Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) – Page 3 – Minivan News

Indian foreign secretary arrives in Male’ ahead of poll

India’s Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh has arrived in the Maldives today ahead of Saturday’s re-scheduled presidential election.

A press release from the Indian High Commission said that Ms Singh “strongly urged all parties to accept the results of elections to enable a smooth transfer of power and reconciliation post elections.”

Indian media has reported that Singh’s presence in Male’ is intended to stop political parties from derailing the election process.

The Indian Express described the secretary’s trip south as “her first crisis management assignment” after taking the post in August.

Singh met with Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) candidate Mohamed Nasheed at midday today inside the Indian High Commission.

Speaking to the media afterwards, former President Nasheed explained that the Indian Foreign Secretary believed the election would go ahead this weekend, and that there must be a new president in office by November 11.

The High Commission’s press release revealed that Singh had also met with Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim, former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, and incumbent President Dr Mohamed Waheed.

“Ms. Sujatha Singh reiterated India’s call for free, fair, inclusive and credible elections in a peaceful environment fulfilling the democratic aspirations of the people of Maldives,” the statment read.

“She expressed the hope and expectation that the electoral process would proceed as scheduled with the first round to be held on October 19, and if required, the second round before November 3 so that a new President is sworn in on November 11 as stipulated by the constitution of Maldives.”

The constitutionally mandated deadline has been a source of concern for many who have argued that the country may enter a constitutional void should a new president not be installed by November 11.

However, the Supreme Court’s judgement stipulated that, even if a new president was unable to be sworn in on conclusion of the current term, the “principle of continuity of legitimate government would override any repercussions faced by failure to adhere to constitutional deadlines.”

Singh’s arrival in Male’ adds to the significant international presence in the capital as the polling date approaches.

Elections Commissioner Fuwad Thowfeek told Minivan News last weekend that he had been in discussions with the UK, the German, and the US ambassadors.

Thowfeek explained that the German and US ambassadors were currently in the country, whilst Indian, EU, and Commonwealth representatives were said to have been on their way.

The Commonwealth delegation is also understood to have arrived in Male’ today.

The Supreme Court’s decision to annul the first round contradicted the positive assessments of more than a thousand local and international election observers.

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Abdulla Yameen never destined to become president, says rival candidate Gasim

Resort tycoon and Jumhooree Party (JP) presidential candidate Gasim Ibrahim has said that fellow candidate Abdulla Yameen – who is contesting in the presidential poll as the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) candidate – will never be able to secure enough popular support to become the next president.

The Supreme Court’s decision to annul the first round of presidential elections came as a result of a petition filed by the JP, in which the party claimed the election had been flawed due to a number of discrepancies and irregularities in the voting process that amounted to a “systematic failure”.

Gasim’s new verbal attacks on Yameen came in a JP campaign rally held in Kanditheemu Island, Shaviyani Atoll, last night (October 16).

Speaking during the rally, the businessman-turned-politician told his supporters that Yameen had only won the PPM presidential primaries held earlier this year with the help of some 7,000 fraudulent votes he obtained by infiltrating opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) members into PPM ahead of the party’s internal election.

During the PPM primaries held earlier in March, Yameen edged out former PPM Interim Vice President Umar Naseer, taking 13,096 votes out of the total 20,546 votes cast in the party poll.

Challenging the elections result, citing electoral fraud, corruption and violence, Naseer subsequently filed a lawsuit at the Civil Court challenging the outcome of the poll. However, the Civil Court rejected the case and saw Naseer expelled from the PPM for “sowing discord amongst the party flanks”.

Yameen – who is the half-brother of Maldives’ former autocratic ruler Maumoon Abdul Gayoom – meanwhile dismissed all the allegations, while Naseer subsequently backed Gasim Ibrahim in the presidential poll.

Addressing yesterday’s rally, Gasim stated that the reason Yameen would not be able to garner the popular support of the people was that people had still not forgotten their mistreatment under Gayoom’s reign, in which Yameen had been a central figure.

Gasim also responded to the PPM’s allegations that he was “stuck” under the influence of advisers sympathetic to his political rivals, namely the MDP. He said that Yameen and the PPM making such remarks was due to the fact that he had refused to declare his support for Yameen in the event of a run-off duel between Yameen and MDP candidate Mohamed Nasheed.

