abdulla jabir – Minivan News

MP Jabir in Malaysia for medical treatment

Jailed opposition MP Abdulla Jabir is seeking medical treatment in Malaysia, local media have reported.

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP was hospitalised on April 8 after suffering respiratory difficulties. He is currently serving a one year jail sentence for refusal to provide a urine sample to police.

Jabir left the Maldives at 9:15 pm on Friday night without a set return date, the Maldives Correctional Services (MCS) told Minivan News.

Doctors at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) recommended Jabir go abroad for an examination of his heart, the MCS told local media. The service is not available in the Maldives, the MCS said.

Jabir was hospitalised for two weeks and transferred back to Maafushi prison on April 22 with a device to facilitate breathing – reportedly obtained from Singapore.

At the time of hospitalisation, the MP’s wife Dhiyana Saeed said Jabir had been born with birth defects which caused a sleep disorder called sleep apnoea. The disorder is characterised by pauses in breathing or instances of shallow or infrequent breathing during sleep.

In a text to MDP parliamentary group members, Dhiyana said at the time: “The pulmonologist who saw him says his previous surgeries for severe sleep apnoea has failed and needs to be admitted.”

In an interview with VNews earlier this month, Dhiyana said doctors had informed her that Jabir’s breathing stopped four times every hour.

Jabir was sentenced to jail in February for failure to provide a urine sample for a drug test during a police raid on the island of Hondaidhoo in November 2012.

A total of 10 people were taken into police custody at the time. Officers alleged they found large amounts of drugs and alcohol upon searching the island.

Seven people, including the MDP MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor, face separate charges for refusal to provide urine, alcohol possession and cannabis possession. They include former President’s Office Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair and his wife Mariyam Faiz, the manager of Jabir’s Alidhoo resort Jadhulla Jaleel and son of former Special Envoy to the President Ibrahim Hussein Zaki, Hamdan Zaki.

All seven have accused the police of brutality during their arrest.

The Prosecutor General also charged Jabir for possessing cannabis but the Criminal Court acquitted by the MP citing insufficient evidence.

Charges of alcohol possession remain outstanding, with the last hearing of Jabir and Hamid’s joint trial being suspended due to Jabir’s hospitalisation.

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EC rejects Jabir’s arguments for annulment of Kaashidhoo poll

The Elections Commission (EC) has responded to accusations made in the ongoing trial of the case filed by Maldivian Democratic Party MP Abdulla Jabir who lost his seat in the recent parliamentary elections.

In the High Court, Jabir has requested the invalidation of the result on the grounds that he was restrained from the right to campaign, and that the ballot box kept in the island of Gaafaru was not closed on time.

Jabir has also claimed that Home Minister Umar Naseer made comments that influenced the elections by saying he would very soon establish a prison in Jabir’s constituency of Kaashidhoo, and that Jabir – currently serving a twelve month jail sentence – would be transferred to that prison.

EC lawyer and former Attorney General Husnu Suood told the court that Jabir was in prison as a result of his own actions and that there was nothing that commission could do to solve this issue.

Suood told the court that every candidate has a representative, the purpose of which was to assist the candidate in such situations, and that the commission believes Jabir lost the right to campaign when incarcerated for a failure to provide a urine sample to police.

Furthermore, Suood pointed out that the ballot box in Gaafaru was closed later than the other boxes because the box had been opened later than others on the day of voting.

According to local media, Jabir presented the names of 36 persons to support his argument in the court as well as the audio recording of Umar Naseer’s remarks on establishing a prison in Kaashidhoo.

The decision to build an open prison on the island of Kaashidhoo was first announced by the Home Ministy in September last year, two months prior to Umar Naseer’s appointment as home minister.

In February, the Criminal Court sentenced Jabir to one year in prison after the court found him guilty of refusing to provide a urine sample to police after his arrest on the private island of Hondaidhoo in November 2012.

The Prosecutor General also charged Jabir for possession of cannabis before the court ruled that there was not enough evidence to find him guilty.

Jabir’s trial on alcohol possession charges – also stemming from the Hondaidhoo incident – was postponed last week after the MP was hospitalised with breathing difficulties.

In an interview with Vnews today, Jabir’s wife Dhiyana Saeed has said her husband had been in hospital since April 8, revealing that doctors asked to bring a bilevel positive airway pressure machine from Singapore.

Dhiyana also told the news outlet that doctors had informed her that Jabir’s breathing stops four times every hour.

