Month: June 2013

High Court Chief Judge files lawsuit against JSC for second time

High Court Chief Judge Ahmed Shareef has filed a lawsuit at the Civil Court for a second time against the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), challenging his indefinite suspension by the judicial watchdog.

Shareef’s lawyer Husnu Suood – a former Attorney General under the administration of former President Mohamed Nasheed – told local media that the second case was filed this week with the same request to issue an injunction halting Shareef’s suspension.

On Monday (June 17), the previous case submitted by Shareef was dismissed by Civil Court Judge Hathif Hilmy after the claimant did not attend a hearing scheduled for that day and failed to provide the court with a valid reason for his absence.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Husnu Suood said that Shareef’s lawyers were unable to attend the hearing scheduled due to a mistake made by his office staff.

“We filed the same lawsuit the same day the [first] case was dismissed,” he said.

Suood said that lawyers would argue that the JSC did not follow due process in suspending Shareef.

“They have a procedure of establishing a committee to investigate cases and then the committee will recommend the action to be taken after investigating the case,” he explained.

“We don’t know if Shareef’s case was tabled or not,” he added.

Suood also referred to the issue of Civil Service Commission (CSC) Chair Mohamed Fahmy Hassan’s contested legal status and his attendance at the JSC meeting where the decision to suspend Shareef was made.

Suood questioned the legitimacy of a decision made in a meeting held with an “illegitimate” member.

Judge Ahmed Shareef was suspended on the same day that the High Court cancelled a hearing of a case involving former President Nasheed.

The hearing was scheduled to decide on procedural issues raised by the JSC contending that the High Court did not have the jurisdiction to hear the case, which involved the legitimacy of a panel of judges appointed by the commission to preside over the former president’s trial at the Hulhumale’ Magistrate Court.

Shortly after the cancellation, the JSC declared that the commission had indefinitely suspended Shareef.

He was the presiding judge in former President Nasheed’s case against the JSC.

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Minister of state for tourism resigns, cites “unacceptable” conduct of Minister Adheeb

Mariyam Mizna Shareef resigned from her position as Minister of State for Tourism, Arts and Culture yesterday (June 19), stating on social media that she had quit over unspecified “differences” with Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb

Taking to micro-blogging site Twitter after announcing her resignation yesterday (June 19), Mizna wrote that she had found the manner in which he ran the ministry to be “unacceptable”.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Mizna declined to comment on the post, adding that she wished to keep a low-profile and stay out of the political arena.

News of Mizna’s resignation came following the President’s Office announcement earlier the same day that it had dismissed Deputy Tourism Minister Mohamed Maleeh Jamal and Minister of State for Economic Development Abdulla Ameen from their posts at the behest of their former party.

Maleeh alleged yesterday that could see no other reason for their dismissals beyond the decision of both Ameen and himself not to back President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s election campaign.

Both men have pledged to back the government-aligned Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) presidential candidate MP Abdullah Yameen during September’s election.

Mizna today confirmed that her resignation as state minister had not been related to the dismissals of Maleeh and Ameen, though she did not elaborate further.

Posting on Twitter following her resignation, Mizna claimed that she had tried to enact change within the ministry during her time in the post, but claimed “things [were] going from bad to worse” despite her attempts.

“Only way is to remove Adheeb,” she concluded.

Mizna’s comments on Twitter prompted a flurry of activity on the social networking site, including one post from an account claiming to be that of a PPM Council Member.

Mizna meanwhile accused Adheeb of being “busy giving away lagoons, sandbanks and uninhabited islands.”

Mizna Shareef’s Twitter profile could not be viewed as of this afternoon.

Ministry response

Minister Adheeb was not responding to calls from Minivan News at time of press today.

Adheeb told newspaper Haveeru that his “only crime was being the PPM deputy leader.”

