The Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) has received an order from the Supreme Court to release Chief Judge of the Criminal Court, Abdulla Mohamed.
However MNDF spokesperson Major Abdul Raheem told Minivan News this afternoon that the military has “not yet decided what do with that order.”
The MNDF refused to release the judge on a Supreme Court order last night, requesting that it be delivered during ‘official hours’. Minivan News understands that President Mohamed Nasheed met with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court this morning.
Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed was arrested for corruption and for “allowing his judicial decisions to be determined by political and personal affiliations and interests”, Foreign Minister Ahmed Naseem said in a statement today.
The arrest of the judge caused a spike in political tensions across Male’, coming so soon after he opened the court late at night to order that the arrest of DQP politicians for “hate speech” was unlawful.
“[Judge Abdulla’s] repeated failure to comply with constitutional requirements regarding the individual integrity and competence of judges has been compounded by the failure of normal constitutional checks and balances to hold him accountable to the society he is supposed to serve,” read the Foreign Ministry’s statement.
“The Government of the Maldives fully supports and will always protect judicial independence,” Naseem said today. “However, judicial independence does not mean that judges are above the law and can behave as they see fit – contrary to the laws of the land. A judge is a citizen of the Maldives – no more or less important than any other citizen”.
Political tension erupts
The civil, criminal and high courts have cancelled hearings in protest against the arrest of the Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed. The High Court, Supreme Court and Prosecutor General (PG) Ahmed Muiz demanded the release of the judge.
Muiz told local media that police must consult the PG before taking a judge into custody.
Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz released a statement after midnight calling for the immediate release of Judge Abdulla, noting that a judge could only be arrested on criminal charges with a warrant from a higher court.
The Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) meanwhile called on authorities to respect article 24 of the constitution, which states, “Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his private communications.”
However the Foreign Ministry said that Abdulla Mohamed had violated the Bangalore Principles on judicial conduct and independence.
“All the time, Abdulla Mohamed’s actions are becoming more blatant – from asking children who have been sexually abused to act out the crime in court, to repeatedly releasing opposition figures brought before the courts for serious crimes including assault and incitement to hatred or violence,” Naseem said.
“As the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) made clear following their recent assessment of the state of the Maldives judiciary, judicial independence is a responsibility requiring accountability – a point clearly reflected in the Constitution of the Maldives. This accountability includes a requirement of individual competence and integrity by judges in their proceedings: including issues of actual or perceived bias, prejudice, or conflicts of interest and ethical behaviour outside of office, requiring continuous responsibility to demonstrate high moral character,”
“Unfortunately, it is clear, in contravention of the Bangalore Principles, that Abdulla Mohamed considers judicial independence to mean that he can do whatever he likes, and can act with total impunity”.
The Judicial Services Commission (JSC), the watchdog body supposedly responsible for ensuring the good conduct of judges, “is itself dominated by judges and opposition politicians”, the Foreign Ministry stated.
An attempt by the JSC to take action against Abdulla Mohamed following allegations of political bias after he appeared on TV saying “this government is a dying government” were overturned by the judge’s allies in the lower courts, Naseem argued.
The Civil Court in November 2011 ordered the JSC to take no action against Abdulla Mohamed, until the court reached a verdict in the case filed against him.
Judge Maryam Nihayath said at the time that if the JSC took any further action against Abdulla Mohamed while the case was in court, “it might disrupt the case and Abdulla Mohamed would suffer irreparable damages”.
Former President’s member on the JSC and outspoken whistleblower, Aishath Velezinee, told Minivan News at the time that the JSC’s investigation of Abdulla Mohamed was “the first time the JSC had ever completed an investigation into a judge’s misconduct.”
“There are many allegations against Abdulla Mohamed, but one is enough,” she said. “If the JSC decides, all investigation reports, documents and oral statements will be submitted to parliament, which can then decide to remove him with a simple two-thirds majority.”
“Sadly, as we have seen time and again, the JSC has not been able to fulfil its constitutional task of holding judges like Abdulla Mohamed – who is representative of a small minority of judges who abuse their position to protect themselves and their political allies – to account”.
