The ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) has condemned the international community’s “hypocrisy and double standards” with regards to an ongoing terrorism trial against former President Mohamed Nasheed.
Nasheed is accused of abducting Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed in January 2012. If convicted, he faces a jail term or banishment between ten and 15 years.
Speaking to the press today, MP and PPM Spokesperson Ali Arif said the former president is “close to the international community’s hearts” because he had allegedly “spoken against Islam while abroad.”
The ruling party said “many observers, ‘experts’ and ‘proponents of democratic values’ including many countries and organisations had ignored the many unconstitutional and undemocratic actions of President Nasheed.”
The Commonwealth, EU, Canada, UK, Australia and India have expressed concern over new terror charges against Nasheed, and denial of legal representation and police mistreatment at the trial’s first hearing.
“We wish to ask these observers and organisations whether they really ‘condone the kidnapping of judges.’ Would they call for individuals, and those in positions of authority, to walk free, without any burden of responsibility, after conducting such actions in their own countries?” reads a press statement issued in English.
“Where was the ‘international community’ when the Supreme Court was locked up?” it continued.
The international community had remained “disturbingly silent” when Nasheed “systematically harassed and persecuted” former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, “arbitrarily arrested and detained” then MP and current President Abdulla Yameen, Jumhooree Party (JP) Leader Gasim Ibrahim, Adhaalath Party’s Sheikh Imran Abdulla, and current Vice President Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, the statement said.
When Judge Abdulla was detained, “only a few organisations released statements condemning this illegal act,” but today “every minor incident in Maldives warrants a statement by some countries and organisations while many serious and deteriorating situations in other countries are ignored,” it added.
The party called on the international community to respect Maldives sovereignty and not to undermine its institutions.
PPM also accused the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and media of defaming President Yameen and former President Gayoom to “undermine the good name and respect the Maldives holds in the region and the international arena.”
Stressing the PPM remained committed to strengthening and consolidating democracy in the Maldives and protecting human rights, the party said it believed “justice should take its course and no man is above the law.”
The ruling party invited all international parties to come forward and observe the “actual situation” in the Maldives, “which despite distortions of facts perpetuated by some media remain calm and normal.”
Meanwhile, the MDP continues to hold daily protests, with MDP MPs disrupting parliamentary proceedings, while party supporters continue numerous protests in Malé, at the airport and at sea.
Police previously informed Minivan News over 77 individuals have been arrested at opposition protests, with 33 of them being released on condition that they do not go to further protests.
Recently, an open letter signed by 31 global activists and film makers, including Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Jose Ramos-Horta, called on the international community to use all resources to “pressure the government to free” Nasheed and “desist in all human rights abuses against him immediately.”
Ramos-Horta and Benedict Rodgers, the deputy chairman of the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission in the UK, in a Wall Street Journal op-ed on March 9 called for international sanctions against the Maldives.
“Options include targeted sanctions, freezing the overseas assets of senior members of the regime and suspending the Maldives from the Commonwealth. Tourists should consider boycotting the Maldives, especially resorts owned by regime cronies,” they wrote.
Australian Senator James McGrath has also described the trial against Nasheed as a “state planned judicial assassination,” saying that President Abdulla Yameen was becoming the “Robert Mugabe of the Indian Ocean.”
Foreign Minister Dunya Maumoon has previously condemned international statements of concern, saying: “No foreign power can tell Maldives what to do under President [Abdulla] Yameen.”
“To criticize us in public statements with lies or based with having only heard the opposition’s point of view is not acceptable. The government will not accept these statements and will not pay any attention to them,” Dunya said.
Related to this story
“This is not a court of law. This is injustice,” Nasheed tells the Criminal Court
Global change makers demand a fair trial for Nasheed
Indian Prime Minister Modi cancels Maldives trip
EU, UN join international chorus of concern over Nasheed’s arrest, terrorism trial
Foreign Minister Dunya slams Canada, Commonwealth statements on Nasheed prosecution
10,000 protest in Malé, call for President Yameen’s resignation
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A nice try Mr. Azim. But your mumbo jumbo works only with politically illiterate simpletons, who unfortunately pay the most for supporting you and the Crime syndicate which you call a political party.