“I have become the target of everyone. It has become their purpose to slaughter me politically. But if there’s a corruption issue involving me shouldn’t they go to the Anti-Corruption Commission or a Majlis committee? But [instead] certain individuals are trying to bring me into disrepute. I regret the corruption allegations made about me. But I will not budge. I won’t budge for a government post,” he was quoted as saying.

Tourism Ministry spokesperson Hassan Zameel told Minivan News that Mizna had not raised any official concerns with the ministry relating to allegations of misconduct against Minister Adheeb.

“She may have discussed these matters with the minister or her colleagues, but we have not received an official complaint,” he said. “The ministry can only recognize complaints if someone has put these concerns to us officially in written form.”

Zameel added that yesterday’s resignation of former State Minister Mizna and the dismissal of former Deputy Minister Maleeh would have no significant impact on the day-to-day running of the ministry.

He added that the ministry would continue to operate with the minister and state minister making political decisions, while civil servants would continue to oversee the rest of the authority’s work.

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Comment: Gayoom and his legacy – the major obstacle to consolidating Maldives democracy

This article was first published on Dhivehi Sitee. Republished with permission.

The Maldives’ first multi-party presidential elections of 2008 ended Gayoom’s thirty year dictatorship and adopted democratic rule.

But, like many other nascent democracies, the threat exists that Maldives may not be able to sustain its democracy in its fullest sense.

This is especially true after the coup orchestrated by the Maldivian security forces that ousted the first democratically elected President in February 2012. Added to this is the political activeness of dictator Gayoom, which in itself tends to heighten the prospect of Maldives falling back to a dictatorship.

As we head to the second democratic election in Maldives history, I want to ask: will a popular election alone help foster democracy in Maldives? Moreover, how could we prevent a full-blown authoritarian reversal with power back in the hands of Gayoom?

Gayoom’s continuing influence over Maldivian politics cannot be denied. This is not a unique experience for nascent democracies.

Research has established that legacies of authoritarianism from which democracies emerge put more direct pressure on democracies than cultural and economic factors[i].

This kind of pressure from Gayoom’s legacy the on Maldives’ efforts towards democratic transition has manifested itself in different ways. Take, for instance, the country’s political institutions.

During three years of democracy, attempts by Nasheed’s government to implement reforms needed for the consolidation of democracy were met with ever increasing obstructions from Gayoom loyalists within various institutions.

Firstly, the effort to create an independent judiciary (without which a modern democracy cannot function) has been entirely undermined by judges loyal to Gayoom. The Supreme Court bench itself is composed mostly of Gayoom loyalists who share his political ideologies.

It makes sense to me now that, when Majlis voted on President Nasheed’s nominations, DRP opposed most of them. Having been in a position to observe the negotiations closely, I myself believe that Nasheed’s nominations, opposed by DRP, comprised less biased, more suitable candidates.

At the time, DRP was Gayoom’s party with a majority in Parliament. DRP MPs made a habit of rejecting Nasheed’s nominations and proposing a list of their own instead. They pushed hard to sit certain individuals—like self-declared Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed, a known Gayoom-affiliate—on the bench.

With the country facing a Constitutional void, President Nasheed compromised and nominated the current bench for Parliament approval.

Aishath Velezenee, a former Member of the Judicial Services Commission has provided a detailed account of how the process for appointing Supreme Court Judges took place.

The simple truth that we all know is, Supreme Court decisions have in one way or the other, benefited Gayoom and his allies. Is it a coincidence there is yet to be a Supreme Court decision that went against Gayoom or his allies?

Gayoom loyalists are similarly entrenched within the security services. Their loyalty to the dear leader had a major role to play in their mutiny against Nasheed on February 7, facilitating as it did the controversial transfer of power later that day.

Gayoom has denied widely circulated reports he was directing the night’s events from Malaysia. It cannot be denied, however, that he gave a phone interview to opposition-controlled media, indirectly encouraging the mutinying police.

