Category: Society & Culture

Couple charged with aborting child deny murder charges in court

The Criminal Court has  conducted its first hearing into charges of murder against a couple who allegedly aborted their 20-week old foetus.

The local media present at the court identified the couple as Aiminath Shaahy Aalam, 21 and Ibrahim Visam, 26, both from Addu City.

The mother Aiminath Shaahy Aalam was given the opportunity to respond to the charges and told the court she had previously stated how the incident occurred in the statement she gave to police.

The statement was read out in court, in which she confessed she had not sought medical care when she knew she was pregnant, and that she and her husband had discussed the matter and decided to abort the child. According to the statement, she confessed to taking abortion pills.

However, today in court she denied taking the pills with the intention of aborting the child and said she did not know what the pills she used were. She told the court she got the pills from a doctor working in the Dhilshaadh Clinic on Hithadhoo in Addu City.

In the statement she gave to the police investigators, she stated that her stomach had started aching at night while her husband was sleeping. She said said she woke up her husband and told him about it.

She said her husband then took off his shirt and she dropped the fetus on his shirt.

When the judge queried this, she said that she felt that something dropped on the shirt, but she didn’t see what it was, and neither did her husband showed her. Instead, he wrapped the shirt around it and put it into a plastic bag and took it away.

In  the court today, Aalam denied she was involved in killing the baby and told the judge that she wanted the state appoint a lawyer for her.

The father’s trial was also conducted today. He also denied the charges and requested the court give him time to appoint a lawyer, which the judge granted.

Police discovered the foetus buried on the beach of Maradhoo-Feydhoo in December 2012, after local witnesses reported a motorist acting suspiciously in the area, according to local media reports.

Abortion in the Maldives is illegal unless it is proved the conception is the result of rape, or that the pregnancy is a threat to the mother’s health.

The Prosecutor General’s Office forwarded the couple’s case to the Criminal Court on May 2.

Police have claimed that the buried foetus was found with its heart beating, but later died after being taken to the hospital.

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Police appeal for public assistance in locating stabbing suspect

Police have appealed for public assistance in locating a person identified as Sharufan Abdul Razzaq Ahmed, 19 of Lonumidhilige [house] in Maafannu Ward.

On May 27 police issued a statement informing the public they were seeking to question Razzaq regarding a recent stabbing, but had been unable to locate or determine his whereabouts.

Police alleged that on May 18 at 3:25 pm  Razzaq together with some other persons stabbed two people near the junction where Chanbeyly Magu meets Haveeree Hingun.

Police said Razzaq was needed for the police investigation into the case, and stated that any person who disclosed information about his whereabouts would receive protection as required by law.

Local media has reported that the 18 and 21 year-old victims were hospitalised following the attack.

The 18 year-old received injuries to his chest, back and other parts of the body while he 21 year-old suffered injuries to his back.

The media reports say that Razzaq has a previous criminal record, after he allegedly entered Nalahiya Manzil House in Henveiru Ward in 2010 January with a companion and stabbed a person inside the house.

That case is now in Prosecutor General’s Office waiting to be forwarded to the court for trial.

Progess of special task force

Police have also said that the police special task force established to curb gang related crimes occurring in Male’ had arrested seven people.

Police said four were persons police were looking for in connection with a recent stabbing incident.

In a statement issued to update information about the special operation, police said they had searched areas related to gang activities 960 times, and stopped and searched 290 persons.

Police also established vehicle check points in different areas of Male’ and searched 651 vehicles. 29 licenses were held for traffic violations.

Police said they would continue to stop and search people out late at night, or on the streets in the early hours of the morning.

Police recently arrested 11 persons for alleged involvement in a stabbing attack at the ‘Home X’ store in the capital on May 19, that hospitalised one male victim.

Police Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz  told local media that members of the taskforce were now searching for 50 “high-profile” suspects alleged to have had involvement with gang-related activities.

“They are a threat to the society. We consider everyone who has not been punished for a crime they have  committed as a criminal at large,” he was quoted by local newspaper Haveeru as saying.

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Maldives women’s team forfeit basketball tournament over headscarf ban

The Maldives’ women’s basketball team refused to play without their headscarves, forfeiting the International Basketball Federation’s (FIBA) first under 18 three-on-three tournament held in Bangkok, Thailand earlier this week.

“The girls were really upset, we are as well. We came prepared based on the uniform the team wore in the last two games,” Maldives Basketball Association (MBA) President Ahmed Hafiz told Minivan News today (May 27).

“According to FIBA, the head cannot be covered during play. We have to go with FIBA rules if we want to play,” Hafiz stated.

The Maldives’ women’s basketball team has been allowed to participate in past tournaments while wearing burugaathah (headscarves), however the decision to make an exception to the rules “depends on the officials”, according to Hafiz.

“Qatar held a tournament two weeks back and there were some complaints that the Qatar team was wearing headgear, so FIBA was forced to apply the rules,” Hafiz explained. “Maybe that is the reason this issue came up for the Maldives [in this tournament].”

