Tag: CNI

PPM to propose removing Nasheed nominee from CNI

Former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) has said that it will propose removing Ahmed ‘Gahaa’ Saeed from the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) after the nominee of former President Mohamed Nasheed publicly criticised the commission’s draft report yesterday.

Speaking at press conference today, Fonadhoo MP and PPM interim council member, Abdul Raheem Abdulla, condemned Saeed’s remarks as “a serious betrayal of the people and the government” and said that the party planned to send a letter to President Mohamed Waheed requesting his “immediate removal”.

“We believe that it is completely unacceptable for a person on such a commission to give interviews publicly about the report before the final outcome or report is released,” he said.

In a brief statement to media outside Muleeage yesterday, Saeed said that the draft report presented to the commission by co-chair G P Selvam, a retired Singaporean judge, “somewhat refutes or denies what we Maldivians saw and experienced” on February 7, when former President Nasheed resigned after elements of the police and army assaulted civilians, ransacked MDP Haruge (meeting hall) and mutinied at the Republic Square.

“February 7, 2012 was a day that shocked Maldivians – a day when the Maldivian government was changed in a sudden confusion. Now, however, the report that Judge Selvam has written and brought is a draft that somewhat refutes or denies what we Maldivians saw and experienced – or a draft that somewhat confuses things, the way it is now,” Saeed explained.

“While this is happening, for me to stay here, at Muleeage, would I believe be a betrayal of my country and the Maldivian people. I see the draft report as having been written without considering the witness testimony of many, many people to CNI as well as the many scenes we saw.”

Saeed added that he would continue efforts to “include my concerns” in the final report.

In the wake of Saeed’s media statement, government spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza argued in local media that Saeed had violated the agreement with the Commonwealth concerning the reconstituted CNI.

“The Commonwealth agreement Nasheed signed states that a Singaporean Judge will reside in CNI. No one must interfere with the work of the commission and also states that everyone must accept the findings of the commission. But the representative from Nasheed sharing the draft report with the public is an indication that Nasheed does not respect any agreement,” Abbas was quoted as saying in newspaper Haveeru.

Meanwhile, speaking at a PPM rally Saturday night, former President Gayoom assured supporters that there was “no cause for concern” over the CNI outcome.

CNI members were “reputable people with high integrity,” Gayoom said, adding that the report would not contain “anything but the truth.”

However, immediately after giving a statement to CNI on July 30, Gayoom had said he would not accept that Nasheed’s government was toppled in a coup d’etat even if the commission came to that conclusion.

Reconstituted CNI

The first three-member CNI panel was appointed by President Mohamed Waheed to investigate the circumstances that brought him to office with former President Gayoom’s one-time Defence Minister, Ismail Shafeeu, serving as chair.

Facing pressure from the Commonwealth and civil society NGOs regarding the commission’s lack of independence and impartiality, the government eventually agreed to reform the CNI to include a retired Singaporean judge and a nominee from Nasheed.

Nasheed’s representative, Saeed, who was formerly both Principal of ‘Ahmadiyya School’ and Deputy Principal of the British College of Sri Lanka was finally accepted after the government of President Waheed rejected almost 11 names Nasheed proposed to the commission.

In a statement welcoming the government’s acceptance of Nasheed’s nomination of Saeed, Commonwealth Special Envoy to Maldives Sir Donald McKinnon expressed satisfaction with “the resolution on the issue of Mr Nasheed’s nominee.”

“Now that we have agreement on the reconstituted Commission, I look forward to it starting its work and carrying out its important mandate. I hope also that with its enhanced terms of reference and revised composition, the Commission will be a more broadly acceptable mechanism and will allow the country to move forward,” the statement read.

Following Saeed’s criticism of the draft report, the formerly ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) convened an emergency meeting of the party’s National Council and passed a resolution expressing concern in line with Saeed’s reservations.

The resolution stated that the CNI report must be compiled in accordance with the agreement signed between the government and the Commonwealth, which stipulated that instead of relying solely on witness statements, the commission would also accept photos, videos, audios, personal bank statements and phone recordings as evidence.

However, at a press conference on August 2, commission members revealed “difficulties in getting the phone recordings” from the Telecommunications Authority of Maldives (TAM).

Meanwhile, according to local media reports, retired Brigadier General Ibrahim Mohamed Didi attended the commission at 4:30pm yesterday to provide his statement on February 7, two days before the final report is due to be shared with the authorities.

Didi, who resigned in July, was the Male’ Area Commander of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) at the time of President Nasheed’s resignation.

Prior to attending the commission, Didi told private broadcaster Raajje TV that he had been awaiting an invitation to testify before CNI.

