A digest of news and opinion from the Maldives.
Three opposition lawmakers were Thursday summoned to police headquarters as investigations continue into the alleged obstruction and assault of security officers inside the parliament chamber earlier this year. Ali Azim and Mohamed Nazim of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party, and independent MP Hussain Areef signed statements after being interrogated at the Shaheed Hussain Adam […]
The European parliament Thursday adopted a resolution calling on member states to consider imposing individual targeted sanctions in response to a “dramatic deterioration” of democracy and human rights in the Maldives. The resolution called on Maldivian authorities to reform the judiciary, release political prisoners, and to guarantee the constitutional rights to freedom of speech and […]
State utility firms are operating at a loss, a parliamentary committee has heard, with one power company’s debt standing at around MVR1.6 billion (US$103 million). Environment and energy minister Thoriq Ibrahim, as well as utility company bosses, were summoned to a government oversight committee session on Wednesday to answer questions on unequal prices between the […]
The family of murdered blogger Yameen Rasheed has expressed concern over the closed hearings of the seven defendants charged with his death. Yameen, a prominent blogger and Internet activist, was stabbed to death in April and was found with multiple stab wounds in the stairway of his apartment building in Malé. He died soon after […]
A 40-year-old Bangladeshi man has been found dead with severe head wounds at a Hulhumalé construction site, prompting concern and regret from the country’s ambassador. Police told media that the man was found dead at a Damas Construction site at around 8:20 am. They have yet to say whether they are treating the death as murder. […]
The Maldives prisons authority has formally sought police assistance to bring back Jumhooree Party leader Gasim Ibrahim, whose medical leave in Singapore expired Monday night. Gasim, sentenced to three years in absentia for attempted bribery, was released on medical furlough for cardiovascular treatment in September. He was initially given 10 days medical leave which was […]
Delays in carrying out the death penalty due will be resolved by October 8, the home minister has said, despite international condemnation of the country resuming executions. The Maldives in 2014 ended a six-decade moratorium on capital punishment, with President Abdulla Yameen previously declaring the island nation would be ready for executions last month. “By […]
The closed-door trial of a religious scholar accused of performing a sexual act with a minor while in a position of trust began Wednesday. The preliminary hearing involving Sheikh Mohamed Shafiu was closed to the media and public to protect the rights of the underage student, who accused the former university lecturer of sexual assault. […]
Game of Thrones star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, who plays Jaime Lannister in the hit series, has called climate change “the big unknown” and warned of its devastating consequences. Coster-Waldau made the remarks at the end of a three-day visit to the Maldives, which is facing a rise in its sea levels and the bleaching of its […]