Police have sent several cases involving Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) Vice President and MP Ali Waheed to the Prosecutor General’s office.
Deputy Prosecutor General Ahmed Shameem confirmed the office had received several criminal cases concerning Waheed, and would decide in a week whether to take the cases to court.
“There is a process in the Constitution [that if a MP is found guilty of a criminal offence] it is punishable by 12 months in prison. He would be automatically removed from Parliament,” Shameem said.
Police Sub Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said one of the cases concerned Waheed’s claims that police helped protesters during a disturbance outside the president’s residence and MNDF headquarters in January.
He said other cases against Waheed would also be sent to the PG as soon as the police finished their investigations.
Meanwhile Waheed said he was “very confident” that he had not done anything against the law.
”It’s all President Mohamed Nasheed’s doings,” Waheed claimed. ”He is afraid of me.”
He added that he hoped the cases would be sent to the courts as soon as possible.
”They take me to police custody like a medicine they take twice daily,” he said, ”so its difficult to identify which cases they have sent to PG. Ask President Nasheed – I have no idea.”
He maintained that the police decision to detain DRP leaders in during last Thursday’s protests was “politically motivated.”
”That night when they took me Dhoonidhoo I was not doing anything,” he said. ”I was trying to protect our people from being attacked by Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) activists and I was standing in front of DRP office as I am a leader of the party.”
The Maldives Police Service (MPS) has claimed some politicians are using gangs to cause unrest, intimidate people and attack opponents.
Police said that last week’s violent political clashes between major political parties, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), were tied to gang violence.
Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam confirmed that “police have learned some politicians have used gang members to create unrest.”
He said that while the MPS currently could not disclose the names of politicians linked to inciting gang violence, he assured that police “will take legal action against people suspected of being involved in recent violent demonstrations and attacks.”
Minivan News spoke to three gang members on 25 March, two of whom said although they were generally uninterested in politics, they had received financial support from politicians who would pay them for protection and to attack their opponents.
Better things to do
Shiyam added that because members of the special operation had been forced to concentrate on containing the political violence, there had been a corresponding spike in gang violence, burglary and street theft.
All of these had fallen when the special operations team began their work earlier this month, he said.
Shiyam said the special operation had returned to its work again in full force.
Last week, Deputy Commissioner of the MPS Mohamed Rishwan also said the recent political violence was hampering work and diverting resources from the special operation to curb gang-related crimes.
“As a consequence a large number of officers had to stop their work and interrupt their service to the people to go out to control and watch over political activities,” Rishwan said.
Press Secretary for the President’s Office Mohamed Zuhair said police acknowledgement of politically-motivated gang violence was “a very serious statement [by police].
He noted that members of the MDP have previously accused senior DRP-PA politicians of being connected to gangs, “but police saying it makes the matter more urgent and credible.”
During his opening speech to the Maldives Donor Conference 2010, President Mohamed Nasheed referred to the matter, stating: “I don’t care whether you are a gangster, or whether you are a senior politician controlling the gangsters – if you attack, or orchestrate attacks, this government will take appropriate legal action.”
Zuhair said he hoped police would forward the relevant cases to the Prosecutor General so that they could be resolved in the courts.
Spokesperson for the MDP, Ahmed Haleem said “violence was normal under the previous regime, and DRP are doing the same thing now.”
Haleem said the DRP was trying to harm the country by trying to “stop aid and funds” from international donors.
He said the MDP was “a bit concerned” about politicians being tied to gang violence, “because some DRP MPs are physically involved in violence.”
DRP Vice President and Spokesperson Ibrahim Shareef said the party performed “peaceful protests, not the inciting of violence”, and said police would be making statements “based on their opperational experience.”
“Many DRP meetings have been disrupted by MDP activists, who attack with stones and swords,” Shareef said, adding that shops and houses of DRP members had also been vandalised in the violence over the weekend.
“We are constantly receiving threatening calls from the MDP,” Shareef said, adding that “the ruling party should be more responsible and should not use the gangs.”
“There is a lot of gang violence connected to MDP, and I am worried that it is difficult to control our own activists because they have no protection.”
“If people see the ruling party is inciting violence,” Shareef warned, “the country will lose its peace.”
A coalition of human rights NGOs have issued a statement noting “with concern and regret” that certain preachers “have recently begun to portray Islam as a religion that demeans women and children.”
“Religious sermons that portray and speak of women as people who exist simply to gratify the sexual desires of men, on earth and in paradise, fail to take into consideration the respect and honour granted to women in Islam,” the NGOs claimed.