While he did not wish to discuss the events leading up to President Nasheed’s resignation, Didi said “I know how it happened very well. I don’t think there would be any other officer who would know what happened in Male’ on the 6th and 7th [of February] better than I. But I am not ready to share it with the media.”

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CNI criticism will “complicate” resolving all-party talks: Thasmeen

The Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) has today welcomed efforts to resume the stalled all-party talks, despite warning that any agreement on resolving political tensions in the Maldives had been “complicated” by opposition criticism of a draft report of the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI).

The all-party talks, which were last held back in June, are one track of the international community’s response to the political turmoil in the Maldives, together with the Commonwealth-backed CNI.

DRP Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali said today that his party had no objections to resume these all-party talks and subsequent discussions over the possibility of setting early elections.

However, Thasmeen claimed criticisms of the CNI’s findings by former President Mohamed Nasheed’s own representative on the commission threatened to compromise the chances of finding a potential resolution through dialogue.

The DRP is presently one of several parties serving in the coalition government of President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan.

President Waheed announced on Friday (August 24) during an official visit to Sri Lanka that he would be inviting “political parties” to attend fresh all party talks, initially launched to try and resolve an ongoing deadlock in the country surrounding the controversial transfer of power that brought him to office in February.

While welcoming fresh talks, the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), which alleges that President Waheed came to power in a “coup d’etat”, has raised several concerns over the “conflicting statements” made by the government concerning talks of early elections and discussions on the potential outcomes of the CNI report.

The independence of the CNI’s report into the events surrounding the transfer of power on February 7 was itself today questioned by former President Mohamed Nasheed’s appointee to the commission, Ahmed ‘Gahaa’ Saeed.

Saeed alleged that certain information and evidence provided to the CNI had been omitted in a draft report of the body’s findings drawn up by the commission’s co-chair.

“There are significant gaps in the draft and it does not include evidence and statements given to the commission by many people. I believe remaining silent on the unfolding of events would be an injustice to this nation and to the people of the Maldives,” he announced today.

“Taking positions”

DRP Leader Thasmeen contended that Saeed’s comments had potentially compromised the success for all-party talks to resolve the current political tensions, as key players had now begun taking positions on the CNI’s findings before they had even been released.

“One party is now making judgements on the CNI, when the whole idea was to set out potential responses to the CNI before its findings are released,” he said. “Now people are changing their positions on how they will respond to the findings and things will be much more complicated on reaching acceptance on the report.”

Thasmeen contended therefore that “regardless of the CNI’s outcome”, all parties should accept its findings.

In moving forward with all-party talks, Thasmeen claimed that the DRP itself had no objections to the nature of potential topics on the agenda – a consideration that had seen earlier all-party talks stall on a number of occasions.

“Preconditions are not healthy in these talks, but today’s events have made things much more complicated now,” he said.

Thasmeen added at the time of press that he had not yet been made aware of whether a formal invite to the all-party talks from the president had been received by the DRP as he had been away travelling.  He added that while the DRP welcomed talks between political representatives “at the highest level”, the party would wait to see who else would be attending the discussions before nominating its own candidate to take part.

The Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) – a government coalition partner of the DRP – last night announced it would also be accepting President Waheed’s invite to participate in talks.

PPM Leader and former Maldivan President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom told local media that the party’s decision to previously abandon the all-party talks had followed the start of what he claimed were “illegal activities” and protests carried out by the MDP.

PPM Deputy Leader Umar Naseer declined to comment today when contacted by Minivan News about the party’s participation in the talks or its response to the CNI’s findings.

While also welcoming the possibility of fresh talks today, MDP Spokesperson and MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor claimed that President Waheed had continued to be acting “irresponsibly” by giving conflicting statements regarding his support for talks.  Ghafoor said this was seen particularly in the manner the president had addressed issues such as discussing early elections and the possible outcomes of the CNI.

“[President Waheed] has said in Colombo that is the opposition who are destabilising the country at present, but it is his own conflicting positions that are doing this,” he alleged.

Ghafoor pointed to claims made by the president in both international and local media during his visit to Sri Lanka over the last week that he said showed conflicting viewpoints with his stated desire to resume the talks.  President Waheed and his government in a number of interviews ruled out Commonwealth calls for early elections, as well as maintaining there would be no discussion on the outcome’s of the CNI until its work was completed.

“We would welcome the all-party talks. On August 14 we proposed discussions on three potential outcomes of the CNI. By August 18 we had got a reply from the government, who have since then been giving conflicting statements to the media,” Ghafoor claimed. “[President Waheed] has now called for all parties to join in talks and discuss the previous six point agenda, which includes the issue of early elections. He has also said that early elections are out of the question as the Commonwealth doesn’t understand the present situation.”