The allegations against judge Abdulla Mohamed were originally forwarded to the President’s Office in 2005 by then Attorney General Hassan Saeed, current leader of the Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP). His party is presently attacking the government not only for its interference in the judiciary, but of harbouring “Christian priests”, “introducing other religions into the country”, “encouraging vice”, and accepting “statues for praying” from other SAARC countries during the recent summit in Addu.
Those allegations, concerning Abdulla Mohamed’s request that an underage victim of sexual abuse reenact her abuse for the court, were dropped when the JSC decided not to proceed with the investigation on July 30, 2009.
“With the JSC unwilling or unable to act, responsibility to reign-in judges who break the law should fall to higher judicial authorities. However, senior judges have proved time and again that they are not willing to take action against one of their own – destroying, in the process, public confidence in the judiciary,” Naseem said today.
It had therefore fallen to the President, “as the ultimate guarantor of the Constitution”, to resolve the situation, Naseem stated.
“The President could no longer sit by and watch as a minority of judges destroy public trust in the judiciary and make a mockery of the laws of the country. Abdulla Mohamed has therefore been arrested.
“This is not a move against the judiciary of the Maldives – but rather against an individual who has repeatedly broken the law and who should be held accountable for his actions,” the Foreign Minister said.
Judges under scrutiny
In October 2011, the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) appealed for assistance from the international community over the “increasingly blatant collusion between politicians loyal to the former autocratic President, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, and senior members of the judiciary – most of whom were appointed by Gayoom during his thirty years of power.”
The MDP statement also referred to the corruption trial of Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ahmed Nazim, charged with multiple counts of defrauding the former Atolls Ministry, which remains “indefinitely delayed.”
In an interview with Minivan News in September 2011, former chairman of the Special Majlis Drafting Committee responsible for the new Constitution claimed that the Supreme Court “and key elements within the judiciary are still controlled by Gayoom – directly or indirectly.”
“Face facts – they are issuing instructions to the trial courts, saying ‘Case X, stop proceedings, we’ll take that over,'” Ibra said.
“Who ever heard of an appellate court taking over a trial court’s jurisdiction? I don’t know of any instance in any democratic country, anywhere in the world, where an appellate court will take over a trial court.
“Even in cases of a mistrial, the instruction is to retry the case. Appellate courts don’t sit on trials. And they are systematically doing it – at least three cases so far. What they are effectively doing is influencing the independence of the trial court. The significance of that is that if trial court judges cannot be independent of the higher court, there is no room for appeals. Because the decision is going to be the Supreme Court decision.”
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This is all wrong. Naseem and the Maldivian Government has no clue about democracy at all. Democracy is the will of the majority of people and not what the Government wants.
If we start arresting people who block the Governments will, then it is a Dictatorship.
Naseem, It is not the President who is the guarantor but the Supreme Court. The President cannot over rule The Supreme Court.
Maldives is becoming a Banana Dictatorship. Gayoom must be laughing to sleep every night.
What has been done to Maldives? People are hell bent on destroying this country. Nasheed, Gayoom, Gasim, Hassan Saeed, Yamin, Adaalath Party, the Mullahs, the whole lot of them.
Isn't there anyone honest in Maldives anymore? Who will save the Maldives from these disasters?
Sure, the Judges may be corrupt and colluding with the opposition but this is not the way to do things.
You cannot have a military dictatorship. This is not the reason why we got rid of Gayoom.
Even is the Judge is corrupt, then they should compile a case against him and submit to the Supreme Court. After all the Supreme Court is appointed by the President and is the highest legal authority in the country.
Maybe Gayoom was right after all. Maybe Maldives is not ready for democracy.
Syria's Bashar Al-Assad also calls himself the 'ultimate guarantor of the Constitution" and so did former dictator Gayyoom.
For democracy to exist "THE RULE OF LAW" must be sacred. If some individuals in different institutions are corrupt or contravening their code of conduct etc. those matters will again need to be addressed through "LEGAL MEANS"! Period!
This is the reason why a new constitution has been introduced in this country. Even if the Judge has conducted himself improperly, the President has no legal right to take matters into his own hands and "arrest" him using the military.
The Constitution and the Law clearly forbids the military getting involved in civil matters.
