The Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) has told local media that while Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed had “not been subject to any form of physical abuse“ during his controversial 22 day detention, attempts had been made to violate his fundamental human rights.
Haveeru today reported that HRCM President Mariyam Azra had said that its investigation had uncovered evidence that the judge, who was detained during the administration of former President Mohamed Nasheed over allegations that he posed a threat to national security, had faced attempts to remove him from his post and send him abroad.
The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), who had been in government during the time of Judge Abdulla’s detention, today raised concerns over what it claimed was the “complicit irresponsibility” of the HRCM – a body it alleged was biased towards the political interests of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
Local media reports today claimed that HRCM President Azra had opted against giving the names of those involved in the alleged abuse of the judge’s human rights. HRCM also declined to give any other details at present that could influence any potential trials after charges were filed against Nasheed and several senior figures in the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) this week.
Azra was not responding to calls when contacted by Minivan News at time of press.
The HRCM used today’s press briefing to publicise its concerns that “efforts” had been made to “coerce” the judge to commit unspecified actions that would have contravened his human rights.
“Serious concerns”
Responding to the press briefing, the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) – of which Nasheed is the current presidential candidate – said it held “serious concerns” in the selective nature of the HRCM’s investigations.
MDP MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor today alleged that the HRCM’s investigation had now formed the basis of criminal charges filed against Nasheed. The case was today returned to the Prosecutor General’s (PG’s) Office after the Hulhumale’ Magistrate Court said it did not presently have jurisdiction to hear such a case.
In March, the Prosecutor General Ahmed Muizz told Minivan News that the completion of the Nasheed cases was being delayed whilst police reviewed certain aspects of the investigation.
Ghafoor claimed that the decision to move ahead with the charges this week raised questions about allegations of political influence on the HRCM and the information it made available to the PG’s Office.
“I believe there is a very strong link between the HRCM holding this media briefing today and Islamist factions linked to [former President] Gayoom,” he added. “This week this faction has been very active in lobbying the HRCM, the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) and even the president himself.”
Just last month, Deputy leader of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Umar Naseer has expressed his confidence that the Prosecutor General’s (PG) investigation into charges against former President Mohamed Nasheed will see his imprisonment before the scheduled elections in July 2013.
“We will make sure that the Maldivian state does this. We will not let him go; the leader who unlawfully ordered the police and military to kidnap a judge and detain him for 22 days will be brought to justice,” local paper Haveeru reported Naseer as having said.
The PPM was formed by former President Gayoom, who also serves as head of the party.
HRCM investigation
Former President Nasheed became the first Maldivian president to be summoned before the HRCM in March this year in connection to his alleged role in the controversial detention of Judge Abdulla.
Nasheed had been requested to attend a HRCM hearing filed to try and understand who was responsible for taking the decision to arrest the judge. The former president attributed the initial arrest call to his Defence Ministry, on the grounds of “protecting” national security relating to alleged ethical concerns about the judge.
The summons of the former president was the first of three cases filed at the HRCM involving Nasheed. These cases all relate to potential human rights abuses allegedly carried out both by and against Nasheed during the lead up and aftermath of a controversial transfer of power that saw President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan installed as his successor.
Representatives of Nasheed’s legal counsel at the time claimed Nasheed has used his testimony to claim that he had been informed by the Home Ministry that the judge had allegedly posed a “national threat” – prompting his eventual detention.
The MDP MP added that Nasheed then claimed that the Home Ministry had communicated with the Defence Ministry on the situation, which in turn led to the decision to arrest the judge after bodies like the Judicial Service Commission has raised alleged concerns over his ethical conduct.
“I was told Abdulla Mohamed would not comply with the police’s summons to investigate allegations [against him],” Nasheed later stated at a press conference following the meeting with the HRCM.
“The Home Minister wrote to the Defense Minister that Abdulla Mohamed’s presence in the courts was a threat to national security. And to take necessary steps. And that step, the isolation of Abdulla Mohamed, was what the [Defense] Ministry deemed necessary.”
Nasheed claimed additionally that he had sent representatives to Girifushi to check on Judge Abdulla Mohamed’s well-being during his detention, alongside allowing the HRCM to visit the judge.
The MDP has also alleged that the decision to arrest the judge was related to a number of possible misdemeanour’s that had been attributed to him dating back several years.
In November, the national court watchdog, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), was ordered to cease an investigation into Judge Abdulla Mohamed by the Civil Court under an action the judge himself instigated.
MDP spokesperson and MP Imthiyaz Fahmy contended following Nasheed’s first HRCM summons on March 21 that it was ironic that a leader he claimed who had openly discouraged the use of torture and actively campaigned against human rights abuses, had become the country’s first former leader to have been called in front of the HRCM.