Following Saeed’s statement today, the MDP convened an emergency meeting of its National Council, where a resolution expressing concern on the draft CNI report was adopted with unanimous consent.  The resolution was proposed by former minister Mohamed Shihab and seconded by MP Mariya Ahmed Didi,

Despite the party’s criticism of the investigation, Ghafoor contended that there remained time to find consensus among the members of the CNI panel concerning the findings before they were released to the public on Thursday (August 30).

“The CNI report should be something that all its members have to agree upon so without MDP’s word, the report would not be authentic,” Ghafoor said. “There is a draft out there that appears to conclude that there was no police mutiny [on February 7], this is just not acceptable given what the public saw,” he claimed.

President’s Office spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza and Media secretary Masood Imad were not responding to calls by Minivan News at the time of press.

However, speaking to local media following the release of Saeed’s statement today, Abbas claimed that Nasheed’s representative on the CNI panel had “violated” the agreement with the Commonwealth concerning disclosing details of the investigation.

“The Commonwealth agreement Nasheed signed states that a Singaporean judge will reside in CNI. No one must interfere with the work of the commission and also states that everyone must accept the findings of the commission,” he was quoted as saying in newspaper Haveeru. “But the representative from Nasheed sharing the draft report with the public is an indication that Nasheed does not respect any agreement.”

Abbas reportedly added that as a draft report, the CNI members still had room to discuss finalising the findings before their release.

Discussion focus

The previous round of the UN-mediated all-party talks, held at Vice President Waheed Deen’s Bandos Island Resort and Spa in early June, collapsed after parties aligned with the government presented the ousted Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) with a list of 30 demands.

The list included calls that the MDP “stop practicing black magic and sorcery”, “stop the use of sexual and erotic tools”, and “not walk in groups of more than 10”.

Following the Bandos retreat meeting, Convenor of the All-Party talks, Ahmed Mujuthaba, acknowledged the lack of progress and suggested that “In the end, the most senior political leaders will need to create an atmosphere conducive to discussions, and come together prepared to work in good faith.”

Earlier this month, informal parliament-initiated talks – running parallel to the formal All-Party talks – were deemed to have stalled after participants failed to reach a consensus on resolving wider ongoing political deadlock and the suspension of the People’s Majlis.

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MDP alleges “mutinying” police officers planning Male’ “havoc” as attentions turn to CNI conclusion

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has alleged mutinying sections of the police plan to create unrest and violence on the streets of male’ as senior politicians begin contemplating the release of findings by the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) next week.

The opposition party has claimed “rumours”were being spread across the nation by “mutinying” officers that certain sections of the police planned to take to the capital’s streets to create “havoc” as the CNI’s findings were released to the public in order to “protect” the current government. In a statement, the MDP said it was calling on the nation’s police and military institutions to be vigilant over accusations that certain officers may try to use violent tactics to create instability.

The CNI, formed by President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan to investigate the controversial transfer of power that brought his government into power on February 7, is set to publicly release its findings on Thursday (August 30).

Senior figures on both sides of the country’s political divide have in recent days been addressing the potential for violence between protesters and national security forces once the outcome of the CNI’s investigation is known.

Speaking to local media this week as part of coverage of his official visit to Sri Lanka, President Waheed said that no party will be allowed to create unrest in relation to the CNI report and its findings.

President Waheed, during the trip, has also continued to reject opposition allegations that he had come to power in a “coup d’etat”, claiming in the international media that the Commonwealth has been “premature” in its calls for elections to be held during 2012.

“Since they made the demand, these people (the Commonwealth) have come to their senses,” the president was reported by the Agence France-Presse (AFP) news service as telling media gathered in Colombo. “The Commonwealth has realised that they made a demand that cannot be met. It was a premature demand.”

The Commonwealth Secretariat was not able to respond to queries by Minivan News at the time of press. President’s Office Spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza was also not responding to calls to clarify the comments.

The president yesterday announced that he would also be inviting political representatives to fresh All Party talks within the next few days. However, the government has maintained that it would not discuss potential outcomes of the CNI until the commission’s findings are released.

The President’s Office last week said the government was not considering “special” preparations to address the findings of the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI), adding it not expect any “abnormal” outcome from the report that would see its legitimacy questioned.

“Irresponsible”

MDP Spokesperson and MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor has claimed that the government was “irresponsible” for not agreeing a “ managed transition” in order to set out a plan to deal with the potential outcomes from the CNI’s findings.