FIBA Asia has designed a jersey for Muslim players, but still needs to obtain FIBA international approval, according to the MBA.

“FIBA Asia is working on this because lots of Muslim countries are involved. Now the are suggesting to FIBA International to change the rules to allow headgear,” said Hafiz.

The Maldives’ under 18 women’s team is planning to participate in the upcoming Asian Youth Games, to be held this August in Nanjing, China, according to Hafiz.

“However, [the choice] is up to the players. We will not force them,” he said.

“This is a big problem for the game and will ruin the development of women’s basketball for a place like this, because there are still very few girl players and most wear the burugaa,” MBA Secretary General Arif Riza told Minivan News today.

“FIBA is pretty clear about the rules, so although the team has been allowed to play twice before, this was a mistake of ours also,” said Riza.

The primary issues of concern to MBA are that FIBA permitted the Maldives’ team to wear headscarves during tournaments in 2011 and 2012 as well as allowed other teams to play in violation of different dress code rules, such as wearing t-shirts instead of jerseys, according to Riza.

“Immediately after President Hafiz arrives [from Thailand] we will discuss the issue and write FIBA a letter,” said Riza.

“They should be allowed to have the right to play,” he declared.

FIBA Response

The headgear ban is “a part of FIBA Rules, but not a policy,” FIBA Asia Secretary General Hagop Khajirian told Minivan News Thursday (May 23).

“It has nothing to do with headscarves as such, but more to do with the regulations which stipulate that the playing gears of players has to be such that it may not cause any harm or hindrance to themselves or opponent players,” explained Khajirian.

Although these rules have “been the case always”, FIBA is currently reviewing the headscarf restriction.

“There have been requests from many nations regarding this. And the FIBA Asia Central Board, in its meeting [held] on April 24 in Kuala Lumpur, resolved to send a study paper to FIBA to be taken up for further consideration,” said Khajirian.

The choice to cover

While Maldivian women’s participation in basketball is slowly increasing, netball is popular nationwide. Although there are key distinctions between the two sports – such as no dribbling in netball – the rules are very similar, according to a skilled Maldivian netball player of nine years and student coach of six years.

“Wearing the burugaa while playing netball is no problem for us, it is not difficult and we’ve never experienced any injuries [from the headscarves],” she explained on condition of anonimity.

“Every person has the choice of whether or not they choose to wear the burugaa. However, it is a religious thing, in Islam Muslims have to cover, it is the right thing,” she continued.

“Although some are not wearing [headscarves], that is their choice,” she added.

The netball enthusiast agreed with the Maldives’ women’s basketball team decision to not remove their headscarves and forefit their game in the recent FIBA three-on-three tournament.

“Their choice was the correct one, they do not want to break religous rules,” she said.

“FIBA should change their rules if they want Maldivians to participate, because so many [women] are wearing burugaathah. They have to change so everyone can compete,” she added.

Burugaa bans

A senor researcher from the internatonal NGO, Human Rights Watch, previously highlighted the discriminatory issue of banning women from wearing headscarves, in a 2012 article “Banning Muslim Veil Denies Women a Choice, Too”.

“The sad irony is that whether they are being forced to cover up or to uncover, these women are being discriminated against. Banned from wearing the hijab – a traditional Muslim headscarf – or forced to veil themselves, women around the world are being stripped of their basic rights to personal autonomy; to freedom of expression; and to freedom of religion, thought and conscience,” wrote Judith Sunderland.

“Denying women the right to cover themselves is as wrong as forcing them to do so. Muslim women, like all women, should have the right to dress as they choose and to make decisions about their lives and how to express their faith, identity and moral values. And they should not be forced to choose between their beliefs and their chosen profession,” notes the article.

Muslim women’s basketball players in Switzerland and Baharain have also faced controversial opposition to their refual to remove their headscarves.

The Baharaini team was “lauded” for their refusal to remove their headscarves during an international competition in 2009, according to Gulf News.

Meanwhile, Sura Al-Shawk, a 19 year-old STV Luzern basketball player, was denied permission to play while wearing a headscarf by the Swiss basketball association ProBasket in 2010, reported the Associated Press.

ProBasket told the Associated Press it followed FIBA rules and that wearing the headscarf while playing basketball “could increase the risk of injury and the sport has to be religiously neutral”.

In July 2012, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) overturned a headscarf ban, which was put into place in 2007, after a yearlong campaign led by FIFA vice president Prince Ali of Jordan, reported the Associated Press.

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Eleven suspects detained over Male’ store attack as police continue gang hunt

Police have said 11 suspects have been taken into custody for alleged involvement in a stabbing attack at the ‘Home X’ store in the capital on May 19 that hospitalised one male victim – with authorities pledging to continue a crack down on gang activity.

In a statement released today, police claimed that the 11 individuals, all male suspects between 17 and 27 years of age, were detained on the 9th floor of the Aroodhaage building in Male’ as part of investigations into the store assault.

