A 15-year-old girl gone missing in the capital Malé on July 27 was found yesterday, police have revealed.
A family member found Mariyam Nafha Nasir, of Huvadhumaage from Thaa Vilufushi, near the Islamic Bank at around 3:30pm.
Police began searching for the minor on July 30 when her family reported that she was missing.
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(0)Police have arrested two men after a 15-year-old girl was raped on the island of Hulhumalé.
Local media outlet Haveeru reported that the girl was raped by a gang of four men, two of whom are still being sought after by police.
Police have confirmed that the two men arrested – aged 21 and 29 – are linked to this case. Hulhumalé police station and the Family and Child Protection Department is investigating the case.
(0)Dislikes(0)With additional reporting by Ahmed Nazeer
Members of the Maldives Human Rights Commission (HRCM) refused to attend a Juvenile Court meeting yesterday (April 1), after having asked the Supreme Court to rule on the legitimacy of the court’s actions.
The commission has contended that the Juvenile Court is in violation of “the legal principles and procedures followed in contempt of court cases.”
A press statement from HRCM released yesterday evening noted that the Prosecutor General’s Office had not charged the commission with contempt of court because only the Supreme Court could initiate such cases of its own accord.
Deputy Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem has told Haveeru that the court does not have the authority to summon HRCM members over contempt of court charges.
The court has been requesting the meetings in order to question HRCM members about a confidential report concerning the sentencing of a 15 year old rape victim to flogging and house arrest in 2012.
”We are trying to summon the HRCM members regarding a report they sent to the Juvenile Court on 5 December 2013, in which the HRCM has included false information about the Juvenile Court and it also contained things that could be considered as an attempt to influence the court’s work,” Juvenile Court Spokesperson Zaima Nasheed told Minivan News today.
Zaima has argued previously that the constitution states no public officials can “interfere with and influence the functions of the courts”, instead they must “assist and protect the courts to ensure the independence, eminence, dignity, impartiality, accessibility and effectiveness of the courts.”
The HRCM press release added that the report referred to in the media was a confidential document, which had only been shared with relevant authorities or state institutions.
“We assure that the report does not include any false statements that hold the Juvenile Court in contempt,” the press release stated.
Previous meetings
After refusing to attend the meeting yesterday, the Juvenile Court sent an official court summons for today (April 2) to each individual commission member, according to local media.
Following the official court summons, the HRCM members appeared before the court this morning at 10am and were told to respond in writing before 3pm.
The HRCM was first summoned to the Juvenile Court on March 12, with a further request to meet made on March 17 after members failed to accede to the previous requests – all five members of the HRCM subsequently attended on March 17.
The HRCM is reported to have agreed to cooperate at this meeting, on the condition that it was given a period of ten days after the parliamentary elections scheduled for March 22 before the first questioning session.
The 15-year-old rape victim from the island of Feydhoo in Shaviyani Atoll was convicted of premarital sex at the Juvenile Court and sentenced to 100 lashes and eight months of house arrest.
In June 2012, the girl gave birth to a baby that was discovered buried in the outdoor shower area of her home. Her stepfather was later charged with child sexual abuse, possession of pornographic materials and committing premeditated murder.
An official from the Prosecutor General’s Office told Minivan News in January last year that the fornication charges against the minor were related to a separate offence of premarital sex that emerged during the police investigation. The charges were filed on November 25, 2012.
In its verdict, the Juvenile Court ordered the state to transfer the girl to the Children’s Home in Villingili to enforce the sentence of eight months house arrest, according to local media reports.
Following the 15 year-old’s conviction, local NGO Advocating the Rights of Children (ARC) called on the Maldivian government to pass legislation concerning the treatment of sexual abuse victims.
ARC also previously called for reforms of the juvenile justice system and reform of the current protection mechanisms provided to minors who are kept in state run institutions, such as homes and foster programs.
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President Dr Mohamed Waheed has issued a statement warning that calls for a boycott on tourism over the flogging sentence for a 15 year-old rape victim “will only serve as a setback to the economic opportunities and rights we are all striving to uphold for women, girls and the hardworking Maldivian people in general.”