“We believe that the message perpetuated through sermons that the purpose of achieving paradise is to engage in sexual acts forbidden on earth, and to enjoy pleasures forbidden on earth, is the work of some people to impress upon the public that Islam is a backward religion.”
The NGOs’ statement, signed by the Maldivian Detainee Network, Transparency Maldives, Rights for All, Maldives Aid, Madulu, Democracy House and Strength of Society, claimed that “all Abrahamic religions uphold the dignity and respect of all human beings, and Islam in particular provided protection and safety for women and children who were being abused in Arab societies, [that were] entrenched in the ignorance of dark ages.
“Hence, to render commonplace the perverse thinking and ignorant practices of those days in the name of Islam would be to facilitate similar ignorance and malice.”
The NGOs criticised the Ministry of Islamic Affairs “for not working in their full capacity to regulate or halt the views and acts propagated by those who endorse extreme views,” and requested that government play its “important role” in countering these types of views “propagated in the name of Islam.”
The statement comes after President Mohamed Nasheed was heavily criticised by the religiously conservative Adhaalath Party for “trying to convey irreligious views to the beloved Muslim citizens of the Maldives” during his weekly radio address.
In his address, the President noted that “a large number of young women and young men are requesting that the government obstruct and stop these things from happening.”
“We have freedom of expression; if you are unhappy with views expressed by one group, in my mind the intelligent thing to do is for another group to express the contrary view, a second opinion, or alternative views,” he said. “People can then choose the path they believe.”
However a statement from the Adhaalath party said that the president’s remarks about giving public space to views opposed to the tenets and commandments of Islam were tantamount “to a call for allowing them.”
“In this 100 per cent Islamic country, for the president to call for views opposed to Islam is something that the Adhaalath party is extremely concerned about,” the party said.
“People should only talk about Islam with full religious knowledge. Talking about religious tenets and judgments without proper knowledge is prohibited in Islam.”
The Adhaalath party called on the president to “not be swayed by those who believe irreligious philosophies or the anti-Islamic rhetoric of those opposed to Islam, and not to give opportunity for any religion other than Islam in this country.”
In his opening address to the Maldives Donor Conference 2010, President Nasheed revealed he had “often been criticised by liberal Maldivians because I refuse to censor religious groups.”
“My point is this: the ends do not justify the means,” he told the donors. “People with broader viewpoints must become more active, to create a tolerant society.”
The president revealed that a group of 32 concerned young people had recently visited him, “furious about the rise in extremism.”
“To my mind, these are just the sort of people who need to reclaim civil society, if they want to foster a more open-minded society,” Nasheed said. “Liberally-minded Maldivians must organise and reclaim civil society if they want to win this battle of ideas.”
Sheikh Abdulla Jameel told Minivan News today that when giving a sermon, “we have to tell it as it is.”
”Whether people like it or not, we can’t add or remove anything,” he said. “Nobody can change something stated in the Qur’an, and in the Qur’an it says that no one can [challenge] the orders of God or the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH).”
The Ministry of Islamic Affairs declined to comment in the absence of Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari, who is currently visiting Saudi Arabia, and State Minister Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed, who is in the United States.
Local Islamic NGO Jamiyathul Salaf also did not respond to Minivan News’ enquiries at time of press.
Politics and religion
The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) issued a statement yesterday in support of the President, condemning the Adhaalath party for “using religion as a [political] weapon”.
“For the Adhaalath party to falsely accuse the president after remaining silent when the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) obstructed and stopped a religious sermon organised by MDP last Thursday night, 25 March 2010, causing a disturbance and spilling the blood of many Maldivian citizens, casts doubt on their intentions,” the party said.
The MDP acknowledged that Article 1 of the Religious Unity Act, stating that Maldivian citizens are followers of Islam, belonging to the same sect and sharing one nationality, was “essential for protecting Maldivian independence and sovereignty and ensuring peace and security”, and that promoting religious unity among Maldivians “is obligatory upon both the government and the people.”
Regarding the President’s comments in his radio address and speech at the donor conference, “the party believes that [the president’s] intention was to share some people’s opinions with the public and give an opportunity for religious scholars to clarify the issue.”
Instead of addressing the opinions expressed by the young people who visited the President, the MDP said, “the Adhaalath party falsely accused the President of expressing views contrary to Islam and made political rivalry their main concern.”
The statement concluded by advising the Adhaalath party “to stop casting aspersions” on the president and “cease using religion as a tool to achieve political ends.”