“Out of the 11 individuals brought in, there were two 19 year old males, one 27 year old male, one 20 year old male, one 21 year old male, four 18 year old males and two 17 year old males,” police stated following the operation.

Local media reported at the time that the victim of the attack had fled into an electronics store in Male’ in order to shelter from a group that proceeded to assault him using a “sharp object”.

The store attack was among a series of stabbings reported across the capital this month –  prompting police to form a special task force designed to try and combat gang violence.

The now-active task force consists of members from the Forensics Directorate, Intelligence and Covert Policing Command, Information and Communication Directorate, Central Operations Command and Technical Police from the Divisional Operations Command of the Maldives Police Service.

“Criminal at large”

Speaking to local media today, Police Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz said members of the taskforce were now searching for 50 “high-profile” suspects alleged to have had involvement with gang-related activities

“They are a threat to the society. We consider everyone, who had not been punished for a crime they had committed, as a criminal at large,” he was quoted by local newspaper Haveeru as saying.

Riyaz was not responding to calls from Minivan News at time of press regarding how the 50 suspects had been identified or if they belonged to specific groups.  The police media department was also not responding to calls at time of press.

Riya’s comments were made less than a week after he alleged politicians were most often responsible for encouraging gang-related activities in the capital island Male’.

The claims echoed the findings of a report into the country’s gang culture published last year by the Asia Foundation that found politicians and businessmen paid gangs to assault rivals, damage property, and in some cases have opponents killed.

Clear approach

Speaking to Minivan News earlier this month, former head of police intelligence Chief Superintendent Mohamed ‘MC’ Hameed claimed the stabbing incidents were “probably” retaliatory and inter-related based on media reports at the time.

Hameed also raised accused the country’s police service of presently lacking a clear approach in terms of reducing and dealing with violence crimes and criminals.

“Not being able to police Male’ – the most populated city in the country – due to the lack of an effective strategy and the disconnect between the key areas of criminal investigations, intelligence gathering, and front line policing is a big issue,” he added.

In addition to the lack of a “very effective policing approach” to combat violent crime, low level crimes had also not been addressed, according to Hameed.

“A lot of antisocial behavior goes unnoticed and unaddressed by the police, such as harassment and public nuisance. For example, girls of a very young age are harassed, even while walking with their families. Additionally, juveniles are seen under the influence of drugs and intoxicated in public,” he explained.

Hameed advocated that a strong, more integrated, holistic approach is needed that applies a broader strategy to effectively reduce crime.

“Increasing police officers physical presence, as well as effective targeting of high profile offenders and hotspots needs to be addressed,” he said.

“Collaboration between criminal investigations, intelligence gathering, and front line policing are three areas that have never worked that effectively,” he added at the time.

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Police summon JSC member over gang link allegations

Police have summoned the president’s appointed member to the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), Mohamed ‘Reynis’ Saleem, for questioning regarding allegations he commissioned gang activities.

Saleem reported to police headquarters in Male’ yesterday (May 25) to answer questions related to an ongoing police investigation.

He has been accused of “exploiting a gang to commit crimes, including mugging,” according to local media. Saleem allegedly enlisted a gang to recover money owed to him.

The case under investigation is not related to the Dr Afrasheem Ali murder, a police media official told Minivan News today (May 26).

“As the investigation is ongoing, I am not able to provide any further details. We are facing difficulties now,” the official said.

The police do not have any plans to arrest Saleem or forward charges to the Prosecutor General’s Office at this time.

Meanwhile, Saleem has refuted the allegations, claiming he has no links to gang members, or anyone affiliated with gangs, and he did not enlist gangs to conduct criminal activities.

“The first thing I want to make clear is that I don’t have any links with gangs, or links with any person connected with gangs,” Saleem told local media.

“The question the police asked was whether I had sent a group to collect some money owed to me by someone. I said that I never sent any group to collect any money for me. So if someone owed me money, I would go to court. I shouldn’t have to involve a group,” explained Saleem.

Saleem also denied allegations he had links to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) officer Azleef Rauf, who was accused of planning the murder of MP Dr Afrasheem Ali by suspect Hussein Humam, and was subsequently arrested on May 23.

“A serious question is being raised, about a person named Azleef. When I read the papers today, there were reports about a person named Azleef. Right now is a very critical moment, and they have associated my name with his name. I don’t want any newspaper writing in this manner,” said Saleem.

Saleem claimed that his police summons was politically motivated and related to his current JSC responsibilities, but that he would “disclose details [about the allegation] when the right time comes.”

“It’s a personal issue”: JSC

“We believe the issue is unrelated to the JSC or JSC work,” JSC Secretary General Aboobakuru Mohamed told Minivan News today.

“It is a personal issue [of Saleem’s] and the commission is not going to do anything or comment,” said Mohamed.

“We don’t appoint members, the President or Majlis (parliament) does, and should take up the matter,” he added.

Former President’s Member on the JSC Aishath Velezinee told Minivan News that JSC members under police investigation should not participate in the commission while this was ongoing.

