Tag: criminal court

Court releases Maldivian accused of kidnapping Bangladeshi migrant workers

The criminal court yesterday released a Maldivian man suspected of kidnapping, beating and robbing two Bangladeshi migrant workers.

Police officers broke into a second floor office apartment in Malé in the early hours of Monday morning after receiving reports of the kidnapping and arrested the 34-year-old suspect.

“Police found the two Bangladeshi men aged 23 and 24 in the apartment with noticeable bruises. Our investigations found the two Bangladeshis were robbed of a large sum of money,” said police.

The suspect was released after he was taken before a judge for extension of remand detention.

Police are searching for a Bangladeshi and a group of Maldivians suspected of involvement in the kidnapping.

Minivan News understands the Criminal Court released the suspect citing the lack of an arrest warrant authorising entry into the apartment. The court also said the suspect was not arrested from the crime scene.

However, police said “the suspect was detained at the crime scene.”

The Maldives Police Service with the help of the prosecutor general’s office has since appealed the Criminal Court’s decision to release the man.

According to legal experts, the constitution allows police to enter a private residence without a warrant under special circumstances.

“The constitution provides circumstances for police to enter a household without a warrant if they have sufficient evident of a life being threatened,” said Mohamed Shafaz Wajeeh, a lawyer.

“But establishing the circumstances in court would fall on the institution that wants to extend the period of custody.”

Speaking to Minivan News, the owner of the house in the Galolhu ward where the two Bangladeshis were held captive said the pair were kept at a leased second floor apartment.

“The police came around three in the morning. They called several times to open the door and broke in after the people inside did not respond,” she said.

“I think the Maldivian they arrested was not even sober.”

The leased apartment is the offices of Bisado Maldives, a recruitment and employment agency established in 2014, according to their Facebook page, and Brexco Private Limited, a registered construction company.

Local NGO Transparency Maldives (TM), which provides legal aid to locals and expatriates, expressed concern over the “lack of priority for foreign worker rights”.

“Expatriates are in a vulnerable situation in Maldives. It is very important that society sees and seeks the rights of foreigners at the same level as the locals,” said Ahid Rasheed, a senior project coordinator at TM.

The police also face challenges in successfully closing criminal cases involving foreign workers, the NGO noted.

“In many cases we have seen the sponsors send them back to their countries if any problem arises. So we have difficulties in judicial process, mainly in getting witness statement in courts,” a police media official said.

The former Bangladeshi High Commissioner for Maldives, Selina Mohsin, described the situation of Bangladeshi workers in the country as “bizarre and horrifying” after a spike in violence against migrant workers last month.

A Bangladeshi waiter in a local café was murdered in March and four others stabbed the following week. In 2014, police rescued a Bangladeshi held captive in a migrant workers accommodation block while a chained man was discovered by locals in 2009.

The vice president of the Human Rights Commission of Maldives Ahmed Tholal has described the recent spate of attacks against Bangladeshi workers as “hate crimes”.

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Chief judge praises criminal court over Nasheed’s trial

Chief judge Abdulla Mohamed has praised judges and staff at the criminal court for the swift conclusion of former president Mohamed Nasheed’s terrorism trial which related to the judge’s arrest in 2012.

The criminal court handed Nasheed a 13-year jail term, sparking international outrage and daily protests across the country.

“The Maldivian military was brought to alert, tents set up at the justice building, scan machines were kept, and the whole country was brought to alert,” Judge Abdulla was quoted as saying by local media.

“A three-judge panel was formed, and a verdict was delivered in 19 days by criminal court judges and staff in a case that couldn’t be concluded in three years,” the chief judge said at a function held last night to mark the court’s anniversary.

Nasheed’s rushed trial was widely criticised by foreign governments, the UN, and Amnesty International for its apparent lack of due process.

Judge Abdulla meanwhile said criminal court judges and staff were awake at night and during weekends while the rest of the judiciary was asleep.

The court proved that the “judiciary is awake” after “matters reached the state where some people believed the judiciary was incapable.”

