Amnesty International has condemned the use of excessive force by police against 300 Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) supporters in the Lonuziyaarai Kolhu (tsunami monument area) early on March 7.
The MDP yesterday accused police of attacking demostrators and vandalising the ongoing protest, after they pursued a group of youths to the area suspected of vandalism and threatening police.
During the raid on the MDP camp, “at least six protesters were injured, some seriously, when combined police and military officers attacked around 300 MDP protesters – part of a wider pattern of attacks, documented by Amnesty, on supporters of the political party of the ousted former President Mohamed Nasheed,” the human rights group said in a statement.
One of the victims told Amnesty “[the police] grabbed hold of my hair and pulled me up, shouting they would teach me a lesson for demonstrating against the new President.”
Among the six protesters injured was a 16 year-old boy who was placed in the custody of the Child Protection Unit, said Amnesty. The organisation was refused permission to visit him.
“People who were peacefully exercising their right to protest were beaten on the head with batons, kicked and sprayed with pepper spray. This use of excessive force violates human rights standards,” said Amnesty International’s researcher Abbas Faiz, who is documenting the human rights situation in Maldives.
“The Maldives authorities must clearly announce, and demonstrate, that they do not tolerate retaliatory raids by the police against protesters. Police and military must not act outside the law,” Faiz said.
“When police officers act like political opponents towards demonstrators, they erode respect for the rule of law and cast doubt on their impartiality as officers of justice,” he added.
Amnesty called on police to make public the number of people who had required medical treatment following their arrest.
“Credible sources have told Amnesty that the police and military arrested more than a dozen people during their raid on the MDP rally. They arrested some more people in the hospital after they had gone to receive medical treatment for their injuries. The detainees were taken to police detention centres in Malé, and were later transferred to Dhoonidhoo, an island close to Malé which is the main detention centre.”
Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam yesterday told Minivan News that police had pursued a group of young men armed with knives, who had vandalised police stations and threatened officers before retreating to the MDP protest area.
Police stopped at the edge of the open area and requested backup, but by the time it arrived word had spread that police were about to raid the protest site and MDP supporters had arrived to protect the area.
“When police entered the [camp] to arrest the suspects forcefully, everyone in the area became hostile to police. There was a huge confrontation,” Shiyam said added.
“This was a very serious thing and we are sad that it happened,” Shiyam said. “We have no interest in doing anything [to the MDP camp], and we don’t want to have a confrontation. But people are coming out of the area, committing acts of violence, and going back there to hide, which is not something to be accepted.”
Elements of the police and military were complicit in the ousting of former President Mohamed Nasheed, who contends that he was forced to resign by security forces “under duress” in a bloodless coup.
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Is this what the Police Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz meant when he said that now they do not get any political pressure to disperse demonstrators? They are doing everything that they have not been allowed to do in Nasheed's government. They pay a high price for beating people in the previous government. Now Waheed really doesn't care and police are out there showing there true colours.
JJ please do not spread lies. THERE WAS ONLY 10 MDP supporters not 300.
These events are further turning the tide on Waheed's regime, but sad to see the brunt of it taken by innocent protesters
Riyaz said when he became CP that he will make the people scared of Police institution, and what Police said is a blatant lie, Police should be ashamed of themselves, could someone ask the Police if the MDP podium, the stage, the mic & speakers and the screens were attacking any police, they were looking for an excuse to raid the MDP peaceful rally and created an excuse to beat the hell out of people and destroy the whole place.. why was there gangs working with Police that night beating up people? No matter what the Police do you cannot shut us up, we want our democracy back and we won't let the new regime destroy this country...
The event was videoed by some guy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z75O-Y0KQHo&feature=related
How can JJ see 300 people from here, when there was hardly anyone here according to this video?
I think the Police were right to pursue the criminals who vandalised Malehiya1 Policestation, vehicles and broke into the police station. GOd forbid, if the MDP activists had had their way, they probably would have torched Malehiya1 (where numerous people reside), and a lot of people would have been homeless today.
But of course, MDP doesnt care about that ! They just want Waheed to resign, and they keep showing that MDP will resort to any and all means necessary to achieve their goals. Torching buildings, torching people's vehicles, lying to the general public, vandalising peoples homes, MDP will do whatever they can.
The only thing standing between us common civilians getting beaten up or torched by MDP activists, is the Police and army of Maldives. Without them, MDP would have turned this Maldives into another Afganistan or Iraq.
May God give the Police and the army strength to stand against the criminal acts of MDP.
ummm, where was Amnesty International when more than 400 people were arrested by the previous government within the last 22 days of protest by the then opposition?
How come JJ is the tour guide for the Amnesty personals here in the Maldives?
You do not see people because when the police attacked people were sleeping inside the tents. Police is an institution and they cannot act like thugs. Their role is to find people who perpetrate crimes and sent them to court for justice. They cannot meter out justice as they see fit.
The police seems to feel the precedent they have set by mutinying and bring down a democratically elected government can be repeated now because the coup lead government is supporting them in such acts. If the police take the law into their own hands then where is the need for the courts.
JJ where were you, before before 8th Feb ? were you sleeping 3 years before 8th Feb. ?
Amnesty also have some responsibilities towards fairness and should not try to promote some hidden agenda.
aishath, when Nasheed had taken the law in his own hand and when he translated the law to his own benefit, where were you ?
We all need to learn the lesson from Feb. 7th and need to understand the cause of the problem,?
I do think Feb. 7th incident may be the best or may be not but that occurred due to Nasheed 's stubon attitude and he should have given inn little bit to calm down the public and then he would have been able to stick on tyne power which he is hungry .
To the many who benefit by Gayyoom being in power, nothing done by this Plolice, the Armed Forces or those who are in control of this governance system, nothing they do can be wrong!
But, I would believe otherwise. Some one doing something wrong, is something done wrong!
Being lopsided is one thing but being fair would be a better option!
My point of police being an institution that maintains law and order remains valid. For me if they had brought down Nasheed in a vote in 2013, or through majlis i would have accepted the results. But police and military cannot be used to change elected governments.
what i did personally does not matter as i do not belong to any state institution.
In Ga.Gemanafushi an individual who was stopped by the Police for speeding has retaliated by attacking the family of the Policeman and stabbing two of the policemans siblings, in the head and in the stomach.
Why hasnt Amnesty International condemned this ? Are the people in Amnesty international blind in these situations ? Are these not human rights abuses ? Or does Amnesty international only respond when an MDP party activists rights are concerned ?
Where is your humanity now Amnesty ? Are these not human beings that have been stabbed ? Or does the fact that it is a policeman's relative that has been stabbed prevent Amnesty from condemning such acts ?
I spit on you and your human rights Amnesty.
In Ga.Gemanafushi an individual who was stopped by the Police for speeding has retaliated by attacking the family of the Policeman and stabbing two of the policemans siblings, in the head and in the stomach.
Why hasnt Amnesty International condemned this ? Are the people in Amnesty international blind in these situations ? Are these not human rights abuses ? Or does Amnesty international only respond when an MDP party activists rights are concerned ?
Where is your humanity now Amnesty ? Are these not human beings that have been stabbed ? Or does the fact that it is a policeman's relative that has been stabbed prevent Amnesty from condemning such acts ?
I spit on you and your human rights Amnesty.
Outrage!!!!!!! moyanugovabala kaley........Amnesty is working hard to convince the Mutiny leader if Police continue using excessive power against the people, they will also do the same and that there will be no stability in this country