The Maldives is strategically important primarily for its location in the Indian Ocean. It lies almost at the centre of the waterbody with proximity to the Indian Peninsula, Africa, Seychelles. It is located at a place from where the maritime routes to the South East Asia can be effectively monitored.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Being located in a close proximity of the Lakshadweep islands of India, Maldives had been a close ally since ages. The country had been influenced by Buddhism from India for over 1600 years before embracing Islam as its primary religion. Even under the colonial rule, the relations between the two countries were healthy and developed many folds after its independence in 1966. India was the first country to recognise Maldives.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Both nations are founder members of SAARC and, hence, the relationship becomes more important. Soon after Operation Cactus in 1988, the relations reached new heights, with India economically helping the island nation. Indian Banks established their branches in Maldives and trade flourished. Till date, India is the largest contributor to the economy of Maldives. India always helped the Maldives in the time of crisis, whether it is a coup by foreign mercenaries or the drinking water crisis of 2014.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Soon after 2006, the military relations between the two countries also started building up; India donated many defence equipment, including naval vessels, helicopters and Radars to the island-nation. It extended its coastal patrols to the Maldives and facilitated training of Maldives&#39; forces.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

So, when China came up with its String of Pearls concept to secure its maritime communications, Maldives caught the attention of the Golden Dragon. Strategically located close to India, as well as US base in Diego Garcia, China anticipated that the Maldives and could play a vital role in establishing Chinese foothold in the Indian Ocean region.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The Dragon opened its embassy in the Maldives in 2009 and its leaders started visiting the country soon after. By 2012, China became the highest contributor to Maldives tourism revenue. The relations between India and Maldives soured when India froze a 25 Million $ aid and, in return, Maldives cancelled the contract of Male International Airport from an Indian company and gave it to Chinese companies instead. The relations soured so much that in December 2012, the official spokesperson of the president of Maldives, Mr Adil Raza called Indian Ambassador Mr D K Muley as a traitor and enemy of his country. &nbsp;

&nbsp;

Despite all this, the then President Nasheed was considered a close ally of India and he assured that the Chinese influence will be limited to a socio-political extent and will not develop into a military one.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

However, in 2012, he lost the elections and a dark phase of Indo-Maldives relations started. Allegedly, it was Chinese influence and money which resulted in the defeat of Mr Nasheed and they were successful in establishing their men called Abdulla Yameen in the country&rsquo;s highest chair. The elections were disputed and, soon after winning, Yameen put all his major opposition members behind bars.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Between 2012 and 2014, Chinese companies started mushrooming in the Maldives and were effectively ignored by the Indian Government which I feel was a grave mistake. The Chinese trade which was less than 3 Million $ in 2000 became over 70 Million $ in 2014. In 2014, when Chinese Premier Xi Xinping visited the country and announced lucrative packages, India realised the importance of losing an old friend. &nbsp;

&nbsp;

China also played the Islamic card, using Pakistan to sent its envoy to the Maldives and convinced the government to hand over an important Island called Marao to China towards establishing a military base. The base is now fully functional and is a grave threat to the security of Indian Peninsula. The base is less than 100kms away from the nearest Indian land of Minocoy Islands and can cause serious disturbances for India.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The recent events in the Maldives are particularly a matter of grave concern for India as the future of over 30,000 Indians staying in the country is uncertain and the course of events in this scenario cannot be predicted. On one hand, we must worry but, on the other, these events present India with an opportunity to re-establish the relations by reinstating the rule of Mr Nasheed as per their Supreme court verdict. This action will not only help in restoring the relations back to the track but also curtail the Chinese influence on an extent. India should also increase its trade and aid to the country so that Chinese can be isolated in the region. &nbsp;

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp;&nbsp;

Maldives have handed over an important Island called Marao to China towards establishing a submarine base. The base is now fully functional and is a grave threat to the security of Indian Peninsula.

The Maldives is strategically important primarily for its location in the Indian Ocean. It lies almost at the centre of the waterbody with proximity to the Indian Peninsula, Africa, Seychelles. It is located at a place from where the maritime routes to the South East Asia can be effectively monitored. Being located in a close proximity of the Lakshadweep islands of India, Maldives had been a close ally since ages. The country had been influenced by Buddhism from India for over 1600 years before embracing Islam as its primary religion. Even under the colonial rule, the relations between the two countries were healthy and developed many folds after its independence in 1966. India was the first country to recognise Maldives. Both nations are founder members of SAARC and, hence, the relationship becomes more important. Soon after Operation Cactus in 1988, the relations reached new heights, with India economically helping the island nation. Indian Banks established their branches in Maldives and trade flourished. Till date, India is the largest contributor to the economy of Maldives. India always helped the Maldives in the time of crisis, whether it is a coup by foreign mercenaries or the drinking water crisis of 2014. Soon after 2006, the military relations between the two countries also started building up; India donated many defence equipment, including naval vessels, helicopters and Radars to the island-nation. It extended its coastal patrols to the Maldives and facilitated training of Maldives' forces. So, when China came up with its String of Pearls concept to secure its maritime communications, Maldives caught the attention of the Golden Dragon. Strategically located close to India, as well as US base in Diego Garcia, China anticipated that the Maldives and could play a vital role in establishing Chinese foothold in the Indian Ocean region. The Dragon opened its embassy in the Maldives in 2009 and its leaders started visiting the country soon after. By 2012, China became the highest contributor to Maldives tourism revenue. The relations between India and Maldives soured when India froze a 25 Million $ aid and, in return, Maldives cancelled the contract of Male International Airport from an Indian company and gave it to Chinese companies instead. The relations soured so much that in December 2012, the official spokesperson of the president of Maldives, Mr Adil Raza called Indian Ambassador Mr D K Muley as a traitor and enemy of his country. Despite all this, the then President Nasheed was considered a close ally of India and he assured that the Chinese influence will be limited to a socio-political extent and will not develop into a military one. However, in 2012, he lost the elections and a dark phase of Indo-Maldives relations started. Allegedly, it was Chinese influence and money which resulted in the defeat of Mr Nasheed and they were successful in establishing their men called Abdulla Yameen in the country’s highest chair. The elections were disputed and, soon after winning, Yameen put all his major opposition members behind bars. Between 2012 and 2014, Chinese companies started mushrooming in the Maldives and were effectively ignored by the Indian Government which I feel was a grave mistake. The Chinese trade which was less than 3 Million $ in 2000 became over 70 Million $ in 2014. In 2014, when Chinese Premier Xi Xinping visited the country and announced lucrative packages, India realised the importance of losing an old friend. China also played the Islamic card, using Pakistan to sent its envoy to the Maldives and convinced the government to hand over an important Island called Marao to China towards establishing a military base. The base is now fully functional and is a grave threat to the security of Indian Peninsula. The base is less than 100kms away from the nearest Indian land of Minocoy Islands and can cause serious disturbances for India. The recent events in the Maldives are particularly a matter of grave concern for India as the future of over 30,000 Indians staying in the country is uncertain and the course of events in this scenario cannot be predicted. On one hand, we must worry but, on the other, these events present India with an opportunity to re-establish the relations by reinstating the rule of Mr Nasheed as per their Supreme court verdict. This action will not only help in restoring the relations back to the track but also curtail the Chinese influence on an extent. India should also increase its trade and aid to the country so that Chinese can be isolated in the region. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: China's growing influence in Maldives, India has to intervene

Maldives ex-president Gayoom, 80, was arrested on Monday night as the government cracked down on political figures.

Maldives President Abdulla Yameen declared a 15-day state of emergency in the country on Monday as troops stormed the Supreme Court.

&quot;I have not done anything to be arrested,&quot; Gayoom said in a video message to supporters posted on Twitter.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
A large number of <a href="https://twitter.com/PoliceMv?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PoliceMv</a> around my residence. To protect me or to arrest me? No idea. <a href="https://twitter.com/USAmbKeshap?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USAmbKeshap</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AkhileshIFS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AkhileshIFS</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/MNDF_Official?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MNDF_Official</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hrcmv?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hrcmv</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/amnesty?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@amnesty</a>
&mdash; Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (@maumoonagayoom) <a href="https://twitter.com/maumoonagayoom/status/960575120094896128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Maldives police also arrested President Yameen&#39;s estranged half-brother.&nbsp;

The charges against Maumoon Abdul Gayoom include bribery and attempting to overthrow the government, his lawyer said.

Gayoom was president of Maldives from 1978 to 2008.

Gayoom was president of Maldives from 1978 to 2008

Maldives ex-president Gayoom, 80, was arrested on Monday night as the government cracked down on political figures. Maldives President Abdulla Yameen declared a 15-day state of emergency in the country on Monday as troops stormed the Supreme Court. "I have not done anything to be arrested," Gayoom said in a video message to supporters posted on Twitter. A large number of @PoliceMv around my residence. To protect me or to arrest me? No idea. @USAmbKeshap @AkhileshIFS @MNDF_Official @hrcmv @amnesty — Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (@maumoonagayoom) February 5, 2018 × Maldives police also arrested President Yameen's estranged half-brother. The charges against Maumoon Abdul Gayoom include bribery and attempting to overthrow the government, his lawyer said. Gayoom was president of Maldives from 1978 to 2008.

Watch: How Maldives police arrested ex-president Gayoom

The Maldives Supreme Court on Tuesday revoked its earlier order to release nine high-profile political prisoners.&nbsp;

The announcement came a day after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and arrested two Supreme Court judges.&nbsp;

The court&#39;s three remaining judges said in a statement that they were rescinding the order to release the prisoners &quot;in light of the concerns raised by the President&quot;.&nbsp;

&quot;The Supreme Court bench hereby rescinds number 5 of its order to release the individuals,&quot; the order said.

The court&#39;s original decision signed by all five judges of the apex court on February 1 had quashed a terrorism conviction against former president and opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed, among others.

The shock decision of the court in support of the political dissidents was seen as clearing the way for Nasheed to end his self-imposed exile and return to the country to contest elections later this year.

The move also included an order for the government to restore the seats of 12 legislators sacked for defecting from Yameen&#39;s party, giving the opposition a majority in the assembly and meaning they could potentially impeach the president.

Yameen however had refused to comply with the order.&nbsp;

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/who-is-going-to-rescue-male-32042" target="_blank">Who is going to rescue the Maldives?</a>

He had on Monday instead imposed a 15-day emergency on the island nation.&nbsp;The state of emergency gave the country&#39;s security forces sweeping power to detain and arrest suspects.&nbsp;

Yameen, in an official statement, called the Supreme Court order unconstitutional. He said that were several obstacles to enforcing the apex court&#39;s ruling which the government was not able to communicate to the court.&nbsp;

He added that the justices were &quot;unaccountable&quot;, and that they were <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/supreme-courts-order-is-unconstitutional-maldives-president-yameen-31993" target="_blank">conspiring to overthrow him</a>.&nbsp;

Nasheed&#39;s Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said the U-turn of the Supreme Court was due to pressure brought on the three judges.

&quot;Yameen has used coercion to get the original decision revoked,&quot; AFP reported MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor as saying.

Yameen has presided over an escalating crackdown on dissent since he came to power in 2013, battering the image of the upmarket holiday paradise.

India meanwhile has responded strongly to the crisis saying it is &quot;disturbed&quot; by the imposition of the emergency.&nbsp;

Government sources in India have also said that they are keeping their <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-india-to-keep-troops-ready-32037" target="_blank">troops </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-india-to-keep-troops-ready-32037" target="_blank">on</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-india-to-keep-troops-ready-32037" target="_blank"> the ready</a>. The sources added that this was standard operating procedure.&nbsp;

(With inputs from AFP)

The announcement came a day after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and arrested two Supreme Court judges

The Maldives Supreme Court on Tuesday revoked its earlier order to release nine high-profile political prisoners. The announcement came a day after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and arrested two Supreme Court judges. The court's three remaining judges said in a statement that they were rescinding the order to release the prisoners "in light of the concerns raised by the President". "The Supreme Court bench hereby rescinds number 5 of its order to release the individuals," the order said. The court's original decision signed by all five judges of the apex court on February 1 had quashed a terrorism conviction against former president and opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed, among others. The shock decision of the court in support of the political dissidents was seen as clearing the way for Nasheed to end his self-imposed exile and return to the country to contest elections later this year. The move also included an order for the government to restore the seats of 12 legislators sacked for defecting from Yameen's party, giving the opposition a majority in the assembly and meaning they could potentially impeach the president. Yameen however had refused to comply with the order. Also read: Who is going to rescue the Maldives? He had on Monday instead imposed a 15-day emergency on the island nation. The state of emergency gave the country's security forces sweeping power to detain and arrest suspects. Yameen, in an official statement, called the Supreme Court order unconstitutional. He said that were several obstacles to enforcing the apex court's ruling which the government was not able to communicate to the court. He added that the justices were "unaccountable", and that they were conspiring to overthrow him. Nasheed's Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said the U-turn of the Supreme Court was due to pressure brought on the three judges. "Yameen has used coercion to get the original decision revoked," AFP reported MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor as saying. Yameen has presided over an escalating crackdown on dissent since he came to power in 2013, battering the image of the upmarket holiday paradise. India meanwhile has responded strongly to the crisis saying it is "disturbed" by the imposition of the emergency. Government sources in India have also said that they are keeping their troops on the ready. The sources added that this was standard operating procedure. (With inputs from AFP)

Maldives Supreme Court revokes order to free prisoners

With the Maldives in turmoil following a face-off between the government and its Supreme Court, India is expected to follow a standard operating procedure (SOP) that includes keeping the troops in readiness, government sources indicated today.

India, which said it was &quot;disturbed&quot; over the situation in the archipelago nation, has already issued a travel advisory as part of the SOP but officials would not confirm one of its crucial aspects pertaining to keeping troops on standby.

Sources said troop movement has been seen as a key air- base in Southern India.

According to the SOP, the troops are kept ready to meet any eventuality, crisis or requirement for help, sources said, adding there is nothing unusual about such SOPs.

Significantly, exiled former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed today sought India&#39;s diplomatic and military intervention to resolve the crisis in the country after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and got arrested the top judge of the country&#39;s apex court.

The Indian Navy patrols sea lanes around the Maldives as naval cooperation between the two countries are robust.

India had yesterday asked its nationals to defer all non- essential travels to the Indian Ocean nation until further notice.

In an advisory, the external affairs ministry also asked Indian expatriates in the Maldives to maintain heightened security awareness.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/supreme-courts-order-is-unconstitutional-maldives-president-yameen-31993">Top justices arrested, President Yameen accuses judges of plotting to overthrow him </a>

The picturesque Indian Ocean archipelago, which has seen a number of political crises since the ouster of its first democratically-elected president Nasheed in 2012, plunged into chaos on Thursday last when the apex court ordered the release of nine imprisoned opposition politicians, maintaining that their trials were &quot;politically motivated and flawed&quot;.

The nine political leaders included Nasheed. The Yameen government refused to implement the order, prompting a wave of protests in capital Male, with clashes between police and demonstrators.

Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and another judge, Ali Hameed, were arrested hours after President Yameen declared a state of emergency yesterday. No details were given about the investigation or charges against them.

Former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who has allied himself with the opposition, was also detained at his home.

India said it was 'disturbed' over the situation in the archipelago nation and has already issued a travel advisory as part of the SOP

With the Maldives in turmoil following a face-off between the government and its Supreme Court, India is expected to follow a standard operating procedure (SOP) that includes keeping the troops in readiness, government sources indicated today. India, which said it was "disturbed" over the situation in the archipelago nation, has already issued a travel advisory as part of the SOP but officials would not confirm one of its crucial aspects pertaining to keeping troops on standby. Sources said troop movement has been seen as a key air- base in Southern India. According to the SOP, the troops are kept ready to meet any eventuality, crisis or requirement for help, sources said, adding there is nothing unusual about such SOPs. Significantly, exiled former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed today sought India's diplomatic and military intervention to resolve the crisis in the country after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and got arrested the top judge of the country's apex court. The Indian Navy patrols sea lanes around the Maldives as naval cooperation between the two countries are robust. India had yesterday asked its nationals to defer all non- essential travels to the Indian Ocean nation until further notice. In an advisory, the external affairs ministry also asked Indian expatriates in the Maldives to maintain heightened security awareness. Also read: Top justices arrested, President Yameen accuses judges of plotting to overthrow him The picturesque Indian Ocean archipelago, which has seen a number of political crises since the ouster of its first democratically-elected president Nasheed in 2012, plunged into chaos on Thursday last when the apex court ordered the release of nine imprisoned opposition politicians, maintaining that their trials were "politically motivated and flawed". The nine political leaders included Nasheed. The Yameen government refused to implement the order, prompting a wave of protests in capital Male, with clashes between police and demonstrators. Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and another judge, Ali Hameed, were arrested hours after President Yameen declared a state of emergency yesterday. No details were given about the investigation or charges against them. Former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who has allied himself with the opposition, was also detained at his home.