She said that doctors had not recommended taking Jabir abroad for medical treatment, and that his medical reports were being sent directly to the Maldives Correctional Services.

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MPs’ alcohol trial cancelled as Jabir remains in hospital

The Criminal Court has today cancelled an alcohol possession hearing against opposition MPs Abdulla Jabir and Hamid Abdul Ghafoor as Jabir remains in hospital for a second day over respiratory issues.

Jabir who is currently serving a one-year jail sentence for refusal to provide urine was hospitalized at Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) on Tuesday morning, but his condition is not serious, the Maldives Correctional Services (MCC) told Minivan News today.

The two Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MPs were arrested from a private picnic island, Hondaidhoo, in November 2012 on suspicion of alcohol and drug use.

The Prosecutor General’s Office pressed separate charges of refusal to provide urine and alcohol possession against the two MPs. The MDP has said the charges are politically motivated.

Hamid received a police summons on Tuesday requesting him to attend the Criminal Court under a police escort. The hearing at 2:00 pm was cancelled due to Jabir’s inability to attend court.

While Hamid and Jabir faced refusal to provide urine charges separately, the Criminal Court is hearing alcohol possession charges against the two MPs in one case.

A new hearing has been scheduled for April 22. If found guilty, the two MPs may be jailed up to three years.

Speaking to Minivan News before the hearing, Hamid said he had not been told which charges he was to answer to today and expressed concern he may be summarily sentenced.

The Criminal Court in October 2013 sentenced Hamid in absentia to six months in jail for alleged failure to attend court in the refusal to provide urine trial.

The High Court overturned the sentence stating the lower court had scheduled hearings in contravention to the Parliamentary Privileges and Powers Act during People’s Majlis work hours.

Hamid’s refusal to provide urine charges are still pending.

Media Official at MCC Moosa Rameez said Jabir’s condition was stable and doctors were keeping him under observation.

Jabir’s wife Dhiyana Saeed told local media the MP had been born with respiratory defects and had undergone several surgeries in the UK and Singapore.

In a text to MDP parliamentary group members, Dhiyana said: “The pulmonologist who saw him says his previous surgeries or severe sleep apnoea has failed and needs to be admitted.”

Sleep apnoea is a type of sleep disorder characterized by pauses in breathing or instances of shallow or infrequent breathing during sleep.

Former President Mohamed Nasheed’s Special Envoy Ibrahim Hussein Zaki, Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair and his wife Mariyam Faiz, Zaki’s son Hamdhan Zaki and Alidhoo Resort’s General Manager Jadulla Jameel were also arrested along with the two MPs.

The PG has charged Zuhair and his wife with refusal to provide urine, whilst Hamdhan Zaki faces charges of cannabis trafficking. Jameel is charged with alcohol possession and cannabis possession.

The six arrested on Hondaidhoo have accused the police of torture and brutality during their arrest.

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High Court upholds lower court’s ruling to jail MP Jabir

The High Court has today ruled that the Criminal Court’s verdict to sentence Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Abdulla Jabir was lawful.

During today’s hearing, the court told Jabir that the it could not agree with claims that the Criminal Court had not given enough opportunity for Jabir to defend himself.

The court responded to Jabir’s allegations that among the three police officers summoned to the court as witnesses against Jabir, one officer had tortured the defendant. The court noted that Jabir was not able to clarify to the court who among the three had tortured him.

The High Court ruled that, though there may be one officer among the three that had tortured Jabir, the statements of the other two officers will still be valid, which was enough to rule that Jabir was guilty.

Additionally, the High Court responded to Jabir’s claims that the Criminal Court’s verdict did not have the signature of the presiding judge, noted that although the verdict did not have presiding judge’s signature, the case report did.

On February 20, 2014, the Criminal Court sentenced Jabir to one year after finding him guilty of refusing to provide his urine sample to the police to run a drug test, and sentenced him to twelve months under the Drug Act 17/2011 article 123(a)(b).

The Criminal Court ruling stated that on November 16, 2012, Jabir was arrested as a suspect in a drug related case and that police asked him to produce his urine sample to which he clearly refused according to the witnesses produced by the Prosecutor General’s Office.

The verdict stated that, although Jabir had claimed that he was tortured by the witnesses produced by the state and that the police did not follow the correct procedure when asking for a urine sample, Jabir was not able to prove these accusations to the court.

Jabir was taken into police custody on November 16, 2012 along with senior MDP members while they were on Hondaidhoo Island, Haa Dhaalu Atoll – an uninhabited island owned by Jabir.