In addition to Nasheed, his defence minister Tholhath Ibrahim Kaleyfaanu, then-chief of defence forces Moosa Ali Jaleel, then-Malé Area Commander Brigadier General Ibrahim Mohamed Didi, and ex-colonel Mohamed Ziyad were charged with terrorism over the judge’s arrest.

Tholhath was found guilty and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Nasheed has meanwhile accused Judge Abdulla of involvement in a “contract killing,” and said he had blocked an investigation into his misconduct by the judicial watchdog, and obstructed the police from carrying out their duties.

Judge Abdulla last night also said unlawful arrests by the state have not come to an end, despite six years passing after the adoption of the 2008 constitution.

Seven cases of unlawful detention were submitted to the court last year, he said.

Judge Abdulla said last year’s cases of unlawful arrest included four expatriates suing the immigration department, and one expatriate suing the police. In addition, three Maldivians sued police and the correctional services.

He also referred to the arrest of then-MP Abdulla Yameen and MP Gasim Ibrahim in 2010.

“There’s no doubt that these matters will become a lesson in Maldivian history,” judge Abdulla reportedly said.

He called for more benefits and additional security to criminal court judges.

Lack of space and facilities at the court posed difficulties in providing lawyers access to their clients and the ability to study case documents, the chief judge said.

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President Yameen remains defiant as calls grow for Nasheed’s release

President Abdulla Yameen has said he has no role in releasing jailed opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed, despite growing calls for negotiations over the imprisonment of political rivals.

“I cannot do anything. A verdict has been issued. I would like to encourage former president Nasheed and his party officials to seek an appeal. There are two more appeal stages, the matter should be resolved through the courts,” President Yameen said at a rare press conference on Thursday.

Nasheed was convicted of terrorism last month and sentenced to 13 years in jail in a trial widely criticized by foreign governments for its apparent lack of due process.

The former president has refused to seek an appeal stating he has no faith in the judiciary.

Thousands of opposition supporters have signed an ongoing petition requesting the president Yameen to release Nasheed, and are continuing daily protests in the capital.

International NGOs, businessmen and environmental activists have called for sanctions on the Maldives, while some 15 religious scholars last week pleaded with the president to heed the calls for dialogue.

The opposition Maldivians Against Brutality coalition has meanwhile called for a mass protest on May Day in the hopes of forcing president Yameen to initiate talks.

The coalition has also called for the release of ex defence minister Mohamed Nazim, who was jailed last month for 11 years on smuggling illegal weapons. The coalition accuses the government of breaching the constitution and unfairly targeting the businesses of rival politicians.

But reiterating the claim he has no power over the judiciary, Yameen said Nasheed will be released immediately if the courts overturn his sentence.

“The President’s Office did not rule on this case,” he said, noting Nasheed was first charged over the judge’s arrest in 2012 before he assumed power.

Yameen maintained that the opposition was unable to prove allegations of constitutional breaches or brutality.

“These politicians cannot point out how this government has been brutal. [They say] it’s by punishing offenders through the courts. If that is brutality, then this government is indeed enforcing their sentences,” he said.

Yameen said Nazim must also appeal his sentence. The ex defence minister’s lawyers filed an appeal at the High Court last week.

The opposition’s campaign is aimed at obstructing the government’s agenda, he alleged, but said he believed the campaign was proving to be unsuccessful.

The opposition coalition is made up of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), former ruling party ally Adhaalath Party, members of Nazim’s family, and members of Jumhooree Party (JP).

JP leader and tourism tycoon Gasim Ibrahim has ceased his vociferous criticism of president Yameen after his Villa Group was slapped with a US$90million fine.

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Ex-defence minister appeals weapons smuggling sentence

Former defence minister Mohamed Nazim has appealed an 11-year jail term on weapons smuggling at the high court today.

Nazim’s defence team said the criminal court had failed to provide a required report into court proceedings by the 2pm appeal deadline today.

The US and UK have criticised Nazim’s trial for apparent lack of due process, and the opposition has been protesting daily for his release.

Nazim’s lawyers said the criminal court’s failure to provide the case report “hampered” his right to appeal and that the new 10-day appeal deadline was too short to file an appeal. The Supreme Court had shortened the 90 day appeal period to 10 days in January.

