Category: News in Brief

Police seize 2kg of hash oil

Police have arrested three men and a woman with about 2kg of hash oil after searching two residences in Malé.

The drug intelligence and drug enforcement departments raided two houses in the Maafanu ward of the capital with search warrants in the early hours of Monday (October 6).

The Criminal Court subsequently granted a five-day extension of remand detention for the four suspects. Police revealed that the male suspects were aged 31, 34, and 37 and the female suspect was 20 years of age.

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US naval ship to visit Maldives

A United States naval ship is due to visit the Maldives in mid-October as part of a routine patrol of the Indian Ocean, the US embassy in Colombo, Sri Lanka has said.

The USS Rodney M. Davis is “an Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided-missile frigate with the U.S. 7th Fleet”, the embassy explained in a press release.

The ship’s officers and crew are expected to work with the Maldives National Defence Force, including its coast guard, “to improve regional security through close communication, coordination and information exchanges, while supporting at-sea and ashore training opportunities.”

“It will be tremendously beneficial to build on our excellent relationships with the maritime nations of the Indian Ocean,” the press release quoted Vice Admiral Robert Thomas, Commander US 7th Fleet, as saying.

“The area is critical to regional security, and the partnerships we build with this training will go a long way to creating a more professional and stable maritime environment.”

“My crew and I are excited to visit the Maldives,” said Commander Todd Whalen, commanding officer of the Rodney M. Davis, expressing gratitude to the Maldivian government for the opportunity to visit the country.

“We are grateful for the chance to make new friends and work with our counterparts in the Maldivian National Defence Forces.”

According to the embassy, “the Rodney M. Davis is on patrol in the 7th Fleet area of responsibility supporting security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.”

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Man found dead in mosque toilet

A man was found dead in a toilet at the Masjid al-Yousuf al-Berberi mosque on Rahdhebaimagu in Malé last night (October 5), reports local media.

According to police, the man was pronounced dead upon arrival at the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital.

The deceased is believed to be a foreigner between 30 to 40 years of age. Cause of death has not been established yet.

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Nine students arrested in Addu City with pornographic material

Nine students of the Feydhoo school in Addu City were arrested yesterday over possession of nude photos and videos, reports local media.

Police did not reveal any further details of the case, but confirmed that the suspects taken into custody around 2:00pm on Sunday (October 5) were below 18 years of age.

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Over 325 complaints filed at Broadcasting Commission

A total of 327 complaints have been lodged to date with the Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) concerning broadcasting content and licensing disputes.

In a message on the occasion of ‘Broadcasting Day’ yesterday, MBC Chair Mohamed Shaheeb explained that the regulator assesses content based on the broadcasting code of practice.

Of the 327 complaints, Shaheeb revealed that 126 complaints were filed in relation to broadcasting content while 201 complaints concerned licensing issues.

Shaheeb called on private broadcasters to “join hands” in an effort to “repair the country’s torn social fabric”.

He also praised the telethon organised by local media to raise funds for Palestinian victims affected by the Israeli military aggression in Gaza.

However, Shaheeb criticised private broadcasters for their inadequate response to training programmes organised by the commission.

He added that the commission was in the process of compiling a report based on monitoring of broadcast content during last year’s presidential election.

Moreover, fruitful discussions have taken with the relevant authorities regarding the possibility of lowering charges levied for electricity and telecommunication services offered to broadcasters. The fees were presently high as they were charged on commercial rates, the commission noted.

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MNDF website hacked

The website of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) was hacked this morning and is currently offline.

MNDF Spokesperson Major Hussain Ali told local media that control of the site has since been regained.

“It’s going to happen again,” reads a message on the hacked home page under the date ‘7-11-2014.’

“There are only two ways to live. One is though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle,” read the rest of the message.

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MoU signed with Sri Lankan company for food and drug testing

The Ministry of Health signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Sri Lankan company on Friday (October 3) to provide assistance in conducting laboratory testing for the Food and Drug Authority (FDA).

Acting Health Minister Mohamed Nazim signed the MoU on behalf of the government while N Sri Ram signed on behalf of the SGS Company.

According to the health ministry, SGS would provide assistance for the FDA during the next five years to conduct tests that were unavailable in the Maldives.

The national health laboratory’s capacity would also be improved during the five-year period, the ministry said.

SGS is an international company that conducts testing for product quality and potential health risks.

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Police, Criminal Court exchange blame over release of alleged drug traffickers

The Maldives Police Service (MPS) and the Criminal Court have blamed each other for the release yesterday (October 3) of two suspects arrested on charges of drug trafficking.

The two suspects were taken into custody on Thursday (October 2) after about 1kg of drugs were found in their possession. The pair were reportedly arrested after they loaded a vegetable box containing the drugs into a car upon arriving in Malé from the airport.

According to local media, the suspects were released because they could not be brought before a judge for extension of remand detention 24 hours after the arrest.

The justice building was closed when police took the suspects to the Criminal Court on Friday and the 24-hour period elapsed at 1:30pm.

Under Article 48 of the Constitution, judges must determine the validity of detention with 24 hours of an arrest and decide whether or not to authorise pre-trial detention.

An official from the Criminal Court’s told local media that police were informed in writing that the court would open at 2:00pm on Friday.

If police were aware that 24 hours would elapse before then, the official said police should have brought the suspects to the court on Thursday.

Aside from confirming the release of the suspects, police have declined to comment on the incident.

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JSC lawyer election scheduled for October 30

An election for a lawyer to represent the legal community on the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) watchdog body has been scheduled for October 30, the Attorney General’s (AG) Office announced on Thursday (October 2).

Interested candidates were invited to submit applications before October 16.

In mid-August, the AG Office postponed the election for a second time after the Supreme Court struck down section 11(a) of the regulations enacted for conducting the polls, which states that polling mechanisms would be established on inhabited islands with at least five registered voters.

The apex court had declared that all licensed lawyers eligible to vote in the elections – including magistrates of island courts – should be able to do so anywhere in the country without registering.

The order prompted the AG Office to repeal the procedural regulations as the “essence” of the annulled clause was assuring “secrecy of the ballot”.

The AG Office said last week that new regulations (Dhivehi) have since been formulated in line with the Supreme Court order (Dhivehi). Lawyers and magistrates in other islands would be able to vote via fax from a polling station arranged by the AG Office.

Once the faxed ballot paper with the name, signature and fingerprint of the voter is received by the AG Office, an election official at the office would omit the section with the name and cast the ballot into a ballot box in Malé.

The election was first delayed in July after Gaaf Dhaal Fiyori Magistrate Abdul Razzak Mohamed filed a case at the Civil Court seeking annulment of section 11(a) of the procedural regulations.

After issuing a stay order postponing the election pending a judgment, the Civil Court ruled in late July that annulling the requirement would violate the secrecy of the ballot.

Judge Ali Rasheed Hussain noted that allowing voting mechanisms on islands where only one lawyer casts a ballot would compromise secrecy.

Along with former Deputy Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem, the three other candidates that have been stood for the election were Anas Abdul Sattar, Mohamed Faisal, and Latheefa Qasim.

After withdrawing his candidacy, lawyer Mohamed Fareed objected to judicial interference in the election following an earlier Supreme Court’s ruling allowing all licensed lawyers, including sitting MPs and judges, to vote in the election.

“The belief that an election in the Maldives may proceed without Supreme Court interference is against the facts, reality. This is the reality now,” he said at a press conference.

Had voting mechanisms been set up on every island, magistrates would have been forced to vote for the judiciary-backed candidate Latheefa Qasim, he suggested.

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