Month: March 2014

EC dismissals: EU observers note “time pressure” on March 22 polls

The Supreme Court’s decision to convict Elections Commission members for contempt of court will make the holding of the March 22 polls difficult the EU’s Election Observation Mission (EOM) has said.

“With less than two weeks remaining before the scheduled elections on 22 March, the mission recognises the time pressure that now weighs on the preparation of these elections, and the many associated challenges related to organising them in a manner that ensures they are credible, transparent, inclusive and fully representative of the wishes of all Maldivians,” read an EU EOM statement released last night.

Yesterday’s court verdict gave the relevant institutions six days to “make all necessary arrangements” for the scheduled parliamentary elections.

Meanwhile, a legal source has described the Supreme Court as now exercising a “dictatorship” over the other branches of government.

A Majlis statement released yesterday evening asserted that the procedures for appointing and removing members of the EC is detailed in the constitution and the Elections Commission Act.

“Because the People’s Majlis is tasked with the procedures on appointing and removing of members in that commission, we state: the Majlis can comment on the said Supreme Court verdict only after receiving and reviewing that document.”

The Majlis at the time said it had not received the court’s verdict, of which conflicting versions have been given in verbal and written forms.

The President’s Office has today called for applications from candidates wishing to fill the two commission places left vacant after dismissal of Chair Fuwad Thowfeek and Vice Chair Mohamed Fayaz yesterday.

The deadline for applications is 3pm on Wednesday, with application forms available on the President’s Office website.

Former Chair Thowfeek yesterday told Minivan News that he was left uncertain as to how the elections could now be carried out

“To fill our posts the president has to call for applications and select some names and send them for the parliament’s approval of more than fifty percent.”

“Very difficult for me to say anything because the Supreme Court reason given for our punishment is because of when I spoke about the impracticality of the 16 point guidelines.”

“When I talk about the practical difficulties, they say nobody is supposed to talk about the practical difficulties.”

Contempt

Thowfeek’s concerns over what constitutes contempt of court following the court’s ‘suo moto’ proceedings against the EC are also evident in both the political and legal communities.

Asked to comment on the Progressive Party of Maldives’ position following yesterday’s ruling, MP Ahmed Nihan said that he was reluctant to talk about the court.

“In my opinion, since the verdict is connected to contempt of court, if we even say something there might be another trouble. I would have to really think twice before I go ahead and say anything about the Supreme Court”

“I’m an elected MP from Villimaafanu but still, knowing that the Supreme Court may think that it’s a contempt of law if I said anything.”

One local lawyer reiterated these concerns, wishing to share his thoughts about the case anonymously.

“Anyone speaking out against the court is promptly suspended. You can easily be blacklisted.”

He suggested that the censure of all but a few prominent and well-connected lawyers was deterring many from entering the Maldivian legal profession.

“In a sense, you could say that the judiciary is the dictatorship of the three powers and is acting outside of the mandate of the highest court in a country.”

“In a sense it’s the power of the parliament that the courts are usurping, the function of lawmaking”

The lawyer revealed that he had been researching the newly introduced ‘suo moto’ regulations used by the court to both bring and oversee the case against the EC.

“Suo moto proceedings are sometimes used in public interest cases – especially in jurisdictions such as India and Pakistan – or places where one would see the judge as someone who puts wrongs right, as opposed to a judge being a formal adjudicator.”

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Human Rights Commission receives Juvenile Court summons

The Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) has been summoned to the Juvenile Court for a report that gave a “negative impression” of the court’s conduct during the sentencing of a 15 year old rape-victim to flogging and house arrest.

Following the release of the confidential report, the Juvenile Court has sent an order to every individual involved from the HRCM, summoning them to a court hearing this Wednesday (March 12) at 1:30pm.

The HRCM stated that they will release an official press statement after the court summons this Wednesday.

On February 26 2013 the Juvenile Court convicted the 15 year old girl on the grounds of fornication and sentenced her to 100 lashes and 8 months house arrest. The case attracted global concern from both local and international organisations, and the charges were later annulled in August of the same year.

Although the sentence was eventually annulled, the case attracted international attention to the Maldives’ juvenile court system and their policies in dealing with victims of sexual abuse.

Speaking with Minivan last year, HRCM member Jeehan Mahmoud said that the sentence represented a “continuous failure” on behalf of the whole state to protect children and other victims of sexual abuse.