We did not elect Nasheed to be another Gayyoom or a Latin American style despot.
Where is the difference? The President is acting against the Law and Constitution under the excuse of 'defending the Constitution!'.
As the saying goes "POWER CORRUPTS - AND ABSOLUTE POWER CORRUPTS ABSOLUTELY"
In the next few weeks, there EU Commission legislators of the Foreign Policy Unit are meeting in Bruxell regarding ammendint the list of third country nationals who can be allowed to enter Schengen zone without prior visa and can stay up to 90 days in the EU zone. Maldives is one country on the list to be voted for by the legislators in this meeting. If the legislators vote in favour of Maldives to be included in the Visa Waiver lit of countries, Maldivians would not need a visa to travel to EU countries. This could a great news for all the Maldivians. But with the current political tension news making world headlines, this might just not happen. I just read the judge's detention news from BBC and ABC news. Can we all make our country a better place, all of us working together in the best interest of our country and the human rights? Shall we please not make such headlines in world news so that our country could be placed on a threat level infront of the international arena.
@ manik,
totally agree with you
Keerefa Naseem, Neither you are above the law!!! When you daily enjoy the drinks of your desires and goes into the "moment of the time" its not against the law!! So don't show others sh*t, without smelling your's!! First practice what you preach!! What did you when you were incharge of FISB in trade Ministry? Maldivian businessmen are witnesses!! You are a joke!! Shame on you!!
Instead of President Nasheed proclaiming himself(as we know thru his foreign minister)as the ultimate defender,jury and judge regarding the constitution, he should declare himself as the living constitution..
Maldives has become a military dictatorship. It is just a matter of time that the government formally recognise this state of leadership. Unfortunately it is us the locals who suffer the brunt of this ruthless authoritarian rule. If we dare even say a word against the government or criticise their actions we are threatened. Incarcerating without any evidence is common now a days. We voted Nasheed for a change after a long 30 year rule of Gayoom. We hoped that we would have better democracy and we can have a voice. What we voted in is unfathomable corruption and an authoritarian leadership. Arbitrary arrests are common as was seen last night. Sandhaan Ahanmaidhee (former Amnesty Int prisoner of conscience) was tortured on the road by activist of the current regime. Maldive Defence Force has arrested the top of the Judiciary. Neither Prosecutor Gen nor Police knows the where about of the Judiciary member. Hearsay informs that he is now in Gaamaadhoo prison. We have voted in a young Mugabe - another dictator.
Constitution, constitution…? When banana republic get in to something never give up. Like buruga of women, constitution became the daily dose of medicine for the survival. What a crap….. Our constitution is what we think best for the day that serves the interest of general public. A guy come on the TV and says Anni is homo without any evidence, we can understand this guy can be ignored in a civilized society because no one will care what that idiot says. In the banana republic it is different, every corner of the street, in every junction, wife and husband on the bed, and as daily greeting, the slogan will be Anni is homo. Anni, please keep tight, we the intelligentsia believe that what you are doing is right but undemocratic for a civilized people, you are not dealing with normal human being, we know you are the champion of democracy in the Maldives, you are just trying to fine tune it with your best ability with these comical people.
Shame! Shame President Nasheed!
The total disregard for the 'Rule of Law' and the Constitution in such a blatant manner is unheard of during the recent history of the republic.
For a former political prisoner who had suffered similar harassment under the regime of Maumoon, to resort to the very same tactics to beat the opposition into submission is pathetic.
At this very moment, Military and the Police are using force to disperse the demonstrators at the Republic Square. Isn't this history repeating itself?
I am indeed ashamed today to have voted for Nasheed. Today I have left MDP membership in total sadness.
We did not elect someone to turn in to a Dictator. I pray that sanity will prevail soon and the Constitution will be respected by the armed forces.
@ Rambe - "fine tune" ? Is Nasheed Julius Caesar? Or Gadhafi?
The People of this country elected a President to run the country according to the Constitution. We did not elect an Almighty Dictator!
Even the President has to operate within the limitations of the constitution. This is what some MDP members don't get!