“When any JSC member is being investigated they should not be participating in the commission. It reflects on the commission and the status of the judiciary,” she said.

“The JSC should be above criticism. How can the public trust judges if JSC members are under question?” she asked.

“Saleem should refrain from participating in the JSC voluntarily, that would be the best course of action,” she added.

Velezinee explained that because “Maldivians do not think like that,” parliament should suspend Saleem from the JSC until the investigation is complete, as was the course of action taken with the Civil Service Commission (CSC) President Mohamed Fahmy.

“Parliament should put Saleem on leave, not as a punishment but until the investigation is over,” stated Velezinee.

“It doesn’t matter who it is, [allegations of] involvement in serious crime require a full investigation by the police,” she noted.

She further detailed that the appropriate course of action requires police to inform the Prosecutor General, who should then inform Parliament so they can take action.

“I welcome the police to investigate, although the police are not without question themselves,” said Velezinee.

“The government itself is in question, anything that happens at this moment will be politicised,” she added.

President’s Office Spokespersons Masood Imad and Mohamed Thaufeeq, as well as Parliament Speaker MP Abdulla Shahid were not responding to calls at time of press.

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Government agrees to US$454,000 waste management funding; councillors warn situation a “disaster”

The Ministry of Finance has agreed to provide Male’ City Council (MCC) with an estimated MVR 7 million (US$454,000) in funding this month to try and alleviate a build up of waste in and around the capital that local councillors and MPs claim poses a “national disaster”.

Finance Minister Abdulla Jihad told Minivan News today that amid concerns about a build-up of waste in the capital, funding was being granted to the MCC to deal with the situation following an ongoing dispute over responsibility for managing garbage.  The Finance Minister said he was unaware of the exact amount of funding provided to the municipal council at time of press.

The funding was announced as the MCC continues to accuse some state officials within the current government of having failed to provide it with a budget to deal with waste management for over a year in an attempt to discredit the work of its councillors. The majority of the MCC’s councillors are represented by members of the opposition Maldivan Democratic Party (MDP).

State funding

According to Jihad, funding will be provided to the MCC ahead of the expected signing over the next three weeks of a renegotiated waste management contract with India-based Tatva Global Renewable Energy. Once the deal is agreed, Tatva will take over handling of waste in the capital, as well as from nearby inhabited islands and resorts properties.

The previous government of former president Mohamed Nasheed had signed an agreement with Tatva in May 2011 as part of efforts to generate power from recycling waste gathered from Male’, as well as surrounding inhabited and resort islands.

By December last year, President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s administration had announced it was in the process of renegotiating Tatva’s agreement in a bid to replace the deal with what Environment Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela at the time called a “mutually beneficial” agreement.

Minister Jihad has said that although the new agreement with Tatva has yet to be signed, a deal was expected to be finalised this week, while funding would also be given to the MCC to try and alleviate the waste issue in the meantime.

State Environment Minister Abdul Matheen Mohamed said that while his department was not directly involved with dealing with the waste management issue, it had tried to “help” find a solution by meeting with the MCC and the Finance Ministry.

Matheen added that the ministry had informed the MCC that if it was unable to handle the capital’s waste management, the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) could take responsibility for the matter until the new Tatva contract was expected to come into place on June 15 this year.

However, following discussions with the MCC, he claimed that a lack of finance has been identified as the key issue preventing processing of the waste.

According to Matheen, the Finance Ministry last week agreed to provide MVR 6.8 million (US$441,000) in funding to the MCC, with the council in return giving “confirmation” that a clean-up operation would be undertaken.

“The MCC have said they will be able to clean up the waste if we can provide finance. However, we are still seeing things are not going well,” he claimed.

Matheen also rejected allegations by the MCC that the government had sought to purposefully undermine the council and its work by not providing funding to oversee waste in the capital.

“The ministry respects local councils and we will help them when needed. So far we haven’t received any additional requests for help [from the MCC],” he said.

Clean up challenges

Male’ councillor Mohamed Abdul Kareem today confirmed that the Finance Ministry had agreed to provide funding to cover the MCC’s outstanding debts for equipment hire and other costs related to handling waste.

However, he alleged that following the initial signing of the Tatva waste management deal under the previous government in May 2011, the MCC had not been provided with a budget for waste management – even after the deal was stalled by the present administration.

“As the MCC does not have its own bank account, we are required to deposit our revenue to the government’s own finances,” Kareem said. “While we are collecting revenue from resorts for dealing with waste, we are not directly receiving the funds.”

Kareem claimed that the issue of waste around the capital had become increasingly severe in the last three to four weeks as a result of both ongoing financial limitations and recent adverse weather that prevented barges being able to transport waste.

Kareem added that with the council’s waste areas filling up rapidly in the capital and a limited access to heavy equipment to process garbage, the situation had escalated into a “disaster”.

He said that following meetings with the finance ministry this month, funding had now been obtained, with the majority of the money expected to cover outstanding debts resulting from having to hire specialised equipment to process and transport the waste.