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Always knew that a 2013 presidential election wud not b held without imprisoning or otherwise disqualifying former president Nasheed from running for president...... so Abdulla Mohammad's 'human rights' were violated:what about the rest of us,who's rights are violated almost on a daily basis? ...so,'some pigs are more equal'is very right....!!!
Totally biased report.
Nothing more to expect from "journalists" who are active on MDP facebook groups and on twitter adovacating MDP.
Shame on you for calling 'independent news for maldives'
"Human Rights" for the currupt, unqualified judge that protects paedophiles???
Taking President Nasheed to court or even to jail will not break but actually strengthen the power of the youth, the people.
To some, it may be an insult to trigger unforeseen circumstances, rage, hatred and chaos.
Human Rights commission seems to have been brain washed and become a puppet face for a few in power.
The truth hurts. Be it tomorrow, December or in 2013 elections, MDP flag will once again be hoisted, and an immediate beginning to bring justice to those who have been involved in the coup and on going propaganda that has left the country shuttered!
It is a matter of time...with or without President Nasheed, the MDP Motto shall continue till democracy is stored.
The poor man has been through enough. Thank you HRCM for being a credible institution.
Rather go on holiday to Seychelles until this mess is cleared up!
Ironic indeed that nthe HRCM has not found it necessary to investigate Human Rights violations under gayooms administration. Fascinating.
When is the HRCM going to look into the violation of rights of our women ?
Does AZRA know that our women have to take off theior clothes and do sit ups naked in the police cells?
AZRA you should be ashamed of yourself. I didn't know you were this pathetic. You are an embarassment to maldivian women.
let us see ONE family member of Azra's family go through this and see what she says.
Its frightening isn't it and sad to see the extent to which people like AZRA are so indebted to the GREAT ONE His Highness Gayoom.
HRCM double standards are obvious. Is Judge Abdullah Mohmed so important that the members go public only about him. What about the common people who get judged by him wrongly.I am sick of all this minivan commissions who get highly paid and come out with reports like this.
HRCM President Mariyam Azra is incompetent and lack integrity; she is in servitude to the former dictator Gayoom. She and the HRCM members are not qualified to hold such humanitarian posts.
When selecting member’s for such human rights commission the parliament should look into the person’s track record in doing charity work, social contribution, environment and humanitarian work to help the public and other voluntary services contributed by the candidates and also their education and work experience relating to the field. All of the current members have no track record in any humanitarian work. These people in the commission are not vocal on any human right violation, police brutality or political rights unless it is related to Dictator Gayooms interest.
If such is the norm for selecting the members of HRMC then the next term the parliament should choose, Ex CEO’s of big company’s or General Managers of resorts to be the human rights commissioners.
Maybe ex CEO of Coca Cola company would be a good choice he will have a good portfolio managing profitability.
Dear azra and HRCM members- are you healthy and fit to do push-ups while been naked. Azra have you been taken to Maldivian Police Custody for been in a street protest and forced to do push-ups in nude. Do you know Azra, this is just ONE case of psychological torture imposed by Maldives Police on MDP protesters.
Can you investigate any violation of rights of common man.
Commission members why are you so interested in the rights of rogue judge like Abdulla Gaazee. Is this cause of Gayoom family influence?
Do us a favor, HRCM members please resign. You guys are only working in HRCM because of the fat salary you get. By resigning and going public you can at least save you dignity.
Gayoom needs to be tried for his atrocious crimes.
Lets hope all foreigners follow Sally's lead and refrain from visiting the Maldives until the legitimate government is restored. Go to Myanmar instead as it is now becoming democratic while Maldives goes in the opposite direction. Iran on the atolls!
Canadian NGO Freedom Watch Maldives claims one of the commissioners in HRCM is a fundamentalist Islamist that wants to ban the listening and singing of music/songs.
http://hrcm.org.mv/aboutus/memberprofiles/ShaikhAhmedAbdulKareem.aspx
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbgG8AXSuNk
This is a big conflict of interest.
After visit to Girifushi HRMC had earlier stated that Adulla Qazi was being treated very well. So what do we believe? The present statement or the previous statement?
If forced attempts to remove Abdulla Qazi from his post is a crime then the successful attempt that forced President Nasheed and hundreds in his government from their posts is a bigger crime.
Attempts, Neil? Weak...very weak indeed.
Wherever you're from your English surname implies that you hail from the so-called "enlightened" corners of the world.
