Commonwealth holding cross-party workshops in Maldives

Deputy Secretary General of the Commonwealth Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba is visiting the Maldives for a workshop to be held on government and opposition cooperation.

The regional Commonwealth workshop on ‘Government and the Opposition – Roles, Rights and Responsibilities’ will be held in the capital Malé from June 13-15.

Masire-Mwamba visited President Mohamed Nasheed who discussed the progress the country was making towards consolidating democracy, and said that his government is open to advice and suggestions about how this could be enhanced.

Masire-Mwamba also visited Foreign Minister Ahmed Naseem, who said the Commonwealth could help to raise greater awareness of the challenges faced by small island developing states, and their particular vulnerability to global economic and environmental pressures.

Masire-Mwamba also held talks with the Speaker of the People’s Majlis, Abdulla Shahid, who is hosting the regional workshop, and said it would provide a platform for the cross-fertilisation of ideas and the exchange of experiences across the Asian members of the Commonwealth. In her meeting with the opposition leader, Ahmed Thasmeen Ali, Masire-Mwamba discussed the consolidation of political and democratic reforms in Maldives, and the role that an effective Opposition can play in a robust democracy.