Kareem told Minivan New that efforts were now underway to secure the services of special dhotis to try and shift waste over to the nearby island of Thilafushi, which serves as the country’s key site for processing and burning garbage.

“We are discussing at present hiring a number of 100 foot-long dhonis to try and transfer the waste as it has been there so long, which makes things more difficult. Just last night we transferred 29 truck loads [of garbage] to Thilafushi.”

Councillor Kareem said he did accept that there were some parties within President Waheed’s coalition that had shown an interest in trying to resolve the waste management problem, but accused other representatives in the current administration of lacking sincerity in their commitments.

Kareem said the MCC presently understood that Tatva Global Renewable Energy was now expected to take over responsibility for waste management later next month at part of a deal with the government that would require the council to hand over all its facilities to the company “free of charge”.

“They will have to clean up the capital’s waste, though we will be expected to provide our facilities to them as part of the concession agreement,” he said. “It’s not an ideal situation, but we don’t have any other options at present.”

Protest

With funding now agreed, Ahmed Nihan, Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP for Vili-Male’, said residents on the island remained concerned this week about the potential health implications of a build up of garbage on a barge near to the island.

Nihan joined an estimated 50 residents from the island on Friday to protest about a perceived lack of action from both the state and the MCC to try and resolve the issue.

Before leaving Male’ for campaigning purposes yesterday, he believed there had been little change in the situation, despite being informed of efforts by the MCC to try and secure the services of dhonis to try and ship the waste away from the island to Thilafushi.

“I have been asked to host a conference called between the finance Ministry and the MCC on my return to find a solution to the issue,” Nihan said. “It’s all a big mess.”

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Two fishermen lost at sea for three weeks found near Sumatra

Two fishermen lost at sea for three weeks were found early this morning by an oil tanker off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.

The men, 39 year-old Hassan Rasheed from Maamigili Island in Alif Dhaalu Atoll and 32 year-old Abdulla Waheed from Maavashu Island in Laamu Atoll, went missing May 4 aboard the fishing vessel “Azum”. The two crewmen and the 40 foot light-green fishing boat disappeared after departing from Mulak Island in Meemu Atoll en route to Maavah Island in Laamu Atoll.

“An oil tanker registered in the Marshall Islands, travelling to China, found the two men,” Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) Spokesperson Colonel Abdul Raheem told Minivan News today (May 25).

“They were 987 miles away from the Maldives, 300 miles off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia,” said Raheem.

The Coast Guard was contacted early this morning at 6:10am and spoke to Hassan Rasheed, explained Raheem.

“After so many days they are in good condition, a bit weak, but OK. It is very good news, we are happy they have been found in good health,” he added.

Raheem was unsure of the reason for the Azum dhoni to drift so far off course.

“I don’t believe their boat would have had fuel after such a long period of time, there also could have been problems with the engine,” he speculated.

“The oil tanker will be stopping in Singapore on May 28 and we’ll try to get them while it’s docked,” said Raheem.

Jaufar Rasheed, Hassan Rasheed’s brother, told local media that he spoke with Hassan today after he called from a Singaporean number.

“He called and said that they had been picked up by a Singapore boat. He could not say how the other was doing. He managed to say that the dhoni sank and the two were castaways on the sea for a long time. He then asked how his wife and child were doing and started crying. Then the call got disconnected,” Jaufar said.

Lost at sea

Earlier this week, a Maldivian national reported missing May 9 after he departed Fares-Maathoda Island in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll via dinghy was discovered by a foreign vessel 900 miles from Maldivian waters.

The MNDF confirmed Mohamed Falah, a 30 year-old man from Fares-Maathoda had been found in “good condition” by the crew of a foreign vessel travelling to Malaysia.

The MNDF recently “downgraded” search and rescue efforts, by halting aerial operations, to locate four individuals missing at sea.

Although three of the four missing men have now been found, the search continues for Mohamed Sammoon, a 21 year-old surfer from Kolamaafushi Island in Gaafu Alif Atoll.

Sammoon was reported missing around 4:30pm on May 4 after being swept away from the island by the current.

“Still we haven’t given up hope, but this person was different because he was not in a vessel,” said Raheem.

“We recovered his surfboard the first day he went missing, so he will not have anything [to stay afloat] like the others,” he noted.

“His chances are less, but you never know. Even after so long, we are still hoping for the best,” he added.

Government authorities continue to advise members of the public to take precautions during sea travel – particularly over long distances – following the “extreme weather” reported across the Maldives this month.

The MNDF Coast Guard can be contacted through the toll free number 191, 339-8898, 339-5981, or via fax 339-1665, with any information regarding Sammoon.

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Police arrest MNDF officer accused of planning Dr Afrasheem’s murder

Additional reporting by Ahmed Nazeer, Neil Merrett and Mariyath Mohamed.

Police have arrested Azleef Rauf, the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) officer accused of planning the murder of MP Dr Afrasheem Ali by suspect Hussein Humam, who yesterday (May 22) confessed to the crime after earlier denials.