Well known R&B singer Akon will perform a live show in the Maldives, after he was denied a visa in Sri Lanka because of a scene in one of his videos depicting a woman dancing around a Buddha statue.
Director of Platinum Entertainment Lasantha Samarasinghe, the company organising the ‘Super Fest 2010’ show, said it would be be held at the outdoor cricket stadium on the 23 April and would be “the biggest event ever held in the Maldives.”
“We are expecting 25,000 people to come to the show,” he said, including many tourists.
Samarasinghe said if this event was successful the company “will bring even more Hollywood superstars to the Maldives.”
Press secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair said that the government had given the permission for the show to take place, saying it “fully supports these kinds of events.”
“It will promote the country’s tourism sector and provide a good opportunity for Maldivian singers,” he said.
Zuhair also said that President Mohamed Nasheed was keen to attend the show.
The show’s main sponsor will be Villa Television, with ‘official drinks’ provided VB Mart and Foco energy drink.
A Villa spokesperson claimed this was “the first time a superstar is performing in the Maldives.”
A group of 15 men abducted, drugged and gang raped a 20 year old girl on the island of Hithadhu in Seenu Atoll last Friday night, while reportedly filming the incident wit a mobile phone.
Regional commander for Addu Atoll, Chief Inspector Hussein Adam, said three men had been arrested in connection with the attack, which occurred around 8:30pm on Friday night.
”Two men came by on a motorbike while she was outside her house, and forced her to sit between them,” Hussein said.
The two men took her to an uninhabited area on the island, 30 minutes walking distance from where she was abducted.
”The 15 men forced her to drink a suspected liquid drug and she became drunk,” Hussein said. ”They used box cutters to threaten her.”
Atoll Commander for Addu Adam Niyaz said police were informed of the incident at 1:00am on Saturday morning by the girl’s parents, after she returned home.
Police took the girl to Addu Regional Hospital. Hussein noted that she was “unable to walk.”
Head of Addu Regional Hospital Ahmed Mohamed said the girl was brought to the hospital on Saturday was discharged yesterday.
”There were no injuries outside her body,” Ahmed said, ”but as she was sexually assaulted by 15 men her sex organs were injured during the incident.”
Niyaz said the three men arrested in connection with attack had many police records involving drug offences and gang-related crimes.
He said Hithadhu police station was continuing to investigate the case.
President Mohamed Nasheed implored delegates at the Maldives Partnership Forum, also known as the 2010 Donor Conference, to give the Maldives “your spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down.”
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” Nasheed told the 60 representatives of foreign countries and financial institutions participating in this year’s conference, which aims to attract foreign investment to help the government’s decentralisation plan and aid in the economic recovery of the country.
Foreign and local delegates, government officials and media crowded the meeting room for the opening ceremony which began at 10am with a recitation from the Holy Qur’an.
A video was then played for the audience which showcased the Maldives’ transition to democracy and the hope to develop the country in a sustainable manner. Five Maldivians spoke in the video and told their stories.
They included a farmer who hopes that sustainable practices will improve his crops; a woman who wants to run her own business; a man who moved his family to Malé to provide his children with better education and is having difficulty in adjusting to the problem of adequate housing; a girl who moved to Malé for her education and fell into heroin addiction; a boy who notices how the beach on his island gets smaller and how the water comes closer to his house each year.
Speakers
Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Ahmed Shaheed was the first to address the audience. He thanked the guests for participating in the conference, adding that “you have come to the Maldives at a crucial time” in the country’s history.
“There is a lot of work to be done to build a better future together,” Shaheed said, noting the Maldives has “transformed from a repressive society to an open society.”
“It is tempting to think that the hard work is done,” he said, “but truly, it is just beginning.”
Dr Shaheed spoke of the importance of implementing human rights and democracy in the daily lives of every Maldivian, as well as in government practices.
He also hoped that democracy would not be linked to hardship and want in the country’s memory, as he acknowledged it has been a difficult transition.
Dr Shaheed wished to “bequeath our successors a country that is…. free.” He also hoped the conference would help the government in consolidating democracy through the five key areas being addressed as part of the economic reform of the country: macro-economic stability, public reform, governance and democratisation, climate change adaptation and social development.
World Bank Country Director for Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Naoko Ishii, was second to speak. She said she felt “privileged to have witnessed your journey, your very tough journey, into democracy” and made special reference to the importance of donor cooperation.
Ishii noted that many challenges still remain for the government and the people, but assured that the conference was a positive step in finding the right international partners to “shape the future of the Maldives.”
