The Commonwealth Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to the Maldives, Sir Donald McKinnon, has described the report by the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) as a “turning point for the country to leave the past behind and move forward.”
The report, focused on the events of February 6 to 8, claimed there was no evidence to support allegations by former President Mohamed Nasheed that he was ousted in a coup d’état, that his resignation was under duress, or that there was any mutiny by the police and military. It also urges action be taken against police for human rights abuses committed on February 6-8.
Former President Mohamed Nasheed accepted the report, subject to reservations, but criticised it as leaving the Maldives “in a very awkward, and in many ways, very comical” situation, “where toppling the government by brute force is taken to be a reasonable course of action. All you have to do find is a narrative for that course of action.”
In a statement, McKinnon said “The Commission’s report provides key recommendations on issues that need to be addressed to strengthen democratic practice in Maldives. I am heartened to hear the commitment of the government to take forward key reforms to strengthen democratic institutions.”
Home Minister Mohamed Jameel has meanwhile said responsibility for investigating and taking action against police lay with the Police Integrity Commission (PIC).
However President of the PIC Shahinda Ismail has publicly expressed concern over the commission toothlessness.
Article 44 of the Police Act states that any parties handed recommendations by the PIC can choose not to act on them if they inform the commission of the decision in writing.
“[Jameel] is not really bound by the act,” Ismail said, stating that this clause had already resulted in the Home Minister ignoring recommendations forwarded to him.
The PIC chair gave the example of a case involving police officer Ali Ahmed, whom she said had been adjudged unfit to continue to serve by the commission. Shahinda claimed the case had been forwarded to the Home Minister.
“I know for a fact he is still a policeman and was promoted after this incident” she said.
“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.”
Amnesty International – which has published its own report into police brutality and human rights violations of February 6-8 – echoed Ismail’s concerns. The report was slammed by Home Minister Jameel as “biased” and “one-sided”.
“Government officials have frequently shrugged off their own responsibility to address human rights violations, saying it is the purview of the Human Rights Commission (HRCM) and the PIC,” said Amnesty’s researcher in the Maldives, Abbas Faiz.
“Without an end to – and accountability for – these human rights violations, any attempt at political reconciliation in the Maldives will be meaningless,” Faiz said.
In his statement, McKinnon urged that “Democracy is not just the responsibility of the government, but also of every institution and all citizens. Democracy is not a destination, but a journey. I hope that every institution, political party and individual citizen will make it their business to be part of that journey.”
The Maldives meanwhile remains on the agenda of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG), the international body’s democracy and human rights arm. The matter is expected to be reviewed at the group’s meeting on September 28-29.
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Mr. Donald McKinnon. We regret to inform you that we are not interested in 'leaving the past behind'. We did that on 2008, post-presidential elections. The Maumoon gang stabbed us in the back.
If we 'leave the past behind', the people will once again suffer for their treachery.
This time, we will render the Maumoon regime into history, by exterminating every last straggler, every f***ing last maggot of the Maumoon regime.
We are not the MDP. We are the Maldivian people. The CNI report has legitimized violent coups - please sit back, relax and enjoy the air show.
... see? I can be diplomatic and polite too!.
Now common wealth is also " Baaghee". I think it is high time that we change our constitution to state that " to be a Maldivian, one need to be a member of MDP and need to bow the heads to Anni and his stupid autocratic policies".
The majority of Maldivian want Anni to resign and we never gave the warrantee to Anni to rule the country on his own terms but we voted him to be a the president of the country for maximum of 5 years provided that he run the country within our constitution .
Since he had challenge our constitution and was a threat to the democracy, majority of Maldivian want him to resign .
We do not want Anni back here in this country .
Mr. Donald Mckinnon, Are you asking us to stay behind until everything goes beyond hand. We Maldivians have seen what had happened here in Maldives so please don't ask us to leave the past behind or just forget about the past. We are going to bring the traitors to justice whether the international community is with us or not. We asked CW to investigate what had happened on that day, but CW was unable to give Maldivians the justice that we needed. We learn from the past so why are you asking us to leave the past.
Past behind? Is McKinnon off his head? Has he not read UNHRC's report?
Abdulla Zayyid is absolutely right. We tried to leave our past behind, but unfortunately, it had other ideas and wouldn't leave us!
There's no country in the world that has been able to move forward, by simply leaving the past behind. Someone like McKinnon should recall how the Nazis and Fascists took over Europe when Europeans tried to appease dictators like Hitler and tried to "leave the past behind".
Perhaps McKinnon and his ilk would like to quickly forget about a small and poor country with precious little resources. By prescribing a medicine of "leave the past behind", he seem to be playing the role of the old colonials.
The only way to move forward is by addressing the past and actively taking steps to ensure that the ills of the past never ever catch up with us again. Unfortunately for the Maldives, we seem to be just accumulating our past ills and never addressing them properly.