The retired colonel is currently in Singapore seeking emergency medical treatment unavailable in the Maldives. He left Malé on Friday with his wife.

“Nazim said to let the public know he will not flee and will return as soon as his treatment is completed,” a family member said.

Although inmates are usually allotted three months for overseas treatment, Nazim was only given 45 days. The home ministry authorised him to travel to Singapore only, despite the family saying Singapore was too expensive for medical care.

The inmate’s families are usually required to bear expenses for overseas medical treatment.

After a midnight police raid in January, officers said they had confiscated a pistol, bullets and a pen drive containing information that Nazim was plotting a coup d’etat and planning to harm the president, police commissioner and tourism minister. Nazim says the items were planted.

He requested permission to travel overseas three weeks ago after his doctor advised him to undergo some tests unavailable in the Maldives.

The family has declined to reveal details of Nazim’s medical condition, but said it needs to be monitored and treated.

No prison guards will travel with him, but the correctional service and a guardian from the family will come to an agreement under which the guardian will be responsible for the inmate.

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MP Mahloof released after winning protest ban appeal

Independent MP Ahmed Mahloof was released from police custody today, after the high court overturned an ‘unconstitutional’ 15-day detention order and protest ban.

Mahloof was arrested from an opposition protest on March 26 for crossing a police barricade, but since then the criminal court repeatedly re-detained him when he refused to accept a conditional release that would require him to stay away from protests for 30 days.

“The High Court said Mahloof can only be held in custody if there is reason to believe he may flee or fail to attend court hearings. Judges said attending protests is not a reason for detention,” lawyers said.

Mahloof, a close associate of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, was expelled from the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) in February after he publicly criticised President Abdulla Yameen and the government.

He is now part of the Alliance against Brutality, an anti-government coalition, which has been protesting daily over the imprisonment of rival politicians including former president Mohamed Nasheed.

Speaking to the press today, Mahloof apologised for campaigning to bring president Yameen to power.

“I would like to apologise to the people of Maldives for helping such a brutal ruler assume power,” he said.

Human rights group Madivian Democracy Network said the criminal court had released at least 50 protesters on the condition they do not participate in further protests for 30-60 days.

Former president of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Dr Ibrahim Didi was arrested and held for 15 days last month when he was seen at an opposition protest after having agreed to the criminal court’s conditional release.

Dr Didi was released yesterday.

Earlier in March, MDP MP Fayyaz Ismail was held for 15 days when he too refused the criminal court’s conditional release.

MDP MP Eva Abdulla today called on opposition supporters to disobey unlawful court rulings, and urged the watchdog judicial services commission (JSC) to punish “unqualified judges.”

“What we have here are judges who do not know democracy dispensing unconstitutional sentences. But the checks and balances provided in our constitution is simply not working. The JSC refuses to investigate the judges, and the parliament controlled by the government refuses to hold the JSC accountable. Ultimately, the people are denied any form of justice,” she said.

Last week, the police denied family visits to Mahloof after they discovered “illegal” areca nuts in his pocket.

Mahloof today accused the police of discrimination, saying his lawyers were only allowed to see him before 6pm, while others could see their clients until 11pm.

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Ex-defence minister jailed for 10 years on terrorism charges

Former defence minister Tholhath Ibrahim Kaleyfaanu was found guilty of terrorism and sentenced to 10 years in jail last night over the military detention of a judge while ex-president Mohamed Nasheed was in office.

Nasheed is currently serving a 13-year jail sentence over the same incident, in which criminal court chief judge Abdulla Mohamed was held for three weeks in January 2012.

Ex-colonel Mohamed Ziyad, one of the five accused in the case, was meanwhile acquitted last night.

The court said the prosecution’s evidence, witness testimony and Tholhath’s statements in court were sufficient to prove the former minister’s involvement.

However, the three-judge panel presiding over both cases ruled that Ziyad followed orders from his superiors, did not have any intention of unlawfully arresting the judge, and was not in a position to issue commands.