She mentioned waste disposal as an especially worrying issue, but said “there are numerous actions being taken by the government and the donors. [They] are making every effort.”
Ishii added the “Maldives can continue to take many positive steps” and mentioned that she would have liked to sign a contract under water on behalf of the World Bank.
Next to speak was Coordinator for the UN in the Maldives, Mansoor Ali. He said “we stand at a very historic juncture. Maldives is a success story of political transition.”
He wanted to present a different side of development, saying “the other side of this island paradise remains unknown for many.”
Ali focused on human rights, violence against girls and women, and the challenges being faced by Maldivian people: food shortages, rising fuel prices, the financial downturn and rising unemployment, which he said was up to 14.4%, with youth unemployment being a high concern.
He said the conference was “an unprecedented opportunity” to address these issues and to find solutions.
“The UN system is proud to have worked with [the government] in the Strategic Action Plan…which becomes a good vehicle for the sustainable development of the Maldives.”
Ali said the Maldives needs to be assisted through a comprehensive plan and thanked the donors for their vast support to the UN and the Maldivian government.
President Nasheed speaking to media
Democratic progress
President Mohamed Nasheed delivered the closing speech for the ceremony, saying Maldivians “are a diverse collection of people” who are “brought together by a common goal: we all want to see a peaceful and prosperous Maldives.”
President Nasheed said despite the “considerable progress” the country has made in the last 18 months, “there is so much work to do” since the country is still in “the infancy of democracy.”
He spoke of the transition to democracy and the issues that still need to be addressed to assure equal rights to every Maldivian.
“I don’t make a secret of my concern over the capacity of the judiciary to expend justice. Nevertheless, we respect their independence and hope that…it will grow to be a respected institution.”
He spoke of freedom of the press, noting that although the press could now “report and comment as they see fit,” he urged “certain sections of the media to be more responsible.”
He said journalists should be mindful of the consequences of their actions, and asked journalists “to try to the best of their ability to report the truth.”
He noted that the Maldives had climbed 53 places in the Reporters Without Borders’ Press Freedom Index, and warned that the government would take action against anyone who tried to undermine press freedom.
President Nasheed said “Maldivians enjoy more freedom today than at any other point in history,” and added that the government believes “people need liberty to progress.”
The president spoke of civil servants and the need to cut down on government expenditure, saying he is working with the international community “to assure we don’t spend more than we can afford.”
Politics
President Nasheed said according to the World Bank, the Maldives was facing the worst economic situation of all countries going through a democratic transition, attributing this to the fact that “we inherited an economy in crisis. We inherited a huge national debt and millions of dollars of unpaid bills.”
He said the way it worked in the past was “when international diplomats and observers come to this country, we try to patch everything up and try our best to show a clear, clean picture. But I think otherwise.”
The president said he wanted to show the donors “the worst of what we have” to give them a clear view of the situation the country is in.
“There are a lot of people who do not like the things that we are doing. But most members of the opposition are sensible and respectable politicians.”
But he criticised some members of the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) who this weekend were “doing their best to get arrested” and disrupt the donor conference, saying that in his mind, “violence only creates violence.”
He said he did not believe arresting DRP leaders was the solution to the recent political unrest, or to past violations of rights, adding “if we took everyone implicated in corruption and torture, we would end up arresting most of the opposition.”
“It’s time that certain politicians left the nursery and learn to grow up.”
Leader of the opposition DRP Ahmed Thasmeen Ali meanwhile wrote an open letter to delegates of the donor conference claiming that under Nasheed’s leadership, the Maldives was “sliding into political chaos and instability”.
“It is my humble request that you may please exercise the powers of your good offices to address the issues of democratic deficit in the current administration,” Thasmeen wrote. “Counsel against the efforts of the government to consolidate absolute power in their hands, and advocate for the discontinuation of their endeavors to eliminate an effective political opposition.
Climate change
As a major platform of his campaign and presidency, President Nasheed spoke to the participants of the conference on the reality of climate change and the need to take action.
“Climate change is real,” he said, “and time is of the essence and it seems we are falling behind. The world needs to go carbon neutral by mid century.”
President Nasheed said his government wants “to break the link between carbon and development,” noting that “carbon neutral development is not just possible but profitable.”
The president said donors were investing in the Maldives, despite the challenges of climate change and highly-publicised threat of submersion, “because they want to maintain, adapt, protect and uplift the country. If you want to protect something… then of course you will come and donate and you will help.”