Turmoil in Maldives: India to keep troops ready

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-emergency-special-operations-unit-breaks-supreme-court-gates-31918">Maldives emergency: Special operations unit enter Supreme Court, arrest Chief Justice Abdullah Saeed</a>

The US today condemned the Maldives government declaring that it stands with the people of Maldives and urged the government and military to &quot;respect the rule of law&quot;. Media reports said Chief Justice Abdullah Saeed, judge Ali Hameed and judicial service administrator Hassan Saeed who were in the premises were arrested.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/business-economy/wall-street-crash-dow-jones-plunges-to-historic-low-sp-500-nasdaq-hit-31929">Wall Street crash: Dow Jones plunges to historic low, S&amp;P 500 &amp; Nasdaq hit</a>

In the biggest fall in its history, the &nbsp;Dow Jones Industrial Average fell nearly 1,600 points at one point as Wall Street experienced a bloodbath on Monday. The Dow&#39;s gains for 2018 were erased in a matter of hours as 4.6 per cent was wiped off the value of America&#39;s 30 largest companies to finish at as it closed at 24,345.75 ending down 1,175.21 points down.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/special-screening-of-padmaavat-for-high-court-judge-over-fir-against-bhansali-31922">Special screening of &#39;</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/special-screening-of-padmaavat-for-high-court-judge-over-fir-against-bhansali-31922">Padmaavat</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/special-screening-of-padmaavat-for-high-court-judge-over-fir-against-bhansali-31922">&#39; for high court judge over FIR against Bhansali</a>

The film &quot;Padmaavat&quot; was specially screened for a Rajasthan high court judge who will today decide on a plea for quashing a police complaint against the film&#39;s director and actors after watching the film. The special screening of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali-directed period film started at 8 pm and was over by 10.40 pm, after which Justice Sandeep Mehta, accompanied by four members of his staff, left the multiplex. The only viewers of the film were Justice Mehta, his reader and two other staff members.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/watch-girl-from-swedennow-a-sanskrit-teacher-in-india-31928">Watch: Meet Swedish girl who sings and speaks in Sanskrit</a>

Ananda Himani, who hails from Gothenburg, Sweden, is a holistic wellness motivator and a Sanskrit teacher. She has been living in India for a few years now and did her graduation from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi in Performing Arts, Hindustani classical and then went on to study at the Samskrita Bharti.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/soon-bags-heavier-than-15-kg-to-be-barred-at-20-delhi-metro-stations-31926">Soon, bags heavier than 15-kg to be barred at 20 Delhi Metro stations</a>

It may not be a smooth transit for Delhi metro commuters heading to the railway stations/airport with a big baggage, as DMRC has restricted the weight of the luggage to 15kg. Travellers using the Delhi Metro from select stations have been barred from carrying large bags, with authorities restricting the luggage size in view of security considerations, officials said.

Maldives emergency: Special operations unit enter Supreme Court, arrest Chief Justice Abdullah Saeed The US today condemned the Maldives government declaring that it stands with the people of Maldives and urged the government and military to "respect the rule of law". Media reports said Chief Justice Abdullah Saeed, judge Ali Hameed and judicial service administrator Hassan Saeed who were in the premises were arrested. Wall Street crash: Dow Jones plunges to historic low, S&P 500 & Nasdaq hit In the biggest fall in its history, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell nearly 1,600 points at one point as Wall Street experienced a bloodbath on Monday. The Dow's gains for 2018 were erased in a matter of hours as 4.6 per cent was wiped off the value of America's 30 largest companies to finish at as it closed at 24,345.75 ending down 1,175.21 points down. Special screening of 'Padmaavat' for high court judge over FIR against Bhansali The film "Padmaavat" was specially screened for a Rajasthan high court judge who will today decide on a plea for quashing a police complaint against the film's director and actors after watching the film. The special screening of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali-directed period film started at 8 pm and was over by 10.40 pm, after which Justice Sandeep Mehta, accompanied by four members of his staff, left the multiplex. The only viewers of the film were Justice Mehta, his reader and two other staff members. Watch: Meet Swedish girl who sings and speaks in Sanskrit Ananda Himani, who hails from Gothenburg, Sweden, is a holistic wellness motivator and a Sanskrit teacher. She has been living in India for a few years now and did her graduation from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi in Performing Arts, Hindustani classical and then went on to study at the Samskrita Bharti. Soon, bags heavier than 15-kg to be barred at 20 Delhi Metro stations It may not be a smooth transit for Delhi metro commuters heading to the railway stations/airport with a big baggage, as DMRC has restricted the weight of the luggage to 15kg. Travellers using the Delhi Metro from select stations have been barred from carrying large bags, with authorities restricting the luggage size in view of security considerations, officials said.

WION Morning News Brief, February 6, 2018

India has reacted to the ongoing political crisis that simmers in the Maldives saying that it is disturbed by the declaration of emergency in the Maldives where the government refused to abide by the unanimous ruling of Supreme Court.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
We are disturbed by the declaration of a State of Emergency in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Maldives?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Maldives</a> following the refusal of the Govt to abide by the unanimous ruling of the full bench of the Supreme Court on 1 Feb, and also by the suspension of Constitutional rights of the people of Maldives: MEA
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/960865616918929412?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 6, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

The Supreme Court on Thursday called for an immediate release of former president Mohamed Nasheed along with eight other opposition leaders. The court also demanded their fresh trials noting the previous proceedings to have violated the constitution and international law.

The former president and other eight leaders face charges ranging from terrorism to treason and corruption.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/supreme-courts-order-is-unconstitutional-maldives-president-yameen-31993">The President of Maldives Abdul Yameen quashed the apex court&#39;s directive</a> and declared a state of national emergency for 15 days. Shortly after the emergency was declared, Former President of Maldives Maumoon Abdul Gayoom along with top justices was arrested. President Abdulla Yameen ordered security forces to seize control of the court and arrest the chief justice among others.&nbsp;

The exiled leader of the Maldives opposition Mohamed Nasheed urged the US and India to help remove the president from office, saying he had &quot;illegally&quot; declared martial law.

Yameen, on the other hand, accused judges of plotting to overthrow him, hours after he declared a state of emergency and ordered the arrest of the chief justice.

The Supreme Court on Thursday called for an immediate release of former president Mohamed Nasheed along with eight other opposition leaders

India has reacted to the ongoing political crisis that simmers in the Maldives saying that it is disturbed by the declaration of emergency in the Maldives where the government refused to abide by the unanimous ruling of Supreme Court. We are disturbed by the declaration of a State of Emergency in #Maldives following the refusal of the Govt to abide by the unanimous ruling of the full bench of the Supreme Court on 1 Feb, and also by the suspension of Constitutional rights of the people of Maldives: MEA — ANI (@ANI) February 6, 2018 × The Supreme Court on Thursday called for an immediate release of former president Mohamed Nasheed along with eight other opposition leaders. The court also demanded their fresh trials noting the previous proceedings to have violated the constitution and international law. The former president and other eight leaders face charges ranging from terrorism to treason and corruption. The President of Maldives Abdul Yameen quashed the apex court's directive and declared a state of national emergency for 15 days. Shortly after the emergency was declared, Former President of Maldives Maumoon Abdul Gayoom along with top justices was arrested. President Abdulla Yameen ordered security forces to seize control of the court and arrest the chief justice among others. The exiled leader of the Maldives opposition Mohamed Nasheed urged the US and India to help remove the president from office, saying he had "illegally" declared martial law. Yameen, on the other hand, accused judges of plotting to overthrow him, hours after he declared a state of emergency and ordered the arrest of the chief justice.

Maldives: India says disturbed by declaration of emergency

The US today<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-declares-state-of-emergency-as-yameen-tightens-grip-on-power-india-warns-travellers-31911"> condemned the Maldives government </a>declaring that it stands with the people of Maldives and urged the government and military to &quot;respect the rule of law&quot;.

Media reports said Chief Justice Abdullah Saeed, judge Ali Hameed and judicial service administrator Hassan Saeed who were in the premises were arrested.&nbsp;

Earlier in the night, former strongman Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom and his son-in-law Mohamed Nadheem were arrested from their home in the capital.

Special operations unit in riot gear advanced towards the Supreme Court in an attempt to break the gates on Monday&nbsp;night.

Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and several others were huddled inside the Supreme Court.

On Monday, President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency lasting 15 days.

&quot;Though certain rights will be restricted, general movements, services and businesses will not be affected,&rdquo; the president said while declaring emergency.

The state of emergency was imposed after the Supreme Court ordered the release of nine political prisoners, including former president Mohamed Nasheed which led the government to be on collision course against the judiciary.

 
<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8gzGK1U-6Uw" width="560"></iframe> 
&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and several others are inside the Supreme Court.

The US today condemned the Maldives government declaring that it stands with the people of Maldives and urged the government and military to "respect the rule of law". Media reports said Chief Justice Abdullah Saeed, judge Ali Hameed and judicial service administrator Hassan Saeed who were in the premises were arrested. Earlier in the night, former strongman Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom and his son-in-law Mohamed Nadheem were arrested from their home in the capital. Special operations unit in riot gear advanced towards the Supreme Court in an attempt to break the gates on Monday night. Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and several others were huddled inside the Supreme Court. On Monday, President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency lasting 15 days. "Though certain rights will be restricted, general movements, services and businesses will not be affected,” the president said while declaring emergency. The state of emergency was imposed after the Supreme Court ordered the release of nine political prisoners, including former president Mohamed Nasheed which led the government to be on collision course against the judiciary.

Maldives emergency: Special operations unit enter Supreme Court, arrest Chief Justice Abdullah Saeed

Beleaguered Maldives President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency for 15 days in the&nbsp;island nation Monday evening.&nbsp;The announcement was made on state television by his aide Azima Shukoor.

The announcement came after the country&#39;s Supreme Court ordered the government to release key political prisoners and reinstate 12 MPs, something Yameen has refused to do so far.&nbsp;

All basic rights have been suspended, MP Eva Abdulla said.

She added that the declaration of emergency gives the security forces sweeping powers to detain and arrest suspects.&nbsp;

Reports said security forces had stormed the Supreme Court:&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
BREAKING NEWS: 
THE NATIONAL DEFENSE FORCES OF THE MALDIVES HAVE BROKEN INTO THE SUPREME COURT OF THE MALDIVES.
&mdash; Maldives Judiciary (@judiciarymv) <a href="https://twitter.com/judiciarymv/status/960565376693104640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
SO Police and the military are already inside the supreme court as per CJ
&mdash; Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) <a href="https://twitter.com/hsuood/status/960564331317379072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Husnu Al Suood is a former attorney general of the Maldives.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Now security forces have started breaking the gates of the supreme court as per CJ.
&mdash; Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) <a href="https://twitter.com/hsuood/status/960554477613756416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Maldives CJ informed me that the security forces have blockaded and locked the Supreme Court building from outside and hence the justices are without any food now.
&mdash; Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) <a href="https://twitter.com/hsuood/status/960551470696312832?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Maldives CJ called me a a little while ago and asked me to inform the public to to protect him and the institution. He is expecting the police and army to storm into the Supreme Court building at any moment.
&mdash; Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) <a href="https://twitter.com/hsuood/status/960542522408714241?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
State of Emergency has been declared in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Maldives?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Maldives</a> for 15 days; protests are being held in the country since President Abdulla Yameen refused to follow SC&#39;s ruling to release key political prisoners and reinstate 12 MPs (Earlier visuals from Male) <a href="https://t.co/p5HJ9dYg08">pic.twitter.com/p5HJ9dYg08</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/960533430579683328?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/maldives-minister-resigns-to-protest-government-response-to-supreme-court-ruling-31857" target="_blank">Maldives minister resigns to protest government response to Supreme Court ruling</a> 
&nbsp;

And that security forces had arrested former President&nbsp;Maumoon Abdul Gayoom:&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
I have just recieved the disturbing news that the MNDF Maldives has forcibly entered the residence of former prez MAG.
&mdash; Mohamed Nasheed (@Mohamed_Nasheed) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mohamed_Nasheed/status/960577893314183168?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Mohamed Nasheed is a former president of the Maldives.&nbsp;

News of Gayoom&#39;s arrest was also tweeted by his daughter Yumna Maumoon:&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
SO police broke down the door and are arresting my father President <a href="https://twitter.com/maumoonagayoom?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@maumoonagayoom</a> and husband <a href="https://twitter.com/MNadhym?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MNadhym</a> right now. <a href="https://twitter.com/USAmbKeshap?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USAmbKeshap</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/JamesDauris?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JamesDauris</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/EU_Maldives?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EU_Maldives</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CanHCSriLanka?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CanHCSriLanka</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AusHCSriLanka?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AusHCSriLanka</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AkhileshIFS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AkhileshIFS</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/amnesty?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@amnesty</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/UNHumanRights?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UNHumanRights</a>
&mdash; Yumna Maumoon (@yumna_maumoon) <a href="https://twitter.com/yumna_maumoon/status/960580454570115072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
A large number of <a href="https://twitter.com/PoliceMv?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PoliceMv</a> around my residence. To protect me or to arrest me? No idea. <a href="https://twitter.com/USAmbKeshap?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USAmbKeshap</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AkhileshIFS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AkhileshIFS</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/MNDF_Official?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MNDF_Official</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hrcmv?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hrcmv</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/amnesty?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@amnesty</a>
&mdash; Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (@maumoonagayoom) <a href="https://twitter.com/maumoonagayoom/status/960575120094896128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Government spokesperson Ibrahim Shihab told WION that while a state of emergency had been imposed, there was no curfew.

He added that the government had not wanted to escalate the growing protests in the country -- which had broken out after the government had refused to comply with the Supreme Court&#39;s orders -- which is why the emergency had been imposed.&nbsp;

India&#39;s ministry of external affairs meanwhile said &quot;Indian expatriates in the&nbsp;Maldives are alerted to the need for heightened security awareness, and urged to exercise due caution in public and avoid public gatherings.&quot;

It added that &quot;prevailing political developments in Maldives and resultant law and order situation is a matter of concern for the Government of India. Indian nationals are advised to defer all non-essential travels to Male and other atolls until further notice.&quot;&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Indian nationals are advised to defer all non-essential travel to Male and other atolls untill further notice. Detailed travel advisory at <a href="https://t.co/DCdCkojESK">https://t.co/DCdCkojESK</a>
&mdash; Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) <a href="https://twitter.com/MEAIndia/status/960544516418621441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/political-crisis-in-maldives-continues-demand-for-presidents-resignation-grows-31869" target="_blank">Political crisis in </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/political-crisis-in-maldives-continues-demand-for-presidents-resignation-grows-31869" target="_blank">Maldives</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/political-crisis-in-maldives-continues-demand-for-presidents-resignation-grows-31869" target="_blank"> continues, demand for President&#39;s resignation grows</a>

The US said that it &quot;stands with the people of Maldives.&quot; And that the &quot;Maldivian government and military must respect the rule of law, freedom of expression, and democratic institutions.