We should have addressed the injustices of Dictator Gayyoom and made an example for any "wannabe" dictators. We should also address any injustices that took place under Nasheed. We should ensure that our democratically elected governments can only be changed through the ballot box and not by actions of the security forces.
There's plenty to be addressed regarding our past; leaving them behind is not an option.
Alas! McKinnon is also a baghee now! How sad. Anyone who doesn't tow the MDP party line is a baghee (Rebel) now. This pretty much sums the MDP rational.
We are actually not 'leaving the past behind' Mr. McKinnon. We are back where we started and it offends me to read such rhetoric from a man who represents the Commonwealth. Lets be honest. You are not interested in the needs of our people, you simply want things to look tidy so that you can claim that the Commonwealth has helped the Maldives. It may look good in your reports, and in a thouand and one media releases that groups like yours send out each day.But for large numbers of Maldivians,who have seen how this regime has abused our freedom, our economy and our people, this is a very HUGE step backwards.
Sir Mackinon
As part of the International Community you guys have helped the Maldives a lot in the past. BUT with regard to the CoNI you have destroyed that completely SO WE ARE LEAVING YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PAST!!. for your information this is our country, not yours, and we now know that you guys are interested to protect the rich and politically influential people NOT the PEOPLE of Maldives. THANKFULLY WE ARE LEAVING YOU AND YOUR INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY AS OUR PAST. and for your info we broke GAYYOOM the dictator, and we will BREAK this COUP REGIME as well. you can have your SHARE of the CoNI contributions with the rest of the guys and enjoy!!!! and PLEASE DONT COME TO MALDIVES as part of the CMAG again.. thanks.
what are you talking about ? Needs of the people of MDP ? MDP has only 40,000 members and what about the other 300,000 peoples rights ?
Don't talk bull shit and majority of Maldivian now don't like Anni and his policies and that is why we had to resign.
CW what a joke shame on you Mckinnon go heme and tell these stories to your kids
we will stand and win and we don't need you india or us and please don't beg us and get lost you all
Is this Mckinnon fellow - badly informed, naive or plain bloody stupid? Perhaps all three!
where was commonwealth when tsunami was hit they didn't give us a single cent we never heard of them. the americans and indians they all are having their personal interests no one cares about us or democracy may god save us from all these evil people
wonder if DM has a heart block he'll recommend to go forward instead of rectifying it?
Wonder how many Ipads or laptops Singapore Abdulla gave him!
Shame on you
Well said AZ! Anni's humanity is his flaw; instead of having Gayoom and his goons tried then executed for their crimes over three decades, his first official act was to announce amnesty for the dictator and his henchmen. Anni thought that Gayoom would be happy living out a comfortable life with the millions he looted from the people and would not try to reclaim power.
But absolute power corrupts absolutely as they say and Gayoom could never get over the sting he felt from losing the election and was scheming ever since on how to reclaim his caliphate.
Sir Don is right. We cannot go forward if we keep picking at scabs.
The MDP want their leader to be left alone but if we are to conduct thorough investigations into everything that went wrong half his party would be behind bars.
Sadly the same might have applied to Qayyoom et. al. if they had been ruling under the current Constitution. Nasheed and his gang didn't have that luxury.
I agree that the best solution would be to strengthen our institutions and keep on with the work of democratizing elections, streamlining government and upholding the rule of law.
Is he not aware of the criminal past????
Yes! Sir Don McKinnon is right!!!!!!!
“turning point for the country to leave the past behind and move forward.”
We must creep back into the aged old shell of hypocrisy and authoritarian dictatorship!
Forget about the 30 year old dictatorship of Gayyoom!
Forget about the recent coup!
Let us be frightened and lead by the pack of dogs in "Animal Farm"!
Forget about what Nasheed has done for the people within his short lived leadership!
Forget about democracy and start living hypocritically!
Is this not precisely what the Sir Donald McKinnon is asking?
Well! Well! Well! If so, we are in one big cauldron of an extra ordinary soup that is being cooked by many druids!
But the reality of this seems to be just the other way about!
Very truly and well said @Abdulla Zayyid and @Ahmed bin Addu bin Suvadheeb, you are absolutely right!
There can be no peace in this country unless and otherwise justice is served to the people and human rights is honoured.
Anni is not a champion of human rights and he is a dictator ? How can a dictator be a human right champion ? This two can not coexist.
Human right is not only about killing people but there are many other forms of abuses and tortures.
Anni had been abusing the people and torturing people for his personal gain but not physically but mentally.
@ zayyid
couldn't have said it better myself.
the "Holocaust",is a “turning point for the Germans to leave the past behind”: Ahmed Shakir
Now that the topless photo of the Princess has been published in several papers, its no point for Willian & Kate to take legal action. This must be a turning point for the British Monarchy to leave the past behind.