He alleged that Yameen had been making such remarks to cover up his poor presidential campaign, during which he had failed to even visit the majority of the islands in the country.

“A mu’min cannot be bitten twice from one hole; hence I shall never support Nasheed”: Gasim

The resort tycoon also brushed off the ongoing public speculation that he would back Nasheed in a similar case of a run-off election.

The speculations began after Nasheed had a private meeting with Gasim Ibrahim in his own residence last month. Nasheed after the meeting told the press that they had met to discuss “discussed matters of national interest and maintaining stability and public order”.

“As I have said before, a Mu’min (Arabic terminology for pious Muslim) cannot be bitten twice from one hole. That is a narration of Prophet Muhammad. May Allah never show us a day where I would work to help [Nasheed] win the presidency,” Gasim told the rally.

Explaining the reason why he had backed Nasheed in 2008 presidential election – which Nasheed went onto win in the run-off election to become the fourth president of Maldives – was because he wanted to establish good governance and democratic principles in the country.

However, the Chairman of Villa Group said that it had been a “terrible” decision that ultimately caused more grief to the people.

The JP candidate also accused Nasheed of promoting Yameen over him in the presidential election because “Nasheed knows he would swiftly win the presidency should Yameen be contesting him in a possible run-off election”.

“If Abdulla Yameen goes to the second position, [Nasheed] knows he would easily win the second round of elections. If Gasim Ibrahim gets to the second or first position, he knows he must bow down saying bye-bye and good-bye to presidency,” Gasim told his supporters.

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PPM council member refuses to withdraw case against Nasheed’s candidacy

Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) council member Ibrahim ‘Wadde’ Waheed has refused to withdraw a case filed at the Supreme Court challenging the candidacy of opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) candidate and former President Nasheed, local media has reported.

The Supreme Court petition filed on October 10 states as grounds for stripping Nasheed’s candidacy his “outright criticism towards Islam and imposing Islamic Sharia’ in the Maldives” and his criticism of the judiciary.

The lawyer’s determination to proceed with the attempt to bar Nasheed from all future elections comes in spite of condemnation, including from within Wadde’s own party.

Shortly after the case was filed last week by Wadde and President of the ‘Madhanee Iththihaadh’ (Civil Alliance), Sheikh Mohamed Didi, President Dr Mohamed Waheed strongly criticised the litigation.

“[President Waheed] believes this is not the time to engage in efforts to obstruct or bar candidates from going through the electoral process. It will not help resolve the already volatile political situation in Maldives,” read a President’s Office statement.

Senior leadership from within Wadde’s PPM were also critical of the move, with State Foreign Minister Dhunya Maumoon saying the party was negotiating with Wadde to have the case withdrawn, arguing that he had not consulted with the party leadership.

The UK’s Bar Human Rights Committee has also expressed concern regarding this specific case, as well as the Supreme Court’s decision to annul the first round of presidential election on October 8.

MDP Spokesperson Imthiyaz ‘Inthi’ Fahmy has previously described the petition as a “very dirty” attempt by their rivals to invalidate a candidate who had the demonstrable support of at least 45 percent of the people.

Inthi told Minivan News today that he believed the case alleging criminal wrongdoing did not belong in the Supreme Court.

“But the SC has been acting like some freak of nature, so anything is possible,” he added.

“Cynical attempt”

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to hold a repeat first round – scheduled for October 19 – an additional ruling was made insisting that the EC’s re-registration process be started anew with fingerprinted forms.

An MDP press release following this decision, claimed that the new ruling had come as a response to a complaint filed by the PPM.

“The MDP fears that the PPM is seeking to delay the elections and also disenfranchise overseas and resort-based voters, who will now likely have to re-register and who tend to vote overwhelmingly in favour of President Nasheed,” read the statement.

MDP Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor also described the move as a “cynical attempt by the PPM and the Supreme Court to prevent elections from taking place next week.”

During a PPM press conference held with its ally, the Maldivian Development Alliance (MDA), yesterday (October 16) the PPM accused the EC of violating the electoral guidelines stated in the Supreme Court’s verdict, therefore jeopardising the ability to hold the presidential election Saturday.

“We believe that the security forces need to step in and take action against this,” MDA Deputy Leader MP Ahmed Amir was quoted as saying.

The hurried re-registration drive was further hindered on Sunday (October 13) as supporters of the PPM and MDA accused the EC of foul play after a system crash.