The HRCM submitted an investigative report on how the court handled the case, taking into account safeguards, rights, and protections afforded to a victim of child abuse under the Maldivian constitution, Islamic Shariah, and international human rights standards.

Spokesperson for the Juvenile Court Zaima Nasheed explained that some points outlined in the HRCM report were not reflective of how the court conducted its work. She noted that it portrayed a negative impression of the court and tried to exert undue influence on its work.

Zaima added that the HRCM did not hold any discussions or ask for any questions from the Juvenile Court while they were compiling their review.

The Juvenile Court wished to clarify that they sent a letter to the HRCM last month to arrange a meeting, though the commission said that it would not be able to attend.

Following this, the court compiled a written document with all of its concerns and shared this with the HRCM. In addition to this, the court asked to meet again with the HRCM yesterday (March 9) at 10am. The HRCM did not respond to the letter and failed to attend the meeting, said Zaima.

In light of this, the HRCM was in breach of the constitution’s Articles 141, said Zaima. These state that no officials performing public functions can “interfere with and influence the functions of the courts”, instead they must “assist and protect the courts to ensure the independence, eminence, dignity, impartiality, accessibility and effectiveness of the courts.”

Following the 15 year-old’s conviction, local NGO Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) called on the Maldivian government to pass legislation concerning the treatment of sexual abuse victims.

ARC also previously called for reforms of the juvenile justice system and reform of the current protection mechanisms provided to minors who are kept in state run institutions, such as homes and foster programs.

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Fishermen to protest EU fish import policy

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Alleged calls between EC Chair Thowfeek and former President Nasheed leaked

Following the Supreme Court’s verdict removing Elections Commission (EC) President Fuwad Thowfeek and his deputy Ahmed Fayaz from their positions, an alleged phone call between Thowfeek and former President Mohamed Nasheed has been leaked on social media.

The approximately 3 minute long recording consists of Thowfeek and Nasheed allegedly speaking on two different instances. The first conversation appears to involve Thowfeek expressing concern that the court was looking into the case against the EC, and the second focuses on the re-registration to various constituencies of people on the municipal register.

In the first call, the voice alleged to be Thowfeek’s states that “the Supreme Court has once against started on one of its games”, opining that it posed challenges in the work that the commission is conducting in preparation for the parliamentary elections.

While half of the response – alleged to be Nasheed’s – is unclear, he can be heard as saying that he has been made aware of the matter and is thinking about it.

The second call – seemingly initiated by Nasheed – consists of Nasheed calling Thowfeek and speaking about those on the municipal register being redistributed to various constituencies.

“Some of our members went to discuss the matter of the municipal register border, didn’t they? It was agreed then that Maafannu will be kept as in the final report, yes? In short, it was agreed that some changes will be brought to Henveiru and the remaining people on the register will be distributed to the four constituencies of Maafannu, yes?” the voice alleged to be Nasheed’s is heard saying.

The respondent in the recording is then heard to say: “Yes yes, the current borders are something that everyone has agreed on.”

The first voice then inquires, “have any additional changes been brought to the list later on the request of Maafannu Hulhan’gu constituency’s MP Abdulla Abdul Raheem?”

Thowfeek responds saying that no such changes had been brought, but that Abdul Raheem had come to the commission and made many comments.

“I deliberated with various politicians about my concerns”: Fuwad Thowfeek

Thowfeek has responded to the leaked audio, speaking to local media Haveeru today (March 10).

He stated that in various instances, he had deliberated about numerous concerns that arose during his work at the Elections Commission, with numerous political actors.

He detailed that he had spoken of his concerns regarding the Supreme Court’s case against the commission with various politicians, including former President Nasheed.

“I also shared this concern with President Abdulla Yameen through a text message. In that same manner, I shared my concerns with Nasheed too,” he is quoted as saying.

Regarding the conversation about the municipal register, Thowfeek stated that various politicians had visited the commission and held a number of different discussions on the matter.

He said that he had addressed any questions that politicians had about how the commission had sorted out the matter of the register, and had clarified any doubts they might have had.

In this manner, he had offered clarifications to Nasheed, as well as to various members of parliament via phone or through their visits to the commission offices.

“This includes members from all political parties. This even consists of members who support the government. I do not see that there is any problem with offering clarifications about a matter to anyone,” he stated.