Despite having previously agreed on August 14 to a proposal to discuss three different potential scenarios regarding the CNI’s conclusions, Ghafoor alleged the government has failed to respond to the suggestion by August 18 as promised by Vice President Mohamed Waheed Deen at the time.

“It is the responsibility of the government to address how to move forward with the CNI outcomes. So far we are the only ones to propose a possible solution,” he said. “What happens if the CNI should rule it was a coup? We would then have a situation where the people who are in power having to take action against themselves.”

However, the MDP’s allegations that certain elements within the police were potentially planning acts of violence in the country were condemned by the Maldives Police Service (MPS) today.

Police Spokesperson Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef told Minivan New that the party’s comments reflected what it said were attempts by former President Mohamed Nasheed to “erode public trust” in the police and create “fear” among the general public.

“The police are always professional. Right now we are taking precautions regarding information we are receiving,” he claimed

Haneef added that the authorities would be stationing officers around the country, adding that the police would “not tolerate unrest”.

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HRCM findings will reflect CNI conclusions on transfer of power: President’s Office

The government will not make “special” preparations to address the findings of the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) once they are published next week, claiming it does not expect any “abnormal” outcome from the report that would see its legitimacy questioned.

President’s Office Spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza today told Minivan News that while it did not wish to speculate on the CNI’s outcome before receiving its findings on August 29, the government expected similar conclusions regarding the transfer of power to those of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM).

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has dismissed the government’s claims, adding that the CNI was an independent body, overseen by international partners, and would therefore focus on the “big picture” concerning the power transfer, rather than any individual report.

The HRCM yesterday publicly released several reports around alleged human rights abuses committed in the lead up to February 7, as well as reported violations that occurred once the government of President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan came into power on February 8.

Among some of the key findings of the reports were that former President Nasheed gave “unlawful orders” to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and police officers at the Artificial Beach area on the evening of February 6. The HRCM also concluded that the Maldives Police Service needed to investigate alleged brutality conducted by its own officers after the transfer of power.

The HRCM’s findings are expected to be taken into consideration by the panel currently overseeing the CNI, which includes members appointed by President Waheed and a representative for former President Mohamed Nasheed. Under its reformed composition, the CNI is also co-chaired by retired Singaporean judge Govinda Pannir Selvam. Representatives from the United Nations and the Commonwealth will also advise the CNI’s work.

The CNI was initially established by President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan to investigate the details of February’s controversial transfer of power, before having its board reconstituted following international and domestic pressure.

Potential outcomes

With the government expected to receive the CNI’s report on August 29 – a day before it will be released to the public – Abbas Adil Riza said that the President’s Office saw “no need” to devise plans to address the potential outcomes of the CNI.

“The HRCM report has proven what we have always maintained about how this government came to power. We expect similar findings [from the CNI] that the previous chief executive displayed gross negligence and a violation of laws. We don’t expect a different stand,” he claimed. “However, on the basis of the CNI report, we will take necessary actions against any criminal behaviour found to have been committed at the time, should issues be raised.”

Abbas added that elections were therefore still scheduled for July 2013. Both the MDP and the Commonwealth Ministerial Acton Group (CMAG) have called for early elections to be held during 2012 to resolve the increasingly bittier political divide in the country.

With President Waheed expected to travel to Sri Lanka tomorrow for a postponed state visit, Abbas claimed that no discussions regarding the CNI and its outcomes were planned with Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa.

He added that the visit would therefore be focused on high-level talks concerning wider bilateral relations and commercial opportunities between the two nations.

“Out of context”

Responding to the release yesterday of the HRCM’s findings, MDP Spokesperson and MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor said the party’s “experts” were studying the individual reports at present before making comment.

However, on a first glance basis, he accused the HRCM of publishing a “convoluted array of statements” that were additionally “out of context” with wider happenings during the transfer of power.

“The report accuses [former] President Nasheed of issuing unconstitutional orders, the whole thing is out of context and frozen over a 48 hour period,” he said. “At this stage, I would say there are many oversights in these findings.”

Ghafoor added that Abbas’ claims that the CNI would draw a similar conclusion to the HRCM’s findings reflected the position taken by Umar Naseer, Interim Deputy Leader of the government-aligned Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM).

On Sunday (August 19), Naseer leaked details of the HRCM’s findings before they had been released publicly, focusing on claims that Nasheed had given “unlawful orders” to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) and police officers at the Artificial Beach area on the evening of February 6.

He added that the HRCM report concluded that the MNDF and police officers at the Artificial Beach area were “unlawfully” ordered to leave the area, which led to a breakdown in command and control of the security forces.

The HRCM report was also said by Naseer to conclude that Nasheed’s orders to leave the area violated article 245 of the constitution, by obstructing security forces from fulfilling their lawful duties.