If this is banana republic, it is due to incompetency of the Government that the country is turning into one
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/maldives-military-arrests-senior-judge-who-declared-opposition-leaders-detention-illegal/2012/01/17/gIQAnWsq4P_story.html
See the kind of bad PR for the country
@Salim Waheed on Tue, 17th Jan 2012 6:29 PM
"Maldives has become a military dictatorship."
Really? You must be living in a different Maldives than I or most of the rest of our fellow citizens. Let's take a perspective on your accusations.
As much as I do not like the MDP and their "activist" style politicians, we are still a functioning democracy with a great many challenges. What happened yesterday and last night was inevitable.
It was only yesterday that I pointed out that the country's Judiciary is deeply rooted with former regime loyalists and they've essentially hijacked the other 2 powers of the State.
The most astonishing aspect of last nights episode was the speed at which the High Court started sending commandments followed by the Supreme Court. Now, these institutions are notorious for their less than snail speed of progress on anything at all! Thousands of cases are piled up waiting the attention of these esteemed institutions. However, as soon as one of their own is to be questioned over corruption, the whole lot decided to forgo sleep and work througout the night. I find this behaviour, deeply questionable.
The point is that normal judcial procedures have stopped functioning in this country. You cannot ask the fox to look after the hen house. The Criminal Court, the High Court or any other Court of Law in the land simply does not function as it should.
"Arbitrary arrests are common as was seen last night".
That's a blatant lie as clear as day. How many arbitrary arrests can you name in the last, say, six months? Abdulla was taken into custody because there simply is no other way to stop a corrupt man hell bent on doing whatever he pleased with the law! At some point, we have to say enough is enough and that point has passed now. The Judicial Servies Commission had ample time to deal with the matter and they failed. They failed because the High Court stopped their work dead in the water and the case is in a deep freezer!
Salim, people like you should be ashamed of yourselves for spreading total lies. A little bit of objectivity is all that's required.
I think we should sack the whole bench and elect judges who are not working for political parties. If Criminal court staff refused to open the doors, than we have to take actions against them and send the whole bunch home.
We need an honest dictator to develop this country. Our people cannot comprehend democracy yet. We can all yell and shout all day long. We need someone who is honest and strict with the people so that we don't have judges who listen to political parties.
@Ilyas Ahmed on Tue, 17th Jan 2012 7:15 PM
See the kind of bad PR for the country
More quotes from the Washington Post:
"Police arrested Ahmed for allegedly defaming the government during a television interview in which he accused Nasheed’s government of working against the state religion, Islam, with the support of Christians and Jews."
The Washington Post article is balanced, unlike your own!
@Yasir on Tue, 17th Jan 2012 5:54 PM
"In the next few weeks, there EU Commission legislators of the Foreign Policy Unit are meeting in Bruxell regarding ammendint the list of third country nationals who can be allowed to enter Schengen zone without prior visa and can stay up to 90 days in the EU zone. Maldives is one country on the list to be voted for by the legislators in this meeting."
We should never let this happen. This is a Christian agenda to introduce other faiths into the Maldives! Can't you see it? The EU is a Christian organisation run by Christian Priests. They'll take unsuspecting Maldivian travellers into Churches and pour wine down their throats, evicting Islam out of their bodies. I call upon the Defenders of Islam to rise up in a mass protest immediately against this attack on our faith by the infidel.
OK, joke over. I sincerely hope that the Maldives is granted this and it will be a very significant achievement for this little country.
As Ilyas says this indeed is a sad day for democracy in Maldives. Unfortunately this seems to be happening more and more often. This is not why I voted for change in 2008. I did not work to get rid of Gayoom to bring these kinds of days to Maldives.
There is a constitution voted by the Majlis whose members are elected by the People of Maldives. If MDP did not get the majority then it is their problem.
The purpose of the opposition is to hold the Government of the day accountable. There are not there to make it easy for the Government to rule the country the way they want to do it.
The constitution is there to safe guard the people so that the people have certain freedoms.
People cannot go on calling a homo without being prosecuted of course. BUT there is a legal way to do it. That is using the rights of the people given by the constitution.
I do not know who this Judge Abdulla is. He is now being accused of being corrupt. If he is corrupt or if anyone is corrupt, there is the relevant legal way to deal with this. If one court is corrupt, then there are higher courts including the Supreme Court. If the Supreme Court is corrupt, then it is the President's problem as he appoints the bench.
