youth have already joined up with terrorist organisations. They are now travelling to various war zones and locations and enrolling in a number of terrorist training camps,” said Shiyam.

“Although some of these youth have managed to travel back to this country, the whereabouts of others remain unknown. This is a warning sign of how terrorism is spreading across our country,” Shiyam said at the time.

He also said that it was immensely important for the security forces to be well-trained in counter-terrorism measures and to ensure the forces remain ready to respond should such an incident occur.

In April 2013, an article published by the Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) entitled ‘The Threat from Rising Extremism in the Maldives‘ stated that in April 2006, a Maldivian national, Ali Jaleel, and a small group of jihadists from the Maldives attempted to travel to Pakistan to train for violent jihad in Afghanistan or Iraq.

The only incident of a terrorist attack on Maldivian soil was the Sultan Park bombing in September 2007.

A bomb exploded in the Malé’s park, wounding 12 foreigners. The three men arrested and later jailed for the bombing confessed that their goal was to “target, attack and injure non-Muslims to fulfill jihad,” noted the CTC report.

After the investigations of security services led to Darul-Khair mosque on Himandhoo Island, police were confronted by 90 islanders, who had armed themselves with batons and knives, vowing to defend the mosque to the last man.

In the ensuing skirmish, a soldier was taken captive and another’s hand was severed. Shortly afterwards a video discovered on an Al Qaeda forum was found to contain footage taken inside the Dhar-al-khuir mosque moments before it was raided by police.

Evidence suggests that three Maldivian jihadists planned to establish a terrorist group in the country around 2007-2008 and send members for military training in Pakistan.

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MDP asks High Court to halt Feydhoo primary election court case

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has asked the High Court to issue an injunction halting the ongoing Civil Court case filed by MDP MP Alhan Fahmy disputing the result of the party’s Feydhoo constituency primary election.

The party asked that the case be halted until deliberations were concluded on a procedural issue raised with the High Court.

The MDP had suggested that the Civil Court could not proceed with the case as Alhan had not completed all the party’s internal appeal procedures.

Newspaper Haveeru reported that Alhan told the High Court bench today that an injunction against court proceedings could only be issued in situations where either the defendant or respondent might face damage beyond repair should the case continue.

Judges questioned the MDP’s lawyer as to whether the party charter specified that a member could not file a lawsuit against a party decision without first taking the case to the party’s appeal committee, reported the paper.

The MDP lawyer acknowledged that the charter did not state that a member could not file a lawsuit.

The party’s legal representatives did note that Alhan’s stabbing – from which he has been recovering in Sri Lanka – came 18 hours after the party announced the primary results for Feydhoo constituency, giving him time to have filed a case with the appeal committee.

After losing the contest for this month’s Majlis elections to Mohamed Nihad in February, Alhan claimed that the list used on polling day was different from the eligible voter lists, and that any candidate who won the party ticket through a fraudulent vote could not be a valid one.

Last week, the Civil Court informed Alhan that it was beyond its jurisdiction to invalidate the candidacy of Nihad.

Alhan has called for a fresh vote in the constituency, claiming the voter list used at polling stations was outdated and did not afford 67 party members the right to vote.

The MDP’s election committee confirmed that 67 members were missing from the list at the ballot box, but decided against holding a re-vote, arguing that the primary outcome would not change even if these members were allowed to vote.

On February 1 – the same day Alhan announced that he would file a case with the court to cancel the primary – he was stabbed while at Breakwater cafe in the artificial beach area of Malé.

Following the attack Alhan’s left leg was paralysed though he has since regained the ability to walk with the aid of a crutch.

Alhan rejoined the MDP in June 2013 after an apparently acrimonious departure in April of the previous year. Party vice president at the time, Alhan was ejected – alongside party President Dr Ibrahim Didi – after the pair publicly questioned the MDP’s official interpretation of the February 7 ousting of President Mohamed Nasheed.

The Feydhoo MP subsequently organised a rally – sparsely attended – calling for the freeing of the MDP from the influence of Nasheed. Alhan subsequently joined the government-aligned Jumhooree Party.

The MP was initially elected to parliament on a Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) ticket, making him one of the few MPs to have been a member of almost every major political party represented in parliament, barring the DRP’s splinter party, the Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM).

Alhan is now contesting in the parliament election as an independent candidate.

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MBC asks DhiTV to respond to the case filed by ACC

The Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) has asked private TV station DhiTV to respond to a case file by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) alleging that the TV station had misled the public.

Speaking to Minivan News today, ACC President Hassan Luthfee said that the commission had filed the case with MBC after DhiTV had irresponsibly criticised the commission.

“It is alright to criticise me, but the Anti-Corruption Commission is a state institution and everyone must respect all the state institutions,’’ he said. “We accept criticism but it also has to be done professionally.’’

Luthfee said he does not remember the exact quotes broadcast on DhiTV.

“We normally do not give any information about cases before the investigation is concluded and I do not know how the media knew that we filed a case with the MBC,’’ he said.

Furthermore, Luthfee said that everyone must work together to correct issues with the state institutions, and that criticism alone could not solve any issue.

Online newspaper Sun reported that the MBC had sent a letter to DhiTV asking it to respond to the allegations by March 13.