&quot;The world is watching,&quot; it added.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
America stands with the people of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Maldives?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Maldives</a>. The Maldivian government and military must respect the rule of law, freedom of expression, and democratic institutions. The world is watching: US National Security Council <a href="https://t.co/aHOw22ROUP">pic.twitter.com/aHOw22ROUP</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/960565001311408128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

President Abdulla Yameen had earlier on Monday declared a state of emergency in the island nation for 15 days

Beleaguered Maldives President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency for 15 days in the island nation Monday evening. The announcement was made on state television by his aide Azima Shukoor. The announcement came after the country's Supreme Court ordered the government to release key political prisoners and reinstate 12 MPs, something Yameen has refused to do so far. All basic rights have been suspended, MP Eva Abdulla said. She added that the declaration of emergency gives the security forces sweeping powers to detain and arrest suspects. Reports said security forces had stormed the Supreme Court: BREAKING NEWS: THE NATIONAL DEFENSE FORCES OF THE MALDIVES HAVE BROKEN INTO THE SUPREME COURT OF THE MALDIVES. — Maldives Judiciary (@judiciarymv) February 5, 2018 × SO Police and the military are already inside the supreme court as per CJ — Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) February 5, 2018 × Husnu Al Suood is a former attorney general of the Maldives. Now security forces have started breaking the gates of the supreme court as per CJ. — Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) February 5, 2018 × Maldives CJ informed me that the security forces have blockaded and locked the Supreme Court building from outside and hence the justices are without any food now. — Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) February 5, 2018 × Maldives CJ called me a a little while ago and asked me to inform the public to to protect him and the institution. He is expecting the police and army to storm into the Supreme Court building at any moment. — Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) February 5, 2018 × State of Emergency has been declared in #Maldives for 15 days; protests are being held in the country since President Abdulla Yameen refused to follow SC's ruling to release key political prisoners and reinstate 12 MPs (Earlier visuals from Male) pic.twitter.com/p5HJ9dYg08 — ANI (@ANI) February 5, 2018 × Also read: Maldives minister resigns to protest government response to Supreme Court ruling And that security forces had arrested former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom: I have just recieved the disturbing news that the MNDF Maldives has forcibly entered the residence of former prez MAG. — Mohamed Nasheed (@Mohamed_Nasheed) February 5, 2018 × Mohamed Nasheed is a former president of the Maldives. News of Gayoom's arrest was also tweeted by his daughter Yumna Maumoon: SO police broke down the door and are arresting my father President @maumoonagayoom and husband @MNadhym right now. @USAmbKeshap @JamesDauris @EU_Maldives @CanHCSriLanka @AusHCSriLanka @AkhileshIFS @amnesty @UNHumanRights — Yumna Maumoon (@yumna_maumoon) February 5, 2018 × A large number of @PoliceMv around my residence. To protect me or to arrest me? No idea. @USAmbKeshap @AkhileshIFS @MNDF_Official @hrcmv @amnesty — Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (@maumoonagayoom) February 5, 2018 × Government spokesperson Ibrahim Shihab told WION that while a state of emergency had been imposed, there was no curfew. He added that the government had not wanted to escalate the growing protests in the country -- which had broken out after the government had refused to comply with the Supreme Court's orders -- which is why the emergency had been imposed. India's ministry of external affairs meanwhile said "Indian expatriates in the Maldives are alerted to the need for heightened security awareness, and urged to exercise due caution in public and avoid public gatherings." It added that "prevailing political developments in Maldives and resultant law and order situation is a matter of concern for the Government of India. Indian nationals are advised to defer all non-essential travels to Male and other atolls until further notice." Indian nationals are advised to defer all non-essential travel to Male and other atolls untill further notice. Detailed travel advisory at https://t.co/DCdCkojESK — Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) February 5, 2018 × Also read: Political crisis in Maldives continues, demand for President's resignation grows The US said that it "stands with the people of Maldives." And that the "Maldivian government and military must respect the rule of law, freedom of expression, and democratic institutions. "The world is watching," it added. America stands with the people of #Maldives. The Maldivian government and military must respect the rule of law, freedom of expression, and democratic institutions. The world is watching: US National Security Council pic.twitter.com/aHOw22ROUP — ANI (@ANI) February 5, 2018 ×

Security forces storm Maldives Supreme Court: Reports

India had always been a good friend of Maldives. The culture, demography, festivals and social aspects, in many ways, are similar to India. The country shares an affinity with India which is rarely matched in any other instance. Thus, in November 1988, when the elected government of President Moumoon Abdul Gayoom was under threat from the PLOTE mercenaries of&nbsp; Sri Lanka, India helped in the restoration of democracy in the Maldives.&nbsp; These PLOTE mercenaries were, reportedly, hired by Ibrahim Nasir, one of the former presidents of Maldives and funded by Abdullah Luthufi, a rich Maldivian businessman who had business ventures in Sri Lanka and the aim was to take over the country forcefully.

&nbsp;

Being a close ally, India immediately intervened and dispatched its 1600 strong team of 50 (independent) Parachute Brigade, and the democracy was restored in the island nation. Operation Cactus is considered a rare operation where Indian Air Force landed its heavy aircrafts on an unknown island airstrip in the pitch-dark night.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Today, after the passage of nearly 30 years, history is about to repeat itself when the half-brother of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom is involved in the current political turmoil of Maldives. The Supreme Court has declared the decision to put Gayoom&#39;s opposition leaders into the jails on frivolous charges as illegal and ordered the restoration of democracy. India may be required to repeat its actions of 1988 to restore democracy once again.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Abdulla Yameen was elected as the president under disputed circumstances in 2013 and this election was annulled by the Supreme Court in view of a large number of ineligible voters being registered in the second round of voting. Mr Yameen lost badly in the first round but won in the second round under circumstances which were found illegal by the Supreme Court.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Soon after he took over, he stripped 12 Members of Parliament, belonging to the opposition party from their position to gain a majority. These members were reinstated by the Supreme Court three days ago and, hence, Yameen&#39;s government has now become the minority. Not only this, the Supreme Court had also ordered the release of nine political prisoners from the party of the ex-president Mohammad Nasheed who were put behind the bars under the fake charges of terrorism.

&nbsp;

In addition, the Supreme Court also ordered the removal of the Attorney General Mohammad Anil who was responsible for doing all wrong things as a &quot;yes man&quot; of Abdulla Yameen. The story is not yet finished, there is a lot more to worry.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

On Sunday, The Chief of Maldivian Defence Forces, Major General Ahmad Shiyam had given a statement that he will not obey the orders of Supreme Court but of the Attorney General Mohammad Anil only. Soon, after the opposition, as well as Supreme Court, urged the Parliament to remove the island nation&rsquo;s attorney general and its chief prosecutor, soldiers in riot gear surrounded the Parliament building in Male. Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, the parliamentary leader of the opposition, accused both of breaking the law by failing to act on the Supreme Court verdict.

&nbsp;

Attorney General, as well as the president, both declared Supreme Court verdict as illegal and they instructed all the agencies not to obey any order of the Supreme Court. The 12 MPs who were reinstated by the Supreme Court have been arrested after they landed in Male. Parliament is suspended till indefinite orders and two major opposition leaders have also been put behind bars.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

This is a serious situation and a direct threat to democracy in the island nation. Despite live appeals from India, the US and the European Union, Abdulla Yameen has refused to obey the Supreme Court orders. He is accused of serious corruption and human rights abuse since he took over the government and had been using all means to suppress the voices of the country, including press and other media channels. In 2015, Mr Modi had to call off his planned visit to the Maldives in view of Mohammad Yameen cracking down on his opposition and acting against democracy.

&nbsp;

Due to these activities, Abdulla Yameen has gone on the wrong side of his half-brother Maumoon Abdul Gayoom who ruled the country for over 30 years successfully and considered a fatherly figure in the island-nation.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

India must watch this situation carefully, while the previous president Mohammad Nasheed was considered a close ally of India, Abdulla Yameen is not only accused of serious frauds and irregularities but had started developing proximity with China after he joined the Maritime Silk Route Project. China is taking advantage of this and developing series of ports and other infrastructure in the Maldives which is not at all in the interest of India. When it comes to the domination of the Indian Ocean, China&rsquo;s presence can seriously harm the interests of India. Chinese are already present in Hambantota in Sri Lanka, Djibouti in Horn of Africa and Gwadar in Pakistan.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Their presence in the Maldives will almost cover the entire Indian Ocean region.

&nbsp;

My take on the situation is simple. As an old ally and the largest democracy in the world, it is the utmost duty of India to ensure that democratic governments survive in its neighbourhood and, hence, we must intervene to resolve this crisis.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

India&rsquo;s timely and strong actions can reduce Chinese from establishing further footprints in the Indian Ocean and will be helpful in the future. Not only this, it will secure our trade routes and help establish India as maritime prowess.

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp;&nbsp;

India’s timely and strong actions can reduce Chinese from establishing further footprints in the Indian Ocean and will be helpful in the future.

India had always been a good friend of Maldives. The culture, demography, festivals and social aspects, in many ways, are similar to India. The country shares an affinity with India which is rarely matched in any other instance. Thus, in November 1988, when the elected government of President Moumoon Abdul Gayoom was under threat from the PLOTE mercenaries of Sri Lanka, India helped in the restoration of democracy in the Maldives. These PLOTE mercenaries were, reportedly, hired by Ibrahim Nasir, one of the former presidents of Maldives and funded by Abdullah Luthufi, a rich Maldivian businessman who had business ventures in Sri Lanka and the aim was to take over the country forcefully. Being a close ally, India immediately intervened and dispatched its 1600 strong team of 50 (independent) Parachute Brigade, and the democracy was restored in the island nation. Operation Cactus is considered a rare operation where Indian Air Force landed its heavy aircrafts on an unknown island airstrip in the pitch-dark night. Today, after the passage of nearly 30 years, history is about to repeat itself when the half-brother of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom is involved in the current political turmoil of Maldives. The Supreme Court has declared the decision to put Gayoom's opposition leaders into the jails on frivolous charges as illegal and ordered the restoration of democracy. India may be required to repeat its actions of 1988 to restore democracy once again. Abdulla Yameen was elected as the president under disputed circumstances in 2013 and this election was annulled by the Supreme Court in view of a large number of ineligible voters being registered in the second round of voting. Mr Yameen lost badly in the first round but won in the second round under circumstances which were found illegal by the Supreme Court. Soon after he took over, he stripped 12 Members of Parliament, belonging to the opposition party from their position to gain a majority. These members were reinstated by the Supreme Court three days ago and, hence, Yameen's government has now become the minority. Not only this, the Supreme Court had also ordered the release of nine political prisoners from the party of the ex-president Mohammad Nasheed who were put behind the bars under the fake charges of terrorism. In addition, the Supreme Court also ordered the removal of the Attorney General Mohammad Anil who was responsible for doing all wrong things as a "yes man" of Abdulla Yameen. The story is not yet finished, there is a lot more to worry. On Sunday, The Chief of Maldivian Defence Forces, Major General Ahmad Shiyam had given a statement that he will not obey the orders of Supreme Court but of the Attorney General Mohammad Anil only. Soon, after the opposition, as well as Supreme Court, urged the Parliament to remove the island nation’s attorney general and its chief prosecutor, soldiers in riot gear surrounded the Parliament building in Male. Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, the parliamentary leader of the opposition, accused both of breaking the law by failing to act on the Supreme Court verdict. Attorney General, as well as the president, both declared Supreme Court verdict as illegal and they instructed all the agencies not to obey any order of the Supreme Court. The 12 MPs who were reinstated by the Supreme Court have been arrested after they landed in Male. Parliament is suspended till indefinite orders and two major opposition leaders have also been put behind bars. This is a serious situation and a direct threat to democracy in the island nation. Despite live appeals from India, the US and the European Union, Abdulla Yameen has refused to obey the Supreme Court orders. He is accused of serious corruption and human rights abuse since he took over the government and had been using all means to suppress the voices of the country, including press and other media channels. In 2015, Mr Modi had to call off his planned visit to the Maldives in view of Mohammad Yameen cracking down on his opposition and acting against democracy. Due to these activities, Abdulla Yameen has gone on the wrong side of his half-brother Maumoon Abdul Gayoom who ruled the country for over 30 years successfully and considered a fatherly figure in the island-nation. India must watch this situation carefully, while the previous president Mohammad Nasheed was considered a close ally of India, Abdulla Yameen is not only accused of serious frauds and irregularities but had started developing proximity with China after he joined the Maritime Silk Route Project. China is taking advantage of this and developing series of ports and other infrastructure in the Maldives which is not at all in the interest of India. When it comes to the domination of the Indian Ocean, China’s presence can seriously harm the interests of India. Chinese are already present in Hambantota in Sri Lanka, Djibouti in Horn of Africa and Gwadar in Pakistan. Their presence in the Maldives will almost cover the entire Indian Ocean region. My take on the situation is simple. As an old ally and the largest democracy in the world, it is the utmost duty of India to ensure that democratic governments survive in its neighbourhood and, hence, we must intervene to resolve this crisis. India’s timely and strong actions can reduce Chinese from establishing further footprints in the Indian Ocean and will be helpful in the future. Not only this, it will secure our trade routes and help establish India as maritime prowess. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Why India needs to help Maldives to counter threats to democracy

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-army-on-alert-as-president-yameen-refuses-to-reinstate-opposition-leaders-31784">Maldives army on alert as President Yameen refuses to reinstate Opposition leaders</a>

The Maldives army has been placed on high alert after President Abdulla Yameen refused Supreme Court order to reinstate Opposition leaders including former president Mohamed Nasheed. The government of the Maldives is seeking to block attempt by the Supreme Court to impeach President Abdulla Yameen for disobeying its order last week to release jailed opposition leaders sparking a constitutional crisis.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/un-budget-cuts-lead-to-altering-of-strategy-in-congo-31775">WION in Congo: UN budget cuts lead to altering of strategy in Congo</a>

Budget cuts are universal but the cut in the budget of United Nations has led to altering of tactical strategy by security forces deployed under the United Nations charter in Congo. The Indian military is in charge of 15 odd bases in Congo which down from 21 because of the budget cut made by the UN. For this reason, a battalion had to be sent back last year which reduced the number of Indian troops around 3000 to 3700. Every penny is paid by the UN, while countries make contribution to the UN Peace Keeping Mission depending upon availability of the troops.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/32-pakistan-nationals-among-90-migrants-feared-dead-in-boat-capsize-off-libya-31779">32 Pakistan nationals among 90 migrants feared dead in boat capsize off Libya</a>

At least 32 Pakistani nationals were aboard the ship that had recently capsized off the coast of Libya, Pakistan&#39;s Foreign Office said on Sunday. &quot;There were 32 Pakistanis among 80 to 90 people aboard the boat,&quot; Foreign Office spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal said in a statement. On Saturday, Faisal confirmed that 16 Pakistani nationals, out of the 90 people had died in the shipwreck.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/sports/bcci-website-restored-after-facing-blooper-31794">BCCI website restored after &#39;Lalit Modi&#39; blooper</a>

World&#39;s richest cricket board (BCCI), faced a major embarrassment on Saturday after a blooper on its official website - www.bcci.tv. The website went down for almost a day. The problem occurred due to failure in renewing the domain name. The domain was valid from 2-2-2006 to 2-2-2019. The renewal was due on or before February 3, 2018. The board&#39;s website was acting up until Sunday evening even as the senior national men&#39;s team was playing the second ODI against South Africa at the Centurion.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/jk-84-schools-in-rajouri-closed-after-ceasefire-violation-by-pakistan-31793">J&amp;K: 84 schools in Rajouri closed after ceasefire violation by Pakistan</a>

All schools in Jammu and Kashmir&#39;s Rajouri district have been closed as a precautionary measure following the ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops in the state. schools in the district have been closed as a precautionary measure. A top official of the district said 84 schools had been closed as a precautionary measure and emergency evacuation teams had been pressed into action.

Maldives army on alert as President Yameen refuses to reinstate Opposition leaders The Maldives army has been placed on high alert after President Abdulla Yameen refused Supreme Court order to reinstate Opposition leaders including former president Mohamed Nasheed. The government of the Maldives is seeking to block attempt by the Supreme Court to impeach President Abdulla Yameen for disobeying its order last week to release jailed opposition leaders sparking a constitutional crisis. WION in Congo: UN budget cuts lead to altering of strategy in Congo Budget cuts are universal but the cut in the budget of United Nations has led to altering of tactical strategy by security forces deployed under the United Nations charter in Congo. The Indian military is in charge of 15 odd bases in Congo which down from 21 because of the budget cut made by the UN. For this reason, a battalion had to be sent back last year which reduced the number of Indian troops around 3000 to 3700. Every penny is paid by the UN, while countries make contribution to the UN Peace Keeping Mission depending upon availability of the troops. 32 Pakistan nationals among 90 migrants feared dead in boat capsize off Libya At least 32 Pakistani nationals were aboard the ship that had recently capsized off the coast of Libya, Pakistan's Foreign Office said on Sunday. "There were 32 Pakistanis among 80 to 90 people aboard the boat," Foreign Office spokesman Dr Mohammad Faisal said in a statement. On Saturday, Faisal confirmed that 16 Pakistani nationals, out of the 90 people had died in the shipwreck. BCCI website restored after 'Lalit Modi' blooper World's richest cricket board (BCCI), faced a major embarrassment on Saturday after a blooper on its official website - www.bcci.tv. The website went down for almost a day. The problem occurred due to failure in renewing the domain name. The domain was valid from 2-2-2006 to 2-2-2019. The renewal was due on or before February 3, 2018. The board's website was acting up until Sunday evening even as the senior national men's team was playing the second ODI against South Africa at the Centurion. J&K: 84 schools in Rajouri closed after ceasefire violation by Pakistan All schools in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district have been closed as a precautionary measure following the ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops in the state. schools in the district have been closed as a precautionary measure. A top official of the district said 84 schools had been closed as a precautionary measure and emergency evacuation teams had been pressed into action.