You cannot just accuse the Judiciary, The Legislative just because they refuse to endorse the desires of the government.
When the government starts arresting people who legally oppose them, then it becomes a Banana Republic.
rambe, if that is your rant and claim to be the Intelligentsia I find it very bizarre since you seem to have no clue what a democracy or even a constitution seems to be.
Dear Ahmed bin Addu bin Suvadheeb,
The previous comment was not me! I agree that we do have a functioning democracy and as far as I'm concerned, the President is doing the only thing he thinks he can when state institutions have failed the people.
Arbitrary arrests are not common. I have had almost everyone in my family arbitrarily arrested under the former President, and I know the difference from that and what is going on today.
Sandhaanu Didi is betraying the principles he claimed to stand for and I have serious doubt that Dr. Jameel actually believes his latest rhetoric. What they have done is very much akin to "shouting fire in a crowded theater" or "bomb in an airport."
As for Abdullah Mohamed, we all know that there has been clear indications of impropriety. People are claiming that there should be due process. Well, there will be - but as someone accused of a crime, rather than a Judge hiding behind judicial inscrutability.
Cleared?
@ Ahmed bin Addu bin Suvadheeb
And your post is balanced? hahaha!
What your one track mind does not realize is that whether someone acts out side the law, The President and his government MUST act and deal with that person according to the Law.
In a democratic environment and in a country with separation of powers, the executive branch cannot decide what the law if (Majlis ligislates) and pass judgement (Judiciary's job.)
This is the beauty of democracy. Unfortunately, MDP and President Nasheed are unable to govern in such a system. They are allergic to the Rule or Law. As far as MDP is concerned the Government has to govern as per the whims of the President and the daily rhetoric from "MDP Haruge'.
This is a fact. It is the balanced truth! Like it or not this is the ultimate source of all the problems faced by the country.
@ Ahmed bin Addu bin Suvadheeb
Your post at 7.51
Good try at spinning the news from Washington Post! People in democratic countries KNOW very well that irregardless of what a person may speak from his mouth, he or she should not be arrested. And what an arrest! A nightly raid by the military!
This is where no amount of spinning can wash the fact that President Nasheed acted against the Constitution and so did the Armed Forces.
I sure as hell may not agree with Jameel and his utterances BUT I sure as hell will defend his right to speak his mind!
Like wise I sure as hell will defend the right of anyone to speak his mind and think freely!
@ manik 8.09
Well articulated!
@ All MDP friends. Guys please don't abandon your principles and the democratic values for which we all have fought Maumoon's Regime for so many years.
MDP has to be more than one person.
The Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) meanwhile called on authorities to respect article 24 of the constitution, which states, “Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his private communications.”
Dear Human Rights Commissioner, Are you deaf or dumb or both. Haven't you heard the baseless accusations DhiTV is making about families and their privates lives? If you have not may be it's time you get out of that fatness and do something.
I call upon the Prosecutor General to investigate the girl who gave Bon Aqua to me. Or else I will.
apparently two members of DPQ are going to Colombo to meet with the Diplomatic Missions. Do they honestly think that the Diplomatic Missions will support group that is calling to ban Israelis and their flights to Maldives? I think not
Whatever , lets be honest , didnt u feel very good when u heard he was arrested, i did. My whole family did , my neighbours did even the police community. What a relief.
Whats so funny when a corrupt judge who has put his personal interest ahead of national and constitutional interest is arrested? I think that is exactly what should be done for such judges who are unfair in judicial decisions.
In an Islamic perspective, the decisions MUST be made fair. Which is why there are various ways to determine the truth before coming to a verdict. And deciding unfairly knowing the truth is a huge sin. One of the reason Sadoom (Sodom) was destroyed was due to UNFAIR Judicial practices. The program 'Muhammad Rasoolallaah' which we watch during the days of Ramazan also covers that part about unfair judiciary and Sadoom.
There are Quranic verses regarding unfair judicial practices too. Please research before you whine about issues that you have no idea. .
The international community will not wait and watch Martial Law being introduced and Democracy being swept aside.