The President’s statement comes as an Avaaz.org petition calling for a moratorium on flogging and better laws to protect women and girls in the Maldives reached more than two million signatures – more than twice the number of tourists who visit the country each year.
In a letter published on Minivan News on Saturday, Avaaz.org Executive Director Ricken Patel insisted that the organisation had not called for a outright tourism boycott.
“What we do stand ready to do, however, is to inform tourists about what action is and isn’t being taken by the Maldives government to resolve this issue and change the law, and to identify those MPs and resort owners who are using their influence to push for positive change – and those who are not,” Patel said.
“Around the world people are interested (and have a right to know) what kind of systems they’re supporting with their tourism dollars, and to make their holiday decisions accordingly,” he added.
President Waheed meanwhile thanked the international community “for their concern” in the case, noting that Attorney General Azima Shukoor had met the girl “and she is receiving the appropriate physical and psychological counseling.”
“This case should never have been presented in the courts and we are working to ensure that cases like this are never brought to the courts again,” President Waheed said.
“We appreciate the international compassion for this young woman and ask for your patience as this case moves through the judicial system. As both the President and as a father, I am fully committed to protecting and advancing the rights of women and girls in the Maldives and throughout the world and share your deep concern about this young victim,” he said.
“The Maldives is a young democracy working to balance our religious faith with our new democratic values. I ask that you support us and join us as partners as we work through this challenge.”
President Waheed’s Gaumee Ithihaad Party (GIP) has meanwhile declared itself in coalition with the religious conservative Adhaalath Party (AP), which has publicly endorsed the 15 year-old’s flogging sentence, stating that she “deserves the punishment” as outlined under Islamic Sharia.
The Adhaalath party, members of which largely dominate the Maldives’ Ministry of Islamic Affairs, stated that the sentence of flogging had not been passed against the minor for being sexually abused by her stepfather, but rather for the consensual sex which she had confessed to having to authorities.
“The purpose of penalties like these in Islamic Sharia is to maintain order in society and to save it from sinful acts. It is not at all an act of violence. We must turn a deaf ear to the international organisations which are calling to abolish these penalties, labeling them degrading and inhumane acts or torture,” read a recent statement from the party.
“If such sinful activities are to become this common, the society will break down and we may become deserving of divine wrath,” the Adhaalath Party stated.
A previous call for a moratorium on the flogging of women for the crime of extramarital sex was raised by UN Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay during an address to parliament in 2011.
Following her address, demonstrators gathered outside the UN building holding placards calling for Pillay to be “arrested”, “flogged” and “slain”.
Pillay’s statement was publicly condemned by the Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM), Islamic Ministry, MPs and religious NGOs, while the Adhaalath Party called on then President Mohamed Nasheed to condemn Pillay’s statements “at least to show to the people that there is no irreligious agenda of President Nasheed and senior government officials behind this.”
“What’s there to discuss about flogging? There is nothing to debate about in a matter clearly stated in the religion of Islam. No one can argue with God,” said Foreign Minister Ahmed Naseem at the time.
More recently, a report on extremism in the Maldives published in US West Point military academy’s Combating Terrorism Center (CTC) Sentinel has warned that growing religious extremism and political uncertainty in the country risk negatively affecting the country’s tourism industry.
“Despite its reputation as an idyllic paradise popular among Western tourists, political and religious developments in the Maldives should be monitored closely,” the report concluded.
(0)Dislikes(0)The defence lawyer for a 15 year-old rape victim who was sentenced to flogging after the Juvenile Court found her guilty of fornication, has appealed the case at the High Court today.
Attorney General Aishath Aziam Shukoor told local media today (April 1) that the case had to be appealed because the Juvenile Court had taken statements from the witnesses in violation of procedure.
The Attorney General said the Juvenile Court ruling was in violation of Islamic Sharia as it had not considered psychological reports produced to the court.
The 15 year-old child was now under the charge of the ‘Kudakudhinge Hiya’ orphanage on Villingili, she revealed.