WION news brief, February 5, 2018

The Maldives army has been placed on high <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-top-court-seeks-to-impeach-president-attorney-general-says-31739">alert after President Abdulla Yameen </a>refused Supreme Court order to reinstate Opposition leaders &nbsp;including former president Mohamed Nasheed.

The government of the Maldives is seeking to block attempt by the Supreme Court to impeach President Abdulla Yameen for disobeying its order last week to release jailed opposition leaders sparking a constitutional crisis.

The Maldives Supreme Court last week had ordered the release of ex-president Mohamed Nasheed and eight other opposition leaders on the grounds that it violated the country&#39;s constitution.

The top court said the leaders should be tried again. The opposition leader were jailed on charges of&nbsp;terrorism&nbsp;and corruption.

The court also ordered the reinstatement of 12 lawmakers who had been stripped of their parliamentary seats which would mean Yameen&#39;s party would slip into a minority in the 85-member house.

 
<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WPQizqETfDQ" width="560"></iframe> 
&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Maldives Supreme Court last week had ordered the release of ex-president Mohamed Nasheed and eight other opposition leaders

The Maldives army has been placed on high alert after President Abdulla Yameen refused Supreme Court order to reinstate Opposition leaders including former president Mohamed Nasheed. The government of the Maldives is seeking to block attempt by the Supreme Court to impeach President Abdulla Yameen for disobeying its order last week to release jailed opposition leaders sparking a constitutional crisis. The Maldives Supreme Court last week had ordered the release of ex-president Mohamed Nasheed and eight other opposition leaders on the grounds that it violated the country's constitution. The top court said the leaders should be tried again. The opposition leader were jailed on charges of terrorism and corruption. The court also ordered the reinstatement of 12 lawmakers who had been stripped of their parliamentary seats which would mean Yameen's party would slip into a minority in the 85-member house.

Maldives army on alert as President Yameen refuses to reinstate Opposition leaders

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/better-that-someone-sells-pakodas-than-begs-amit-shah-in-parliament-31850">Better </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/better-that-someone-sells-pakodas-than-begs-amit-shah-in-parliament-31850">that</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/better-that-someone-sells-pakodas-than-begs-amit-shah-in-parliament-31850"> someone sells </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/better-that-someone-sells-pakodas-than-begs-amit-shah-in-parliament-31850">pakodas</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/better-that-someone-sells-pakodas-than-begs-amit-shah-in-parliament-31850"> than begs: Amit Shah in Parliament</a>

It took a lot of time for this government to fill the &quot;hole&quot; it inherited from its predecessor, BJP President Amit Shah said in the Rajya Sabha Monday. Shah was making his debut speech in Parliament.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/gurgaon-school-murder-case-cbi-says-fingerprints-of-juvenile-accused-found-at-crime-scene-31867">Gurgaon school murder case: CBI says fingerprints of juvenile accused found at crime scene</a>

The CBI filed a 1,000-page charge sheet in the Gurgaon school murder case on Monday.&nbsp;

The charge sheet says the fingerprints of the juvenile accused were found at the crime scene. And that the source of the murder weapon -- a knife -- has been identified.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/after-20-years-in-power-tripura-cm-manik-sarkar-has-rs-2410-in-bank-31864">After 20 years in power, Tripura CM Manik Sarkar has Rs 2,410 in the bank</a>

Manik Sarkar, the chief minister of the poll-bound state Tripura has cash amounting to a little over Rs 3500.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/business-economy/sensex-extends-fall-bonds-slip-rupee-flat-31854">Sensex falls for </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/business-economy/sensex-extends-fall-bonds-slip-rupee-flat-31854">fifth</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/business-economy/sensex-extends-fall-bonds-slip-rupee-flat-31854"> day in a row, closes at 34,757</a>

Indian shares fell for a fifth straight session on Monday, with the broader NSE index hitting its lowest in a month, as Asian shares slumped, while worries remained that the Reserve Bank of India would turn more hawkish at its policy meeting later this week.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/political-crisis-in-maldives-continues-demand-for-presidents-resignation-grows-31869">Political crisis in </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/political-crisis-in-maldives-continues-demand-for-presidents-resignation-grows-31869">Maldives</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/political-crisis-in-maldives-continues-demand-for-presidents-resignation-grows-31869"> continues, demand for President&#39;s resignation grows</a>

Maldives capital Male continues to remain tense, with the opposition and general public unrelentingly asking President Yameen to step down and allow a new leadership to take charge.

Better that someone sells pakodas than begs: Amit Shah in Parliament It took a lot of time for this government to fill the "hole" it inherited from its predecessor, BJP President Amit Shah said in the Rajya Sabha Monday. Shah was making his debut speech in Parliament. Gurgaon school murder case: CBI says fingerprints of juvenile accused found at crime scene The CBI filed a 1,000-page charge sheet in the Gurgaon school murder case on Monday. The charge sheet says the fingerprints of the juvenile accused were found at the crime scene. And that the source of the murder weapon -- a knife -- has been identified. After 20 years in power, Tripura CM Manik Sarkar has Rs 2,410 in the bank Manik Sarkar, the chief minister of the poll-bound state Tripura has cash amounting to a little over Rs 3500. Sensex falls for fifth day in a row, closes at 34,757 Indian shares fell for a fifth straight session on Monday, with the broader NSE index hitting its lowest in a month, as Asian shares slumped, while worries remained that the Reserve Bank of India would turn more hawkish at its policy meeting later this week. Political crisis in Maldives continues, demand for President's resignation grows Maldives capital Male continues to remain tense, with the opposition and general public unrelentingly asking President Yameen to step down and allow a new leadership to take charge.

WION Evening News Brief, February 5, 2018

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres Saturday called upon the Maldivian government to respect a landmark Supreme Court ruling ordering the release of nine political prisoners.

Guterres&#39; spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement released overnight that the UN chief believes the Maldives&#39; &quot;political stalemate&quot; can be resolved through &quot;all-party talks, which the United Nations continues to stand ready to facilitate.&quot;

&quot;He also calls on all to exercise restraint,&quot; Dujarric added.

The court ruled Thursday that the convictions of senior Maldivian opposition figures were &quot;questionable&quot; and &quot;politically motivated,&quot; overturned these rulings, and ordered new trials. It also reinstated 12 legislators who were expelled for defecting from President Abdulla Yameen&#39;s party.

The Supreme Court intervention represents a major setback for Yameen, and paves the way for the return of his rival Mohamed Nasheed -- whom he controversially defeated in 2013.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres Saturday called upon the Maldivian government to respect a landmark Supreme Court ruling ordering the release of nine political prisoners.

Guterres&#39; spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement released overnight that the UN chief believes the Maldives&#39; &quot;political stalemate&quot; can be resolved through &quot;all-party talks, which the United Nations continues to stand ready to facilitate.&quot;

&quot;He also calls on all to exercise restraint,&quot; Dujarric added.

Exiled former president Nasheed told AFP Friday that he intends to run for president, a day after the court&#39;s surprise decision to cut short his 13-year prison sentence for terrorism.

Tensions reignited in the Indian Ocean archipelago Friday, following clashes the previous night between opposition supporters and the police. Authorities used tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters.&nbsp;

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres Saturday called upon the Maldivian government to respect a landmark Supreme Court ruling ordering the release of nine political prisoners

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres Saturday called upon the Maldivian government to respect a landmark Supreme Court ruling ordering the release of nine political prisoners. Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement released overnight that the UN chief believes the Maldives' "political stalemate" can be resolved through "all-party talks, which the United Nations continues to stand ready to facilitate." "He also calls on all to exercise restraint," Dujarric added. The court ruled Thursday that the convictions of senior Maldivian opposition figures were "questionable" and "politically motivated," overturned these rulings, and ordered new trials. It also reinstated 12 legislators who were expelled for defecting from President Abdulla Yameen's party. The Supreme Court intervention represents a major setback for Yameen, and paves the way for the return of his rival Mohamed Nasheed -- whom he controversially defeated in 2013. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres Saturday called upon the Maldivian government to respect a landmark Supreme Court ruling ordering the release of nine political prisoners. Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement released overnight that the UN chief believes the Maldives' "political stalemate" can be resolved through "all-party talks, which the United Nations continues to stand ready to facilitate." "He also calls on all to exercise restraint," Dujarric added. Exiled former president Nasheed told AFP Friday that he intends to run for president, a day after the court's surprise decision to cut short his 13-year prison sentence for terrorism. Tensions reignited in the Indian Ocean archipelago Friday, following clashes the previous night between opposition supporters and the police. Authorities used tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters.

UN chief urges Maldives government to respect court ruling

Maldivian authorities Saturday announced an indefinite <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-opposition-fears-government-scuttling-prisoner-release-31664" target="_blank">postponement of parliament </a>as President Abdulla Yameen`s regime resisted international pressure to comply with a landmark Supreme Court order to free political prisoners.

The People`s Majlis, or parliament, told local reporters in a brief message that the assembly will not have its scheduled sessions on Monday &quot;due to security reasons&quot;.

No fresh date was given for the sessions.

The move followed a shock order Thursday by the country`s Supreme Court to release nine political dissidents. It also restored the seats of 12 legislators who had been sacked for defecting from Yameen`s party.

The reinstatement of the dozen legislators has given the opposition a majority in the 85-member assembly, and it can now potentially impeach Yameen as well as his cabinet.

The beleaguered president announced Saturday that he sacked police chief Ahmed Saudhee, who was appointed just two days ago. His predecessor Ahmed Areef was fired on Thursday, shortly after he said he will honour the court`s decision.

The main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said Yameen was yet to release any political prisoners.

&quot;Although Yameen has said he will abide by the ruling, he is yet to comply with the order delivered more than 36 hours ago,&quot; Colombo-based MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor said on Saturday morning.

The court had said that cases against the nine dissidents, including MDP leader and former president Mohamed Nasheed, were politically motivated and asked the government to release them immediately.

In a statement issued overnight, the joint opposition, which includes Nasheed`s MDP, said there were concerns the regime would ignore the ruling and that it would trigger further unrest in the nation of 340,000 Sunni Muslims.

&quot; We are deeply fearful that the government`s refusal to implement the Supreme Court order could escalate to unrest and incite violence across the country,&quot; the opposition said.

Nasheed, the country`s first democratically-elected president, has urged the government to respect the top court`s decision.

The United Nations, Australia, Britain, Canada, India and the United States welcomed the court`s decision as a move towards restoring democracy in the politically troubled Indian Ocean nation.

Earlier, Nasheed had said the ruling cleared the way for him to return to the Maldives and contest elections due later this year.

&quot;I can contest and will contest,&quot; he told AFP in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo.

For its part, the Maldivian government said Friday that it had concerns about releasing those convicted for &quot;terrorism, corruption, embezzlement, and treason&quot;.

Nasheed was barred from contesting any election in the Maldives after a controversial 2015 terrorism conviction internationally criticised as politically motivated.

The Maldives` popular image as an upmarket holiday paradise has been severely damaged by a major crackdown on dissent under Yameen, who has overseen the jailing of almost all his political opponents.

The opposition said there were sporadic clashes Friday night between anti-government activists and the police in the Maldives.

&nbsp;

Maldivian authorities Saturday announced an indefinite postponement of parliament as President Abdulla Yameen`s regime resisted international pressure to comply with a landmark Supreme Court order to free political prisoners

Maldivian authorities Saturday announced an indefinite postponement of parliament as President Abdulla Yameen`s regime resisted international pressure to comply with a landmark Supreme Court order to free political prisoners. The People`s Majlis, or parliament, told local reporters in a brief message that the assembly will not have its scheduled sessions on Monday "due to security reasons". No fresh date was given for the sessions. The move followed a shock order Thursday by the country`s Supreme Court to release nine political dissidents. It also restored the seats of 12 legislators who had been sacked for defecting from Yameen`s party. The reinstatement of the dozen legislators has given the opposition a majority in the 85-member assembly, and it can now potentially impeach Yameen as well as his cabinet. The beleaguered president announced Saturday that he sacked police chief Ahmed Saudhee, who was appointed just two days ago. His predecessor Ahmed Areef was fired on Thursday, shortly after he said he will honour the court`s decision. The main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said Yameen was yet to release any political prisoners. "Although Yameen has said he will abide by the ruling, he is yet to comply with the order delivered more than 36 hours ago," Colombo-based MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor said on Saturday morning. The court had said that cases against the nine dissidents, including MDP leader and former president Mohamed Nasheed, were politically motivated and asked the government to release them immediately. In a statement issued overnight, the joint opposition, which includes Nasheed`s MDP, said there were concerns the regime would ignore the ruling and that it would trigger further unrest in the nation of 340,000 Sunni Muslims. " We are deeply fearful that the government`s refusal to implement the Supreme Court order could escalate to unrest and incite violence across the country," the opposition said. Nasheed, the country`s first democratically-elected president, has urged the government to respect the top court`s decision. The United Nations, Australia, Britain, Canada, India and the United States welcomed the court`s decision as a move towards restoring democracy in the politically troubled Indian Ocean nation. Earlier, Nasheed had said the ruling cleared the way for him to return to the Maldives and contest elections due later this year. "I can contest and will contest," he told AFP in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo. For its part, the Maldivian government said Friday that it had concerns about releasing those convicted for "terrorism, corruption, embezzlement, and treason". Nasheed was barred from contesting any election in the Maldives after a controversial 2015 terrorism conviction internationally criticised as politically motivated. The Maldives` popular image as an upmarket holiday paradise has been severely damaged by a major crackdown on dissent under Yameen, who has overseen the jailing of almost all his political opponents. The opposition said there were sporadic clashes Friday night between anti-government activists and the police in the Maldives.

Maldives shuts parliament, resists order to free dissidents

The Maldivian opposition Saturday accused President Abdulla Yameen of resisting local and international pressure to comply with a landmark Supreme Court order to free nine political prisoners.

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said Yameen was yet to release any in line with Thursday&#39;s shock decision of the apex court to quash the dissidents&#39; convictions.

&quot;Although Yameen has said he will abide by the ruling, he is yet to comply with the order delivered more than 36 hours ago,&quot; Colombo-based MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor said on Saturday morning.

The court on Thursday night said that cases against the nine dissidents, including former president Mohamed Nasheed, were politically motivated and asked the government to release themimmediately.

It also ordered the reinstatement of 12 legislators who were expelled for defecting, and effectively gave the opposition a majority in the 85-member assembly.

In a statement issued overnight, the joint opposition, which includes Nasheed&#39;s MDP, said it feared the regime would ignore the release order and that it would trigger further unrest in the nation of 340,000 Sunni Muslims.

&quot; We are deeply fearful that the government&#39;s refusal to implement the Supreme Court order could escalate to unrest and incite violence across the country,&quot; the joint opposition said.

Nasheed, the country&#39;s first democratically elected president, has urged the government to respect the top court&#39;s decision.

The United Nations, Australia, Britain, Canada, India and the United States welcomed the court&#39;s decision as a move towards restoring democracy in the politically troubled Indian Ocean nation.

Earlier, Nasheed had said the ruling cleared the way for him to return to the Maldives and contest elections due later this year.

&quot;I can contest and will contest,&quot; he told AFP in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo.

For its part, the Maldivian government announced Friday that it had concerns about releasing those who had been convicted for &quot;terrorism, corruption, embezzlement, and treason&quot;.

Yameen&#39;s office said Attorney General Mohamed Anil had raised the administration&#39;s concerns with the chief justice.

Nasheed was barred from contesting any election in the Maldives after a controversial 2015 terrorism conviction internationally criticised as politically motivated.

The Maldives&#39; popular image as an upmarket holiday paradise has been severely damaged by a major crackdown on dissent under Yameen, who has overseen the jailing of almost all his political opponents.