However, Ghafoor added that he was “not concerned” that the HRCM’s findings would lead the CNI to dismiss the MDP’s allegation that it was removed from office in a “coup d’etat”.

He claimed that due to international participation, the CNI, as an independent body, was well placed to view the HRCM report in the wider context of Maldivian politics. Ghafoor claimed that the CNI would be aware of alleged concerns over the conduct of the country’s independent institutions to do their work without political influence.

Ghafoor alleged that during the last three years, the majority of former opposition, now government-aligned, MPs had allowed the country’s independent institutions to be “shielded” from scrutiny concerning the outcomes of their work.

“The HRCM has always been a source of problems concerning independence” he claimed. “You just need to look at its failure to investigate the atrocities committed under the former government [of President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom].”

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International community “aligned” on plans to address Maldives’ instability: MDP

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) representatives have claimed the international community favours pursuing a settlement with the Maldives government to resolve ongoing political instability before next week’s publication of the Commission of National Inquiry’s (CNI’s) findings.

Observing ongoing dialogue between the international community and local political figures, MDP MP and spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor claimed that the opinions of foreign governments on how to resolve the country’s political deadlock were “now aligned” largely with the stance currently held by the Commonwealth.

He claimed additionally that key regional players such as India appeared committed to “negotiating a settlement” on resolving political disputes that have resulted in the breakdown of political talks and the temporary suspension of the country’s parliament over the last month.

While currently travelling, President’s Office Media Secretary Masood Imad told Minivan News by SMS today that there had been no discussions on any settlement with foreign governments regarding potential commitments it would take following the outcome of the CNI.

The CNI was initially established by President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan to investigate the details of February’s controversial transfer of power.

The Maldivian government said earlier this month that in the interests of not interfering with the work of the CNI, it would not hold any dialogue on the commission’s findings until its report was published.

Former President Mohamed Nasheed this week told local media that talks had been held with “prominent officials” in the respective government’s of Sri Lanka and India about the MDP’s strategy on how to proceed regarding its calls for early elections following the release of the CNI’s findings.

MDP spokesperson Ghafoor said he was unable to add any further details to Nasheed’s comments, claiming the “bigger picture” of ongoing international discussions reflected a mutual commitment to resolve political deadlock through dialogue and commitments to early elections.

He added that through ongoing dialogue with government representatives, its coalition partners, and the country’s political opposition, international opinion now generally favoured the stance taken by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG).

“CMAG has reached a binding decision that has called for early elections, an independent investigation into the transfer of power and dialogue between national stakeholders” he said. “This is position we are seeing shared between a number of international partners. “

With just over a week until the CNI releases its findings, Ghafoor alleged that parliamentary representatives within President Waheed’s coalition government had not forwarded any potential resolutions to resolve the stalled political process.

“[The president] must remember that there are ten days to try to come to a resolution and their biggest demand so far is to cease protests, a commitment that we have carried out,” he claimed.

Despite the MDP’s claims of ceasing street protests, President’s Office Spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza claimed on Saturday (August 18) that the “harassment” of state officials by opposition party members was continuing.

Abbas told Minivan New that President Waheed was committed to taking part in roadmap talks between government-aligned parties and the MDP to try and overcome the country’s political deadlock, but only when he was confident the opposition had stopped its alleged harassment.

President Waheed also reiterated to local media over the weekend that the government would not discuss any outcome of the CNI until the body concluded its work later this month.

The CNI is scheduled to publish its report by August 29 on the events leading to Dr Waheed assuming the presidency . The report will first be made available to the authorities and to the Prosecutor General (PG). The public will be given access to the findings on August 30.

Abbas stressed that the government was committed to not “intervene” in the inquiry’s work, as it had been set up, and later amended under international pressure, to operate without state interference.

“The outcome will be respected by the country’s various institutions such as the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Human Rights Commission and the Police Integrity Commission,” he said.

Senior representatives from several government-aligned parties were not available for comment when contacted today about their plans following the publication of the CNI report.

Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali and Deputy Leader Ibrahim Shareef both had their phones switched off at the time of press.

Jumhoree Party (JP) MP Abdulla Jabir said he was presently travelling and would contact Minivan News once he returned.

Meanwhile, Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Interim Deputy Leader Umar Naseer and MP Ahmed Mahlouf were not answering calls at the time of the press.

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‘I will not take action against army in relation to CNI’: Defence Minister

“I will not take any action against the army in relation to that [Commission of National Inquiry] report,” said Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim, according to an audio clip leaked by Rajje TV.

Nazim has confirmed to local media that the recording was taken during a speech given to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) soldiers on Wednesday night, saying that a full transcript would soon be made available on the MNDF’s website.