President Mohamed Waheed’s government has previously criticised the verdict, pledging in January to review the use of flogging as a punishment for sexual offences – a practice it alleged in some cases actually serves to punish victims of rape and abuse.
Sources from the girl’s island of Feydhoo in Shaviyani Atoll told Minivan News previously that concerns had been raised by islanders since 2009 that the minor was allegedly the victim of sexual abuse not just by her stepfather, but an unidentified number of other men on the island.
The case has brought international attention to the country’s legal system, including the launch of an online Avaaz.org petition signed by 1.7 million people that threatens to boycott Maldivian tourism, as well as public criticism from British multi-billionaire Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin group of companies.
In June 2012, the girl gave birth to a baby which was later discovered buried in the outdoor shower area of her home. Her stepfather was later charged with child sexual abuse, possession of pornographic materials and committing premeditated murder. Her mother was meanwhile charged with concealing a crime and failing to report child sexual abuse to the authorities.
On February 26, 2013, the 15-year-old was convicted of premarital sex at the Juvenile Court and sentenced to 100 lashes and eight months of house arrest, after confessing to fornication with another man during the investigation.
President Waheed’s stated on his official Twitter account at the time: “I am saddened by the sentence of flogging handed to a minor. Govt will push for review of this position.”
However, the religious Adhaalath Party (AP) – which largely makes up the ranks of the Islamic Ministry and with which President Waheed’s Gaumee Ithiaad Party (GIP) last week entered into a coalition – has endorsed the sentence.
“The purpose of penalties like these in Islamic Sharia is to maintain order in society and to save it from sinful acts. It is not at all an act of violence. We must turn a deaf ear to the international organisations which are calling to abolish these penalties, labeling them degrading and inhumane acts or torture,” read a statement from the party.
“If such sinful activities are to become this common, the society will break down and we may become deserving of divine wrath,” the Adhaalath Party stated.
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An online petition calling on the Maldivian government to end the practice of flogging women and children for the crime of fornication has been signed by more than one million people worldwide.
The Avaaz.org petition, titled ‘Horror in Paradise’, follows the sentencing of a 15 year-old rape victim to 100 lashes and eight months house arrest, for confessing to a separate instance of fornication during the investigation into the alleged murder of her baby. The child was found buried in an outside shower area.
“Let’s put an end to this lunacy by hitting the Maldives government where it hurts: the tourism industry,” declares the Avaaz petition.
“Tourism is the big earner for the Maldives elite, including government ministers. Let’s build a million-strong petition to President Waheed this week, then threaten the islands’ reputation through hard-hitting ads in travel magazines and online until he steps in to save her and abolish this outrageous law,” it states.
Worldwide support for the petition has extended to the travel media, with industry news website eTN declaring that that it would not accept advertising or press releases from any Maldives government agency until the issue was resolved.
“I am outraged on hearing that a 15 year-old girl, who has survived rape by her stepfather and a resultant pregnancy, has now been found guilty of “fornication” and sentenced to flogging and house arrest. I am an active member of the UNWTO World Tourism Network on Child Protection and as a world citizen I cannot be silence about this. No civilized country should get away with such a nightmare system of justice,” said eTN publisher Juergen Thomas Steinmetz.
Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb had made no response at time of press following the petition reaching one million signatures. Deputy Minister and Head of the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC), Mohamed Maleeh Jamaal was also not responding.
However, following an interview with Maleeh, local news outlet Sun Online reported the minister as saying that the Avaaz campaign was an attempt by the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and “different media groups that work alongside the MDP” to “crush the country’s tourism” and “cause havoc on the country’s economy.”
“When they started the campaign, they were clearly aware of the president’s stand, as well the attorney general’s stand on the matter,” Maleeh said, according to Sun.
“Looking back, a 14 year-old was given the same sentence during former President Nasheed’s presidency and nobody seemed to have talked about that. This whole deed is an attempt to defame the country’s tourism industry and [damage the] economy,” he said.