The opposition said there were sporadic clashes Friday night between anti-government activists and the police in the Maldives.

Yameen was yet to release any in line with apex court's decision to quash the dissidents' convictions

The Maldivian opposition Saturday accused President Abdulla Yameen of resisting local and international pressure to comply with a landmark Supreme Court order to free nine political prisoners. The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said Yameen was yet to release any in line with Thursday's shock decision of the apex court to quash the dissidents' convictions. "Although Yameen has said he will abide by the ruling, he is yet to comply with the order delivered more than 36 hours ago," Colombo-based MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor said on Saturday morning. The court on Thursday night said that cases against the nine dissidents, including former president Mohamed Nasheed, were politically motivated and asked the government to release themimmediately. It also ordered the reinstatement of 12 legislators who were expelled for defecting, and effectively gave the opposition a majority in the 85-member assembly. In a statement issued overnight, the joint opposition, which includes Nasheed's MDP, said it feared the regime would ignore the release order and that it would trigger further unrest in the nation of 340,000 Sunni Muslims. " We are deeply fearful that the government's refusal to implement the Supreme Court order could escalate to unrest and incite violence across the country," the joint opposition said. Nasheed, the country's first democratically elected president, has urged the government to respect the top court's decision. The United Nations, Australia, Britain, Canada, India and the United States welcomed the court's decision as a move towards restoring democracy in the politically troubled Indian Ocean nation. Earlier, Nasheed had said the ruling cleared the way for him to return to the Maldives and contest elections due later this year. "I can contest and will contest," he told AFP in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo. For its part, the Maldivian government announced Friday that it had concerns about releasing those who had been convicted for "terrorism, corruption, embezzlement, and treason". Yameen's office said Attorney General Mohamed Anil had raised the administration's concerns with the chief justice. Nasheed was barred from contesting any election in the Maldives after a controversial 2015 terrorism conviction internationally criticised as politically motivated. The Maldives' popular image as an upmarket holiday paradise has been severely damaged by a major crackdown on dissent under Yameen, who has overseen the jailing of almost all his political opponents. The opposition said there were sporadic clashes Friday night between anti-government activists and the police in the Maldives.

Maldives opposition fears government scuttling prisoner release

The exiled former president of the Maldives said today he will run again for office, hours after a surprise Supreme Court decision to free a group of political prisoners led to unrest in the capital of the Indian Ocean archipelago.

Current President Yameen Abdul Gayoom had been set to run for re-election virtually unopposed, with all of his opponents either jailed or exiled. But ex-President Mohammed Nasheed, who is among the prisoners ordered freed, said he would challenge Yameen, who has rolled back many democratic reforms since coming to power five years ago.

&quot;I can contest and I will contest and hopefully we will win it again,&quot; Nasheed told the AP in Colombo, the capital of neighbouring Sri Lanka.

Nasheed was jailed in 2016 but received asylum in Britain later that year after travelling there on medical leave from prison. He has lived in exile ever since.

Nasheed also called for reforms in the country&#39;s security services, telling the AP that &quot;a small element within the military and police want to prop up the dictatorship&quot; of Yameen.

Male, the capital, was quiet today afternoon, although an opposition leader said Yameen&#39;s opponents were planning further protests.

The Supreme Court of Maldives ordered the release of former president Mohamed Nasheed and former vice president Ahmed Adeeb along with other politicians.

The court ordered the immediate release of high-profile prisoners and held that &quot;the prisoners were free until fair trials could be conducted without undue influence&quot;, a statement said.

The order given Thursday night could be a major blow to President Yameen Abdul Gayoom who has a tight grip on power, controlling institutions like the judiciary, police and the bureaucracy, Fox News reported.

The clashes lasted about three hours, with police dispersing rock-throwing crowds using pepper spray and batons. At least one injured police officer was taken to a hospital. It was not immediately clear if anyone was arrested, though some protesters were taken away by police.

Atul Keshap, the US ambassador to the Maldives, welcomed the Supreme Court order. &quot;I urge the government and security services to respect this ruling, which bolsters democracy and rule of law for all Maldivians,&quot; he wrote on Twitter.

India, on Friday, said it was imperative for &quot;all organs&quot; of the Maldivian government to abide by the country&#39;s Supreme Court order to release all political prisoners &quot;in the spirit of democracy&quot;.

In a statement, the <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/imperative-for-maldivian-govt-to-abide-by-sc-ruling-india-31617">Ministry of External Affairs</a> (MEA) said it was &quot;closely monitoring&quot; the evolving situation in the Maldives and also hoped that the safety and security of Indian expatriates in the island nation would be ensured by the Maldivian authorities under &quot;all circumstances&quot;.

In 2015 Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison, convicted of terrorism charges in a trial widely condemned by international rights groups.

Yameen&#39;s former deputy, Ahmed Adeeb, who had been jailed on accusations of plotting to kill the president, was also ordered released.

Adeeb was sentenced to 33 years in prison in 2016, charged with corruption, possession of illegal firearms and planning to kill Yameen by triggering an explosion on his speedboat. However, FBI investigators said they found no evidence of a bomb blast.&nbsp;

(With PTI inputs)

Current President Yameen Abdul Gayoom had been set to run for re-election virtually unopposed, with all of his opponents either jailed or exiled

The exiled former president of the Maldives said today he will run again for office, hours after a surprise Supreme Court decision to free a group of political prisoners led to unrest in the capital of the Indian Ocean archipelago. Current President Yameen Abdul Gayoom had been set to run for re-election virtually unopposed, with all of his opponents either jailed or exiled. But ex-President Mohammed Nasheed, who is among the prisoners ordered freed, said he would challenge Yameen, who has rolled back many democratic reforms since coming to power five years ago. "I can contest and I will contest and hopefully we will win it again," Nasheed told the AP in Colombo, the capital of neighbouring Sri Lanka. Nasheed was jailed in 2016 but received asylum in Britain later that year after travelling there on medical leave from prison. He has lived in exile ever since. Nasheed also called for reforms in the country's security services, telling the AP that "a small element within the military and police want to prop up the dictatorship" of Yameen. Male, the capital, was quiet today afternoon, although an opposition leader said Yameen's opponents were planning further protests. The Supreme Court of Maldives ordered the release of former president Mohamed Nasheed and former vice president Ahmed Adeeb along with other politicians. The court ordered the immediate release of high-profile prisoners and held that "the prisoners were free until fair trials could be conducted without undue influence", a statement said. The order given Thursday night could be a major blow to President Yameen Abdul Gayoom who has a tight grip on power, controlling institutions like the judiciary, police and the bureaucracy, Fox News reported. The clashes lasted about three hours, with police dispersing rock-throwing crowds using pepper spray and batons. At least one injured police officer was taken to a hospital. It was not immediately clear if anyone was arrested, though some protesters were taken away by police. Atul Keshap, the US ambassador to the Maldives, welcomed the Supreme Court order. "I urge the government and security services to respect this ruling, which bolsters democracy and rule of law for all Maldivians," he wrote on Twitter. India, on Friday, said it was imperative for "all organs" of the Maldivian government to abide by the country's Supreme Court order to release all political prisoners "in the spirit of democracy". In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said it was "closely monitoring" the evolving situation in the Maldives and also hoped that the safety and security of Indian expatriates in the island nation would be ensured by the Maldivian authorities under "all circumstances". In 2015 Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison, convicted of terrorism charges in a trial widely condemned by international rights groups. Yameen's former deputy, Ahmed Adeeb, who had been jailed on accusations of plotting to kill the president, was also ordered released. Adeeb was sentenced to 33 years in prison in 2016, charged with corruption, possession of illegal firearms and planning to kill Yameen by triggering an explosion on his speedboat. However, FBI investigators said they found no evidence of a bomb blast. (With PTI inputs)

Maldives: Exiled ex-president to run for office again

India today said it was imperative for &quot;all organs&quot; of the Maldivian government to abide by the country&#39;s Supreme Court order to release all political prisoners &quot;in the spirit of democracy&quot;.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said it was &quot;closely monitoring&quot; the evolving situation in the Maldives and also hoped that the safety and security of Indian expatriates in the island nation would be ensured by the Maldivian authorities under &quot;all circumstances&quot;.

The Maldivian Supreme Court, in a significant development yesterday, ordered the immediate release of the former president Mohamed Nasheed and other opposition leaders

&quot;We have seen last night?s order of the Supreme Court of Maldives releasing all political prisoners. In the spirit of democracy and rule of law, it is imperative for all organs of the Government of Maldives to respect and abide by the order of the apex court,&quot; the MEA said.

It said that as a close and friendly neighbour, India wishes to see a stable, peaceful and prosperous Maldives.

&quot;We are closely monitoring the evolving situation,&quot; said the MEA.

The island nation has witnessed political unrest and street protests since Nasheed was convicted in 2015 on terror charges and sentenced to 13 years in jail.

There were reports of clashes between supporters of Nasheed and police in the capital city Male today where hundreds of policemen were deployed to restore peace.

Nasheed was earlier granted asylum by the UK after he was authorised to seek medical treatment there amid mounting foreign pressure.

The leader, who is currently in Sri Lanka, welcomed the court order and said President Abdulla Yameen must resign in the wake of the ruling by the apex court.

&quot;Welcome tonight&#39;s SC ruling calling for the immediate release of political prisoners and the restoration of their civil and political rights. President Yameen must abide by this ruling and resign. Urge all citizens to avoid confrontation and engage in peaceful political activity,&quot; Nasheed tweeted.

In a statement, the MEA said it was 'closely monitoring' the evolving situation in the Maldives and also hoped that the safety and security of Indian expatriates in the island nation would be ensured by the Maldivian authorities under 'all circumstances'

India today said it was imperative for "all organs" of the Maldivian government to abide by the country's Supreme Court order to release all political prisoners "in the spirit of democracy". In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said it was "closely monitoring" the evolving situation in the Maldives and also hoped that the safety and security of Indian expatriates in the island nation would be ensured by the Maldivian authorities under "all circumstances". The Maldivian Supreme Court, in a significant development yesterday, ordered the immediate release of the former president Mohamed Nasheed and other opposition leaders "We have seen last night?s order of the Supreme Court of Maldives releasing all political prisoners. In the spirit of democracy and rule of law, it is imperative for all organs of the Government of Maldives to respect and abide by the order of the apex court," the MEA said. It said that as a close and friendly neighbour, India wishes to see a stable, peaceful and prosperous Maldives. "We are closely monitoring the evolving situation," said the MEA. The island nation has witnessed political unrest and street protests since Nasheed was convicted in 2015 on terror charges and sentenced to 13 years in jail. There were reports of clashes between supporters of Nasheed and police in the capital city Male today where hundreds of policemen were deployed to restore peace. Nasheed was earlier granted asylum by the UK after he was authorised to seek medical treatment there amid mounting foreign pressure. The leader, who is currently in Sri Lanka, welcomed the court order and said President Abdulla Yameen must resign in the wake of the ruling by the apex court. "Welcome tonight's SC ruling calling for the immediate release of political prisoners and the restoration of their civil and political rights. President Yameen must abide by this ruling and resign. Urge all citizens to avoid confrontation and engage in peaceful political activity," Nasheed tweeted.

Imperative for Maldivian govt to abide by SC ruling: India

China&#39;s right-leaning <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-key-pawn-in-the-indo-pacific-strategy-china-daily-26024">newspaper Global Times declared today</a> that India harbours &quot;a sense of superiority&quot; in relations with South Asian countries.

Referring to <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-cant-just-copy-chinas-reform-model-china-daily-23903">Maldivian foreign minister Mohamed Asim&#39;s</a> visit to India last week, the state-run China daily said New Delhi regards itself as a &quot;key player&quot; in diplomacy with the Maldives.

Last month Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom had met <a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/wont-be-easy-for-india-to-bring-sri-lankas-hambantota-to-life-china-daily-23767">Chinese President Xi and inked a number </a>of trade deals including a memorandum of understanding(MoU) on OBOR and a free trade agreement.

The Chinese daily said New Delhi was extremely dissatisfied with the Maldives signing a free trade agreement with Beijing. The newspaper reported that during his visit, Asim reiterated Maldives&#39; &quot;India First&quot; policy, adding that PM Modi also declared that India will ever be a &quot;reliable and close neighbour&quot; of the Indian Ocean country.

&quot;India insists on a superior status in its neighbours&#39; foreign policies, and has been wanting these countries to follow the &quot;India First&quot; policy since the end of World War-II,&quot; the newspaper said, adding that,&quot;the era when international relations were based on hierarchical differences no longer exists.&quot;

&quot;India, dealing with neighbouring countries with a sense of superiority, triggered dissatisfaction,&quot; it said.&nbsp;

&quot;Pakistan became the first South Asian nation to challenge New Delhi&#39;s arrogance and seeks ties with India on equal terms. New Delhi pushed back and ties worsened,&quot; the newspaper added.

&quot;When China initiated the practice of a new type of modern international relations based on equality and win-win cooperation, it was warmly welcomed by other nations in South Asia. India believes this poses a big challenge to its own diplomacy,&quot; the newspaper said.

&quot;Insisting on superiority over other countries as a diplomatic policy will not only impede the development of international relations, but also draw the country into a &quot;superiority&quot; quagmire,&quot; the Global Times said.

The Op-ed page article said it is therefore not hard to understand why the Maldives committed to the &quot;India First&quot; policy to &quot;assuage&quot; concerns of New Delhi.&nbsp; 
&nbsp; 
&quot;Old concepts like power politics, hegemonism and hierarchical distinctions are gradually being abandoned. Ties based on mutual respect, fairness and justice as well as win-win cooperation,&quot; the state-run Chinese daily said, concluding,&quot;As an emerging power, India should no longer stick to outdated principles, but promote change and development of global ties.&quot; &nbsp;

Referring to Maldivian foreign minister Mohamed Asim's visit to India last week, the state-run China daily said New Delhi regards itself as a "key player" in diplomacy with the Maldives

China's right-leaning newspaper Global Times declared today that India harbours "a sense of superiority" in relations with South Asian countries. Referring to Maldivian foreign minister Mohamed Asim's visit to India last week, the state-run China daily said New Delhi regards itself as a "key player" in diplomacy with the Maldives. Last month Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom had met Chinese President Xi and inked a number of trade deals including a memorandum of understanding(MoU) on OBOR and a free trade agreement. The Chinese daily said New Delhi was extremely dissatisfied with the Maldives signing a free trade agreement with Beijing. The newspaper reported that during his visit, Asim reiterated Maldives' "India First" policy, adding that PM Modi also declared that India will ever be a "reliable and close neighbour" of the Indian Ocean country. "India insists on a superior status in its neighbours' foreign policies, and has been wanting these countries to follow the "India First" policy since the end of World War-II," the newspaper said, adding that,"the era when international relations were based on hierarchical differences no longer exists." "India, dealing with neighbouring countries with a sense of superiority, triggered dissatisfaction," it said. "Pakistan became the first South Asian nation to challenge New Delhi's arrogance and seeks ties with India on equal terms. New Delhi pushed back and ties worsened," the newspaper added. "When China initiated the practice of a new type of modern international relations based on equality and win-win cooperation, it was warmly welcomed by other nations in South Asia. India believes this poses a big challenge to its own diplomacy," the newspaper said. "Insisting on superiority over other countries as a diplomatic policy will not only impede the development of international relations, but also draw the country into a "superiority" quagmire," the Global Times said. The Op-ed page article said it is therefore not hard to understand why the Maldives committed to the "India First" policy to "assuage" concerns of New Delhi. "Old concepts like power politics, hegemonism and hierarchical distinctions are gradually being abandoned. Ties based on mutual respect, fairness and justice as well as win-win cooperation," the state-run Chinese daily said, concluding,"As an emerging power, India should no longer stick to outdated principles, but promote change and development of global ties."

India harbours sense of superiority with South Asian countries: China daily

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today held &quot;productive&quot; talks with her Maldivian counterpart Mohamed Asim amidst a strain in bilateral ties over a number of issues, including the signing of an FTA between Maldives and China.

&quot;Swaraj met Mohamed Asim, Foreign Minister and Special Envoy of the President of Maldives. Both had productive discussions to strengthen bilateral relationship keeping in mind &#39;India first&#39; policy of Maldives and our policy of &#39;Neighbourhood first&#39;,&quot; the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.