The EC subsequently accused the parties’ supporters of “threatening officials, inciting discord, and obstructing EC officials’ ability to work”.

The Supreme Court issued yet another ruling on October 14 that ordered the EC to address the complaints of any individual who has the right to stand for election, “including the verification of fingerprints on re-registration forms through the Department of National Registration.”

PPM presidential candidate Abdulla Yameen this week told local Haveeru that it “would be hard” for him to approve the voter registry – another recent requirement from the Supreme Court – should the EC not verify fingerprints.

The commission accepted complaints submissions until 6pm today and, as of this afternoon had processed over 52,000 of the estimated 65,000 re-registration forms for individuals voting outside of their permanent residences.

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PPM accuses JP of backing MDP, claims any vote for Gasim “a waste”

The Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) has suggested that Jumhooree Party (JP) presidential candidate Gasim Ibrahim is “stuck” under the influence of advisers sympathetic to his political rivals.

Speaking to local media yesterday, PPM candidate Abdulla Yameen’s election agent suggested that former Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) members within the JP were working to bring former President Mohamed Nasheed back to power.

“Lately we haven’t seen any campaigning from Gasim. Or Gasim pitching his policies or manifesto. All we’re seeing him do is complain and launch attacks against rival candidates,” Abdulla Ameen told local media.

After both the PPM and the JP had mooted the idea of backing a single anti-Nasheed candidate in the upcoming vote, it was revealed by local media yesterday that the parties could not agree on a candidate.

Whilst the JP were said to have favoured incumbent President Dr Mohamed Waheed as the sole candidate, Yameen was reported to have rejected the proposal.

Campaigning for the presidential elections resumed in earnest last week after the Supreme Court scheduled a new date for the first round, annulling the previous poll held on September 7.

The court’s investigation of potentially fraudulent voting was initiated by Gasim’s JP after it finished in third place, just 2,677 votes behind the PPM.

Ameen yesterday predicted that Gasim would again fail to reach the run-off in Saturday’s re-scheduled election, branding any vote cast for the JP candidate “a waste”.

Current JP President Ibrahim Didi – formerly president of the MDP – has dismissed the PPM’s claims.

“It’s not true,” he explained, “But the reality is that the majority of members of JP don’t support PPM leadership in their policies.”

Didi left the MDP in acrimonious circumstances shortly after Nasheed’s controversial resignation in February 2012.

MP Alhan Fahmy left the MDP at the same time after both he and Didi were accused of making statements contrary to the MDP’s official position that the February transfer of power had amounted to a coup.

Fahmy has since returned to the MDP, as has former JP member Abdulla Jabir – both of whom have a history of party switching.

Gasim and Nasheed met last month to discuss matters of national interest and the maintenance of stability and public order.

Speculation regarding potential coalitions would prove premature following the court’s recent verdict, though when asked following the pair’s meeting Gasim stated that he bore no personal animosity towards any other candidates.

Nasheed meanwhile said that Gasim was “a family friend since childhood” who has offered good advice and counsel throughout the years.

The JP were initially aligned with the MDP following Nasheed’s victory over 30-year autocrat Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in the 2008 presidential election.

The coalition lasted just a few months, with the JP later going on to form part of the ‘December 23’ coalition which led months of protest calling for the protection of Islam against the so-called irreligious policies of Nasheed’s government.

After subsequent unrest preceded a police mutiny and Nasheed’s resignation, the JP went on to form part of Dr Mohamed Waheed’s national unity government.

Waheed last week opted to withdraw from the re-scheduled election after receiving just five percent of the popular vote in the initial poll last month.

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Adhaalath Party MP calls on Supreme Court to “temporarily ban” MDP

The religious conservative Adhaalath Party MP Ibrahim Muthalib has called on the Supreme Court protect itself from derogatory remarks by temporarily banning the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).

While briefing the press yesterday (October 13), Muthalib stated that the MDP was a militant organisation working to destroy the nation and its religion.

He stressed that it was imperative and necessary for Supreme Court to take action in defending the nation and Islam.

“Supreme Court needs to self-initiate a ruling to ban the MDP for a couple of days. All these things will be sorted out if [the Supreme Court] bans the MDP. If the court does not resort to such measures, these problems [of defaming the Supreme Court] will continue,” Muthalib suggested.