Abdulla Mohamed does not qualify to be a judge. The robes do not make a judge. Neither does the blue uniform make common criminals the "police".
President Nasheed's only mistake was to unlock the Supreme court and negotiate. Justice is non negotiable.
Agree absolutely with all the above. Well put. Indeed, robes do not a judge make. Titles do not a president make. Kangaroo courts on the other hand do a banana republic make. Paid militia do havoc wreak. Not just for the opposition - it will bounce back at you. Try not to take such cynical advantage of simpletons and lost youth. Try not to use religion to win a certain generation. Try and think beyond the clink clink of the cash machine. Just this once. For your own sakes as well as ours.
I don't have the time and space here to list the reasons why the international community supports Nasheed and is critical of PPM and its leaders. It is enough to say that the whole world recognises who the real terrorists are.Good comment 'peasant'.
Hilarious stuff from PPM! Robert Mugabe must be providing consultancy to this so-called party.
Targeted sanctions (including but not limited to travel restrictions and asset freezes) against the members of this regime will soon put it in its rightful place.
good Lord stand up and fight for democracy Maldives. Anni is your best chance at a better life. We are all watching but our hands tied - rich people look out for themselves and your president cares for no-one but himself and he's 1step away from taking your country back in time. My prays and hopes are with you and President Nasheed x
Nasheed’s freedom is not only important for MDP supporters, every day he spends under criminal force is a sad moment for liberty and human rights. If a small country like Maldives can slap in the face of democracy and behave with jungle rule it a sham for the powerful democracies in the world. Nasheed’s only crime was he has worked for democracy, liberty and human rights. If this was for justice of an individual then the Gazee case should be the last in the series. Nasheed’s democratic election was after 30 years dictatorship during this period the violation of basic human rights were so common even the people were deprived of casting ballot paper crossed to dislike a dictator. People have been arrested and tortured for simply disliking a dictator in the public. If you wrote anything in the paper which deemed as negative to dictatorship, you were simply arrested, and put behind bars. If the world can do anything to poor Maldivains, they should do all they can to get Nasheed freed from the clinches of old dictatorship.
gayoom is a kiler
yameen is not yet but soon
they get away with everything
the hague should look into ppm`s doings
and for the sake of understanding
all those countries who critical about ppm have muslims in their country.
thay are accepted there so ppm`s argument is not valid
go to hell
The international community has always supported democracy and Nasheed in theory. However, when it came to the Commonwealth to make a decent decision in favour of democracy after the coup, they preferred to be duped by the regime. Although expressions of support does help those who are fighting for democracy and suffering in the hands of the regime, what the country needs now is real action from the international community.
Nasheed is not freedom fighter and he is power hunger who want to rule the country as a dictator under a democratic constitution.
Nasheed deserve to be punched for the crimes that he had committed.
We got the democracy not because of Nasheed and its because the Maldivian wanted the democracy.
People like Ibra, Gasim and other who came out to Jumhuree maidhaan during Gayoom regime were the real leaders who had sacrificed themselves to bring the democracy .
That was the turning point in our history and was the day that democracy foundation was built.
My question is where was Nasheed on that day . He was living his second home UK and not in Maldives.
If that incident had occurred even few years ahead, people of Maldives would have considered that traitors.
So Nasheed understood that it is right time to come back and start his agenda to get rid of Gayoom and take the power.
But then he realized that when Ibra is the lead role in MDP, he has no chance to be president.
From that day, Nasheed immediate objective was to remove Ibra from leadership and defame him .
After removing Ibra, he brought Munavvaru one of the corrupt person from Gayyoom regime . This was done to ensure that when time comes, Nasheed can remove the guy easily by exposing Munavvaru an challenging a corrupt person will be easier than challenging Ibra.
Nasheed is same as Gayoom and both are dictators
Typical this PPM goonies, they take something controversial they are doing and accuse their opponents of doing it.
In truth this is how it is: PPM uses double standards and hypocrisy in Nasheed’s trial and the international community speaks out against it.
Judges who use their authority to carry out murder and state-sponsored rape don't deserve rights.
Even a stay in Guantanamo is too good for them.