So grow up and call a spade a spade. The HRCM, you, I and the entire world knows that Nasheed slipped up and breached a whole host of human rights in merely forcing the Judge out of his home and holding him incommunicado for 22 days, against his will and outside established procedure.
We don't need the Human Rights Commission of Maldives. They are there to defend Maumoon and his cronies, so why are we allowing our tax money to be wasted on such an institution and people who are not bothered about our human rights?! Close down the HRCM now!
Which should come first?
The HR of Ablo Gazi (an individual) or the HR of a nation, due to a defective judiciary due to the judge?
tsk tsk. I guess if he is from the "enlightened" corner of the world he must be more intelligent and must be someone with critical thinking. not dumb like you! not like you calling for killing each other in the name of God!
Why on earth this detention of this judge be more of a big deal than beating of 100's of citizens on the street every day ?? does only certain people at certain level have more liberty than than middle class or MDP members ??? Isn't that stupid ??? I could understand if he had a single bruise on him. You people are complaining about his emotional feelings ?? Are you people f**** kidding me ??
@tsk tsk
Here we go again, more of your simplistic, biased nonsense.
"Nasheed slipped up and breached a whole host of human rights in merely forcing the Judge out of his home and holding him incommunicado for 22 days"
True, but you forget to mention that as president he had the right to do that under national security reasons. I wonder why you haven't mentioned that this was the chief criminal of the courts, a guy unqualified even to be a judge. He is the guy solely responsible for protecting Gayoom and all the rest of the dinosaurs from prosecution of years of torture, abuse, bleeding the country dry of the people's money.
The evidence of corruption and human rights violations are there in vast quantities of print, videos and photos from the Gayoom regime. During the 30 years, people were tortured, abused, harrassed. Since the coup, continuous more of the same. One criminal judge had his rights violated, if you could call it that, he was taken to a tropical island with everything that he wanted. Is he as important as 1000s of innocent people that had to endure the torture handed down in the Gayoom days or since the coup?
This judge was taken to an island because he himself was preventing his wrongdoings from reaching court and from him being prosecuted. So what exactly should the president do? Let it slide? Don't be a moron all your life, wake up and stop splurting this nonsense. Soon the traitors and their supporters like you will be exposed. That's a fact too. So get ready.
Look at this demon imbecile Judge, study his face!, These are the model of people like HRCM,who are supposed to protect people. It seems removing a corrupted judge who was untouchable was the only human rights volition that happened in this banana republic. And the violation of human rights is limited here to arresting a corrupted judge by a champion of universal human rights in the Maldives. What happened to 30 years dictatorship that deprived people from the basic rights, voting, speaking, writing, trading, and spread fear in people projecting himself like a demigod, if someone criticized him was chained, jailed and tortured like medieval kings were treating people. And what happened to the current systematic abuse of people by junta of Banana republic and flogging of women and depriving people from freedom of consciences. Isn’t funny these morons talk in the name of human rights..! Please don’t mudsling on human rights when you don’t know what human rights means. You are simply ignorant and it is beyond your comprehension to dictate based on human rights.
In this world, the light of reason (our capacity to see things clearly, objectively) is diminished by the darkness of fear and hatred. Every second is a struggle to try and make ourselves the hunter rather than the prey, it is one or the other, we feel!
We will often use, abuse, exploit, dehumanize ALL towards that end (humans, souls, ideals become means to an end rather than an end in themselves - the antithesis of a moral reality.)
We struggle to manipulate whoever and whatever we can to achieve our objective.
We have become ultra-suspicious, able to imagine and wanting to imagine the worst - and then believing that what we imagine is the truth.
he result is violence, depression, gangsterism, inhumanity, anarchy, and we feel that the only way to control it is to have absolute power over ALL!
Tyranny MAY end the violence, (I doubt that it actually could but for arguments sake even if it could) tyranny would not cure it.)
In the Maldives, we see this very clearly, because the Maldives is such a small society. Everything in human nature seems somehow under the microscope, magnified in Maldives. But Maldives is no worse than anywhere else, except for everything seems intensified there compared to most places due to the squashed social reality.
I see both sides of this conflict absorbed in the darkness I am trying to describe.
I do not see a lot of truth, reason, empathy, or capacity for justice anywhere. My Western upbringing causes me to be more vulnerable to being manipulated by Anni's appeals to civil liberties, yet my ethnocentric ignorance, my racism, blinds me to what is truly good. Yet I am starting to see things a little more objectively, and I am trying.
The route cause of all of this, is human selfishness, and it is the driving force in human-nature.
We are all afflicted by it, ALL humans.