Azleef was arrested as part of an ongoing investigation, however a police spokesperson who requested anonymity would not confirm if his detention was related to the murder of Dr Afrasheem.

Police confirmed a request had also been made for authorities to confiscate the passports of “some” individuals as part of its investigations, but would not reveal the identities or number of suspects facing travel bans.

Immigration Controller Dr Mohamed Ali told Minivan News that Abdulla ‘Jaa’ Javid, Adam ‘Spy’ Solah and Shahin Mohamed were now facing travel bans, but added that their passports had not be confiscated.

The three individuals were on Wednesday accused by Humam of involvement in Afrasheem’s death.

Javid, son-in-law of opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Chairperson ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik, was arrested by police in December 2012 in connection with the case, and was released 45 days later.

According to local media reports of the hearing in the Criminal Court yesterday, Humam alleged that the idea of killing Dr Afrasheem was given to him by Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) officer Azleef Rauf, whom he met at a baibalaa tournament in 2012.

Humam, the statement and the court hearing

Minivan News spoke to Criminal Court Media Official Ahmed Mohamed Manik regarding the sequence of the court hearing, which was widely reported by local media after the chief suspect confessed.

According to Manik, after the state presented evidence – which included bloodstained jeans forensically linked to Dr Afrasheem – Humam declared that he “did not have anything more to say.”

“The judge then inquired of him whether he was accepting the charges or denying them, to which Humam said that he confessed to having partaken in the planning and the execution of the murder,” stated Manik.

In an earlier hearing, Humam denied specifically murdering Dr Afrasheem, however he did confess in court to several other murders, stabbings and robberies.

During yesterday’s hearing, after the judge asked Humam to provide details, “he responded that he had already given a detailed statement previously,” said Manik.

“The judge again asked if Humam was referring to the statement he had given to the police, or the one he had given at a court hearing to which he was brought to extend his detention,” he said.

“Humam said it was the one given in the detention extension hearing. I am not sure which one of the detention extension hearings it was that he gave that statement in, whether it was the first one or some later one. Either way, the judge then asked the state prosecutors to read out the statement, as they had already submitted this among the evidence,” said Manik.

“Humam was not asked to read it as it was such a long statement and it would take too much time. Once the statement was read out, he confirmed that it was the one that he had given before,” Manik stated.

“Humam repeatedly insisted that he did not want a lawyer. He confessed to having participated in planning and carrying out the killing. He did not add details after the statement. He just confessed, confirmed the statement that was read out was the one he had given before, and repeatedly stated he did not want a lawyer.”

According to the statement read out in court, Humam was invited to coffee with Azleef, Javid and his brother ‘Jana’, during which Azleef allegedly said “I promise you will get MVR4 million if you murder Dr Afrasheem,” to which Javid’s brother ‘Jana’ replied “yes you will.”

According to the statement, he later met with Azleef and a person called ‘Spy’, and asked them why he had to attack Afrasheem. Their reply was that one of the reasons they had to attack Dr Afrasheem concerned remarks he had made the day former President Mohamed Nasheed controversially resigned.

Rauf and Javid were also previously detained by police over their alleged involvement in the case. Both were later released by the court.

Javid spent 45 days in detention in connection to the Afrasheem murder, after which time his lawyer argued his continued detention was unconstitutional given there was no evidence to support keeping him in custody.

On the day of Javid’s release (January 17), his brother Shahin Mohamed was arrested by police while he was waiting with the rest of Javid’s family outside the court. Mohamed was released from police custody three hours after he was detained.

An MDP activist Mariyam Naifa was also arrested several days following the murder, and was subsequently released. Her lawyer at the time said she was arrested in connection to intelligence received by police in the Afrasheem case.

Motive

The government and police have maintained that Dr Afrasheem’s death was politically motivated.

However, others have sought to ascribe religious motives to the killing,  as noted in the  US State Department’s 2012 report on religious freedom.

“One of the more prominent theories about his murder was that violent extremists viewed Afrasheem’s very public moderate approach to Islam as apostasy and killed him to send a message to moderate Muslims that a strict interpretation of Islam was the only acceptable approach. The case remained under investigation at year’s end, with one person charged in the murder,” the report noted.

Afrasheem was murdered outside his house shortly after appearing on a religious television program in which he insisted that he had never ever spoken of anything regarding religion which was not stated in the Quran or sayings of the Prophet (PBUH), and asked for forgiveness from citizens if he had created a misconception in their minds due to his inability to express himself in the right manner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=1IGDhGmKnVU

The scholar and MP was attacked several times in 2008, including being hit in the head with a stone on May 27 on his way home from work, and was assaulted after he finished Friday prayers as an Imam in the Ibrahim Mosque in January. His car window was smashed while he was driving through Male’ on March 18, 2012.

The murdered MP was also formerly Parliament’s member of the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), until he was replaced in mid-2011 by Jumhoree Party (JP) Leader, resort tycoon Gasim Ibrahim.