“Firstly, they survived in Maldivian politics by speaking of the thirty-year autocratic rule [of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom] for four years. From 2004 to 2008, the only thing that these people spoke of was about those thirty years.” explained Muthalib.

“Now, it is the Supreme Court [which MDP has targeted].”

The remarks came shortly after Adhaalath had publicly announced its support for the Supreme Court case to bar MDP presidential candidate and former President Mohamed Nasheed from competing in the presidential elections scheduled for Saturday (October 19).

The case, filed by the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Council Member Ibrahim ‘Wadde’ Waheed and President of the ‘Madhanee Iththihaadh’ (Civil Alliance) Sheikh Mohamed Didi, was quickly condemned by incumbent President Dr Mohamed Waheed.

The PPM leadership also announced it was in negotiation with its own council member to withdraw the case.

Nasheed himself has repeatedly maintained that such attempts would not succeed and that such efforts were “not even newsworthy”. His MDP has meanwhile described Muthalib’s remarks as being against against all democratic norms.

Chief Justice overpowered by the MDP, Nasheed a criminal

Muthalib also went onto criticise Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz Hussain – one of the three judges to have opposed the decision to annul the first round of the presidential election – claiming that he had been “overpowered” by the MDP.

He reminded Faiz that he was not appointed to the Supreme Court by Nasheed, but rather it was “Allah who had given him that post through his will”.

The Adhaalath MP urged the Chief Justice to work independently and without bias. He did, however, point out that his remarks did not represent the official view of the Adhaalath Party.

When asked about the remarks made by Muthalib during the press conference, the Vice President of Adhaalath Party, Dr Mauroof Hussain said that it was up to the Elections Commission to take action against the MDP, though he did condemn the party’s criticism of the court.

“Where else in the world [does] a political party do such things? A political party has called to disregard a ruling issued by the highest court of law in the country. If such a thing is carried out in any other democratic party, be it a political party or a state institution, they would face immediate dissolution,” Mauroof told the press.

MP Muthalib himself has been linked to several controversies, both for his frequent party switching and his remarks in parliament.

He was originally elected to parliament as an independent candidate – despite being a member of Adhaalath – before joining the Jumhooree Party (JP) in 2011.

Just months later, however, he resigned from the party, rejoining the Adhaalath Party.

Last November 2012, Muthalib made a call in parliament for former President Nasheed’s Special Envoy Ibrahim Hussain Zaki to be “hanged to death” as a “traitor to the Maldives”.

He is also a sponsor of the bill seeking amendment to the Clemency Act that if passed would would require any death sentence then upheld by the Supreme Court to be carried out. The bill is still pending in parliament.

Responding to the remarks, MDP Spokesperson Imthiyaz Fahmy told Minivan News today (October 14) that the Adhaalath Party was working not only against the progress of the country, but also against human nature.

“These people do not comprehend the fact that we are now living in the 21st century. This country has fully adopted and accepted the multiparty political system… Their backward thinking will lead them to their fateful end as people are not ready to accept such remarks,” Fahmy told Minivan News.

Fahmy also pointed out that the people were not willing to support political parties that are attempting to drag the country back to the dictatorship of former President Gayoom.

“These kind of remarks made by such immature political parties is one reason behind the immense support gained by the MDP. The people know that it was the MDP and its supporters who paid the price to bring in democratic reforms in the country that allowed the people to freely voice their political opinion. Calling to ban the MDP is an attempt to destroy the democracy in the Maldives,” He added.

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Supreme Court majority judges “do not know what they are doing”: Nasheed

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has conducted a counter-assessment of figures highlighted as electoral fraud in the Supreme Court’s verdict annulling the results of the February 7 poll.

The Supreme Court in its controversial judgement issued last week based its findings on a secret police report compiled by the court itself, with the assistance of police from the Forensic Directorate Department. The court ruled the election had lacked legitimacy, as there were 5,623 irregularities in the voter registry. The secret report was not shown to the Elections Commission’s legal team.

Former President Nasheed – who finished the September 7 poll on top with 45.45 percent of the popular vote – told the press on Saturday that the party’s legal team had only noted 242 instances of possible fraudulent votes in the Supreme Court’s majority ruling, and 473 instances of potentially fraudulent votes in the dissenting view given by both Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz Hussain and Judge Abdulla Areef.

Nasheed argued that neither of these figures would have made any impact on the outcome of the presidential poll.

