A digest of news and opinion from the Maldives.
Photos: Auf Majeed Presidential elections are due to be held in the Maldives later this year, with opposition parties in talks to field a unity candidate to defeat Abdulla Yameen. But the Maldives Independent can reveal that discord among opposition leaders is threatening to derail efforts. Opposition sources have confirmed that disunity among the leaders […]
The Maldives opposition alliance on Monday, kicked-off discussions to pick a single candidate for the upcoming presidential elections. The main opposition leaders including former presidents Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and Mohamed Nasheed along with Jumhoory Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim and religiously conservative Adhaalath Party (AP) leader Sheikh Imran Abdulla inked an ‘unholy’ pact to form […]
The Maldives main opposition will support a presidential candidate from another party if its own candidate is jailed or barred from contesting next year’s elections, one of several official declarations made about 2018’s key poll. Hassan Latheef, the Maldivian Democratic Party’s Chairperson, told media on Sunday that it would push to have its candidate run […]
Opposition leaders rallied together and called for unity to face the “disaster” in the Maldives, with one former president comparing the current political crisis to the deadly 2004 tsunami. Ex-leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom made the comparison on National Unity Day, which marks the tsunami that killed 82 people in the Maldives. His bold assertion was […]
Attempts to invite foreign influence into civil matters damage the country’s interests, President Abdulla Yameen said Tuesday, as he criticised the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party. Yameen was speaking in Thulhaadhoo island, Baa atoll, as the last destination of an eight-island tour that kicked off Sunday. “Haven’t we seen the foreign minister of the MDP […]
Less than half of the Maldives parliament was present for a vote that saw a record-breaking budget get the green light with no debate or scrutiny. Opposition lawmakers have been boycotting parliamentary proceedings since the contentious disqualification of defectors from the ruling party was used to quash a majority-backed no-confidence motion against parliament speaker Abdulla […]
The main opposition MDP is under fire for continuing with a campaign rally after a supporter died while on his way to the event. Ibrahim Nahid was among 40 men from Faafu Bilehdhoo who decided to swim the three miles to Faafu Magoodhoo for the Friday night rally. He told the group he was feeling […]
NEW DELHI: Neighbouring Maldives could plunge into a fresh crisis with the main Opposition Maldives Democratic Party (MDP) led by former President Nasheed raising red flag over Maldives-China FTA that was rushed through Parliament on Wednesday in a record one hour without any debate. Sino-Maldivian trade balance remains considerably in favour of China, and there […]