Sun reported that the ACC had filed the case with MBC claiming that on January 20, 2014, DhiTV aired a TV program called ‘Talk of the town’ in which the TV station had broadcast content that was disrespectful of the corruption watchdog.

According to Sun, MBC told DhiTV that the station was alleged to have violated the MBC Code of Practice Article (3)(1), though it had not yet concluded its investigations.

Last month, MBC asked DhiTV and its sister company – the radio station DhiFM Plus – to stop using upside down images of Elections Commission (EC) President Fuwad Thowfeek.

MBC President Mohamed Shaheeb sent a letter to the two stations advising them not to broadcast anything in a way that might encourage unrest, and to keep in mind that the parliament elections were ahead.

MBC gave similar advice to the two stations in November after they had shown photos of three members of the EC – Thowfeek, Ahmed Fayaz, and Ali Mohamed Manik – upside down with a caption alleging that they had committed electoral fraud in the annulled September 7 presidential election.

Following the incident, MBC sent a circular to all broadcasters noting that complaints regarding the disrespectful use of photos had led to it taking action against media outlets for violating the broadcasting code.

In January this year MBC ordered both the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) aligned Raajje TV and the Jumhooree Party-aligned VTV to issue apologies for content broadcast during the prolonged presidential election.

While Raajje TV was found to have aired content defamatory to the Supreme Court, VTV was asked to issue an apology for material defaming the MDP’s presidential candidate Mohamed Nasheed, as well  as MP Rozaina Adam, and EC President Thowfeek.

Broadcasting any image or video footage that disrespects the honor or sanctity of a person or a group of persons is in violation of MBC’s Code of Practice.

The broadcasting commission is a 7-member body entrusted with implementation of broadcasting policy, regulation of broadcasting industry, and the promotion of responsible broadcasting, was formed in 2010 under the Broadcasting Act.

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State to appoint lawyer to Hanaa in her appeal case

The Attorney General’s Office has said that it will appoint a lawyer for Fathimath Hanaa, who was sentenced to death after the court found her guilty of assisting Ahmed Murrath in murdering of prominent lawyer Ahmed Najeeb.

In the latest hearing of her appeal case, the High Court bench had announced that Hanaa was not eligible for a state-appointed lawyer.

Hanaa had subsequently told the court that she needed three months to appoint a lawyer, with the Prosecutor General’s Office giving no objection to this request.

However, the Attorney General’s office has today told local media that Hanaa now meets the requirements after she submitted additional documents to the office.

On July 2, 2012, the 65 year-old lawyer’s body was found stuffed inside a dustbin at Masroora house – Murrath’s residence – badly beaten with multiple stab wounds.

Speaking at the Criminal Court during the 2012 trial, Murrath’s girlfriend said that her boyfriend killed Najeeb after he became “sure” the lawyer had attempted to sexually assault her. She admitted to tying Najeeb’s hand, legs, and taped his mouth while Murrath threatened him with a knife.

“We thought he must have a lot of money as he is a lawyer,” she told the court, after declining representation from a lawyer.

Najeeb’s cash card was taken from him and the pair had used it to withdraw money.

According to Hanaa, she did not know that the victim had been killed until Murrath woke her up and told her at around 4:00am. At the time Hanaa said she was sleeping – intoxicated from drinking alcohol.

Murrath corroborated this course of events in his statement, saying that she was asleep when he killed the lawyer. He confessed to killing Najeeb out of anger and apologised to the family members.

On February 17, Ahmed Murrath – the man sentenced to death by the Criminal Court after being found guilty of murdering Najeeb – retracted the confession previously given to the court.

During the last hearing held in to the appeal case of Murrath, his lawyer Abdul Hakeem Rashadh told the High Court that his client’s hands were handcuffed behind his back when he made the confession which therefore could not be considered a confession made without coercion.

On February 9, the cabinet advised President Abdulla Yameen that there was no legal obstruction to implementing death sentences, after the Home Minister Umar Naseer had ordered an end to the 60 year moratorium on executions.

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Brohood Construction Company assigned to install waste management system in Raa atoll

The government has signed an agreement to install waste management systems in Rasgatheemu, Agolhutheemu, and Rasmaadhoo islands – all three islands are in Raa atoll.

A special function was held yesterday at the Environment Ministry to sign the contract with Brohood Construction Company.

State Minister for Environment Ministry Hassan Shah explained that the three projects will cost MVR2.1 million and that the company was to finish the project in 90 days.

The ministry has also revealed details of its recent waste management awareness-raising programmes conducted in both Malé and Hulhumalé.

The programme took place last Saturday (March 1) in Hulhumalé and on February 22 in Malé, sought to increase knowledge of the recently introduced laws that came into effect last month.

The waste management regulation came into force on February 5 and imposes an MVR100 (US$6.5) for littering and a fine between MVR10,000 (US$ 648.5) – MVR100,000 (US$6,485) if any authority in charge of public spaces fails to place public dustbins.

The regulations also mandate boat owners to place dustbins on sea vessels and imposes a fine between MVR100 million (US$6.5 million) and MVR500 million (US$32.4 million) on boats that dump waste into the ocean

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