Frustrated or not, democracy means governance based on the "Rule of Law' and respect for opposing views.
Like it or not, those who criticize the government are also citizens of this country and with rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
Involving the Military in civilian matters sets a very dangerous precedent. That is crossing a line a President should not cross.
In a democracy, the constitution reigns supreme and the law is applied to all equally. While this is commonly understood to relate to the citizenry, truth is that it applies also to all, including the President. No one is above the law. To say that the President is the highest judge in the land is to dismantle the very structure that is created to establish order in a society; the very structure that allows all citizens to pursue life, liberty and happiness. To have the military arrest a judge, without a warrant, or a charge made against him in a court of law, is to behave dictatorially, no matter what the matter is. Police and courts are there to provide, not only security and safety for all, but, perhaps above all, due process so that all persons who fall foul of the law or constitution can have a fair and impartial hearing. It is obvious that the President missed a good opportunity to show that the democratic process works. Instead he gave good ammunition to his opponents with which they could, if skilful enough, consign him to prison for years to come.
@ Re: Ilyas Ahmed & Ahmed Bin Addu Bin Suvadheeb on Tue, 17th Jan 2012 9:56 PM
You fail to enlighten us "WHO DECIDES IF ONE IS CORRUPT OR NOT?" Is it the party that is accusing the accused that decides?
This is where you and I will never agree. I believe in the 'Rule of Law" and 'Separation of Powers". When there is corruption/crimes amongst individuals within the system , such matters will need to be dealt with through the Legal system.
Otherwise, we might as well have a king. And MDP should not call itself a "democratic" party.
Agree that the President us facing huge challenges. But we will never condone to break the law or 'by pass' the Constitution to deal with some very real problems we have with the judiciary. These are the very issues I too have extensively commented about in this news website.
My appeal to the President would be 'to be wise' and rise above the fray of partisan politics to concentrate on the development of this country.
They claimed to have met with foreign missions in UK few years ago too. We wont buy this time. Who would want to meet some bunch of wannabe politicians who has no aim or a passion towards the good? I hope such people gets put out for life.
Judges aren't above the law! They are citizens who are appointed to ensure that law brokers are dealt accordingly. Instead, if a judge is corrupt and puts his personal interest ahead, he/she is no exeption.
There are governing laws that allows the arrest of judges and the government arrested him under the laws. Who breaks the laws? The ones on streets are currently breaking the law for disallowing or presuring the government and the security forces to release the arrested personnel who are convicted of crimes that should not be committed by any judge.
Would you release a person who commits crimes knowing the truth? You truly wont if you believe in Allah (swt), Holy Quran, Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (saw).
'NO MATTER HOW HARD YOU TRY, YOU CAN NEVER REVERSE IT ANY OTHER WAY'
To all armchair presidents: let’s switch off the light and go home. We will never have true democracy in Maldives. Although, the situation is bad the alternative is worse. PPM/Yameen should be feared. We will then loose the little freedom that we now enjoy. DQP does some good stuff but their leader is a puppet of Maumoon.
@ To DQP 10:10 PM
It doesn't matter the small band of DQP meets diplomats or not. The matter in question is not about 'DQP' or 'Jameel' as such.
We are talking here about the President's misuse of the military by calling them to get involved in civil issues and thus contravening the Constitution of the country.
By doing so Nasheed has 'lost his shine' or as we normally say 'OFU DHIYAEE'!
No longer can the President call himself a true human rights champion after violating the very basic rights for which he had struggled so hard for so hard. It is indeed sad to see the Police and MNDF dispersing demonstrators by force in 'Jumhooree Midhan' in a re-play of history!
Aren't these sights familiar?
typo error in my post at 10:51
Second from last para to read as " No longer can the President call himself a true human rights champion after violating the very basic for which he himself had struggled so hard for so many years earlier on"
@Ahmed bin Addu bin Suvadheeb on Tue, 17th Jan 2012 7:55 PM
I hope the same, I really hope Maldives would be voted in favour by the EU Legislators in this meeting. But with the current political havoc going on, I fear it might not happen. The President, government and the Oposition parties need to realise and work on to bring harmony, peace and real democracy in the country. We have to stop this tit for tat games and work for the best interest of the country and prevent the international media portraying Maldives as a troubled place.