Immediately following Dr Afrasheem’s murder, President’s Office Press Secretary Masood Imad sent an SMS to foreign media outlets declaring that “Nasheed’s strongest critic Dr Afrasheem has been brutally murdered.”

Following Humam’s court appearance yesterday, Masood tweeted that the government was “concerned about the close  relationship of Mr Javid to former President [Mohamed Nasheed].

Government is concerned about the close relationship ofMr. Javid to former President @mohamednasheedwe are watching the case closely.

— Masood Imad (@MasoodImv) May 22, 2013

Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb meanwhile tweeted following the hearing that he was “Shocked and Saddened by the news of the confession of Dr. Afrasheem murderer, confirming that he was brutally killed for a political reason”.

Shocked and Saddened by the news of the confession of Dr. Afrasheem murderer, confirming that he was brutally killed for a political reason

— Ahmed Adeeb (@Ahmed_Adeeb) May 22, 2013

Former Justice Minister, Home Minister at the time of Dr Afrasheem’s death and now the PPM’s vice presidential candidate Dr Mohamed Jameel, tweeted: “Dr Afrasheem was assassinated for political purpose , says the suspect”.

Dr Afrasheem’s murderer reveals those behind this crime.The nation is shocked with this revelation , wonder will they say now! — Mohamed Jameel Ahmed (@MJameelAhmed) May 22, 2013

Police Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz has publicly dismissed the rumours that the murder was linked to religious fundamentalists, stating “no evidence has been gathered suggesting that this murder was carried out for a religious motive.”

Minister of Islamic Affairs Sheikh Shaheem Ali Saeed also disputed a religious motive in Afrasheem’s murder, telling local media that the Islamic Ministry had not forced the scholar to offer a public apology for anything in his last television appearance.

Shaheem went on to say that Afrasheem had been given the opportunity to appear on the show following a series of requests made by the murdered scholar. He said Afrasheem had asked for the opportunity on Monday’s (October 1. 2012) program, and so the previously arranged guests had been replaced with him.

Shaheem also said that Afrasheem had visited the Ministry of Islamic Affairs the same afternoon, requesting a discussion on the topics to be covered in the talk show.

Shaheem furthermore said that in this meeting, Deputy Minister of Islamic Affairs Mohamed Gubadh AbuBakr, Afrasheem and himself had spoken about how religious disagreements had led to rifts between close friends, and said that he wanted to “escape from all of this”.

“[Afrasheem] said that he wanted everyone to know what his viewpoints were. And [he] wanted to share this on a channel watched by the largest audience,” said Shaheem, sharing his discussion with Afrasheem in their last meeting together.

“I think this is a highly esteemed position that Allah has granted [Afrasheem] in timing this program in the midst of all that happened that night. It is fate that the show was arranged for the very night,” Shaheem said.

In May 2012, Shaheem’s Adhaalath Party put out a press release “condemning in the harshest terms” remarks made by two unnamed scholars in a lecture to police officers that the party contended “mocked” the Sunnah (way of life prescribed as normative for Muslims on the basis of the teachings and practices of Prophet Mohammed).

A police media official confirmed that the session was conducted by Dr Ibrahim Zakariyya Moosa and the late Dr Afrasheem.

“In his speech, Dr Afrasheem Ali mainly explained the importance of knowing how the Prophet’s Sunnah is ranked,” read the police news item.

MP Afrasheem argued that issues on which scholars have not been able to reach a consensus could not be declared either compulsory or heretical as “there cannot be a definite conclusion regarding such problems.”

However, according to Adhaalath Party, one of the scholars told police officers that there was no benefit to society from an individual wearing a beard “even if, for example, it was established from the Prophet’s Sunnah.”

“As some officers of the Maldives police institution wanted to wear beards, he attempted in his talk to convince them that there was no need to do something that was of no benefit to society,” the party said.

“Desperate attempt”: MDP

While unable to confirm if Javid or any other members of the party were among those whose passports had been confiscated, the former President’s MDP alleged the handling of the case by police was a “desperate attempt” by the government to frame the party and discredit it ahead of the presidential elections in September.

MDP MP and Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor claimed that the party was “totally shocked” at what he alleged were attempts to implicate its supporters in the murder of a “liberal religious scholar”.

“We believe this is very much related to trying to absolve religious fundamentalists of the crime,” he said.

Ghafoor claimed that the public were skeptical of the direction of the police investigation into Dr Afrasheem’s death, given that President Dr Mohamed Waheed had come to power in a “coup d’etat”.

“This coup administration has lost all credibility in the eyes of the public. No one believes their scaremongering,” he said.

“We are concerned at these attempts of election-time intimidation.”

Ghafoor claimed that the entire investigation into Dr Afrasheem’s murder was tainted by wide-scale public distrust in the police.

“They are trying to cover up the case desperately, and yet it is during their watch that we are seeing so many murders occurring,” he said.

Ghafoor added the MDP were awaiting developments in the police investigation, while preparing to host protests across the country on Saturday (May 25) raising concern about judicial bias and a lack of law and order.