It is no coincidence that after the coup, the head of security services are all pro-Gayoom loyalists. Now we have a Police Commissioner who served as the Deputy Commissioner in Gayoom’s regime, a regime well known for police brutality and torture.

The defence minister is a retired Colonel who also served under Gayoom. Furthermore, a reflection on the events in February 8 last year also shows that our security forces still continue Gayoom’s legacies.

Police brutality towards peaceful protesters, a defining characteristic of Gayoom’s regime, returned to the streets of Male’ with a vengeance, less than 24 hours after Nasheed’s government was brought to an end. It wasn’t hard to feel as if we had regressed, before 2008, before democracy.

Independent institutions play a vital role in consolidation of a democracy. Unfortunately for the Maldives, Gayoom loyalists are firmly embedded within, and often dominate, institutions like the Human Rights Commission, Police Integrity Commission and Civil Service Commission.

Most individuals comprising these commissions served in Gayoom’s government and still maintain close ties with him. This is hardly surprising given that just as with the nomination of Supreme Court justices, here too it was a DRP-majority Majlis that confirmed or rejected nominees to commissions.

The loyalty of some independent commissions to Gayoom was indeed evident from their actions following the police brutality on February 8. Neither the Human Rights Commission, nor the Policy Integrity Commission took any firm actions against the misconducts from the security forces.

Gayoom’s current party, the PPM, is so determined to retain these loyalists within the independent commissions that it is prepared to disregard even findings of serious misconduct against such individuals. The ongoing saga of Civil Service Commission (CSC) Chair Mohamed Fahmy is a case in point.

Parliament’s Independent Institutions Committee found in favour of a female staff member who accused Fahmy of sexual harassment and voted to remove him from the post. PPM members fought hard, but in vain, to save Fahmy. The Supreme Court was then asked to rule on whether the parliament’s decision was constitutional. Not surprisingly, the Supreme Court ruled in Fahmy’s favour.

Gayoom’s dictatorial legacy, entrenched deep within our political system is the main obstacle to the consolidation of democracy in the Maldives. The 75 year-old leader’s revived political activeness is further strengthening this obstacle. Reforms to the judiciary, independent institutions and security forces are essential if we are to consolidate and sustain democracy.

[i] See for example, Shin, Doh Chull (1994), ‘On the third wave of democratization: A synthesis and evaluation of recent theory and research’, World Politics, 47 (1), 135-70.

Ahmed Hamdhan is a third-year Bachelor of Arts (Policy Studies and Political Science) and a student at the Australian National University.

All comment pieces are the sole view of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of Minivan News. If you would like to write an opinion piece, please send proposals to [email protected]

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Maldives Broadcasting Corporation schedules presidential debate for September 1

The Maldives Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) has announced that a debate between rival presidential candidates will be broadcast via state media on September 1 this year.

MBC Managing Director Mohamed Shafeeq Mahmoud told local media that efforts were underway to secure the participation of the four key candidates presently expected to contest the presidential election, which has been scheduled for September 7.

These participants are expected to be President Dr Mohamed Waheed; Mohamed Nasheed of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), MP Abdullah Yameen of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and MP Gasim Ibrahim of the Jumhoree Party (JP).

Shafeeq told Sun Online that in the build up to the debate, state television and radio would provide airtime for candidates to broadcast information on their campaigns from July.

Television Maldives (TVM) is expected to broadcast four separate live programmes, each focused on a single candidate that will include the opportunity for the public to ask questions, he said.

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Male’ surfers dump garbage outside city hall in protest over night market trash

A group of local surfers dumped a pile of garbage outside the entrance to Male’ City Hall today in a second protest aimed at preventing the waste generated by a night market held this month from polluting the Maldives’ capital city.

The rubbish pile was dumped at the MCC today (June 19) in an effort to pressure city councilors to organise a formal meeting with the group, so they can collaboratively prevent refuse from the ongoing night market event from polluting the area, the group claimed.