I hope Allah gives us all that strength, wisdom, will and mind to do so.
in my case the military and the Supreme court collude.In your case military and president collude against Supreme court.We are just two banana republics. We should get back our dictator Musharaf and you should get back your dictator.
@To ILYAS AHMED on Tue, 17th Jan 2012 10:43 PM
"There are governing laws that allows the arrest of judges and the government arrested him under the laws"
And what are those laws exactly? Can you cite or reference any? Which law of this country permit the President to order the military to raid the home of a judge in the middle of the night and snatch him away to an undisclosed location?
There is no law that permits the military to 'arrest' anyone. That is a function of the Police. There are procedures to follow in order to carry out an arrest.
With separation of powers, any allegation against the judiciary can only be investigated by the constitutionally mandated body - and that is certainly not the military.
The daily rhetoric from MDP Haruge is certainly not the law of this beloved country of ours.
What about your reply to my 10:43pm comment. Dont even think of reversing the reality for your sick games.
Judicial, Parliament members, Executive ...ALL CORRUPT!! CORRUPTION HAPPENING IN BROAD DAY LIGHT!!! YESTERDAY IT WAS SHAHID, YAMEEN AND THASMEEN AND GAND...SINCE 2009 ITS MARIYAA AND REKKO GANG!! THESE ARE TERRORISTS WHO HAVE HIJACKED THIS NATION..ZAKI IS THE MASTERMIND!! ANNI IS JUST A MERE PUPPET!! REAL GANGSTERS ARE HIDDEN..CHEAP GANGSTERS LIKE MARIYA AND REKKO IS VISIBLE!! PRINCE ANDREW SEND MARIYA HIS SALAAM!
Naseem, and his stupid statements are making it worse for the government! This is not the late 70s when they tried to overthrow the govt........this is the 21st century......i am shocked at how quickly those who came into power on the freedom of speech ticket became dictators
What judicial system? Bloody farce and a mockery of justice.
Like young Yaamyn said, there is no need to be shocked if one is well versed in Orwellian literature and the like.
I have often been the target of a lot of criticism from MDP supporters commenting on this forum merely for my opinion.
The fact of the matter is what Nasheed wanted was never what the rest of us dreamed of. What he planned for was a mere power grab or regime change.
Those who did not want to believe it before have seen it for their eyes. Yes, Jameel and Co. and their fellow instigators are opportunists. BUT and there's a big BUT, SO was Nasheed. Wake up and smell the roses. We all fought to get Nasheed released and we all fought to popularize DO at a time when it was spewing hateful rhetoric of the sort that we have never seen. It was expedient at the time yet it was a mistake that we should never have.
DO articles would make most writers at DhiTV blush.
The fact still remains is that a lot of us fought and funded a battle to prevent one man from becoming too powerful for his own good. Nasheed always felt that he knew better than most of us and he could tell us all what was good for us. That was why I made my exit from the so-called reform movement when that idiot became too popular for his own good.
We are seeing a government which is a complete product of Nasheed's ambitions and goals.
If we Maldivians allow one man or one group to take control of all aspects of our lives we are back to square one. Corrupt judges, irresponsible opposition, failing institutions - the solution to all of these problems do not lie in glorifying a great and infallible leader once again.
What a lot of people posting comments on this forum do not know is that I did my bit for freedom and to fight to contain Qayyoom during his bid to be all-powerful. My work my have been inconsequential in the grander scheme of things but I was never a person who supported a dictatorship. That was why I did not support the Qayyoom regime and that is why I cannot support Nasheed's rule either. They are both highly intelligent and decent people in person and I have nothing against the both of them personally but think people, it is the scheme of things that is going wrong.
We need stability. Nasheed lost his chance to establish a stable regime by aspiring to be the magnanimous man of the millennium by allowing Qayyoom and the opposition to remain while he thought he could slowly target their businesses and cripple them while he consolidated his rule. That was his first mistake. Bawling like a baby is his second. He is a good organizer and a hell of an orator but he came to power with the support of several great men and women. These people do not stand by him any longer.