Masood Imad rejected allegations the government was involved in the direction of investigations into the murder, claiming that the police and judiciary were dealing with the matter.

“We have continued to say that we will not interfere with the country’s judiciary,” he said. ” We are just sitting and watching how the case develops.”

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Police Commissioner accuses politicians of involvement in gang activity

Commissioner of Police Abdulla Riyaz has alleged politicians are often responsible for encouraging gang-related activities in the capital island Male’.

Riyaz is quoted in local media as saying that in order to achieve political gains, politicians frequently provide financial incentives to gangs to carry out activities.

“When police attempt to counter gang activity on the island, politicians stand up in defence of these gang members. This is a problem. If politicians, too, wish to develop this country, they too will need to think of the institution. If an individual in the institution does wrong, then action must be taken against that individual. But the institution, as a whole, should remain in place. Politicians need to understand this,” Riyaz said.

Zero-tolerance against gangs: CP Riyaz

Riyaz said Deputy Commissioner of Police Hussain Waheed had been placed in charge of the Gang Task Force, created after five stabbings in three days earlier this week.

Riyaz said patrols on the streets of Male’ would be increased, and that should any gang members “gather together even the least”, they will subjected to police searches and immediately placed under detention if “any illegal objects” are found in their possession.

“These instructions have already been issued to police. We will completely enforce upon them the powers granted to us by law. Police have been advised to act under a ‘zero tolerance’ policy and not allow them any leeway,” Riyaz said.

“They have now been mandated with a specific task on official Maldives Police Service paperwork. Intelligence will look into how much detail we have about gangs; who and who belong to specific gangs, who are the leading figures in each of these gangs, and their criminal records. They will also look into those who belong to gangs at different levels of hierarchy in it, what has happened to the cases against them, and at what point the cases against them have been stalled. To overcome this stalling of cases is one of the task force objective,” Riyaz explained.

“We will exert pressure even if the cases are being delayed at the Prosecutor General’s Office (PG). We will call upon them to expedite those cases. Police will also speed things up. We will also call upon the courts to expedite them. Intelligence and investigation [teams] will focus on these things,” he continued.

Riyaz said leading figures of gangs will no longer be given privacy related to ongoing investigations, saying that in future all details concerning them will be revealed to the public.

He further said that should such a case remain pending in court, police will hereafter reveal such information to the public too.

Increased surveillance

Commissioner Riyaz said the intelligence department would try to find evidence strong enough to legally detain gang members, adding that police will act immediately once such information is uncovered.

Riyaz revealed police are running an operation whereby surveillance cameras will be installed in locations with risk of high criminal activity. According to Riyaz, nine such cameras have now been installed and are currently used for monitoring, out of a total target of 50.

Riyaz said existing surveillance cameras were generally installed in areas judged relevant with the intention of monitoring protests and demonstrations.

Gang Task Force

Commissioner Riyaz briefed the Gang Task Force on Wednesday, following his comments to local media the previous day.

Riyaz instructed the task force to re-evaluate the cases against gang members, solve the cases at an elevated speed and complete all necessary work to deliver due penalties to them.

“The Gang Task Force will be overseen by a seven member executive committee, with DCP Waheed heading it. The operation has now been commenced,” a police media official confirmed.

Anxiety over rising gang violence: Asia Foundation

“As in most fledgling democracies, political uncertainty can breed violent acts in an effort to achieve narrow political gains,” stated the Asia Foundation in an article published on its website about gang activities in Male’, a follow up to its 2012 report on the issue.

Asia Foundation stated that “due to high levels of domestic violence, divorce, and broken homes, joining gangs has become a popular choice for Maldivian youth looking outside of traditional family structures for support and protection.”

The foundation, together with local NGO Maldives Institute for Psychological Services, Training And Research (MIPSTAR), is currently conducting a workshop for 34 voluntary participants, including gang leaders and members, aiming to offer counselling, vocational training and to build a relationship between them and security forces to better address the issue.

“Monthly meetings with the police to discuss grievances and strategies to address potential violence serves as a fulcrum to bring all gang members together,” the article stated.

“[One gang member], who has been involved in gangs since he was 16 and is now a senior member, pointed out frustrations over police harassment on the streets and arrests without evidence. He also said that being labeled a gang member results in closer scrutiny by the police officers, which he said was acceptable as long as they are not wrongfully arrested for crimes not committed by them,” it read.

“The discussions reveal that one of the root causes for harassment and wrongful arrests were the beat police officers (police constables and sergeants who are permanently assigned to a neighbourhood) who tend to view all gang members with suspicion and hostility,” the article continued, adding that efforts were now being made to address this “trust deficit, which currently runs high”.

Speaking of the foundation’s program, the article says “The three most dangerous gang members as identified by the police are enrolled in O’ Level (high school diploma) programs and regularly seek individual counselling also offered in the program. They expressed that the present context is challenging. On the one hand, they want to engage actively in the program and reform themselves; but on the other hand, there is also a pressure to engage in illegal activities including contract violence.”

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