Speaking with Minivan News today, Nazim clarified his comments.

“As we have seen on numerous video footage, a very small number of very junior ranked soldiers of MNDF may have acted outside the bounds of law on 7 February. However, the situation at that moment was very chaotic, and there was no command and control over them and they were not following any orders,” he said.

“They were doing what they thought was right in the absence of orders. Therefore, it does not make any sense to take any action against these very junior ranked soldiers, who may not have realised the implications of their actions at the time,” continued Nazim.

The Commission of National Inquiry (CNI), created by presidential decree in order to investigate the circumstances surrounding the resignation of former President Mohamed Nasheed, is scheduled to publish its report on August 30.

Elements of the military, including Nazim himself- a civilian at the time, have been implicated in the alleged coup that led former Vice President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan take over the country’s leadership.

Reports produced by the (pre-reform) CNI and the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) attest to the heavy involvement of MNDF troops in the transfer of power.

Hours before former President Mohamed Nasheed’s resignation on February 7, uniformed police and 60-70 officers from the MNDF were filmed joining with opposition protesters and attacking military headquarters.

Nazim told the press in June that an internal MNDF investigation into the events had been completed, although he opted not to disclose the details for fear of influencing the CNI’s ongoing investigations.

Military anxiety

Nazim explained that the publication of the report was prompting particular concern amongst the MNDF’s ranks, due to fears that it may spark further violence.

“There is no more anxiety among the ranks of MNDF pending the CONI report than there is among the general public. Our only concern is that the Maldivian Democratic Party has declared that it will take to the streets of Male’ once the report is published, regardless of the outcome,” he said.

The MDP last week announced it would continue its protests until any person implicated in the CNI report was brought to justice.

The CNI’s work does not constitute a criminal investigation and its findings will be forwarded to the relevant government departments before being released to the public.

“Once its findings are published, it is up to the relevant authorities to take any action if necessary,” said Nazim.

Last week, former President Nasheed released a statement expressing his dismay at the flurry of recent dismissals from within the MNDF and the Police force.

“It saddens me to note that during the past six months, senior officers of these institutions have been unfairly dismissed and continuously intimidated,” said Nasheed.

Deputy Commander of Medical Services of MNDF, Captain Dr. Dr Fathmath Thahsyna Ibrahim was removed from her post as Deputy Commander of Medical Services after expressing outrage on social media after her father was allegedly injured by an MNDF officer during a protest on August 2.

In an excerpt from Wednesday night’s speech already available on the MNDF’s website, Nazim urged all soldiers to be vigilant and to avoid “spreading false gossip” via social media.

On July 16 Brigadier General Ibrahim Didi, a national hero following his exploits in preventing an attempted coup in 1988, resigned “prematurely” after the government filed charges against him for the detention of Chief Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed.

Chief of Defense Force under Nasheed, Major General Moosa Ali Jaleel and Vice Chief of Defense Force, Farhath Shaheer, resigned from the MNDF shortly after Nasheed’s departure.

In Nasheed’s statement, he urged the military not to promote, demote, dismiss or intimidate any of its soldiers, but to wait for the CNI to conclude.

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Government alleges continued opposition “harassment”, while MDP slams “terrorism” charges

No date has been set  for President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan to participate in all party talks, the government has said, claiming the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) continues to “harass” state officials despite agreements to the contrary.

Speaking following his return from Saudi Arabia, the president spoke with local media about several issues affecting the country,  including financial and political stability.  He also talked of the likelihood for his participation in talks with key parliamentary and opposition representatives.

The comments were made as the MDP this weekend hit out at the government over accusations it is conducting a string of “seemingly politically motivated charges” to destabilise the party, ahead of the publication of findings by the Committee of National Inquiry (CNI). The CNI was established to investigate the events surrounding February’s controversial transfer of power that brought Dr Waheed into office.

President’s Office Spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza claimed that despite the MDP’s pledge to cease its street protests over the last 10 days of the holy month of Ramazan to facilitate fresh talks, harassment by party members was continuing.  Abbas pointed to an attack on two police officers yesterday (August 17), that he alleged that were politically motivated and carried out by MDP members.

Police Spokesperson Sub Inspector Hassan Haneef confirmed to Minivan News that attacks on two officers had taken place yesterday evening, but claimed that they were not at present being treated as politically motivated assaults. Investigations are continuing into the matter, Haneef added.

According to police, a group of 20 men reportedly attacked two on duty officers yesterday evening near the Dolphin View Cafe’ in Male’. Two male suspects aged 18 and 19 years of age have been arrested in connection to the incident.