The full leaked recording can be listened to here.

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Maldives signs maritime cooperation agreement with India and Sri Lanka

Military leaders from the Maldives, India, and Sri Lanka have agreed to cooperate in order to increase security regulations on vessels that violate maritime laws.

The meeting took place at the third National Security Advisor (NSA) level Trilateral Meeting on Maritime Security Cooperation between the Maldives, India, and Sri Lanka on March 6 and 7 in New Delhi.

The agreement comprised of a number of steps, including information sharing, training in oil pollution response and cooperation in the legal and policy response to piracy.

Shivshankar Menon, chair of the meeting and Indian National Security Advisor stated, “the immediate threat that we have been facing in the last few years is piracy and that fortunately…is down. But, even though the number is down…that doesn’t mean the primary source of the problem, which is on land, has been solved. We need to keep putting in this effort.”

The next NSA meeting will take place in the Maldives.

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Supreme Court strips Fuwad, Fayaz of EC membership

The Supreme Court has stripped Elections Commission (EC) President Fuwad Thowfeek and Vice President Ahmed Fayaz Hassan of their membership in the commission and sentenced the former to six months in jail.

The jail sentence was however suspended for three years.

The Supreme Court judgment also ordered the executive, parliament and the EC to “make all necessary arrangements” within six days to conduct the parliamentary elections as scheduled on March 22.

According to article 175 of the constitution, at least three members are required to “constitute a quorum at a meeting of the Elections Commission, and any decision of the Elections Commission shall be taken by a majority of votes of the members present and voting.”

With the Supreme Court’s removal of the EC’s president and his deputy, the remaining members are Ali Mohamed Manik and Mohamed Farooq.

Thowfeek was sentenced under article 88 of the penal code, which states that it is an offence to “disobey a lawful order”.

The Supreme Court summoned EC members on February 27 and began a surprise trial on charges of contempt of court under new ‘sumoto’ regulations that allow the apex court to initiate proceedings and act as both prosecution and judge.

Of the five judges on the bench hearing the case, Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz Hussain and Justice Adam Mohamed Abdulla issued dissenting opinions.

The majority opinion was formed by Justice Abdulla Saeed, Justice Ali Hameed Mohamed, and Justice Ahmed Abdulla Didi.

Delivering the verdict, Justice Saeed contended that EC members had “openly and systematically” brought the Supreme Court into disrepute, “deliberately challenged Supreme Court rulings” and “serially held [the court] in contempt” during press conferences.

The EC’s announcement for dissolving political parties without a minimum membership of 3,000 was in violation of the Supreme Court judgment that struck down articles in the Political Parties Act, the verdict stated.

Moreover, Fuwad Thowfeek’s public statements against the Supreme Court’s “procedures and jurisdictions” contravened the Judicature Act and constituted an act in violation of article 141 of the constitution – which states, “No officials performing public functions, or any other persons, shall interfere with and influence the functions of the courts.”

The court determined that the president and vice president must bear responsibility for “disobeying and challenging” Supreme Court judgments and orders, which were issued in its capacity as “the guardian of the constitution.”

Fuwad and Fayaz’s actions also contravened article 145(c) – which states, “The Supreme Court shall be the final authority on the interpretation of the Constitution, the law, or any other matter dealt with by a court of law.”

The court ruled that the pair had “lost the right and legal status to remain members of the commission” and declared the seats vacant.

“Practical difficulties”

While testimony given to a parliamentary committee was used to implicate commission members of contempt of court at the second hearing, at the last hearing of the ‘sumoto’ trial on March 5 the Supreme Court imposed a travel ban on EC members pending a judgment.

Following the Supreme Court’s summoning of EC members last month, former President Mohamed Nasheed declared that the MDP will boycott the parliamentary elections if the court removes EC members.

The Supreme Court’s actions have also been been criticised by civil society and the European Union.

Speaking to Minivan News tonight, Thowfeek said he was unsure how the parliamentary polls could take place as scheduled in less than two weeks.

He noted that the president would have to invite applications from interested candidates for the three vacant EC posts and forward nominees to parliament, after which a parliamentary committee would evaluate the nominees ahead of a vote on the Majlis floor.

“It’s very difficult for me to say anything because the Supreme Court reason given for our punishment is because of when I spoke about the impracticality of the 16 point guidelines,” he said.