Police offices raided Hondaidhoo, where they found large amounts of suspected drugs and alcohol upon searching the island.

The prosecutor general pressed three charges against Jabir for refusing to provide a urine sample to run a drug test, possession of cannabis and possession of alcohol.

The Criminal Court on February 27, 2014, ruled that Jabir was not guilty of possessing cannabis and concluded the case, However, the third trial is still going on in the court where the court is to decide if he is guilty for possession of alcohol.

Article 73(c)(2) of the constitution states that a person shall be disqualified from election as a member of the People’s Majlis – or a member of the People’s Majlis immediately becomes disqualified – if he has been convicted of a criminal offence and is serving a sentence of more than twelve months.

Article 73(c)(3) states that if a person has been convicted of a criminal offence and sentenced to a term of more than twelve months, unless a period of three years has elapsed since his release, or he has been pardoned for the offence for which he was sentenced, he will also be disqualified.

Jabir was set to re-contest his Kaashidhoo seat next month after an internal MDP decision to discipline the MP for repeatedly breaking three-line whips was overturned on appeal.

According to the Drug Act, Sections 123(a), 161(a) and 161(b), any person arrested on suspicion of having abused alcohol or narcotics has an obligation to comply with police requests for routine urine examination by promptly providing urine samples, and failure to comply is a criminal offence punishable with a one-year jail sentence.

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Jabir’s legal team ask court to determine ways jailed MP can campaign

The wife of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Abdulla Jabir has today submitted a legal issue to the High Court arguing that the recently jailed MP has a right to campaign for next month’s Majlis elections.

Jabir is currently serving a one year jail sentence after being found guilty of declining to provide a urine sample for police to run a drug test.

Speaking to Minivan News today Dhiyana Saeed said that Article 73 of the constitution, which details persons who cannot qualify as Majlis candidates, states that a person serving a jail term of less than 12 months is still qualified.

“If the constitution states that a person serving a jail term less than 12 months will be able to contest in the election then that person should not be suspended from obtaining his electoral rights,’’ she said. “If he is able to contest then he must also be able to campaign.”

Dhiyana – herself a former attorney general and SAARC secretary general – said that the High Court should allow the MP to make phone calls and talk to constituents at a time determined by the court, or he should be allowed to visit a campaign office at a time determined by the court.

Dhiyana noted that when the Elections Act was enacted in 2008, the Jumhooree Party filed a court case claiming that the act’s ruling that prisoners are not able to vote was inconsistent with the constitution.

The High Court subsequently ruled that that article was void and that inmates should have the right to vote.

“So this is the other side of that right, that time it was the right of the persons voting and this time it is the right of the candidate,’’ she said.

Dhiyana revealed that the High Court has said it will decide on accepting the issue and inform her this afternoon.

“If the High Court does not accept this case then we will try filing it with the Civil Court as a civil right issue,’’ she added.

On February 20, 2014, the Criminal Court found Abdulla Jabir guilty of refusing to provide his urine sample to the police to run a drug test, and sentenced him to twelve months under the 2011 Drug Act.

On November 16, 2012, Jabir was arrested along with other high profile MDP members on suspicion that they were in possession and under the influence of alcohol and cannabis from Jabir’s uninhabited island Hondaidhoo in Haa Alifu Atoll.

The prosecutor general pressed three charges against Jabir – one for the charge of declining to provide a urine sample to police, a second charge for making cannabis transactions, and a third for possession of alcohol.

Last month, the Criminal Court found Jabir guilty of declining to provide urine sample and the MP was taken into custody. Last week, however, the court ruled that the state was not able to prove that Jabir had made any transactions involving cannabis. The alcohol possession case is ongoing.

Jabir’s legal team has claimed the first trial contravened the MP’s constitutional rights as well as the principles of natural justice.

“The number of procedural violations in the whole criminal justice process in regard to this case is highly concerning and we believe that Hon. Abdullah Jabir was denied the fundamental rights that constitutes a free and fair hearing guaranteed to him by Article 42 of the Constitution,” read a press release from Aequitas Legal Consultants last week.

Last month a house in Malé owned by the MP was raided by police, with three men were arrested and drugs and alcohol were seized, though it was reported that Jabir does not live in the building.

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Criminal Court acquits MDP MP Jabir of cannabis possession charges

The Criminal Court has ruled that the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Abdulla Jabir was not guilty of possessing cannabis when police raided his uninhabited island – Hondaidhoo in Haa Alifu atoll – in November 2012.