The rubbish was collected from roads around the market, known as the ‘Ungulhey Bazaar’, as well as the small park area local surfers refer to as ‘the garden’ located next to the capital’s ‘raalhugandu’ surf point in Henveiru ward.

Appalled by the excessive amounts of garbage littering the nearby streets, parks and sea due to the Male’ night market, last week the group of surfers staged a creative protest using the rubbish to try and pressure the city council into action.

Although the first protest did prompt responses from the Male’ City Council (MCC) and Go Media – the private company commissioned to organise the market – no formal meetings have yet been conducted to resolve the issue, Maldives Surfing Association (MSA) President Ahmed Fauzan ‘Karo’ Abbas told Minivan News today.

“We have tried to meet someone [from MCC and Go Media] and they have sent different representatives [to raalhugandu] to discuss the night market litter problem, but no one with decision making authority,” said Abbas. “Random people come but we don’t know who they are.”

“We have also previously sent complaint letters but no one has responded,” he added.

“I was [previously] told things would get better, but it’s getting worse,” he said.

The surfers today claimed that their second protest appeared to have been more successful.

“MCC has arranged an official meeting for Sunday (June 23), which will be attended by MSA as well as the Maldives Bodyboarding Association (MBBA),” said Abbas.

He added that although tonight marked the last night of the market, another event had been scheduled for October this year.

“We have told the city council we do not want the bazaar to be held here again. What the public is doing [throwing waste all over the area] is affecting our sport,” said Abbas.

Abbas explained that the raalhugandu area had a long association with surfing, adding that the excessive garbage – as well as advertising billboards erected in the area without consulting the community – all negatively impacted surf competitions held in the area.

“This is a public space and the public should be consulted before holding a big event [like the night market],” he said.

The MCC confirmed today that a first formal meeting with the MSA and MBBA is scheduled for Sunday afternoon.

“We scheduled the formal meeting to solve all the [garbage] problems and to discuss what difficulties they are facing due to the night market,” MCC Councillor Mohamed Falah told Minivan News today.

“I know that we have to solve the garbage problems very carefully,” said Falah. “I agree with their demands and that environmental problems are very important.”

“We will solve these waste issues at any cost,” he declared.

Raising awareness about the link between human and environmental health is necessary to stop people from haphazardly throwing their garbage everywhere, which is why the surfers are leading by example, local surfer Hamid Abdul Hadhi previously told Minivan News.

“Most of the pollution from the market ends up in the sea,” Hadhi explained. “The trash hurts the fishes and corals, plus when we’re surfing and get a plastic bag stuck to our faces then we’re in trouble.”

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Mega Maldives negotiating with tax authorities over account freezing dispute

Airline Mega Maldives continues to operate scheduled flights to and from China this week, despite the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) taking action to freeze the company’s accounts on Monday (June 17) over disputed tax payments.

MIRA announced this week that it had decided to freeze bank accounts linked to Mega Maldives with the assistance of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) over what it claimed was the company’s refusal to cover tax flagged in an audit report.

The airline has stated that it was engaged in negotiations with local authorities to try and resolve the dispute with MIRA concerning the state’s interpretation of the requirements under which withholding tax must be paid.

The company has maintained that it remains fully up-to-date in terms of covering profit and service tax payments to MIRA.

Mega Maldives, which is operated through a US-Maldives private joint-venture under the name Mega Global Air Services (Maldives) Private Limited, is the country’s second scheduled airline.

The airline commenced operations in 2010 and completed its maiden flight in January 2011, where it flew over 230 passengers from Hong Kong to Gan International Airport.

During July 2011, the airline went onto become the first Maldivian carrier to provide flight services from Shanghai to Male’ with 200 passengers.

MIRA’s Director General of Audit and Finances Fathuhulla Jameel told local media this week that a tax audit carried out by the authority revealed that Mega Maldives owed large sums of money as unpaid taxes.

According to Jameel, the total amount of money MIRA is owed by Mega Maldives stood at more than MVR 13 million (US$ 843,060.96) as of this week.