The final results of the poll held on September 7 showed Nasheed securing 95,224 votes. The Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) fielding Maldives former Dictator Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s half brother, Abdulla Yameen finishedin second position with 53,099 votes, 25.35 percent of the popular vote. Jumhoree Party (JP) finished at third position with 50,422 votes – 24.07 percent of the vote – while incumbent President Mohamed Waheed Hassan finished at the bottom with just 5.13 percent of the vote or 10,750 votes.

The former President stated that while the margin between the candidates who finished third and second place of the race stood at 2,677 votes, adding either of the figures to the total number of votes obtained by Gasim Ibrahim would not have changed the outcome.

Analysis of the figures

At a press conference today, the MDP emphasised that irregularities on the voter registry such as incorrect address details did not prove or correspond to an instance of a fraudulent vote.

The party tallied the instances of fraud which were explicitly noted in the rulings, and stated this figure was a fraction of the number needed to influence the outcome.

According to the majority ruling, seven underage voters had cast their ballot in the poll while the dissenting view by Chief Justice Faiz and Judge Areef noted 12 underage voters as having cast their ballots.

The majority ruling highlighted 18 supposedly deceased people who cast their vote in the poll, while the dissenting view claimed 14 dead people had cast their ballots.

Regarding the repetition of names in the voter list, the majority ruling highlighted that 225 entries in the list as repeated. However, the dissenting view by the two judges stated 174 entries were repeated in the voter list, while 22 entries were found to have been repeated when compared to the Department of National Registration (DNR)’s database.

The majority ruling noted that seven people without records in the DNR database had voted in the poll, while the dissenting view noted 207 such people had voted in the poll, out of which 96 had voted under National Identification Card (NIC) numbers that did not match with the number in the voter list.

Both the rulings noted that seven people were given the right to cast their vote, even when their names had not been present in the voting list, after their names were added to the list in handwriting.

“No legitimate, internationally acceptable grounds to annul the poll”

Nasheed said while the Supreme Court had no legitimate or internationally acceptable grounds to annul the poll, the party would still work with the Elections Commission’s decision and was preparing for a fresh election to be held on October 19.

“Even if we get a chance as small as that of the eye of a needle to compete in a presidential election, we are going to win it swiftly. Our opponents have admitted it. They simply cannot win over us through a vote of the people,” Nasheed said.

The former president criticised the election guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court, which he described as the effective creation of new legislation made by the court. The mandate given by the constitution to the Supreme Court was to interpret laws, not to make new ones, he said.

“We have an elected parliament that is mandated to draft legislation. It is completely normal for Supreme Court to declare a part of this legislation illegitimate. But these guidelines, regardless of the name, are new legislation that instructs a state institution to follow a specific procedure. That is creating a law. They do not have that authority,” Nasheed stressed.

Nasheed said when the Supreme Court issued an order, this was required to be in pursuant to the law or the constitution, and if this was not the case, no institution was necessitated to follow those orders.

He also criticised the Supreme Court’s October 10 midnight ruling ordering the Elections Commission to compile a new voter registry, only days after releasing a judgement that ordered it to just amend the errors in the re-registration process.

“I think what is really happening here is that these four judges do not know what they are doing. I don’t think they are doing this purposely. As you know, these four have acquired very strange forms of degrees and maybe it is just that they do not have a clue about what they are doing,” Nasheed suggested.

“The current actions of the Supreme Court have now become acts carried out against the state. These four judges have become a threat to our national security. I call upon the security services to act immediately,” Nasheed said.

He expressed confidence that his political opponents would not succeed in their attempts to invalidate his candidacy, repeatedly claiming that this was “impossible”.

“People will not be surprised by attempts to bar me from contesting. I think the issue about candidacy is no longer newsworthy,” Nasheed said, when the question regarding his candidacy was asked.

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President condemns PPM’s bid to annul Nasheed’s candidacy, suspend printing of ballot papers

The President’s Office has “condemn[ed] efforts by individuals to stop former President Mr Mohamed Nasheed from running for Office of President of Maldives.”

The statement follows the filing of a petition at the Supreme Court against the Elections Commission (EC), challenging the candidacy of opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) candidate and former President Nasheed.

The Supreme Court petition filed today (October 10) states as grounds for stripping Nasheed’s candidacy his “outright criticism towards Islam and imposing Islamic Sharia’ in the Maldives” and his criticism of the judiciary.

Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Council Member Ibrahim ‘Wadde’ Waheed and President of the ‘Madhanee Iththihaadh’ (Civil Alliance) Sheikh Mohamed Didi filed the case.

The parties to the case have requested the court issue an injunction to order the Elections Commission to suspend its efforts to print ballot papers.

In an about-turn, however, the PPM has officially said the party is negotiating with ‘Wadde’ Waheed to have the case withdrawn, arguing that he had not consulted with the party leadership.

“The international community is calling for an inclusive free and fair election which all candidates are allowed to contest. We know from the language used in their statements that their remarks point to one specific individual. With the filing of the case, this issue has taken international limelight,” PPM Council Member – daughter of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom – and State Foreign Minister Dunya Maumoon told the press today.

The move comes shortly after the Supreme Court annulled the first round of Presidential Elections, following a petition filed by the Jumhoree Party (JP) contesting that the entire electoral process had been flawed due to discrepancies and irregularities amounting to a “systematic failure”.

The Supreme Court – in a four to three decision – annulled the poll citing electoral irregularities, despite unanimous positive assessment of the polling by more than a thousand local and international election observers.

The majority ruling cited a confidential police report submitted to the court claiming that 5623 votes were ineligible. The report has not been made public and the legal counsel of the Elections Commission was never given the opportunity to present a counter argument.

The three judges who had dissenting views raised doubts as to the credibility of the evidence submitted by the plaintiffs, while also challenging the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction over the case.

“Devious attempts”

Minivan News understands that the Supreme Court petition filed by Didi and Waheed requests that the court declare Nasheed not be allowed to contest in any election held in the country.

MDP Spokesperson Imthiyaz Fahmy – who is himself being prosecuted for criticising the courts – told Minivan News on Thursday that the petition was a “very dirty” attempt by their rivals to invalidate a candidate who had the demonstrable support of at least 45 percent of the people.

“These people are trying to finish through the court things that should be decided through the vote of the people,” said Minivan News.

“All these devious attempts tell one story. They have realised the huge defeat they have succumbed to, even before the elections. So now, their only hope it seems is to destroy the democratic values of this country, and try to contest in this election unopposed,” he added.

During a short press briefing given today after meeting the German Ambassador, Nasheed told the press that the lawsuit was not intended simply to bar him from the presidential poll, but also to ground the entire election.

“They are seeking the injunction to prevent printing of the ballot papers to delay the election as names of all candidates would be in the ballot paper,” Nasheed told the media.

The Elections Commission has previously said that no candidate would be allowed to withdraw their names even if they had decided not to contest, citing the Supreme Court’s annulment verdict which only ordered a repeat of the voting process, and not the filing of candidacy.

The former president has reiterated that, despite all efforts made to delay the elections, his MDP would go on to easily win the election.

“My opponents are advocating to bar anyone from opposing them – myself – from contesting in the presidential election. They are attempting to disallow political parties from contesting in the election, to ensure that credible elections never take place.”

“They are trying to override the highest order of the country, which is the people, and give that to the police and the military,” Nasheed said, speaking in a campaign rally on Wednesday evening in Faafu Atoll.

Nasheed’s candidacy was formally accepted by the Elections Commission in mid-July.

Nasheed and the MDP noted the politically-motivated earlier attempts to obstruct him from contesting the election, pointing to the presence of political opponents on the JSC including a rival presidential candidate.

That trial – into the detention of Criminal Court Judge Abdulla Mohamed – subsequently stalled at the high court level, after the Chief Judge Ahmed Shareef issued an injunction.

A day later the JSC suspended Shareef for what it claimed was an unrelated matter. His suspension was this week upheld by the Civil Court.

Annulment of candidacy

Should today’s PPM case be accepted by the Supreme Court, it would constitute a second attempt to bar Nasheed from contesting in a presidential election.

In October 2008 the JP’s Youth League leader Moosa Anwar filed a similar petition contending that Nasheed was not eligible to contest in the 2008 presidential election as he had been convicted for theft, which is a Hadd offence.

However, the interim Supreme Court ruled in favour of Nasheed, declaring that he was eligible to contest in the election whilst also rejecting the claim that Nasheed had been sentenced for a Hadd offence.

Earlier in March, former Human Rights Minister Dhiyana Saeed alleged that a Supreme Court judge had instructed her to file a case against Nasheed in a bid to prevent him from running for presidency in the 2013 presidential elections. Following the request, Saeed sent a letter to the Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz Hussain requesting him to investigate the matter.