Jabir is currently in Malé jail after the court sentenced him to twelve months after finding him guilty of refusing to provide a urine sample for police to run a drug test.

A total of 10 people were taken into police custody on November 16 after police raided and searched Hondaidhoo with a court warrant. Officers alleged they found large amounts of “suspected” drugs and alcohol upon searching the island.

Seven of the suspects, including the MDP MPs Hamid Abdul Ghafoor and Jabir were among those charged.

At the time, police submitted cases against former SAARC Secretary General and Special Envoy to the former President Ibrahim Hussain Zaki, former President’s Office Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair and his wife Mariyam Faiz. The manager of Jabir’s resort J Alidhoo Jadhulla Jaleel and Zaki’s son Hamdan Zaki also face charges.

Yesterday Jabir’s legal team appealed his recent conviction at the High Court, claiming that the trial had violated the MP’s constitutional rights.

Meanwhile, Jabir is still facing as additional trial for possession of alcohol relating to the Hondaidhoo incident.

According to the constitution, any additional time added to Jabir’s sentence will result in the MP being stripped off his seat in parliament and barred from running in the upcoming parliamentary election. After surviving disciplinary proceedings within the party, Jabir had been scheduled to re-contest his Kaashidhoo seat next month.

Article 73 of the constitution states that a person shall be disqualified from election as a member of the People’s Majlis – or a member of the People’s Majlis immediately becomes disqualified – if he has been convicted of a criminal offence and is serving a sentence of more than twelve months.

Additionally, the same article states that if a person has been convicted of a criminal offence and sentenced to a term of more than twelve months – unless a period of three years has elapsed since his release – or he has been pardoned for the offence for which he was sentenced, he will also be disqualified.

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Jabir moved to Malé jail, appeal documents granted

Recently imprisoned MP Abdulla Jabir has been moved from Maafushi to Malé jail following reported complaints lodged by his family members.

Jabir’s legal team has confirmed that the Maldivian Democratic Party MP has been relocated. Vnews has quoted Jabir’s wife Dhiyana Saeed as saying that her husband had been kept alone in a poorly lit cell, contrary to international conventions.

The Kaashidhoo representative’s legal team suggested earlier this week that their client was denied a fair trial, and that his constitutional rights were denied by the Criminal Court.

Jabir was last week sentenced to twelve months‘ imprisonment after being found guilty of failing to provide a urine sample when arrested as a suspect in a drug related case on November 16, 2012.

After complaining that the court has failed to produce documents vital to Jabir’s appeal, a member of his legal team was today able to confirm that the necessary documents had since been forthcoming.

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Jailed MP Jabir denied fair trial, says legal team

Read this article in Dhivehi

The trial and sentencing of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Abdulla Jabir “was in violation of several procedural and factual formalities accorded in the Constitution and statutes of the Maldives,” the MP’s legal representatives have stated.

The Kaashidhoo constituency MP was last week sentenced to twelve months imprisonment after being found guilty of failing to provide a urine sample when arrested as a suspect in a drug related case on November 16, 2012. He is currently in Maafushi jail.

Additionally, Hassan Latheef – a member of Jabir’s legal team – has told Minivan News today that the court has failed to provide mandatory documents summarising the case, necessary for a High Court appeal.

“At this moment, we’re concerned that he can’t appeal. We were unable to submit the report to the High Court, but today we have sent a letter saying that the court is still refusing,” said Latheef.

He noted that a previous High Court judgement stipulated that the appeals registration process could still proceed as soon as the case was filed – Latheef revealed that the case had been submitted yesterday.

When contacted for a response, Criminal Court officials were unwilling to provide further information on Jabir’s case.

Latheef’s legal firm suggested that Criminal Court Judge Muhuthaz Muhusin had failed to consider procedural issues raised by Jabir’s defence, thereby failing to observe the principles of natural justice.

The statement also suggested that the Jabir’s constitutional rights to adequate time and facilities for his defence – also guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) – were not met.

Jabir’s legal representatives noted that the police’s mistreatment of the MP at the time of arrest had been confirmed by the Police Integrity Commission but had not been taken into account by the judge.

After investigating the case – which involved medical records showing injuries sustained by Jabir as well as a video of one officer kicking the MP in the head – the PIC said it could not forward the case to the Prosecutor General as the identity of the officer could not be determined.

During the trial, Jabir had claimed testimony given against him by arresting officers was inadmissible, alleging that the officers in question had been responsible for his mistreatment.