Several senior military officers had meanwhile said Tholhath had vowed to take responsibility for the judge’s 22-day detention on Girifushi island even if he were to be jailed for 40 years.

The judges also noted that Tholhath defied court orders demanding Judge Abdulla’s immediate release.

The verdicts were delivered last night following repeated cancellations after the hearings were concluded last month.

At a previous hearing, Tholhath said Nasheed had ordered the arrest of the judge.

The operation ‘Liberty Shield’ was initiated by Nasheed and carried out by then-Malé Area Commander Brigadier General Ibrahim Mohamed Didi, currently an opposition Maldivian Democratic Party MP for mid-Hithadhoo constituency, he said.

During the trial, state prosecutors said soldiers involved in the operation were not being charged as accomplices because senior officers of the military “used the institution as a veil to commit this atrocity”.

On Wednesday night, the criminal court acquitted Defence Minister Moosa Ali Jaleel of terrorism charges related to the judge’s arrest. The retired major general was chief of defence forces at the time, but maintained he had no role in the operation.

Of the five defendants charged with the “abduction” or “enforced disappearance” of the judge, only MP Didi’s verdict is still pending.

Didi’s trial did not progress beyond a few hearings as he had to be flown abroad for medical treatment half-way through the trial. He is yet to return to the country.

Judge Abdulla’s arrest sparked 22 nights of violent anti-government protests, culminating in a police and army mutiny on February 7, 2012. Nasheed resigned on the same day, but later said it was in order to avoid bloodshed and was in effect a forced resignation.

In January 2013, Tholhath told parliament’s government oversight committee that the events of February 7 was not a coup d’etat, after previously claiming Nasheed’s life was in danger and that the former president had no choice but to resign.

During the 2013 presidential campaign, Tholhath campaigned for Jumhooree Party Leader Gasim Ibrahim and later backed eventual winner Abdulla Yameen.

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Amal Clooney and other heavyweights to represent jailed ex President Nasheed

Jailed opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed has unveiled an international legal team including heavyweight human rights lawyers such as Amal Clooney.

Clooney, who has advised the UN and is the wife of Hollywood actor George Clooney, is accompanied by Jared Genser, the founder of the renowned campaign group for political prisoners Freedom Now, and Ben Emmerson, former UN rights chief on counter-terrorism and human rights.

Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in jail last month on terrorism charges in a trial heavily criticised by observers including the UN and Amnesty International for its apparent lack of due process.

The former president hopes to increase international pressure on President Abdulla Yameen, who has so far remained silent in the face of the opposition’s daily protests, and calls for dialogue and a presidential pardon.

“I am very pleased to have such an extraordinary team agree to take up my legal defence internationally,” he said in a statement today.

Nasheed said he is determined to “ensure the world understands the injustice of my detention and the broader suffering of the Maldivian people under President Abdulla Yameen.”

President Yameen maintains he has no role in the trial, but called on the international community to respect the Criminal Court’s verdict.

The international team will push for Nasheed’s “freedom from arbitrary detention” through international lobbying and legal mechanisms such as the UN working group on arbitrary detention, the former president’s domestic legal team says.

The working group’s decision on Nasheed’s detention will affect the international community’s policy towards the Maldives, and would inform decisions on possible sanctions, they added.

Genser has represented Nobel Peace Prize laureates Aung San Suu Kyi and Liu Xiaobo, while Clooney has counseled political prisoners such as the former Prime Minister of Ukraine, Yulia Tymoshenko and Al Jazeera journalist Mohamed Fahmy.

Emmerson, meanwhile, is currently the British judge on international tribunals on Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia.

Nasheed on March 19 announced he would not seek an appeal after the Criminal Court failed to release required case documents on time, and said he is now seeking a political solution involving president Yameen.

The High Court still says Nasheed can appeal, claiming judges are authorized to accept late appeals if a “reasonable justification” is given, but Nasheed’s lawyers say Supreme Court has taken away the discretionary powers to judges in a new ruling in January.

Nasheed’s Maldivian Democratic Party describes Nasheed’s conviction as part of a broader government plan to silence dissent, a claim Yameen denies.