CNI outcomes

Upon his arrival today at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) in Male’ after representing the Maldives at the fourth extraordinary session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Conference, President Waheed told local media that the government would not discuss any outcome of the CNI until the body concluded its work later this month.

The CNI is scheduled to publish its report by August 29, on the events leading to Dr Waheed assuming the presidency on February 7. The report will first be made available to the authorities and prosecutor general. The public will be given access to the findings on August 30.

Abbas stressed that the government was committed to not “intervene” in the inquiry’s work, as it had been set up, and later amended under international pressure, to operate free from state interference.

“The outcome will be respected by the country’s various institutions such as the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Human Rights Commission and the Police Integrity Commission,” he said.

Abbas also told Minivan New that the president was nonetheless committed to taking part in road-map talks between government-aligned parties and the opposition MDP to try and overcome the country’s political deadlock, but only once he was confident the opposition had stopped its alleged harassment.

“The president has continued to reiterate that this harassment needs to stop. It is not stopping and two police officers have been beaten this weekend by MDP supporters,” he went on to allege. “As long as harassment continues we will not join talks.”

Last week, the government alleged that protests against Vice President Mohamed Waheed Deen on the island of Hulhumale’, where he was met with a barrage of offensive language, were directly linked to the MDP, despite the party’s decision to temporarily suspend street demonstrations.

However, the MDP at the time denied any direct involvement in the incident – which saw eight people arrested – claiming it represented the frustrations of individuals against the present political situation.

Ahead of the government’s ongoing accusations that it was being harassed by the MDP, the country’s only opposition party yesterday released a statement expressing “grave concern” at the prosecution of its members, who it alleged were being targeted unlawfully.

“The MDP believes this is a deliberate attempt by the regime to destabilise the country ahead of the Commission of National Inquiry report into February’s transfer of power, which is due to be published on 30 August,” the party stated.

“The regime is pressing charges against MPs for Male’: Hamid Abdul Ghafoor – for obstructing police duty, MP Ibrahim Rasheed for obstructing police duty, assaulting police officers, threatening and creating unrest and MP, Imthiyaz Fahmy, for allegedly assaulting a police officer.”

According to the statement, there was also particular concern over terrorism charges the party said had been filed against MP Mohamed Rasheed and Addu City Councillor Ahmed Mirzad.

“Terrorism charges against these two individuals are being levied under allegations that they incited violence and arson attacks on public buildings and police stations on 8 February 2012 in Addu City. Furthermore, last month the Prosecutor General lodged a case at the criminal court against MP for Thoddu constituency and Deputy Leader of MDP’s Parliamentary Group, Ali Waheed,” the statement read. “The charges against him are also for obstructing Police duty. All the MPs have denied the charges. The MDP believes all of the charges to be politically motivated.”

Coupled with uncertainty over whether former President Mohamed Nasheed will face trial for his role in the controversial arrest of Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed, the MDP alleged that its members continue to be the victims of a “witch-hunt” orchestrated by the state.

“While politically motivated prosecutions continue, the MDP notes with dismay that no action has been taken against security forces who mutinied and used excessive force on peaceful protesters, although these concerns have been highlighted by international organisations and international media agencies,” the party claimed. “At a time when the people of the Maldives and the international community are also questioning the legitimacy and the impartiality of the government and the courts, it is concerning the government is continuing to press politically motivated charges against pro-democracy activists.”

OIC funding talks

Beyond domestic politics, President Waheed also today discussed the (OIC) that saw the establishment of an institute of dialogue to allow member states within the organisation to collaborate and reach agreement on religious issues.

Abbas said that the president has also had meetings with a number of fellow OIC member states regarding unspecified funding projects.

“The president will in due course reveal the details on these funding projects and how they will work,” he said.

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Nasheed reneging on commitment to respect CNI: Dunya

State Minister of Foreign Affairs Dunya Maumoon has accused former President Mohamed Nasheed and his Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) of “threats and intimidation tactics” over the outcome of the CNI report, due at the end of August.

“The Government of Maldives is committed to the resolution of political differences through peaceful dialogue and the democratic boulevard [sic] and institutions available in the country,” Dunya said in the statement.

However Nasheed “is going back on his own words and commitment to the international community that he would respect the outcome of the CoNI.”

Former President was speaking during an event commemorating ‘Black Friday’, the brutal crackdown on pro-democracy activists by the former regime in 2004.

Dunya expressed concern at Nasheed’s apparent determination to bring members of the police and military to justice for their illegal roles in the transfer of power, no matter the final verdict of the inquiry commission.

“President Nasheed had threatened violence on the streets of Male’ in order to ensure justice,” said Dunya during the press conference, the details of which have been distributed by the Foreign Ministry as a media release.