“This is a crucial period in time. We can actually introduce adaptation and litigation measures quickly enough to save the Maldives, so I think that’s why the donors are investing,” Nasheed said.
Participants at the Donor Conference
Donor Conference
President Nasheed thanked the donors for their participation, saying it is “so important and deeply appreciated.”
He said that thanks to the transition to democracy, “I believe the Maldives is becoming a better and fairer place,” and added that “with your assistance, we can help ensure the long term survival of this country and this land.”
World Bank aid
After the opening ceremony, Minister of Finance Ali Hashim and Naoko Ishii signed an agreement, on behalf of the Maldivian government and the World bank respectively, for an additional US$13.7 million in aid.
The Attorney General Husnu Suood has proposed a bill to be presented to parliament removing the right to remain silent during investigation of people suspected of commit serious crimes.
The bill removes the right given under Article 48[N] of the Constitution that a person need only reveal their name and thereafter remain silent during police questioning.
The bill proposes that the right to remain silent should be removed in such cases such as threatening a person, attacking a person or his property, assault on a person using sharp objects or weapons, murder, drug trafficking, storing drugs to deal, importing drugs, using a sharp object or dangerous weapon in public without a valid reason, storing a sharp object in secret without a valid reason, gang rape and terrorism.
Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair said that the government believed it was necessary to remove the right to remaining silent on these cases.
”Why should we provide the right to remain silent for a man arrested with five kilograms of dope?” Zuhair asked.
”If the bill is passed people arrested in connection with these kind of crimes will be convicted for objection to order if they remain silent.”
He said the police would only arrest a person in the first place if they had conclusive evidence.
Spokesperson for the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) parliamentary group Mohamed Shifaz said the MPs had tried very hard to introduce the right to remain silent.
”The government would try to remove it in certain cases only when they notice a credible reason,” Shifaz said.
Vice president of Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) Umar Naseer, a former police officer, agreed, saying the right to remain silent “should be removed for all the cases.”
”This would make it very easy to prosecute criminals, so I think it is very important,” he said.
The Maldivian Detainee Network issued a statement saying it was “concerned by the news that the Attorney General proposes to narrow fundamental rights afforded to persons accused of certain serious crimes.”
“We urge the Attorney General and Parliament to ensure that any legislation proposed or passed fully embodies the principle that all persons are innocent until proven guilty. Furthermore, any narrowing of rights must be done in accordance with Article 16 of the Constitution which states that “Any such law enacted by the People’s Majlis can limit the rights and freedoms to any extent only if demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.”
The NGO added that while it was concerned about the recent rise in crime and “the inability to successfully prosecute criminals, we would like to caution against reactionary steps which threaten fundamental rights.”
“The answer to rising crime in society is the full and effective implementation of a rights-based system by addressing the numerous issues within the criminal justice system,” it urged.
“The rush to discard fundamental rights is not only a short-sighted strategy which not only ignores the moral and practical imperatives behind those rights, but also risks returning to a society in which innocent citizens needed to fear the criminal justice system.”
Deputy Attorney General Abdulla Muiz did not respond to Minivan News at time of press.
Following the arrest of 26 people in a special operation to try and curb rising gang violence in Malé, Minivan News today spoke to three gang members, on condition of anonymity, to try and learn if both the operation was proving effective, and what was contributing to rising gang violence in the first place.
The first gang member identified himself as ‘Matey’, from a gang in Henveiru. The second gang member, ‘Don’, wished to keep his gang anonymous, likewise the third, a senior gang member.
The gang members spoke candidly about their reasons for being involved in gangs, finding jobs, crime, the police and politicians.
Joining the gang
All three gang members joined for different reasons and under circumstances, but they all speak about their gangs as “a second family”, with particular emphasis on a sense of community within the gang.
Matey said he loves being in the gang “because my family does not care about me, but the gang members always help me in every way.”
He said his parents “hated” him because he had a close relationship with his brother, also a gangster.
”I did not use to go and hang out with the gangs with him,” Matey said. ”I just hung out with him sometimes because he is my brother. But then my Mum and Dad thought I was becoming like him, and started ignoring me.”
Matey said he likes being with the gang because they help him “in everything he does” and he can “refresh his mind” with marijuana and alcohol.
He said first smoked marijuana because his parents always accused of him being drunk while he wasn’t, ”so one day I just tried it to see what happened.”
Don told Minivan News that he joined the gang after the police took him one day to police custody and kept him there as a suspect.