Among the suggestions given by the judge, Saeed claimed at the time, were filing a case concerning Nasheed’s decision to remove eight members of parliament appointed by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, prior to the ratification of the constitution.

Another suggestion given by the judge, Saeed alleged, was to refile the case filed by Anwar in 2008 against Nasheed.

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MP Abdulla Jabir files complaint against Prosecutor General for not taking action against police

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Abdulla Jabir filed a complaint in parliament against the Prosecutor General (PG) for not taking action against the Maldives Police Service after he was assaulted by arresting officers last year.

Jabir requested on Wednesday (October 2) that parliament’s Independent Institutions Committee investigate the matter and take action against the PG as necessary.

Jabir and fellow MDP MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor are among several senior party figures charged with drug and alcohol offences, after being arrested on on Hondaidhoo Island in November 2012 whilst allegedly under the influence of illegal substances.

Jabir was presented to the Criminal Court by police September 12, after being kept in custody for two days ahead of his trial for alleged possession of alcohol and cannabis.

Earlier this year the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) said that no charges could be pressed against police in relation to the alleged attack against Jabir.

Despite a complaint filed by Jabir’s brother, Ibrahim Shiham, which claimed that there is sufficient evidence proving that police beat Jabir during the arrest, the PIC decided that the case could not be sent to the PG office for criminal prosecution, local media reported.

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MACL denies imminent strike action by air traffic controllers, as staff allege pay and safety concerns

Air traffic controllers in the Maldives say they are building up to a full work stoppage over ongoing grievances and safety concerns left unaddressed by the current government.

Such strikes could lead to delays and disruption of flights to the luxury tourism destination, that welcomes almost one million tourists a year.

Several controllers responsible for organising the strike explained to Minivan News that they have been raising safety concerns with all relevant government authorities following the restructuring of the state-owned Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL). Despite countless promises, no action had been taken, they said.

“For the last six months we’ve been ‘going by the book’, following all the procedures which causes a lot of delays. In the aviation industry that is considered a mild strike,” the air traffic controllers explained.

The air traffic controllers are now “building towards a full strike”, and many are even now calling in sick to work, the sources said.

A full strike would involve notifying all the relevant regional and international agencies, airlines, and all relevant government agencies in the Maldives, because no planes will be able to land except for hospital and humanitarian aircraft.

“This strike affects everyone, sea planes as well. Whatever happens at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) will cause delays at the domestic airports as well,” they added.

Six air traffic controllers should be on duty at all times, three in the control tower and three in area control, the sources said.

“Last night only two people showed up to work,” they confirmed.

“The [MACL] management and Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) had to run the system last night,” the air traffic controllers claimed. “Management is totally stressed.”

“This morning only one person was working area control, so management has had to fill in and today at 1:00pm nobody one went into work,” the controllers stated.

As a result, MACL management is also trying to close the area control centre and combine all operations in the control tower, the sources said.

“A pilot from a domestic carrier called me today to say he’s hesitant to fly because the guy currently in the tower doesn’t know what he’s doing – it’s a big safety issue,” one of the controllers alleged.

Ground staff at Kaadedhdhoo domestic airport in Gaaf Dhaal Atoll told Minivan News that since strike activity began many domestic flights had been delayed “three or four hours” while a number of international flights coming into Male’ “have been diverted to Colombo”.

CEO of the Maldives Airports Corporation Limited (MACL), Ibrahim ‘Bandhu’ Saleem, told Minivan News no such strikes were occurring.

“As far as I’m concerned there is no strike – you are wrong,” said Saleem.

He explained that there have been no flight cancellations or delays at INIA and that “only Male’ international [airport], not domestic airports, are under my control.”

While Saleem insisted there is no strike, he noted “there are contingency plans in place [in the event of a strike].” He declined to answer further questions.

The air traffic controllers told Minivan News that while they were not aware of flights being cancelled as of early this afternoon, a flight from Dharavandhoo airport in Baa Atoll was one-and-a-half hours delayed this morning “because INIA couldn’t handle the air traffic.”

Safety and standards

The air traffic controllers claimed strike action was supported by 75 controllers – over 95 percent of the country’s qualified staff. They are demanding the reinstatement of a professional grading system, adherence to International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), and the holding of the presidential run-off election that remains suspended by the Supreme Court.