The only cure is genuine empathy. Genuine empathy is most beautifully described by this Arabic Name for The Divine, Ar-Rahman (Meaning Mercy and is etymologically derived from the word meaning Womb - the ultimate place of compassion!) From the Divine we mus seek it! Like the REM song, everybody hurts - when we realize that our pain is the pain of everybody else, and cultivate compassion, we begin to see things clearly, objectively.
Reason is awakened - through genuine compassion - reason is the light created by compassion!
The struggle for reason over darkness, for compassion over selfishness, is never actually won on this side of being, it is a struggle which we must embrace until we die!
Only when we spend time to cultivate reason, and overcome our subjectivity, will we begin to tackle these social issues JUSTLY!
Ablo Gazee an accomplice to a felony-murder. He released a murderer from police custody, upon the murderer’s release he went on to murder another innocent human.
He is a murderer.
'Abdullah Gazee for president '- I will vote for him , If he contest in next election.
This episode reminds me of the case of Abu Qatada and UK authorities. If you don't know about Qatada, read about him here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Qatada#Legal_status.
In what can only be describe as a legal circus act, Abu Qatada was awarded £2,500 by the European Court of Human Rights in a lawsuit he filed against the UK, after judges ruled that his detention without trial in the UK breached his human rights! This was despite the fact that the guy is a dangerous terrorist!
This whole business of "Human Rights" can somtimes take on a whole strage new meaning and is amply demonstrated here in the case of this notorious Ablo Gazee as well. This guy is our Abu Qatada!
@ Ahmed
so you're simply stating that the whole business called human rights created by humans is nonsense and dumb. Get a load of this guys.
where are the apostates and atheists? what's their answer to this?
for your information nothing made by humans especially laws that come in conflict with religion works on this dear planet!!
what's so special about this stupid judge?if he committed a crime like a thug then he should also be treated like one.he's no angel or anything just because of a certain label!!!
@basher:
No my dear friend I made no mistake or omission in stating my views on the subject.
No President of this country is empowered to order the military to arrest and detain a citizen of the Maldives unless the country is under a state of emergency, which my dear Basher , it was not.
I am truly sorry as I do believe your support for Nasheed is genuine. However the law cannot and will not protect him this time around as he had breached the legal framework we all agreed to be bound by in 2008. Or have we forgotten? Or do you suggest that your strange interpretation of the powers of a President is better than that of the Supreme Court, Prosecutor General, Human Rights Commission of Maldives, UN Human Rights Council and the International Commission of Jurists?
Another sad truth is that a lot of the alleged abuse, torture and arbitrary arrests which reportedly took place in the Qayyoom regime happened during a period when the President was empowered by the earlier Constitution to rule Supreme as the head of the judiciary and executive with effective control over the Parliament. Please refer to the earlier Constitution and note the date on which the 2008 Constitution was passed and the provisions within it that say it cannot be applied retrospectively.
Nasheed is unlucky because if he had ruled under the old constitutional regime we would not have reached this juncture. Yet the Maldivian people had demanded the separation of powers and protection for the fundamental rights of individuals regardless of whatever they are accused or suspected of. Nasheed failed to respect the new regime and that is why he landed himself in a bad spot.
It does not matter whether you are kidnapped against your will within the Ritz Carlton it still amounts to a violation of human rights and the law. I think a comment forum would not suffice to help you better understand what democracy means. I suggest you locate someone who knows and spend a few hours or 10 under his/her tutelage.
Judge issue is bigger deal is because that was a threat to the judiciary by the president.
It is completely against the democracy and there are other means to address the issues against the judge.
But Anni wan to scare the judges and the entire judiciary to show the public that " he hold ultimate power" of the country and no will be able to raise thier voice against him.
But people of Maldives are not so ignorant and they are idiots like he thought and there are large number of population who are puppets of Anni and were acting on thier conscience .
I am very much surprised that All the Nation pro government media talks about Abdulla Gaazee Who the hell is Abdulla Gaazee The biggest corrupted Judge in the history of Maldives this guy should be hanged to death President Nasheed tried to isolate him, judicial service commission failed to take action for his corruption he should immediately be removed from office we all knew that accept Maumoon and his followers they all are responsible for the destruction of this small nation
What so special about this paticular judge .Ha ! Ha ! Ha! My dear 'Azu ' there are worst cases of Human right abuses in Maldives .
Why he was closing his eyes like that . hope he was not drunk something , Hhmm ! Let say sulaasarazi
Good work . Let institutions do there work . HRCM concerntrate on hr violations and let jsc decide if a judge is fit to be on the bench of criminal court . Can Mdp at least see that