One of them is Muizzu. People like him kept Nasheed propped up. If Nasheed proposes to put Muizzu up on the sacrificial altar while surrounding himself with lesser minds like Afeef and co. then we would see worse blunders on the part of the MDP in the coming days.
I reiterate my post from yesterday before all this happened. I pointed out that Nasheed failed to put a firm foundation under our "democracy" when he allowed his enemies to live their "retirement in peace".
His enemies have been plotting non-stop to overthrow Nasheed's government. All the Jameels and Abdullas of this world are just pawns in this game that's being played by Gayyoom, his family and allies.
I also pointed out that Nasheed has very few choices open to him and that he will be accused of being a "dictator" whatever action he took. Our liberal Constitution has no way of stopping any of that's currently going on, regardless of how wrong it is. Clearly, it is wrong, and it's against all the tenets of Islam to go up on public TV and lie! This is what Jameel did and he claims that he's broken no law!
He has firstly, broken a fundamental tenet of Islam; from there on you don't need to read the fine print of the Consitution to clarify the legal points of this. Any one who breaks a tenet of Islam has broken the laws of the land. Simples?
I am not surprised that Foreign Minister tries to protect the current dictatorship. After all he was also one who funded a military coup attempt during the 80s and found guilty. He would do anything and everything as he is power greedy.
No one is complaining because Abdulla was arrested. No one would complain too. The problem was that Abdulla was not arrested.
He was kidnapped by the MILITARY. The Military has no business being involved in the domestic matters of a country. They are not the Police.
A judge can also be arrested with a warrant by the Police. The PG can ask him to be arrested and can get a warrant from The Supreme Court too and no one would bat an eye lid or say anything.
What is wrong is not the arrest of Judge Abdulla.
What is absolutely wrong is his kidnapping by the Military. I say kidnapping because the Military cannot arrest civilians. Only the Police can do that.
There would not have been much noise if the Government employed The Police.
I am afraid that Chief of Staff Maj Gen, Moosa Jaleel has broken his oath to uphold the Constitution of The Maldives, if he gave the order to do so.
This is no difference to what Gayoom was doing for 30 years? Is Anni so insecure that he has to get down this low?
He should be above all this petty stuff and he should have faith in democracy and not try this dictatorial stuff. I am afraid that instead of fostering democracy he is destroying it.
Regarding the issue of the DQM I entirely agree with the Government that is absolute sedition what they are doing and they must be prosecuted.
The President seems to be venting his frustration on the opposition just because they managed to hold a rally, the big size of which has never been witnessed in the Maldives ever before. Breaking the law to protect the law is bullshit propaganda from a failed state institution called the executive.
its not minister Naseem worsening things. Its people like you who are twisting the truth and putting personal interests ahead of national interest.
Feedom of expression doesnt mean anyone can say anything they wish. Making lies about the religion is not how people use the 'freedom of expression' right guranteed to the citizens by the constitution.
What the hell are you saying then? Read through the constitution before you open your bad breath mouth.
Just because you people gathered and tried to create chaos, the government can NEVER be overthrown. Keep dreaming!
You morons are pointing fingers at MDP saying we are not Muslims. Who the hell are you people to decide who is a Muslim and who is not.
Can Ilyas Ahmed come up with any law which prohibits this? Just because freedom of expression is given, you are currently misusing it. This is very clear when we watch DhiTV and Villa TV. Every truth is twisted. I hope champa and villa gets bankrup and May Allah (swt) take away their wealth for abusing the blessings that have been gifted to them to be used for the good of mankind.
And who is this Abdulla Judge. He is not above the law. And thus, the security forces can arrest him just like any other citizen. He is no exception when it comes to corruption.
Former finnance Minister Inaz was hijacked by MDP thugs and taken away. This was the most seriouse threat to nation. This was an action MNDF should have seriousely taken. Where was the National Security Council, HRC,Police, Police force & Home Minister,and the press secretary.
So there is no one who raises voice in national interest, now everyone including The executive,and the people have become experts in law and defines in the way they want to see.
Our country has fallen into a lawless society. Its sad.
We can't see an Islamic country having a democracy. Maldives constitution states all Maldivians must be Muslims. So Maldives will never have democracy!