The airline is also required to cover unpaid fines valued at around MVR 1 million (US$ 64,850.84) resulting from the company’s failure to pay taxes and produce statements, according to MIRA.

Speaking to Minivan News today, Jameel said that MIRA had been acting in accordance with the law, adding that withholding taxes were imposed under section sixof the Corporate Profit Tax Act.

“We have a two stage appeal process. One is if they are not satisfied with our figures in the tax audits, then there is a department in MIRA which they can appeal. If that fails, they can appeal to the Tax Appeal Tribunal. So far, to my knowledge, no appeal has been made to Tax Appeal tribunal. If they are unhappy with our figures, there are ways they can find a solution,” he said.

No funds in the frozen accounts: MIRA

MIRA has revealed that the accounts of Mega Maldives frozen by the MMA were found to have insufficient funds to cover the outstanding payments.

“We believe that they will produce the required tax statements and pay the money owed to the authority. Having failed to pay the amount, we froze their accounts and when we checked, there were no funds in those accounts,” Jameel said.

According to Jameel, of the two frozen accounts, one had only US$ 10,000, while the other contained MVR 9,000.

“Some accounts are still not frozen. But we had requested to freeze all accounts under the airline. They can still deposit money even if the account is frozen,” Jameel added.

Jameel told Minivan News that negotiations were already under way with the airline, which would be allowed to make payments in installments once an initial 30 percent of the outstanding payment to MIRA has been covered. However, Jameel said it was difficult to detail the exact figures or the duration over which installments could be made as negotiations were ongoing.

Jameel said that MIRA had formally requested the MMA to freeze the company’s accounts last Thursday (June 13) after several attempts to retrieve the money were unsuccessful.

“As a last resort, we requested [MMA] to freeze their account. We had made the decision [to freeze the account] after all the attempts made to collect the money failed,” Jameel said. “MMA will order all the banks to freeze the accounts of that airline.  I presume the accounts may now have been already frozen.”

Airline negotiations

In a press statement issued yesterday (June 18 ), the airline claimed that it was currently in negotiations with MIRA and the government to try and resolve the dispute.

“The tax that this airline is required to pay as per Maldives Inland Revenue is the withholding tax. This tax, by any means, is not similar to taxes such as the Corporate Profit Tax (CPT) or the Goods and Services Tax (GST),” read the company statement.

“Generally, corporations are required to pay taxes based on their profits or based on the income that is generated. These two taxes [CPT and GST] are being regularly paid to MIRA as required by the law,” it added.

Withholding taxes are based on a local company’s spending on services provided by expatriates. Mega Maldives, being an operator of wide body flights, said it was continuously required to seek foreign technical assistance.

Interpretation issues

The airline has said that according to MIRA and the Maldivian government’s interpretation of tax laws, several services required by the airline had fallen into the criteria requiring payment of withholding tax. The tax currently stands at 10 percent of the costs paid in such services.

“Assessing the figures, having to pay an additional 10 percent as tax means 10 percent is added to the cost incurred by the airline,” it claimed.

The airline argued that under this interpretation, it was required to pay withholding tax on top of the cost of spare parts required to be made available by each airline in the country as per the Maldives Civil Aviation regulations. Withholding tax was also said to have been added to the general cost of operating international flights.

“Since the stated expenses are required by an international carrier, imposing a huge tax on such expenses is a financial burden on the airline that is resulting in huge losses. The Maldives Civil Aviation Authority which is helping this airline in the negotiations with MIRA has also highlighted that such taxation could be detrimental to the aviation industry,” it claimed.

Speaking to Minivan News, Chief Executive Officer of Maldives Civil Aviation Authority, Hussain Jameel confirmed that the authority had been assisting the talks between the airline and MIRA.

However, he declined to provide further details at the current time.

Mega Maldives stated that as a result of financial difficulties incurred by the company over the dispute concerning the withholding tax, it had been forced to reduce its number of scheduled flights.