Since Nasheed’s conviction, former defence minister Mohamed Nazim has been sentenced to 13 years in jail on smuggling weapons and ruling party MP Ahmed Nazim was yesterday sentenced to 25 years in prison on corruption charges.

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State broadcaster disciplines editor after court ‘abduction’

The state broadcaster has taken disciplinary action against a well-known news editor who accused the criminal court of “abduction” last month during the trial of ex-president Mohamed Nasheed.

The Maldives Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) on March 15 transferred Mohamed Afsal from covering trials and legal affairs to working on the website, according to Haveeru.

Afsal had previously presented the “Raajje Miadhu” programme on Television Maldives and hosted special programmes.

The local daily reported that the transfer was prompted by the incident at court on the night former President Mohamed Nasheed was convicted.

On March 13, trial observers and journalists were held for nearly two hours inside the building after the initial hearing, as judges deliberated on a verdict. They were not allowed to use their phones or communicate with reporters gathered outside.

Afsal asked to be allowed to leave, as did Misbah Abbas from CNM and Muizz Ibrahim from Avas, but court officials refused to allow the three outside or inside the courtroom for the verdict. The three were held in the waiting area until the verdict was delivered.

The journalists accused the criminal court of kidnapping and terrorism and filed a complaint with police and the Human Rights Commission.

However, police dismissed the case, saying they had no jurisdiction to investigate it.

The Maldivian Democratic Party condemned the state broadcaster’s move today, characterising it as an attack on press freedom.

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Global MPs’ group calls for Mahloof release

Global MPs’ group Parliamentarians for Global Action has condemned the detention without charge of MP Ahmed Mahloof and called upon authorities to immediately release him from house arrest.

Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) expressed its “undiminished solidarity” towards MP Mahloof in a statement today.

He was arrested at an opposition rally on March 26 for allegedly “obstructing police duties and disobeying police orders.”

Noting that Mahloof may have been “targeted” by police for his criticism of the government, PGA expressed concern that freedom of speech, freedom of expression and the constitutional rights of MPs may have been violated.

After five days at the Dhoonidhoo detention centre, Mahloof refused to accept the court’s conditional release, which would have barred him from protesting for 60 days. The criminal court then placed him under five days of house arrest.

Mahloof was expelled from the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives after its disciplinary committee said he brought President Abdulla Yameen into disrepute with false statements in the media.

Meanwhile, a letter from the Prosecutor General’s office was leaked to Minivan News, which arguesthat some recent decisions by the court may have limited individuals’ rights relating to pre-trial detention.

The letter, addressed to Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed, said the decisions limited rights under Article 49 of the constitution.

This article says that no one shall be detained prior to sentencing unless there is a fear of the accused failing to appear at court, for the protection of public safety, or to prevent the accused interfering with witnesses.

Local media have interpreted the letter, dated yesterday, as a warning to the criminal court over the conditional release of people arrested at protests, which often stipulates they must not go to any more demonstrations for 60 days.

Previously, MP Fayyaz Ismail, of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), was detained for 15 days after he refused to accept release on these conditions following his arrest at a protest on March 8.

At the time, the Criminal Court had released 33 of the 77 individuals arrested at protests, on the condition they would not participate in further protests for 60 days.

“This is not a limitation of rights, but a violation of [the detainee’s] rights to assembly, expression, and free will,” said Shahindha Ismail, executive director of Maldivian Democracy Network’s, earlier this month.

Courts can enforce conditions on detainees to ensure a person’s attendance at hearings, for example having to obtain a permit from the court when travelling, but they cannot place a condition asking the individual not to go to a protest, she said.

The government has started implementing stronger measures in the crackdown against opposition protests, which escalated after the arrest of former President Mohamed Nasheed on February 22.

President Abdulla Yameen today ratified an amendment to the Civil Service Act which bars civil servants from holding posts in political parties and taking part in political activities.

The amendment comes at a time where several state owned companies have been accused of firing opposition supporters for participating in anti-government protests.

Since March 1, at least four employees of State Electric Company Limited and one from Malé Water and Sewerage Company were dismissed, and at least five were suspended from Maldives Ports Limited.

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