A translation for Minivan News of the pertinent section of Nasheed’s Monday speech is as follows:

“I am certain beyond doubt that the commission’s report would note that many officers of the security forces committed a number of unlawful acts. Our demand, our protest, our request will be for these [officers] to be brought to justice. Our work will be to bring them to face justice. We should only go back home after CoNI’s report after bringing them to justice and establishing justice in this country. For a certainty, I definitely will not go back home otherwise.”

Nasheed’s intentions were clarified the following day in a proposal submitted to the government by the MDP . The document mapped out the steps the party expected to see taken following the CNI’s conclusion.

This proposal stated the MDP’s willingness to cease its calls for early presidential elections and wait for the constitutionally mandated polls in 2013 should the final report show no evidence of any unlawful activity in the transfer of power.

However, should the report find that the transfer included illegal acts on the part of any individual, the MDP proposed that those implicated be brought to trial and that all parties agree to early elections.

In the event that the CNI rules the departure of Nasheed from the President’s Office to have been unconstitutional, the MDP proposed that his government be fully reinstated.

The party had hoped for a response from the government before the end of Ramadan this weekend and appeared to receive it today when President’s Office spokesman Abbas Adil Riza told local media today that the government would not discuss the report’s outcome before its release.

“CNI’s report will not act as a final verdict. The purpose of the report is to assist the relevant institutions. So, there’s no need to make the report a ‘political carnival’,” Riza reportedly told Sun Online.

At its meeting on Tuesday, the MDP’s executive council had agreed to call a meeting of its National Council in order to determine the party’s next course of action.

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MDP to hold mass rally ahead of CNI report, but will “accept findings”

The steering committee of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has decided to stage a mass rally before the publication of the Commission of National Inquiry’s (CNI) report, but has also committed to accepting the commission’s conclusion should it find there was no illegal activity involved in the ousting of former President Mohamed Nasheed on February 7.

A successful resolution proposed that should the CNI conclude February’s transfer of power was illegal, former members of the government should be reinstated, early elections scheduled, and legal proceedings initiated against those implicated.

However, should the CNI conclude that there was no coup in February, the steering committee decided it would wait for constitutionally scheduled presidential elections in 2013.

Deputy Leader of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Umar Naseer has responded to the MDP’s “amusing” proposals by stating his party’s intention to take the matter to the Supreme Court should the CNI’s findings indict the current government.

Local paper Haveeru reported on August 2 that Naseer, after refusing to testify a second time before the CNI, had argued the reconstituted commission represented an attempt by “foreigners to enter into the country’s internal affairs through the backdoor”.

Following his own statement to the committee last month, the interim leader of the PPM and former President Maumoon Adbul Gayoom told the press that he would not accept that the ousting of Nasheed amounted to a coup, regardless of the CNI’s findings.

Current President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan, during an interview with the BBC in June, stated his belief that he would not feel compelled to resign if he was found to have played no role in any alleged coup.

“If [the commission] find out that I had a role in bringing about a coup, then I would definitely resign,” he said. “But if I have no role – if somebody else has done it – it doesn’t mean I have to resign, according to the law of the Maldives.”

In the interview, Waheed argued that premature elections would be far more harmful to the country than his continuing presence in the President’s Office.

The CNI, originally created in February by presidential decree to investigate the events leading up to and including Nasheed’s resignation, was reconstituted in June following concerns, both domestic and international, that the committee lacked independence and impartiality.

The revised commission includes the addition of a Nasheed nominee as well as a retired Singaporean judge as co-chair.

Calm before the storm?

Last week, the MDP announced its decision to suspend its ‘direct action’ protests for the remainder of the Ramazan period in order to foster an atmosphere in which inter-party dialogue might progress.

Prior to this, the party had intensified its anti-government campaign during July, spending consecutive nights demonstrating on Chaandanhee Magu near the political and military headquarters of the capital, Male’.

The concurrent raising of tension in Male’ brought clashes between police and protesters. Injuries on both sides of the barricades brought claim and counter claim of police brutality and violent protests.

High-level parliament-initiated talks were scheduled to take place yesterday morning but appeared to stall after a number of senior party figures failed to attend.

There was apparent confusion regarding the aims of yesterday’s meetings. Jumhoree Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim told local media that the meeting was “meaningless” unless the issue of resuming Majlis sittings was discussed.

The Majlis has not met since the end of July following Speaker Abdulla Shahid’s decision to suspend sittings owing to escalating tensions in the house.

Alternatively, the MDP’s representative at the meeting left the President’s Office yesterday speaking of early elections and the course of action to be taken after the CNI report’s publication.

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