According to Sun, resort tycoon, Judicial Services Commission (JSC) member and presidential candidate of the Jumhoree Party (JP), Gasim Ibrahim, at a rally on Fuvahmulah over the weekend also declared that a slight decline in tourism could have serious consequences on the lives of Maldivians.
As such, Sun reported Gasim as saying, “more focus should therefore be put on developing the fisheries industry.”
In the wake of global media coverage of the initial sentencing, the President’s Office issued a statement late last month expressing “sadness” over the sentence, and promising a review.
“The government is of the view that the case merits appeal. The girl is under State care and the government will facilitate and supervise her appeal of the case, via the girl’s lawyer, to ensure that justice is done and her rights are protected,” the statement read.
President’s Office Spokesperson Masood Imad has meanwhile expressed hope that punishments such as flogging would be debated and one day repealed.
Sources on the island Feydhoo have meanwhile told Minivan News that concerns had been raised by islanders since 2009 that the girl had potentially been the victim of sexual abuse not just by her stepfather, but a number of other unidentified men on the island.
Atoll Council President Moosa Fathy said police had conducted numerous investigations into the girl’s situation since 2009, but that she had ultimately been left in the custody of her mother and stepfather even after she was found to pregnant. He blamed the “limited facilities” available to house and protect the girl, as well as a lack of budget, management and staff to shelter vulnerable young people.
Second flogging sentence of underage girl
The most recent flogging sentence passed against the 15 year-old abuse victim follows a similar case in September 2012, in which a 16 year-old girl was sentenced to house arrest and 100 lashes for fornication with a 29 year-old man.
The man was convicted of sexual assault under common law and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The girl was sentenced under Islamic Sharia on the charges of consensual sex outside of wedlock.
An official of the Ministry of Gender, Family and Human Rights at the time said the matter was the concern of “either the court or JJU (Juvenile Justice Unit). We will be concerned once the girl is flogged, but as far as I know, she hasn’t been flogged yet. We do not want to associate ourselves with a case that we are not involved in.”
Calls for moratorium
Amnesty International in 2009 called for a moratorium on flogging sentences in the Maldives, arguing that the sentences were disproportionately applied to women.
Amnesty’s calls were echoed in November 2011 in an address to parliament by UN Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay, who said the practice “constitutes one of the most inhumane and degrading forms of violence against women, and should have no place in the legal framework of a democratic country.”
Her comments were condemned by religious groups in the Maldives, with protesters urging authorities to arrest the UN High Commissioner and gathering outside the United Nations carrying signboards with slogans such as “Islam is not a toy,” “Ban UN” and “Flog Pillay”.
A presidential state apology for allowing Pillay to speak to parliament was one of the five demands of the December 23 coalition [of 2011], a mass gathering in the capital Male’ that saw the fractured opposition unite against President Nasheed on the pretext of protecting Islam.
Religious NGO Jamiyyathul Salaf meanwhile sent a letter to the UN Resident Coordinator, alleging that the Pillay’s call for a moratorium on flogging was “inhumane and disrespectful.”
The Foreign Ministry – at the time under the Nasheed administration – dismissed the calls for discussion on the issue, stating: “There is nothing to debate about in a matter clearly stated in the religion of Islam. No one can argue with God.”
(0)Dislikes(0)Minister of State for Home Affairs Abdulla Mohamed has challenged President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik over his stated attempts to review the flogging sentence given to a 15 year-old rape victim by the Juvenile Court, for an unrelated case of fornication.
The criticism follows a tweet by President Waheed in which he stated that he would push to review the Juvenile Court’s sentence of 100 lashes and eight months’ house arrest against the minor.
Mohamed, who is also the Vice President of the Civil Society Coalition, told local media that it was “not acceptable” that the country’s president was making remarks against a penalty proscribed in Islam and called for Waheed to repent.
The case has attracted widespread criticism from the international community, with Amnesty International launching a petition demanding the government repeal the sentence.
The Maldivian government – which is currently vying for re-election to the UN Human Rights Council, launched its campaign in Geneva on February 28 on a platform of “women and children’s rights and the rights of persons with disability” – has expressed “deep concern” at the decision to prosecute the girl.