“This was not a political issue,” they emphasised. “But now because we’ve lost trust in and cannot negotiate with the current government, [the strike has taken a political direction],” the air traffic controller sources told Minivan News.

“We were counting on a new election and government so we could bring our problems to them. If there’s no election our grievances will be exacerbated. [Now] we don’t know when we’ll be able to vote and elect a new government,” the sources continued.

The controllers repeatedly emphasised that the Maldivian Air Traffic Controllers Association (MATCA) was not involved [in organising the strike], “because they don’t want this to appear a politically motivated thing.”

Concerns and demands

The air traffic controllers said staff were not getting proper breaks, domestic airports are understaffed, the radar system – installed at INIA in 2008 – does not meet ICAO standards, and the professional grading system for controllers had been abolished.

“Everyone got knocked down to the same grade one position, there have been no promotions or pay raises in four years,” the sources explained.

The professional grading system ranks experience level and qualifications, with four levels: 1) basic air traffic, 2) aerodrome (tower) controller, 3) approach controller, and 4) area controller. While the same task is performed at each level, the airspace area each controller is responsible for increases.

“If air traffic controllers are continuously stressed out they might get into trouble by losing a picture [on radar],” the sources warned. “More fatigue means more mistakes, but we can’t makes mistakes is this job.”

The sources said MACL staff from Male’ are sent to work the domestic airports. However, the majority of domestic airports are understaffed, with only one or two air traffic controllers. At least three people should be running the control tower at any given time, the sources explained.

“Where there is only one person working the tower – like in Forvumulah’s airport – that individual has to stay awake. He only gets four hours of sleep a day and has to work 30 days continuously without a day off,” they continued.

“If you are the only person on duty you cannot leave the room, it’s a safety issue,” the controllers explained.

Thimarafushi airport in Thaa Atoll has no air traffic controller, however the Civil Aviation Authority gave authorisation for the airport to operate anyway, the sources alleged.

“That’s totally fine by us, even in the US there is uncontrolled airspace. It’s not a big issue as long as the pilots feel that they can land and take off,” the sources added.

“No one to trust” in government

“The government is trying to say everything is running smoothly, while trying to buy us out,” alleged the air traffic controllers. “We also gave an interview to Haveeru yesterday but they nothing has been posted about it.”

“Minister Adheeb called us today asking us if we were on strike. He’s pretending he didn’t know that our concerns hadn’t been addressed, even though we met with him earlier this year,” the sources noted.

“Three supervisors – of eight total – went to the MACL Managing Director’s meeting today. He’s asking them to talk to us to bring us back to work,” the sources continued.

“We are professionals and don’t want to create chaos in the Maldives, but with the current situation there is no one to talk to,” they explained. “We’ve tried to do it in a democratic way and did every single thing [to resolve our grievances]. We’ve exhausted all resources. There is no one to trust,” they added.

“We have been trying to raise these problems – again – since 7 February 2012 with the current government run by [President Mohamed] Waheed, [Jumhooree Party Presidential Candidate and MP] Gasim [Ibrahim], and [Progressive Party of the Maldives Presidential Candidate and MP Abdulla] Yameen,” the sources continued. “They promised us action but didn’t take it.”

The air traffic controllers have additionally met with Vice President Waheed Dean, Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim, Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb, Transport Minister Ameen Ibrahim, MACL, the Civil Aviation Authority, and the Labour Relations Authority, “but nothing happened,” they explained.

Over a year ago air traffic controllers submitted a case to the Labour Tribunal signed by more than 40 individuals, the sources noted.

“On December 21, 2012, over 60 air traffic controllers signed a petition that gave notice that we would be going on strike. We were promised that by January 1 our grievances would be addressed, the grading structure would be re-implemented and we would receive proper raises,” the sources added.

The controllers agreed to withdraw the case when promised the reforms and did, however the promised action was still not forthcoming.

“We met with MDP’s Mohamed Nasheed and he pledged that under his government he would correct the mistakes and try to get us better pay,” the controllers noted. “We [also recently] met with the other political parties, but so far nothing.”

“Some [of us] are waiting for confirmation in writing [that our demands will be met], but many are waiting for the Supreme Court to rule so we can have an election,” the sources continued. “We’ve heard that MACL ground services employees are also planning to strike.”

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