It is understood that the Maldivian leader reiterated that the Maldives would not undertake any activity which would harm Indian interests and it would also be conveyed that the country was &quot;sensitive&quot; to India&#39;s concerns over peace and security in the Indian Ocean region.

India had already made it clear that it expected that as a close and friendly neighbour, the island nation would be sensitive to its concerns in keeping with its &#39;India First&#39; policy. The Indian statement had come in response to a query on Maldives-China free trade agreement (FTA).

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today held 'productive' talks with her Maldivian counterpart Mohamed Asim amidst a strain in bilateral ties over a number of issues, including the signing of an FTA between Maldives and China

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today held "productive" talks with her Maldivian counterpart Mohamed Asim amidst a strain in bilateral ties over a number of issues, including the signing of an FTA between Maldives and China. "Swaraj met Mohamed Asim, Foreign Minister and Special Envoy of the President of Maldives. Both had productive discussions to strengthen bilateral relationship keeping in mind 'India first' policy of Maldives and our policy of 'Neighbourhood first'," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. It is understood that the Maldivian leader reiterated that the Maldives would not undertake any activity which would harm Indian interests and it would also be conveyed that the country was "sensitive" to India's concerns over peace and security in the Indian Ocean region. India had already made it clear that it expected that as a close and friendly neighbour, the island nation would be sensitive to its concerns in keeping with its 'India First' policy. The Indian statement had come in response to a query on Maldives-China free trade agreement (FTA).

Sushma Swaraj holds 'productive' talks with Maldivian Foreign Minister: MEA

The Maldives &ndash; a small island nation in the Indian Ocean - is being used as a transshipment destination in the illicit drug trade, says the Maldives Police Service.

&ldquo;It is a popular transshipment destination in the illicit drug trade. Drug trades between countries for example like US and Thailand, Maldives becomes the transshipment destination. The narcotics that are being targeted to the Asian countries like Thailand and Philippines are transited in the Maldives and then transported or smuggled to those countries. These drugs normally come from western countries or somewhere from the US sometimes it&rsquo;s from Bolivia or some other country.&rdquo; Aminath Suzee, Deputy Head of Drug Enforcement Department, at the Maldives Police Service told me.

The drug problem is one of the most alarming issues in the Maldives with a population of fewer than 350000 people out of which more than 45% are youth. According to the first National Drug Use Survey in the Maldives released in 2013, there were an estimated 7,500 drug users in the Maldives. Majority of them were young people in the age group of 15-24.

Though the Maldives is neither a drug producing nor a cultivating country, the availability of drugs in the country does not seem to be limited at all.

Journey is an NGO formed by a group of Maldivian who are recovering addicts with a mission to help other addicts. They are working towards raising public awareness on drug addiction and its related issues. Ahmed Nazim, the chairperson of Journey, said that the availability of drugs is not the only reason for drug use, but it does play a role in the drug crisis.

&ldquo;Cigarettes are also available in the country, but there are non-smokers more than smokers. So we can&rsquo;t say the availability is the reason why people use drugs, but it is one factor, the availability of drugs in the country. If it has not been available nobody will be using drugs, but it is easily available here,&rdquo; he said.

Last year in August, Home Minister Azleen Ahmed said, 57 kilograms of drugs has been seized in in 2016, while 26 kilograms of drugs has been seized till then in 2017.

Beginning of the drug crisis

Drug crisis of the Maldives started with the country&rsquo;s increased exposure to the outside world. Drug-related issues have not been identified as a problem before the mid-1970s. It was said that the appearance of drug abuse in its present form seems to have coincided with the development of tourism industry in the early 1970s. However, there is no solid evidence to correlate this, since the period also witnessed many other changes, including global escalation of drug abuse and increased overseas travel by Maldivians.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), official recognition of the drug problem in the Maldives came in 1977 when a person was arrested with 350 grams of hashish. As a result, the first principal legislative act of the Maldives dealing with narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances (The Law on Drugs) was passed the same year in order to help the legal system to deal with it and to act as a deterrent. According to UNODC drugs like heroin and cocaine was introduced to the Maldives in the early 1990s.

Strategic location and its vulnerability

Despite being a small island nation, the Maldives enjoys a strategic location along with key shipping routes. It&rsquo;s a blessing to be a country like the Maldives which is highly dependent on the imports from other countries but, unfortunately, the goods came with the bad. According to the police, the geographic location of the Maldives does have an impact when it comes to drug smuggling.

&ldquo;Since Maldives is geographically located in an important area in terms of trade routes, this has a huge impact on drug smuggling. Plays a huge role in the increase amount of drug smuggling into the Maldives. Most of the drugs are smuggled from the neighboring countries like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka via air and sea,&rdquo; Suzee said.

The Maldives is situated not too far from the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent; Asia&rsquo;s two main illicit opium-producing areas. While Golden Triangle in Southeast Asia comprises of Myanmar, Laos and Thailand, the Golden Crescent in South Asia comprises of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan.

Moreover, hundreds of tourists arrive at the Maldives on a daily basis from across the globe, including Asia, Europe and other western countries. The exposure and the location do not only make it easy to smuggle drugs into the Maldives, but also make the country at risk of being used as a transshipment destination in the illicit drug trade.

Actions being taken for prevention

&ldquo;The Maldives emphasizes the need to join forces, especially among international partners, to effectively counter the world drug problem. In line with this objective, Maldives is working with countries in its region to establish a regional coordination centre for South Asia through the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation,&rdquo; said the Maldivian government official at the Thirtieth special session of United Nations General Assembly in 2016.

Maldives Police Service is also making efforts along with other authorities to combat the drug problem in the Maldives.

&ldquo;To prevent Maldives being used as a transshipment destination in illicit drug trade and to prevent smuggling narcotics into the Maldives, We are building our capacity of detection, we are strengthening security at the airports and seaports continuously and we are focusing on increasing human resource capacity by providing necessary trainings to the officers at the airports and seaports and our anti-drug policies are strengthened as well,&rdquo; Suzee said.

With tightened surveillance across the Maldives to eliminate smuggling and distribution of drugs, the Maldives police and border authorities have also started using K-9 dogs to detect drug smugglers. Yet more efforts are still needed to overcome the drug problem.

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

According to the first National Drug Use Survey in the Maldives released in 2013, there were an estimated 7,500 drug users in the Maldives. Majority of them were young people in the age group of 15-24.

The Maldives – a small island nation in the Indian Ocean - is being used as a transshipment destination in the illicit drug trade, says the Maldives Police Service. “It is a popular transshipment destination in the illicit drug trade. Drug trades between countries for example like US and Thailand, Maldives becomes the transshipment destination. The narcotics that are being targeted to the Asian countries like Thailand and Philippines are transited in the Maldives and then transported or smuggled to those countries. These drugs normally come from western countries or somewhere from the US sometimes it’s from Bolivia or some other country.” Aminath Suzee, Deputy Head of Drug Enforcement Department, at the Maldives Police Service told me. The drug problem is one of the most alarming issues in the Maldives with a population of fewer than 350000 people out of which more than 45% are youth. According to the first National Drug Use Survey in the Maldives released in 2013, there were an estimated 7,500 drug users in the Maldives. Majority of them were young people in the age group of 15-24. Though the Maldives is neither a drug producing nor a cultivating country, the availability of drugs in the country does not seem to be limited at all. Journey is an NGO formed by a group of Maldivian who are recovering addicts with a mission to help other addicts. They are working towards raising public awareness on drug addiction and its related issues. Ahmed Nazim, the chairperson of Journey, said that the availability of drugs is not the only reason for drug use, but it does play a role in the drug crisis. “Cigarettes are also available in the country, but there are non-smokers more than smokers. So we can’t say the availability is the reason why people use drugs, but it is one factor, the availability of drugs in the country. If it has not been available nobody will be using drugs, but it is easily available here,” he said. Last year in August, Home Minister Azleen Ahmed said, 57 kilograms of drugs has been seized in in 2016, while 26 kilograms of drugs has been seized till then in 2017. Beginning of the drug crisis Drug crisis of the Maldives started with the country’s increased exposure to the outside world. Drug-related issues have not been identified as a problem before the mid-1970s. It was said that the appearance of drug abuse in its present form seems to have coincided with the development of tourism industry in the early 1970s. However, there is no solid evidence to correlate this, since the period also witnessed many other changes, including global escalation of drug abuse and increased overseas travel by Maldivians. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), official recognition of the drug problem in the Maldives came in 1977 when a person was arrested with 350 grams of hashish. As a result, the first principal legislative act of the Maldives dealing with narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances (The Law on Drugs) was passed the same year in order to help the legal system to deal with it and to act as a deterrent. According to UNODC drugs like heroin and cocaine was introduced to the Maldives in the early 1990s. Strategic location and its vulnerability Despite being a small island nation, the Maldives enjoys a strategic location along with key shipping routes. It’s a blessing to be a country like the Maldives which is highly dependent on the imports from other countries but, unfortunately, the goods came with the bad. According to the police, the geographic location of the Maldives does have an impact when it comes to drug smuggling. “Since Maldives is geographically located in an important area in terms of trade routes, this has a huge impact on drug smuggling. Plays a huge role in the increase amount of drug smuggling into the Maldives. Most of the drugs are smuggled from the neighboring countries like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka via air and sea,” Suzee said. The Maldives is situated not too far from the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent; Asia’s two main illicit opium-producing areas. While Golden Triangle in Southeast Asia comprises of Myanmar, Laos and Thailand, the Golden Crescent in South Asia comprises of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. Moreover, hundreds of tourists arrive at the Maldives on a daily basis from across the globe, including Asia, Europe and other western countries. The exposure and the location do not only make it easy to smuggle drugs into the Maldives, but also make the country at risk of being used as a transshipment destination in the illicit drug trade. Actions being taken for prevention “The Maldives emphasizes the need to join forces, especially among international partners, to effectively counter the world drug problem. In line with this objective, Maldives is working with countries in its region to establish a regional coordination centre for South Asia through the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation,” said the Maldivian government official at the Thirtieth special session of United Nations General Assembly in 2016. Maldives Police Service is also making efforts along with other authorities to combat the drug problem in the Maldives. “To prevent Maldives being used as a transshipment destination in illicit drug trade and to prevent smuggling narcotics into the Maldives, We are building our capacity of detection, we are strengthening security at the airports and seaports continuously and we are focusing on increasing human resource capacity by providing necessary trainings to the officers at the airports and seaports and our anti-drug policies are strengthened as well,” Suzee said. With tightened surveillance across the Maldives to eliminate smuggling and distribution of drugs, the Maldives police and border authorities have also started using K-9 dogs to detect drug smugglers. Yet more efforts are still needed to overcome the drug problem. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Maldives emerging as hub illicit drug trade

Maldives is set to restore the death penalty due to rising crime and drug trafficking cases, a senior advisor to President Abdulla Yameen told Reuters today <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-army-occupies-parliament-19296">even as the </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-parliament-lockdown-military-acted-on-request-says-parliament-secretariat-18271">country comes to grip with the political turmoil </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-army-occupies-parliament-19296">in the country.</a>

The country has never carried out a single death penalty order since 1962 when the country gained independence from Britain. However, the present regime has decided to bring the order into practice.

&quot;It is to be used as a deterrent,&quot; Mohamed Hussain Shareef, a senior advisor to Yameen and head of foreign relations of the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) told Reuters in an interview in Colombo.

&quot;At the moment, overwhelmingly the people of Maldives are in support for implementation. It is a difficult decision for any government. But as a government, you have to safeguard the lives of innocent people,&quot; the minister added.

The last execution carried out by Maldives was in the pre-independence era back in 1954, ever since then, successive governments have resisted using the capital punishment as a mode of execution resorting instead to lethal injection.

Mohamed Hussain Shareef told Reuters that murders have been rising in the country with more than fifty reported over the last decade.

The United Nations and Amnesty have called the government not to allow the death penalty but the government has almost decided to give its stamp of approval.

Shareef said there are three convicted murderers facing capital punishment.

Mohamed Hussain Shareef told Reuters that murders have been rising in the country with more than fifty reported over the last decade

Maldives is set to restore the death penalty due to rising crime and drug trafficking cases, a senior advisor to President Abdulla Yameen told Reuters today even as the country comes to grip with the political turmoil in the country. The country has never carried out a single death penalty order since 1962 when the country gained independence from Britain. However, the present regime has decided to bring the order into practice. "It is to be used as a deterrent," Mohamed Hussain Shareef, a senior advisor to Yameen and head of foreign relations of the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) told Reuters in an interview in Colombo. "At the moment, overwhelmingly the people of Maldives are in support for implementation. It is a difficult decision for any government. But as a government, you have to safeguard the lives of innocent people," the minister added. The last execution carried out by Maldives was in the pre-independence era back in 1954, ever since then, successive governments have resisted using the capital punishment as a mode of execution resorting instead to lethal injection. Mohamed Hussain Shareef told Reuters that murders have been rising in the country with more than fifty reported over the last decade. The United Nations and Amnesty have called the government not to allow the death penalty but the government has almost decided to give its stamp of approval. Shareef said there are three convicted murderers facing capital punishment.

Maldives set to restore death penalty as Amnesty International, UN protest

The Maldivian Army has occupied Parliament.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
Male(Maldives): Army occupies parliament, opposition members not allowed to bring no confidence motion <a href="https://t.co/Glud3EYScx">pic.twitter.com/Glud3EYScx</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/899853247032066048">August 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

News reports said members of the Opposition are&nbsp;not being&nbsp;allowed to bring a no-confidence motion.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/maldives-military-takes-over-parliament-to-stop-presidents-impeachment-18238">The &nbsp;Maldivian Army&nbsp;had taken over the Parliament in July too</a> on the orders of the President and barred lawmakers from entering the building in a bid to stop the impeachment of Speaker and the President&#39;s close ally Abdulla Maseeh Mohamed&nbsp;over allegations of corruption, mismanagement and rights abuses.

The no-confidence motion against the Speaker, supported by 45 of the Parliament&#39;s 85 lawmakers as per the Opposition, was to be taken up on July 24 .&nbsp;The Opposition accused the Speaker of blocking its requests to summon government officials accused of corruption.&nbsp;

(More to follow)

Opposition members are reportedly not being allowed to bring a no-confidence motion

The Maldivian Army has occupied Parliament. Male(Maldives): Army occupies parliament, opposition members not allowed to bring no confidence motion pic.twitter.com/Glud3EYScx — ANI (@ANI) August 22, 2017 × News reports said members of the Opposition are not being allowed to bring a no-confidence motion. The Maldivian Army had taken over the Parliament in July too on the orders of the President and barred lawmakers from entering the building in a bid to stop the impeachment of Speaker and the President's close ally Abdulla Maseeh Mohamed over allegations of corruption, mismanagement and rights abuses. The no-confidence motion against the Speaker, supported by 45 of the Parliament's 85 lawmakers as per the Opposition, was to be taken up on July 24 . The Opposition accused the Speaker of blocking its requests to summon government officials accused of corruption. (More to follow)

Maldives: Army occupies Parliament

WION &nbsp;spoke with the former President of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, in London. He spoke of the influence Saudi Arabia has had on the Maldives, the one China is trying to exert on it, and that it is imperative that the Maldives be a stable, democratic nation &ndash; for there has never been a stable Indian Ocean region without a stable Maldives.

Here is a full transcript of the interview.&nbsp;

Q: Thank you President Nasheed. Now you were the first democratically elected leader of the Maldives in 2008 supported by a coalition of opposition to President Gayoom. Why did you get into politics?

A: My joining politics was an accident of history. I started as a journalist. But every time I wrote, they arrested me. So I lost my twenties to jail. As an attempt to not be arrested, I became a member of Parliament. They arrested me. The arrests kept coming and finally we left the Maldives and formed a political party-in-exile in Sri Lanka and later in England. Through that, we were able to galvanise our people to political activism, amend the constitution and have our first multi-party election. So, because I was involved in all of this all throughout, right from &#39;89 up to 2005-2006, I had been working very hard. I was only writing, but I worked hard to defend human rights and freedom of expression. And I was fortunate to win that election in 2008.&nbsp;

Q: But by 2012 you were forced to resign and then later you had to go into exile a lot of pro-democracy supporters felt abandoned, why did you have to leave?