The airline maintained nonetheless that was working on expanding its fleet, which currently consists of several aircraft.

In its statement, Mega Maldives called on authorities to create an environment for aviation companies to have a profitable and viable business in the country.

Operations interrupted

Local media reported earlier this week that the Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) had originally denied approval for a Mega Maldives flight to leave the country over its failure to pay for the airport handler’s services.

However, the flight was allowed to leave the country after the airline and MACL finally came to an agreement over payment of the services.

The flight, which was expected to depart at 5:10pm on Monday evening, was only able to leave more than two hours later at around 7:20pm.

According to MACL’s Managing Director Dr Ibrahim Mahfooz, both Mega and the MACL had discussed the issue of pending payments, and Mahfooz told local media outlet Sun Online that Mega had agreed to make the payments to MACL.

Sun Online reported that following the grounding of Monday’s scheduled flight by the airline, it had agreed to pay MACL a sum of US$ 235,000 and to pay an additional sum of US$ 389,000 on Wednesday and Thursday.

Meanwhile, speaking to Minivan News about the dispute today on condition of anonymity, a senor figure within the country’s tourism industry said that Mega Maldives had in recent years played a vital role in connecting Maldives to China.

China last year overtook established European tourism markets to become the leading source of visitors to the Maldives. The senior tourism source said that air connectivity and flight frequency played a significant part n the fortunes of an isolated destination like the Maldives.

“An impact on any airline operating to the Maldives will impact the country’s tourism sector,” the source claimed.

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MDP MP Ali Waheed calls to exhume body of murdered MP Afrasheem, conduct post-mortem

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Deputy Parliament Group Leader MP Ali Waheed has called on the state to exhume the body of murdered scholar and Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP Dr Afrasheem Ali in order to conduct a post mortem.

Referring to the MP’s murder last year as the “most serious crime ever committed in the Maldives”, Waheed said that various allegations and rumours were being spread to create confusion and suspicion in society about the case.

He said that these allegations had prominently focused on the involvement of certain senior politicians in the crime, including the MDP’s own Chairperson MP ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik and PPM presidential candidate, MP Abdullah Yameen.

Waheed stated that it was therefore of utmost importance to conduct a post mortem in order to bring an end to this speculation and allegations over the case, while ascertaining the facts around Dr Afrasheem’s murder.

Prior to Waheed’s comments, MDP Chairperson and MP ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik also spoke of the importance of clarifying facts regarding Afrasheem’s murder.

Echoing comments previously raised by former President Mohamed Nasheed at a party rally, Moosa spoke of the need to verify if there was any truth in information that individuals suspected of involvement in the murder had fled the country on the day of the attack.

He further questioned why street surveillance cameras installed by the police had not been in operation on the night of the murder.

MDP MP Mohamed Riyaz also spoke of the allegations that Sudanese nationals may have had involvement in the crime, while stressing the importance of verifying the truth behind claims that Afrasheem had been summoned to the Ministry of Islamic Affairs shortly before his murder.

PPM MP Ahmed Nihan was not responding to calls today from Minivan News today. Meanwhile, Dr Abdulla Mausoom, Parliamentary Group Leader of the government-aligned Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), said he was unavailable for comment at time of press.

Background

Maldives Police Services announced in October 2012 that the FBI were extending assistance in the investigation of the MPs murder.

Commissioner of Police Abdulla Riyaz later stated in a press conference held in December 2012 that the murder of Afrasheem had been carried out with a political motive, and that the culprits were to be paid MVR 4 million (US$ 260,000).

Riyaz had at the time dismissed claims that the murder was linked to religious fundamentalists, stating “no evidence has been gathered which suggests this murder had a religious motive.”

The main murder suspect identified by the police investigation into the attack, Hussain Humam, initially denied charges. He later confessed to the crime at a hearing held in May.