”As you know, that place is full of gangsters and I had to be in [police custody] with them,” he said.
”When I came out a few days later, I saw them on the streets and started hanging out with them.”
He said after completing his O’ levels he met the leader of the gang, who was “a friend of a friend.”
”I just joined with them to start a business,” he said.
Don said he also likes being in the gang because they “love me as much as my parents.”
The senior gang member told Minivan News he likes being in a gang because the other members “help me with everything and always back me up.”
Jobs
The gang members said they wanted jobs, but felt unable to get them because of the stigma attached to their police records.
Matey said he now prefers selling drugs instead of looking for a job “because it pays more”, but Don said he was compelled to stay in the gang until his police record was cleared in five years.
”In five years when my police records are cleared I will get a job,” he said.
The senior gang member said his family forced him to earn money but he was unable to get a job, also because of his police record.
”I would like to be like other people, going to work and earning money,” he said.
He added that the government “must provide more job opportunities for the people.”
Police
The police did not know how to handle gangs, Matey said: ”They arrest anyone with long hair and earrings.”
Because the police sometimes arrested innocent people, he explained, it had became a way for innocent people to get into gangs through association with gangsters.
”When [innocent people] are taken into police custody they meet lots of gangsters and become friends with them,” he said.
Don added ”the new government is trying to make Maldives a carbon neutral country, but don’t they know police vans, jeeps and motorbikes patrolling 24 hours harms the environment a lot?”
Protection
Many people are continuing to join gangs for protection, the gang members explained.
Matey said the need for protection was driving people who did not have any family problems to become involved in crimes with gangs, because they wanted support and protection from other gangs.
Don said this was particularly common for the younger gang members, who were seeking protection and support from the gang.
While the gangs were not particularly interested in the country’s politics, Don explained that “some political figures support the gangs by paying them to do crimes, sometimes to attack someone or for their protection.”
The senior gang member said his gang received support from political figures, usually for ‘protecting’ their business.
”In return they provide funds for our needs,” he said.
Curbing crime
Matey said he did not think rising crime in Malé could be prevented, while Don said the way to make Malé peaceful was “for police to leave the gangs alone.”
However the senior member suggested that to make Malé peaceful “police should arrest everyone connected to crimes.”
“The gangs don’t just commit crimes,” he said. ”We conducted a diving course this year, and once I was offered [the opportunity] to go abroad for studies.”
He said the leaders of the gangs did not want to create violence in Malé, but warned “we will attack if we are attacked.”
Crime and income
Matey agreed with the senior gang member that robbery was proving the most lucrative crime in Malé, although the latter said drug dealing also was also a main source of income for the gangs.
He said the public “respect anybody who has lots of money”, and did not appear to worry too much about how it was earned. Regarding robberies, he said, “we normally get information for our missions from expats who work with [the places we are robbing],” he said. ”In return, we give them a share of what we get.”
The senior gang member said that ”the most important thing is to avoid corruption in the country, because today we can buy anything for money; the police, Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation (DPRS), jail officers and judges, too,” he said. ”There are gang members inside the police.”
Response
A police spokesperson confirmed that criminal records were kept for five years, but that they were only applied if the person was convicted by a court.
He reiterated that police would only arrest someone if they had enough evidence, as the court would not accept a case otherwise.
Adam Naseer has sued the Maldives Police Service (MPS) for withholding his assets after the High Court froze the money earlier this month, as part of an ongoing investigation against him.
Naseer, labelled as one of the top six drug dealers of the country by the government, was arrested in July 2008 by police on drug charges.
He was acquitted by Judge Abdul Baary Yousuf in the Criminal Court in late February 2010. The judge cited lack of evidence to convict Naseer.
The Prosecutor General’s office then appealed the case to the High Court and requested the freezing of Naseer’s assets which were being held by police, and amounted to over Rf5 million (US$460,000) in cash.
On 8 March the High Court ruled that Naseer’s assets be frozen and held by police until the investigation and subsequent case are finalised.
Naseer filed a law suit against the MPS, claiming he is experiencing financial difficulties, as reported by Miadhu. His claim was heard at the High Court yesterday.
The PG and Attorney General’s office are defending the MPS in this case in a “joint effort” with Deputy Solicitor General Ibrahim Rifath, who is acting as the main primary litigator in the case.
Deputy AG Abdulla Muizzu said Naseer is claiming assets which are not related to the alleged drug offence.
Deputy PG Hussain Shameem also said some of the documents Naseer is seeking are not covered under the High Court’s ruling.
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