A: I was arrested after the election. After the coup, we went into another election in 2013. That was rigged. They kept nullifying the election results and going for another round, for as many rounds till they won it. Then we decided to be a loyal opposition and remain one. But in 6-7 months, President Yameen decided to arrest me. And then as a former President, I was in prison for one year. But I was able to leave on medical grounds with help from the UK, the US, India and Sri Lanka. I came to England and sought refuge here. I will go back. I intend to go back to the Maldives, hopefully soon. Yes it&rsquo;s sad I am not there. I miss the Maldives a lot. But unfortunately I have very little option.&nbsp;

Q: Now President Gayoom ruled the country for 30 years with an iron fist. He has been accused of being a despot and accused of torture but now you joining forces with him to try and oust the current president. Aren&rsquo;t you going to lose a lot of support from your backers?

A: I think there is a far greater need to get democracy back on track than me being popular. The issue is that the country must get back on a more democratic track. For that, everyone must join hands and try to find common ground. I am very happy that we&rsquo;ve managed to structure that coalition.&nbsp;

Q: Even though President Gayoom for many of your countrymen wouldn&#39;t represent democrarcy?

&nbsp;A: All of us, President Gayoom, myself, all other political leaders and the people of the Maldives, we&rsquo;ve learned a lot over the last 15 years. We&rsquo;ve experienced probably what other countries have gone through in 50 years. We went through the same in a period of 8-9 years. We&rsquo;ve all learned a lot and we must see that country is back on a proper democratic course. To do that, we must bring everyone together and isolate the President. Again, I am happy to be able to do that.&nbsp;

Q: Now there are rumours that President Gayoom asked for 100 thousand dollars from you to show your honesty and integrity and commitment to this and you have paid half of that sum. what do you say to that?

A: Anyone who knows me would know that I wouldn&rsquo;t have 50,000 dollars in my bank account. Right now, I have 6,000 pounds. And for me, 50,000 dollars is a lot of money. And I don&rsquo;t think President Gayoom, or anyone in the Maldives actually, would believe that. These are rumours and we must understand that. There are no facts whatsoever to this rumour. It would be silly wouldn&rsquo;t it? President Gayoom asking me for money! I don&rsquo;t think that would every happen and no, it did not happen.&nbsp;

Q: So who is benefiting from spreading these rumours?

A: It is President Yameen who is benefitting from spreading these rumours.&nbsp;

Q: This is all coming from President Yameen?

A: He has a rumour-mongering mill that produces all these false allegations. Then he even brings them up in courts through trumped-up charges &ndash; kangaroo courts I would argue &ndash; and then sentences people with no facts on hand whatsoever. I am afraid that even today as we speak, one of the bigger businessmen in the Maldives has been charged for bribing MPs. When President Gayoom left the government, there were about 17 MPs who crossed sides. That&rsquo;s all that happened. People who supported President Gayoom crossed over to the Opposition.&nbsp;

Q: You have previously said that the vice president is a victim rather than an accomplice to president Yameen. How so?

A: When I started getting to know former vice president Ahmed Adeeb, he was very young. He still is, &nbsp;about 32 I think. Then he came into politics, into a big job, and was given tasks by the President. You would know from the television documentary how President Yameen had tasked him to do all these things. I am not suggesting that he is innocent. But we must look into all the connections and the bigger picture of what was happening. So I think Adeeb was a victim.&nbsp;

Q: Well in the documentary there is certainly a lot of proof on his phone that he is connected.&nbsp;

A: Of course he is connected. I am not arguing that he isn&rsquo;t. But we must go through a proper investigation, a proper trial to finally say that. What I am saying is that he came into this because of President Yameen. Yameen inducted him into these wrongdoings.&nbsp;

Q: So he is a victim of persuasion?

A: Yes, a victim of persuasion. Power is a rather odd thing. You can get all sorts of people to do anything. When you are the President. And I am telling you after having been one. And I am telling you that President Yameen is in the business of bringing in young people to task them with things that he wants done.&nbsp;

Q: So as a President do you think you have overstepped the mark with power then?

A: I would agree.&nbsp;

Q: How so?

A: After 30 years of single-party rule autocracy, it is possible to topple a dictator. But it is not so easy to uproot a dictatorship. We have never had multi-party governance or multi-party politics in the Maldives. We are still very feudal and therefore to move from feudalism to pluralism overnight is not possible. So there have been instances. I am sure if you go into my government and analyse it you would see instances of the President &ndash; me &ndash; doing doing or envisaging things that he shouldn&rsquo;t have.&nbsp;

Q: Anything spring to mind?

A: One of the things was the schools and the health system. Especially the power houses. Our islands have local, small powerhouses. We have 196 islands and we wanted to, in our govt, consolidate all these powerhouses into a number of bigger companies. But these powerhouses were actually owned by islanders and we were too harsh in trying to get that back into a system. That was our intention. But what we actually did is to confiscate someone else&rsquo;s property.&nbsp;

Q: It is very brave to admit your failings.&nbsp;

A: We have to move forward and learn from our mistakes. I worry about these things. I worry about how we governed and therefore I sit down and think and try to come out with it.&nbsp;

Q: Now you have been shuttling from Sri Lanka to London where you now live. has either of these countries provided you with any support for your cause?

A: England has given me safe refuge. I have not done anything wrong in Sri Lanka according to Lankan law. So Sri Lanka being a free country, I can always go there. I meet the President, PM &ndash; I&rsquo;ve known them before they came to power and before I became President. I used to work in Sri Lanka as a journalist in the nineties. So I know the country and a number of people, their society. Sri Lankans are always helpful. I have always had the view that to stabilise the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka must play a more robust role. Sri Lanka has 20 million people, 500,000 soldiers and a booming economy &ndash; they are I think 3% of world trade. It&rsquo;s a good country to take more control.&nbsp;

Q: Now you have received support from Western human rights groups and the celebrity lawyer, Amal Clooney. Now some in South Asia are weary of these groups believing they have a geo-political agenda. What do you say to those concerns?

&nbsp;A: Pain is not a geo-political agenda. Human rights is not. You feel pain, I feel pain. If you torture anyone, you will feel the pain. So I think it is very important we try to eradicate human rights abuses and see we get proper and correct governance. I don&rsquo;t think or believe that South Asians would mistake me or our intentions. I have lived almost all my life in South Asia. I am a South Asian and I believe that South Asian people are aware of our predicament and what we are trying to do.&nbsp;

Q: Now the Maldives have always been a traditional but tolerant Islamic country but that seems to be changing. Do you believe that is the influence of Saudi Wahhabism?

A: The Saudis have propagated a very narrow version of Islam in the Maldives for the last 40 years. Therefore, a fair number of people of the Maldives have prescribed to that view of Islam. That has also created a breeding ground for more radical Islam &ndash; the ISIS and other jihadi groups. So I think yes that it is very unfortunate that this has happened and is going on. We must understand that any Islamic movement anywhere in the world is going to have an impact on the Maldives as well. But we must be mindful of what&rsquo;s happening and we must protect, we must make sure we maintain our way of life. We were brought up as Muslims. We remain Muslims and we remain understanding Muslims not at odds with the rest of the world.&nbsp;

Q: The highest number of South Asian jihadist have come from the Maldives. Where is this radical Islam coming from?

A: From the propagation of this very narrow version of Islam by the Saudis for the last 40 years &ndash; they have their imams, they have their mosques, and they are now wanting to change the school curriculum. Apparently, train our judiciary. Apparently, train our military. Apparently, they also want to purchase an atoll. They of course do want to come to holiday and they are very welcome to do that. But all the other work they have done in the last so many years, we are just waking up to it.&nbsp;

Q: It could be philanthropic motives. They could just want to help the Maldives.

A: It could be but unfortunately the vested interest in it and the strategic agenda behind it, it is now becoming very obvious.&nbsp;

Q: Any you think that is radical Islam?

A: I think it is more than radical Islam. They know that the West is not going to continue buying their oil. And they know that their biggest market would lie in Asia, in China. But you cannot cross the Indian Ocean without crossing the Maldives. You can&rsquo;t take your oil to China without crossing the Maldives. Therefore, the Maldives becomes strategically important. It is our strategic location that is our undoing and therefore they have strategic designs on the Maldives.&nbsp;

Q: Now China is making strides in the Indian Ocean, they have bought an atoll and that has New Delhi worried. What do you think the Chinese strategy is?

A: We have signed into the Chinese maritime silk route under President Yameen. Again, they want to safeguard and own shipping routes and trade routes. And again, our strategic location means that therefore they must have clout in the Maldives. They have, already, as you mentioned, bought a number of islands and are in the process of establishing strategic infrastructure on these islands. This is very, very unfortunate but it is happening at rapid speed and therefore we must be very, very mindful of what&rsquo;s going on. If you do not have a stable Maldives, you will not have a stable Indian Ocean. Historically, this has always been true.&nbsp;

Q: Does China&rsquo;s desire to dominate the Ocean worry you?

A: Yes, it does worry us tremendously. We have always been an independent country for the last 2,000-3,000 years and we have a language of our own, a written history that goes back 1,500 years and we like to have control over our affairs. We like to be asked.&nbsp;

Q: You think that China&rsquo;s influence, buying the islands, means that China wants to control the Maldives?

A: It is difficult to see how the Chinese could do anything other than control the Maldives. Our biggest worry is human rights. And they are not concerned about democracy and governance. This is no reason not to like the Chinese &ndash; we do like the Chinese people, that&rsquo;s not the issue here. The issue is that they have a single-party state and want to impress their ideas, their views, their ways on us and we don&rsquo;t like that.&nbsp;

&nbsp;Q: Now many people will remember your high publicised underwater cabinet meeting on the ocean floor to highlight the rising sea levels. Was that a publicity stunt?

A: Our means are very modest we don&rsquo;t have large funds for publicity. When we went to the 2009 Copenhagen summit, we were of the view that the international community must understand the gravity of the issue, especially about low-lying islands. We asked a publicity company but they quoted a huge figure which we couldn&rsquo;t pay. So we thought let&rsquo;s give it a shot ourselves. And came up with this idea. The objective was to impress upon the international community the gravity of the issue. And I hope that we achieved, and I believe we achieved, that objective.&nbsp;

Q: How serious is climate change for the Maldives? Is it the most pressing issue?

A: Climate change is the most pressing issue. We will not be there. Sea levels will rise. It&rsquo;s a done deal now. So, we must go into more adaptation, we must find ways how we may be able to survive after climate change.&nbsp;

Q: There is no reversing?

A: There is no reversing this, with respect to the Maldives. The planet is going to get hotter by 2 degrees. Because we already have 400 parts per million of carbon in our atmosphere, the planet is heating. Our coral is bleaching, the seas are rising, the glaciers are melting &ndash; we can see all this already. It is very obvious. You can&rsquo;t cut a deal with physics. You can&rsquo;t negotiate with the laws of science and it is madness to think we could find other solutions. No, we can&rsquo;t. Unfortunately, we are now faced with this predicament, this difficulty, and now the only option available to us would be heavy adaptation. And even in adaptation, the most important measures are democracy, governance and protection of human rights. Without that, you do the wrong things, build the wrong water breakers at the wrong places, you do everything wrong. So first is democracy and then, perhaps better adaptation methods. Again, I would seek more biological natural adaptation than concrete adaptation.&nbsp;

Q: Were you then dismayed when you heard the American President, Donald Trump, say that climate change isn&rsquo;t happening?

A: The American people would understand and would know. I don&rsquo;t think any politician can change these facts. We can say these things. There are people who still don&rsquo;t believe that man landed on the moon. Even in the Maldives, I&rsquo;ve met many such. But that doesn&rsquo;t mean people didn&rsquo;t go to the moon. Again, the science is sorted.&nbsp;

Q: But he is not any man. He is the President of the United States.Does that not worry you?

A: Well, we have to respect the decision of the people of the United States. They decided to elect a P:resident as they always do. And for all sorts of reasons we now have one whom some of the liberal left do not like. But we have seen so many Republican presidents. People had reservations about them but they came out looking like having done good work. I&rsquo;ll point to President Reagan.&nbsp;

Q: So you have hope.&nbsp;

A: Because I am a centre-right politician!

Q: Have you met Prime Minister Modi?

A: I have met PM Modi before he became PM. But when the election happened, I was in jail so I didn&rsquo;t have an opportunity to meet him as PM.&nbsp;

Q: What do you make of him as a leader?

A: I think he is an excellent leader. I quite like the way he is going about it. Indian development is so rapid and for the benefit of not only South Asia but the rest of the world as well.&nbsp;

&nbsp;Q: Now India has been providing financial aid to the Maldives - supporting a hospital and even the army - are you somewhat disappointed that democratic India is supporting the current government and not backing your cause?

A: No, I am not disappointed. I think India should always be engaged in the Maldives no matter who is in government. think it would be highly irresponsible if the Indian government did not do that.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="videos-block">
<div class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"><iframe class="embed-responsive-item" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yz2D3u4G05E"></iframe></div>
</div>

<div class="media-description">
WION&#39;s Amanda Clark spoke with the former President of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, in London. He talks about the influence Saudi Arabia has had on the Maldives, China&#39;s desire to dominate the Indian ocean, Indian PM Modi and more. (WION)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

&nbsp;

Mohamed Nasheed added that 'India should always be engaged in the Maldives no matter who is in government'