At the hearing, state prosecutors read out a statement which was said to have been given by Humam at one of the initial hearings. The statement claimed that son-in-law of ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik, Abdulla ‘Jaa’ Javid, had offered to pay him MVR 4 million for the murder of MP Afrasheem.

In the last hearing held in early June, Humam once again retracted his confession, claiming that he had been coerced into confession by police.

Humam’s father has also written to the Criminal Court and the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives alleging police of conducting psychological abuse against the suspect and exerting coercion to confess to a crime he did not commit.

Religious scholar and MP Dr. Afrasheem Ali was found brutally murdered in the early hours of October 2, 2012 and was buried at a state funeral after Asr prayers on the same day.

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MP Ahmed Mahloof quits as PPM spokesperson: media reports

Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP Ahmed Mahloof has today resigned from his position as spokesperson for the party, according to local media.

Sun Online reported that MP Mahloof had confirmed his intention to resign as the PPM spokesperson via text message, but did not clarify the reasons for the decision.

Meanwhile, a PPM official was quoted as saying that the party’s office had not officially been informed of Mahloof’s decision, but had received a text message informing them of his intention to resign from the position.

Mahloof and fellow PPM MP Ahmed Nihan were not responding to calls at time of press from Minivan News to clarify the reports.

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No action against five officers facing criminal prosecution, decides police disciplinary board

The disciplinary board of the Maldives Police Service (MPS) has decided not to take any administrative action against five officers facing criminal prosecution over police brutality in February 2012, Assistant Commissioner of Police Ali Rasheed revealed at a press briefing yesterday (June 18).

Earlier this month, the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) concluded investigations into allegations of police brutality against demonstrators of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) on February 8, 2012, submitting six cases for prosecution.

The PIC also made a recommendation to the home ministry to take administrative action against the six police officers accused of brutality.

The Home Ministry forwarded the cases to the police disciplinary board, Assistant Commissioner Rasheed explained at yesterday’s press briefing.

“The disciplinary board has reviewed the cases and made decisions concerning the six police officers involved in these cases,” he said. “[The disciplinary board] has decided to dismiss one of those officers. On the remaining five cases, as the cases are currently at the court stage, the disciplinary board has decided not to take any administrative action against them until the court cases reach a definitive conclusion.”

A media official at the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) confirmed to Minivan News today that trials have begun on some cases of police brutality on February 8, while state prosecutors were in the process of interviewing witnesses in the other cases.

On February 8, 2012, thousands of MDP supporters took to the streets of Male’ in a protest march after former President Mohamed Nasheed declared that he resigned the previous day “under duress” in a “coup d’etat” instigated by mutinying police officers of the Special Operations (SO) command.

Following an investigation into the violence on February 8, the Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) concluded that the heavy-handed police crackdown on the MDP walk across Male’ was “brutal” and “without warning.”

The HRCM recommended investigations by the PIC into the “disproportionate” use of force that left dozens of demonstrators injured and hospitalised.

Moreover, the Commonwealth-backed Commission of National Inquiry (CoNI) – which controversially concluded that the transfer of presidential power on February 7 was constitutional – also recommended prompt investigations of police brutality.

“There were acts of police brutality on 6, 7 and 8 February 2012 that must be investigated and pursued further by the relevant authorities,” the report stated.

In May 2013 – one year and four months after the incidents – the PGO pressed charges against two police officers accused of assaulting MDP MPs ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik and Mariya Ahmed Didi during the violent crackdown on February 8.

MDP Chairperson ‘Reeko’ Moosa was flown overseas for treatment of severe injuries sustained during the assault. The two MPs were dragged out by SO officers while they were hiding in a shop with former President Nasheed.

Nasheed was briefly taken under police custody before being released back into the crowd.

Videos also emerged on social media appearing to show SO officers brutally beating MDP MP Ibrahim Rasheed ‘Bonda.’

Impunity

According to a status update by the PIC on June 6, the commission investigated 29 cases of police brutality before forwarding six cases for prosecution.