“When I talk about the practical difficulties, they say nobody is supposed to talk about the practical difficulties.”

Today’s Supreme Court judgment meanwhile stated that Thowfeek had admitted to attempting to hold the second round of last year’s presidential election despite a Supreme Court stay order halting the electoral process.

Following the first round in which former President Mohamed Nasheed emerged the frontrunner with 45.45 percent of the vote, third-placed candidate Gasim Ibrahim sought annulment of the results alleging widespread electoral fraud.

Pending a ruling on the business magnate’s appeal, the Supreme Court indefinitely suspended the second round scheduled for September 28 and issued a supplementary midnight ruling ordering the police and military to forcibly prevent the EC from conducting the polls.

The EC had said it intended to comply with the constitutionally-mandated deadline for the run-off, but was forced to capitulate after it was surrounded by special operations police with orders to storm the building, arrest officials and confiscate ballot papers.

On October 7, the Supreme Court annulled the results of the first round of the polls conducted on September 7 in a controversial 4-3 decision – citing a confidential police report – despite unanimous positive assessment of the polling by more than a thousand domestic and international election observers.

The eventual revote on October 19 was also obstructed by police, after Progressive Party of Maldives candidate Abdulla Yameen and Gasim refused to sign the voter registry – a requirement from a 16-point guideline imposed on the EC by the Supreme Court judgment.

* A previous version of this article stated that all four members were sentenced to jail. The Supreme Court verdict later shared with the media however stated that only Fuwad Thowfeek was sentenced.

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EU Election Observation Mission reveals monitoring plans

In preparation for the upcoming People’s Majlis elections, the European Union has implemented a full EU Election Observation Mission (EOM) in order to deter malpractice and support the democratic process.

The mission is led by Chief Observer Eduard Kukan – a member of the European Parliament from Slovakia and former Minister for Foreign affairs. Mr Kukan introduced the EU EOM at a press conference held in Malé today (March 9).

“The mission comprises of five election experts who are being joined by four long-term observers on 9th March. Some 20 short-term observers will be deployed closer to election day,” the statement read.

“This will be the first full EU Election Observation Mission to take place in the Maldives, and I hope that our presence will contribute to a peaceful and inclusive democratic environment for the benefit of the Maldivian people,” Mr Kukan added.

Prior to and during the elections, the observers will meet with everyone involved, and will look at the entire electoral process.

“The findings of the EU elections missions are based on verifying facts following an analysis of all technical aspects,” Mr Kukan noted.

The EOM is to work independently to give an “impartial, balanced and informed analyses of the elections”. In doing so, the mission hopes to monitor the extent to which the election complies with the country’s international democratic commitments and to domestic law.

Their findings will be published in a report intended to strengthen human rights and the rule of law, to deter malpractice, and to improve the electoral environment. The report will also make concrete recommendations to help improve the electoral framework.

The EU was invited to conduct the mission by the Maldives Election Commission (EC). This invitation was independent from any other government organisation, though the EOM has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

When Mr Kukan was asked if the Supreme Court charges against the EC will affect the forthcoming elections he stated, “we have to be very cautious.”

However, the mission head added that it would be inappropriate to give an assessment or any statement.

This will be the Maldives’ first full EOM, following the EU’s monitoring of the 2013 presidential election which the organisation – along with all monitors, domestic and international – described as “transparent and competitive”.

After the Supreme Court had begun investigating allegations of fraudulent voting, former Attorney General Dr Hassan Saeed, told the court that positive assessments of the September 7 presidential poll by local and international election observers “do not carry much weight”.

“Yes, I even agree that the voting process went very smoothly. But those foreign observers don’t know the depth of the issues. Their words do not carry much weight. Some of the elections which have been observed by the international observers, some people have died, but yet they have reported the election went smoothly,” Saeed told the court.

The Supreme Court subsequently annulled the first round of the election, imposing a set of 16 guidelines upon the future activities of the EC.

A preliminary statement of the current mission’s findings will be announced at a press conference to be held within two days of the elections, which take place on March 22.

Following this, a final report will be published two months after the elections.

The mission will operate in line with the “Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation”, which was adopted in 2005 by a number of international organisations at the United Nations in New York.

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Deputy PG calls on authorities to take religious extremism more seriously

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Terrorist risk

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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MDP asks High Court to halt Feydhoo primary election court case

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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