“Based on the serious factual and procedural violations in the trial and sentencing of MP Hon. Abdullah Jabir, who is not only an individual but a representative of five thousand Maldivians at the Parliament, it is regrettable that the Judicial process that we are to respect and obey has shown such a blatant disregard for the principles of justice and the rule of law,” concluded the statement.

A total of 10 people were taken into police custody on November 16, 2012, after police raided and searched Hondaidhoo with a court warrant. Officers alleged they found large amounts of suspected drugs and alcohol upon searching the island.

Jabir was set to re-contest his Kaashidhoo constituency seat in next month’s Majlis elections. Fellow MDP MP and MDP International Spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor – also detained and charged with failure to produce a urine test during the same incident -told Minivan News today that Jabir was currently being held in custody.

Asked whether Jabir’s sentence would affect his ability to stand, Hamid said that he believed the law made it clear that an MP could not be disqualified from the Majlis unless they were serving more than twelve months.

“The law is silent on whether he can campaign or not,” added Hamid.

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Week in review: February 16 – 21

The Maldives’ judiciary continued to dominate headlines this week, in particular the Supreme Court’s decision to use privileged Majlis testimony in its case against the Elections Commission.

Citing the establishment of justice as a fundamental tenet of Islam, the court declared the evidence admissible in its ongoing contempt of court case.

Speaking at a campaign event for the Majlis elections, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) leader Mohamed Nasheed suggested the Supreme Court was fearful of an MDP majority in the parliament, pledging judicial reform should this happen.

On the lower benches, televised claims of bribery within the judiciary by Civil Court Judge Aisha Shujoon prompted both the Anti Corruption and the Judicial Services Commissions to launch separate investigations.

The JSC’s investigations into Shujoon’s claims will take place without the Majlis’ representative MP Ahmed Hamza, however, who has been removed as a result of his standing for re-election.

The Human Rights Commission this week called upon the Majlis to expedite the appointment of a new Prosecutor General (PG), before the Criminal Court finally agreed to accept new cases from the Deputy PG.

The court was immediately presented with 20 new cases, although the PG’s Office has said the backlog will take a month to clear. This may hamper new court regulations which requires the office to file criminal charges within 45 days of arrests being made.

The court did find time this week to sentence MDP MP Abdulla Jabir to one year’s imprisonment for failure to provide a urine sample to police in late 2012.

Three more cases are likely to land on the PG’s desk in the next six weeks after police arrested two Bangladeshi men and one woman in Malé for pre-marital sexual relations. For those recently married foreigners, however, the Maldives continues to be the number one holiday destination, an online poll revealed.

Fears were raised by the Tourism Employees Association that the amount of service charge disbursed to resort workers was being reduced as the government plans to raise taxes on the industry. An IMF delegation in the country noted its surprise at the resilience of the economy, suggesting that taxes on the industry were still relatively low.

The new nominee for the governor’s position at the central banking authority suggested that increasing local productivity and reducing reliance on imports – on which 75 percent of the country’s dollars are spent – was vital.

During the SAARC Council of Ministers’ Meeting – hosted on Bandos resort – President Abdulla Yameen stated his belief that trade and commerce were the “magic wand” for achieving the regional association’s goals.

Earlier in the week, while campaigning for the Progressive Party of Maldives, Yameen had labelled the Nasheed government’s transport policy corrupt, vowing to reclaim land given to private companies for ferry services.

He also said that the government would not be seeking to expedite Nasheed’s trial, though he did suggest that the former president must be sentenced for the arrest of Judge Abdulla Mohamed in 2012 if the rule of law is to be upheld.

The police’s campaign to reach out to the nation’s youth continued this week with the third ‘Blues for Youth’ camp. Home Minister Umar Naseer told participants that there was “no task too menial or lowly for a Maldivian”.

Meanwhile, Naseer signed an order shutting down Malé’s Dharumavantha Rasgefaanu mosque after an unauthorised congregation had prayed for the government’s destruction.

As Yameen’s administration approaches the one hundred days’ milestone intact, the policy to provide greater access to healthcare was introduced in Villinigili – albeit on a more modest scale than initially promised.

In nearby Gulhi island, a pioneering desalination project was launched by the UK’s Aquiva Foundation. The project – a joint venture with STELCO – will produce drinking water using the excess heat from electricity generators.

Further north, Alifushi island council has complained that emergency drinking water supplied to the island arrived contaminated with dust and bacteria.

Finally, the Olympic Committee this week announced plans to increase female participation in sports, setting a target of 33 percent of contingents sent to major international games to be women.

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