“Though the flogging will be deferred until the girl turns 18, the government believes she is the victim of sexual abuse and should be treated as such by the state and the society and therefore, her rights should be fully protected,” said the President’s Office in a statement.
“The government is of the view that the case merits appeal. The girl is under state care and the government will facilitate and supervise her appeal of the case, via the girl’s lawyer, to ensure that justice is done and her rights are protected,” the statement added.
State Minister Abdulla’s comments echo similar sentiments made by the religious-conservative Adhaalath Party (AP), which issued a statement declaring that the girl “deserves the punishment” under Islamic Sharia law.
Local media reported Mohamed as saying he intended to meet with President Waheed in order to ask him to publicly apologise for his comments.
Mohamed further stated that the girl – who had also been raped by her stepfather – should be punished for committing and confessing to the sin of fornication, and that this penalty must not be challenged, local media reported.
(0)Dislikes(0)The hearing of a 15 year-old girl charged with having “consensual sexual relations” was cancelled on Wednesday (January 23) following a request from the Prosecutor General (PG).
Juvenile Court Official told local media that the PG wanted to cancel the hearing as “charges had been raised against an individual for engaging in sexual activity with an underage person while holding a trustworthy position”, local media reported.
The hearing – to take place in Juvenile Court – had been cancelled in order for the PG to see if there was any reason to withdraw the fornication charges against the girl.
According to local media, the letter sent by the PG to Juvenile Court requesting the cancellation of the hearing did not mention who the “trustworthy” person was.
Earlier this month, a PG’s Office spokesperson confirmed that the charges against the minor were related to a separate offence under Sharia Law, which had been filed on November 25, 2012.
The 15 year-old, who is from the island of Feydhoo in Shaviyani Atoll, last year gave birth to a baby that was discovered buried in the outdoor shower area of a home on Feydhoo. Her stepfather was later charged with sexual abuse, possession of pornographic materials and committing murder without intent.
According to local media, the mother is now facing charges of concealing a crime.
The PG’s Office and the Juvenile Court were not responding to calls from Minivan News at time of press.
The charges against the 15 year-old have been labelled an “absolute outrage” by NGO Amnesty International.
In a statement Amnesty International’s Maldives Researcher Abbas Faiz stressed that suspected victims of rape and sexual abuse required counselling and support rather than criminal prosecution.
“We urge the Maldivian authorities to immediately drop all charges against the girl, ensure her safety and provide her with all necessary support,” the NGO’s statement read.
Amnesty Intentional also raised concerns that should the minor be found guilty of “fornication” as reported in the media, she could potentially be flogged in line with sentencing for similar cases held in the country.
“If found guilty of ‘fornication’ the girl could be punished with flogging. She would likely be kept under house arrest until she turns 18 when, under Maldivian law, the flogging can be carried out. Flogging is a violation of the absolute prohibition on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment,” Amnesty International stated.
(0)Dislikes(0)The Prosecutor General’s (PG) office has “no intention” of reversing the decision to charge a 15 year-old child abuse victim with fornication, local media has reported.
An official from the PG’s office told local newspaper Haveeru that the decision to charge the 15-year-old from Shaviyani Atoll Feydhoo with fornication was made after extensive assessment of the case.
Back in June 2012, the same minor – a school student at the time – gave birth to a baby later discovered buried in the outdoor shower area of a home on Feydhoo.
The discovery led to the arrest of four people, including the 15 year-old girl’s mother and step father.
Haveeru reported that as the charges filed against the girl have no connection with the buried baby case, the PG’s office had no intention to withdraw the charges.
“So far we have no intention of reversing the decision to charge her at the Juvenile Court,” a PG’s official was quoted by local media.
Speaking to Minivan News on January 9 the Prosecutor General (PG’s) Office confirmed it had pressed charges against a 15 year-old girl from the island of Feydhoo in Shaviyani Atoll for having “consensual sexual relations”.
A spokesperson for the PG’s Office said the charges against the minor were unrelated to a separate case against the girl’s stepfather over allegations he had sexually abused her.
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