PIC Vice Chair Haala Hameed told parliament’s Government Oversight Committee on June 4 that the commission had urged then-Home Minister Mohamed Jameel to suspend the accused officers immediately.

However, Hameed said that the request was not adhered to and at least one of the accused officers was promoted.

Hameed said the commission had failed to identify the police officers in five of the remaining cases while 11 other cases lacked supporting evidence.

“These are not disciplinary issues, but crimes. Aside from sending cases to the Prosecutor General, we also recommended the Home Minister suspend these officers, because of the delays in prosecution. We believe these officers should not be serving in the police,” Hameed said.

Former PIC Chair Shahinda Ismail – who resigned citing failure to hold police accountable for human rights violations – explained to Minivan News in September 2012 that article 44 of the Police Act allows the home minister to ignore PIC recommendations if the commission is informed in writing.

Shahinda referred to a case involving Staff Sergeant Ali Ahmed, who was caught on tape kicking a demonstrator while he was on the ground.

The case was sent for prosecution while the PIC recommended administrative action against the staff sergeant to the Home Minister.

“I know for a fact he is still a policeman and was promoted after this incident,” Shahinda said at the time.

“It is really upsetting – a huge concern – for me that the police leadership is showing a trend where unlawful officers are acting with impunity. This can only lead to further violence,” she added.

Meanwhile, in May this year, the MDP accused the government of fast-tracking 117 “politically-motivated” cases involving its supporters charged with terrorism and obstruction of police duty.

“Why doesn’t the government take action against those police officers when there is clear evidence of police brutality? None of the police officers have been investigated or prosecuted in line with the CoNI,” said MDP MP Imthiyaz Fahmy, who was himself arrested on February 8.

February 8 crackdown

While riot police and soldiers baton-charged the front line of protestors on February 8, Minivan News observed SO officers charging the crowd from a narrow alley leading to the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) area.

The SO police officers used obscene language, pointed to and chased after individual MDP activists and severely beat unarmed civilians.

Al Jazeera news filmed parts of the attack from the rear and reported that on February 8 “police and military charged, beating demonstrators as they ran – women, the elderly, [with] dozens left nursing their wounds.”

According to the HRCM report, 32 people filed complaints with the commission concerning varying degrees of injuries sustained in the crackdown, while 20 people submitted medical documents of their treatment of injuries.

Among the injuries caused by the police baton charge, the HRCM report noted that several people were bruised and battered, one person fractured a bone in his leg, one person was left with a broken arm and six people sustained head wounds.

Two fingers on the left hand of one demonstrator were crushed, the report noted, and the victim had to undergo treatment at the operating theatre.

Moreover, the HRCM report into the events of February 6 and 7 revealed that 43 people were treated for injuries at the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH), while 28 people were treated at the ADK private hospital.

On February 8, Minivan News also observed several youth with head injuries queuing up for x-rays in the waiting area outside the reception area of IGMH.

One young woman who went to IGMH with her sister was being treated for a head wound. The gauze wrapped around her head was spotted with blood, and she claimed the wound was still bleeding as she went in for an X-ray.

“The police were just standing there and suddenly we were being beaten with batons and pepper spray was thrown in our face. They threw us to the ground and kept beating us,” she said.

The BBC meanwhile reported “a baton charge by police on crowds gathered outside one of the main hospitals.”

“People scattered as officers sprinted towards them silhouetted against the lights of passing traffic,” the BBC’s Andrew North reported from Male’.

“Inside the hospital, dozens of Mr Nasheed’s supporters are still being treated for injuries, following earlier scuffles in the main square. Among them is Reeko Moosa Maniku, chairman of Mr Nasheed’s Maldives Democratic Party – who was with the former president when the clashes broke out. With a large head bandage and his shirt bloodied, he regained consciousness as we arrived. The police said they would kill me, he told us, as they beat me. Another MP was still unconscious in another ward.”

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