Police have sent a case concerning the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP)-led protest outside MNDF headquarters in January to the Prosecutor General’s office, following investigation.
Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said the case involved “some DRP members.” DRP Vice Presidents Umar Naseer and Ali Waheed have previously been summoned by police for questioning over the issue.
”It’s unauthorized to gather near the Maldives National Defense Force headquarters,” Shiyam said. “[The protesters] split police forces and shook the main gatesof MNDF,” he explained.
He said the case sent to the PG included “everyone in connection with the case.”
The PG’s office confirmed the case had been received but PG Ahmed Muiz would not give further details to Minivan News.
DRP leader and MP Ahmed Thasmeen Ali said the purpose of trying to prosecute DRP protesters was that they “had been trying to make the government responsible and remind them of their pledges”, and that the prosecution was an attempt “to escape from the unfulfilled pledges made to the people.”
Thasmeen noted that it was also unauthorized to gather and protest near the parliament.
”I have seen people with loudspeakers and microphones near the parliament,” Thasmeen said, ”Why isn’t the government investigating and prosecuting them?”
He said he was surprised that the senior officials of the government had told the people the government was a democracy, but were now trying to arrest protesters.
Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Ahmed Shifaz said that he would describe the riot as an act of ”terrorism”
Shifaz said trying to enter a country’s defense force base was “a very serious case”, and that the people involved in it should be prosecuted.
”MNDF have the authority to use weapons when that happens,” he said. ”They did not do it.”
He said whether or not someone was an MP, nobody was above the law.
”A penalty should be given for the people who were involved in the incident,” he said.
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