WION spoke with the former President of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, in London. He spoke of the influence Saudi Arabia has had on the Maldives, the one China is trying to exert on it, and that it is imperative that the Maldives be a stable, democratic nation – for there has never been a stable Indian Ocean region without a stable Maldives. Here is a full transcript of the interview. Q: Thank you President Nasheed. Now you were the first democratically elected leader of the Maldives in 2008 supported by a coalition of opposition to President Gayoom. Why did you get into politics? A: My joining politics was an accident of history. I started as a journalist. But every time I wrote, they arrested me. So I lost my twenties to jail. As an attempt to not be arrested, I became a member of Parliament. They arrested me. The arrests kept coming and finally we left the Maldives and formed a political party-in-exile in Sri Lanka and later in England. Through that, we were able to galvanise our people to political activism, amend the constitution and have our first multi-party election. So, because I was involved in all of this all throughout, right from '89 up to 2005-2006, I had been working very hard. I was only writing, but I worked hard to defend human rights and freedom of expression. And I was fortunate to win that election in 2008. Q: But by 2012 you were forced to resign and then later you had to go into exile a lot of pro-democracy supporters felt abandoned, why did you have to leave? A: I was arrested after the election. After the coup, we went into another election in 2013. That was rigged. They kept nullifying the election results and going for another round, for as many rounds till they won it. Then we decided to be a loyal opposition and remain one. But in 6-7 months, President Yameen decided to arrest me. And then as a former President, I was in prison for one year. But I was able to leave on medical grounds with help from the UK, the US, India and Sri Lanka. I came to England and sought refuge here. I will go back. I intend to go back to the Maldives, hopefully soon. Yes it’s sad I am not there. I miss the Maldives a lot. But unfortunately I have very little option. Q: Now President Gayoom ruled the country for 30 years with an iron fist. He has been accused of being a despot and accused of torture but now you joining forces with him to try and oust the current president. Aren’t you going to lose a lot of support from your backers? A: I think there is a far greater need to get democracy back on track than me being popular. The issue is that the country must get back on a more democratic track. For that, everyone must join hands and try to find common ground. I am very happy that we’ve managed to structure that coalition. Q: Even though President Gayoom for many of your countrymen wouldn't represent democrarcy? A: All of us, President Gayoom, myself, all other political leaders and the people of the Maldives, we’ve learned a lot over the last 15 years. We’ve experienced probably what other countries have gone through in 50 years. We went through the same in a period of 8-9 years. We’ve all learned a lot and we must see that country is back on a proper democratic course. To do that, we must bring everyone together and isolate the President. Again, I am happy to be able to do that. Q: Now there are rumours that President Gayoom asked for 100 thousand dollars from you to show your honesty and integrity and commitment to this and you have paid half of that sum. what do you say to that? A: Anyone who knows me would know that I wouldn’t have 50,000 dollars in my bank account. Right now, I have 6,000 pounds. And for me, 50,000 dollars is a lot of money. And I don’t think President Gayoom, or anyone in the Maldives actually, would believe that. These are rumours and we must understand that. There are no facts whatsoever to this rumour. It would be silly wouldn’t it? President Gayoom asking me for money! I don’t think that would every happen and no, it did not happen. Q: So who is benefiting from spreading these rumours? A: It is President Yameen who is benefitting from spreading these rumours. Q: This is all coming from President Yameen? A: He has a rumour-mongering mill that produces all these false allegations. Then he even brings them up in courts through trumped-up charges – kangaroo courts I would argue – and then sentences people with no facts on hand whatsoever. I am afraid that even today as we speak, one of the bigger businessmen in the Maldives has been charged for bribing MPs. When President Gayoom left the government, there were about 17 MPs who crossed sides. That’s all that happened. People who supported President Gayoom crossed over to the Opposition. Q: You have previously said that the vice president is a victim rather than an accomplice to president Yameen. How so? A: When I started getting to know former vice president Ahmed Adeeb, he was very young. He still is, about 32 I think. Then he came into politics, into a big job, and was given tasks by the President. You would know from the television documentary how President Yameen had tasked him to do all these things. I am not suggesting that he is innocent. But we must look into all the connections and the bigger picture of what was happening. So I think Adeeb was a victim. Q: Well in the documentary there is certainly a lot of proof on his phone that he is connected. A: Of course he is connected. I am not arguing that he isn’t. But we must go through a proper investigation, a proper trial to finally say that. What I am saying is that he came into this because of President Yameen. Yameen inducted him into these wrongdoings. Q: So he is a victim of persuasion? A: Yes, a victim of persuasion. Power is a rather odd thing. You can get all sorts of people to do anything. When you are the President. And I am telling you after having been one. And I am telling you that President Yameen is in the business of bringing in young people to task them with things that he wants done. Q: So as a President do you think you have overstepped the mark with power then? A: I would agree. Q: How so? A: After 30 years of single-party rule autocracy, it is possible to topple a dictator. But it is not so easy to uproot a dictatorship. We have never had multi-party governance or multi-party politics in the Maldives. We are still very feudal and therefore to move from feudalism to pluralism overnight is not possible. So there have been instances. I am sure if you go into my government and analyse it you would see instances of the President – me – doing doing or envisaging things that he shouldn’t have. Q: Anything spring to mind? A: One of the things was the schools and the health system. Especially the power houses. Our islands have local, small powerhouses. We have 196 islands and we wanted to, in our govt, consolidate all these powerhouses into a number of bigger companies. But these powerhouses were actually owned by islanders and we were too harsh in trying to get that back into a system. That was our intention. But what we actually did is to confiscate someone else’s property. Q: It is very brave to admit your failings. A: We have to move forward and learn from our mistakes. I worry about these things. I worry about how we governed and therefore I sit down and think and try to come out with it. Q: Now you have been shuttling from Sri Lanka to London where you now live. has either of these countries provided you with any support for your cause? A: England has given me safe refuge. I have not done anything wrong in Sri Lanka according to Lankan law. So Sri Lanka being a free country, I can always go there. I meet the President, PM – I’ve known them before they came to power and before I became President. I used to work in Sri Lanka as a journalist in the nineties. So I know the country and a number of people, their society. Sri Lankans are always helpful. I have always had the view that to stabilise the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka must play a more robust role. Sri Lanka has 20 million people, 500,000 soldiers and a booming economy – they are I think 3% of world trade. It’s a good country to take more control. Q: Now you have received support from Western human rights groups and the celebrity lawyer, Amal Clooney. Now some in South Asia are weary of these groups believing they have a geo-political agenda. What do you say to those concerns? A: Pain is not a geo-political agenda. Human rights is not. You feel pain, I feel pain. If you torture anyone, you will feel the pain. So I think it is very important we try to eradicate human rights abuses and see we get proper and correct governance. I don’t think or believe that South Asians would mistake me or our intentions. I have lived almost all my life in South Asia. I am a South Asian and I believe that South Asian people are aware of our predicament and what we are trying to do. Q: Now the Maldives have always been a traditional but tolerant Islamic country but that seems to be changing. Do you believe that is the influence of Saudi Wahhabism? A: The Saudis have propagated a very narrow version of Islam in the Maldives for the last 40 years. Therefore, a fair number of people of the Maldives have prescribed to that view of Islam. That has also created a breeding ground for more radical Islam – the ISIS and other jihadi groups. So I think yes that it is very unfortunate that this has happened and is going on. We must understand that any Islamic movement anywhere in the world is going to have an impact on the Maldives as well. But we must be mindful of what’s happening and we must protect, we must make sure we maintain our way of life. We were brought up as Muslims. We remain Muslims and we remain understanding Muslims not at odds with the rest of the world. Q: The highest number of South Asian jihadist have come from the Maldives. Where is this radical Islam coming from? A: From the propagation of this very narrow version of Islam by the Saudis for the last 40 years – they have their imams, they have their mosques, and they are now wanting to change the school curriculum. Apparently, train our judiciary. Apparently, train our military. Apparently, they also want to purchase an atoll. They of course do want to come to holiday and they are very welcome to do that. But all the other work they have done in the last so many years, we are just waking up to it. Q: It could be philanthropic motives. They could just want to help the Maldives. A: It could be but unfortunately the vested interest in it and the strategic agenda behind it, it is now becoming very obvious. Q: Any you think that is radical Islam? A: I think it is more than radical Islam. They know that the West is not going to continue buying their oil. And they know that their biggest market would lie in Asia, in China. But you cannot cross the Indian Ocean without crossing the Maldives. You can’t take your oil to China without crossing the Maldives. Therefore, the Maldives becomes strategically important. It is our strategic location that is our undoing and therefore they have strategic designs on the Maldives. Q: Now China is making strides in the Indian Ocean, they have bought an atoll and that has New Delhi worried. What do you think the Chinese strategy is? A: We have signed into the Chinese maritime silk route under President Yameen. Again, they want to safeguard and own shipping routes and trade routes. And again, our strategic location means that therefore they must have clout in the Maldives. They have, already, as you mentioned, bought a number of islands and are in the process of establishing strategic infrastructure on these islands. This is very, very unfortunate but it is happening at rapid speed and therefore we must be very, very mindful of what’s going on. If you do not have a stable Maldives, you will not have a stable Indian Ocean. Historically, this has always been true. Q: Does China’s desire to dominate the Ocean worry you? A: Yes, it does worry us tremendously. We have always been an independent country for the last 2,000-3,000 years and we have a language of our own, a written history that goes back 1,500 years and we like to have control over our affairs. We like to be asked. Q: You think that China’s influence, buying the islands, means that China wants to control the Maldives? A: It is difficult to see how the Chinese could do anything other than control the Maldives. Our biggest worry is human rights. And they are not concerned about democracy and governance. This is no reason not to like the Chinese – we do like the Chinese people, that’s not the issue here. The issue is that they have a single-party state and want to impress their ideas, their views, their ways on us and we don’t like that. Q: Now many people will remember your high publicised underwater cabinet meeting on the ocean floor to highlight the rising sea levels. Was that a publicity stunt? A: Our means are very modest we don’t have large funds for publicity. When we went to the 2009 Copenhagen summit, we were of the view that the international community must understand the gravity of the issue, especially about low-lying islands. We asked a publicity company but they quoted a huge figure which we couldn’t pay. So we thought let’s give it a shot ourselves. And came up with this idea. The objective was to impress upon the international community the gravity of the issue. And I hope that we achieved, and I believe we achieved, that objective. Q: How serious is climate change for the Maldives? Is it the most pressing issue? A: Climate change is the most pressing issue. We will not be there. Sea levels will rise. It’s a done deal now. So, we must go into more adaptation, we must find ways how we may be able to survive after climate change. Q: There is no reversing? A: There is no reversing this, with respect to the Maldives. The planet is going to get hotter by 2 degrees. Because we already have 400 parts per million of carbon in our atmosphere, the planet is heating. Our coral is bleaching, the seas are rising, the glaciers are melting – we can see all this already. It is very obvious. You can’t cut a deal with physics. You can’t negotiate with the laws of science and it is madness to think we could find other solutions. No, we can’t. Unfortunately, we are now faced with this predicament, this difficulty, and now the only option available to us would be heavy adaptation. And even in adaptation, the most important measures are democracy, governance and protection of human rights. Without that, you do the wrong things, build the wrong water breakers at the wrong places, you do everything wrong. So first is democracy and then, perhaps better adaptation methods. Again, I would seek more biological natural adaptation than concrete adaptation. Q: Were you then dismayed when you heard the American President, Donald Trump, say that climate change isn’t happening? A: The American people would understand and would know. I don’t think any politician can change these facts. We can say these things. There are people who still don’t believe that man landed on the moon. Even in the Maldives, I’ve met many such. But that doesn’t mean people didn’t go to the moon. Again, the science is sorted. Q: But he is not any man. He is the President of the United States.Does that not worry you? A: Well, we have to respect the decision of the people of the United States. They decided to elect a P:resident as they always do. And for all sorts of reasons we now have one whom some of the liberal left do not like. But we have seen so many Republican presidents. People had reservations about them but they came out looking like having done good work. I’ll point to President Reagan. Q: So you have hope. A: Because I am a centre-right politician! Q: Have you met Prime Minister Modi? A: I have met PM Modi before he became PM. But when the election happened, I was in jail so I didn’t have an opportunity to meet him as PM. Q: What do you make of him as a leader? A: I think he is an excellent leader. I quite like the way he is going about it. Indian development is so rapid and for the benefit of not only South Asia but the rest of the world as well. Q: Now India has been providing financial aid to the Maldives - supporting a hospital and even the army - are you somewhat disappointed that democratic India is supporting the current government and not backing your cause? A: No, I am not disappointed. I think India should always be engaged in the Maldives no matter who is in government. think it would be highly irresponsible if the Indian government did not do that. WION's Amanda Clark spoke with the former President of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, in London. He talks about the influence Saudi Arabia has had on the Maldives, China's desire to dominate the Indian ocean, Indian PM Modi and more. (WION) ×

It is difficult to see how the Chinese could do anything other than control the Maldives: Ex-Maldives president

Police in the Maldives said on Wednesday they had arrested two suspects for the murder of a prominent liberal blogger who was critical of Islamist radicalism and government corruption.

Social media activist Yameen Rasheed was stabbed to death on April 23. He had fronted a campaign to find a journalist presumed abducted in 2014, and his death has increased concerns over free speech in the Maldives.

The tropical Indian Ocean archipelago of 400,000 people has been mired in political instability since its uneasy shift to democracy in 2008, and critics accuse President Abdulla Yameen of autocratic behaviour.

&quot;Through this arrest and several leads uncovered by the investigation team, the Maldives Police Service is confident that the investigation into this case can be successfully concluded in the coming days,&quot; the police said in a statement.

The government has faced international pressure to investigate Rasheed&#39;s murder, the fourth such crime in the Maldives in the past five years.

The main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) have demanded an international probe, citing lack of police action over the previous crimes, which as well as the abduction of the journalist also include the murder of a legislator and an attack on another journalist.

Rasheed&#39;s father, Hussain Rasheed, also called on Wednesday for an international investigation, telling Reuters that he did not trust the Maldives&#39; police.

Close friends of Rasheed have said the 29-year-old blogger complained of receiving death threats after he posted criticism of radical Islam, but the police failed to act.

MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor expressed scepticism over the arrests.

&quot;Absolutely nothing has happened in the past five years over the other three crimes. But now suddenly within barely a week they say they have arrested two people. This is to impress the disgruntled public,&quot; Ghafoor told Reuters.

Significant numbers of radicalised Maldives youths have enlisted to fight for Islamic State in the Middle East. Diplomats have told Reuters that moderate Islamists have been threatened via social media for their &quot;anti-Islamic&quot; views.

Many potential challengers in elections due in 2018 have been arrested for alleged security offences, while several activists have also been detained.

International criticism of the Maldives government increased after former president Mohamed Nasheed was jailed in 2015 on terrorism charges following a rapid trial that observers said was politically motivated.

(Reuters)

Social media activist Yameen Rasheed was stabbed to death on April 23

Police in the Maldives said on Wednesday they had arrested two suspects for the murder of a prominent liberal blogger who was critical of Islamist radicalism and government corruption. Social media activist Yameen Rasheed was stabbed to death on April 23. He had fronted a campaign to find a journalist presumed abducted in 2014, and his death has increased concerns over free speech in the Maldives. The tropical Indian Ocean archipelago of 400,000 people has been mired in political instability since its uneasy shift to democracy in 2008, and critics accuse President Abdulla Yameen of autocratic behaviour. "Through this arrest and several leads uncovered by the investigation team, the Maldives Police Service is confident that the investigation into this case can be successfully concluded in the coming days," the police said in a statement. The government has faced international pressure to investigate Rasheed's murder, the fourth such crime in the Maldives in the past five years. The main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) have demanded an international probe, citing lack of police action over the previous crimes, which as well as the abduction of the journalist also include the murder of a legislator and an attack on another journalist. Rasheed's father, Hussain Rasheed, also called on Wednesday for an international investigation, telling Reuters that he did not trust the Maldives' police. Close friends of Rasheed have said the 29-year-old blogger complained of receiving death threats after he posted criticism of radical Islam, but the police failed to act. MDP spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor expressed scepticism over the arrests. "Absolutely nothing has happened in the past five years over the other three crimes. But now suddenly within barely a week they say they have arrested two people. This is to impress the disgruntled public," Ghafoor told Reuters. Significant numbers of radicalised Maldives youths have enlisted to fight for Islamic State in the Middle East. Diplomats have told Reuters that moderate Islamists have been threatened via social media for their "anti-Islamic" views. Many potential challengers in elections due in 2018 have been arrested for alleged security offences, while several activists have also been detained. International criticism of the Maldives government increased after former president Mohamed Nasheed was jailed in 2015 on terrorism charges following a rapid trial that observers said was politically motivated. (Reuters)

Maldives: Police arrest two suspects in blogger's murder case

The last free opposition leader in the Maldives has been arrested as part of a major government crackdown on rival politicians who narrowly failed to seize control of parliament in the honeymoon islands.

Qasim Ibrahim, who ran for president in 2013 and currently heads the Jumhooree Party (JP), was one of four signatories of an opposition unity deal aimed at toppling President Abdulla Yameen.

The bid failed after Yameen ordered troops to remove the dissenting MPs from the floor of parliament, causing chaotic scenes and prompting the US to urge the Maldives to restore faith in democracy.

Ibrahim was taken into custody on Thursday night after police questioned him about allegations he bribed legislators, according to a coalition of dissidents known as the Maldives United Opposition (MUO).

&quot;With the arrest of Qasim Ibrahim, every opposition leader in the Maldives has now been arrested and is under some form of detention,&quot; the MUO said in a statement.

There was no immediate reaction from the Maldives government, but the president`s office repeated a statement denying accusations of intimidation.

Since coming to power, President Yameen has presided over a general crackdown on political dissent in the nation of 340,000 that has raised fears over the country`s stability and dented its image as a tourism paradise.

In 2015, former leader Mohamed Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison on terrorism charges that were widely seen as politically motivated.&nbsp;

Nasheed, who heads the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party from London where he lives in exile, became the country`s first democratically elected president in 2008, but was narrowly defeated by Yameen in a controversial 2013 election run-off.

He was slapped with fresh terrorism charges last week after leading the opposition move in parliament remotely.

The new charges against him stemmed from when Yameen was briefly detained in 2010, allegedly under orders from Nasheed, who was president at the time.

Nasheed, who has pledged to return to the honeymoon islands to contest the 2018 election, said last month`s incident in parliament exposed the government`s shaky majority.

(AFP)

Qasim Ibrahim was taken into custody on Thursday night after police questioned him about allegations he bribed legislators

The last free opposition leader in the Maldives has been arrested as part of a major government crackdown on rival politicians who narrowly failed to seize control of parliament in the honeymoon islands. Qasim Ibrahim, who ran for president in 2013 and currently heads the Jumhooree Party (JP), was one of four signatories of an opposition unity deal aimed at toppling President Abdulla Yameen. The bid failed after Yameen ordered troops to remove the dissenting MPs from the floor of parliament, causing chaotic scenes and prompting the US to urge the Maldives to restore faith in democracy. Ibrahim was taken into custody on Thursday night after police questioned him about allegations he bribed legislators, according to a coalition of dissidents known as the Maldives United Opposition (MUO). "With the arrest of Qasim Ibrahim, every opposition leader in the Maldives has now been arrested and is under some form of detention," the MUO said in a statement. There was no immediate reaction from the Maldives government, but the president`s office repeated a statement denying accusations of intimidation. Since coming to power, President Yameen has presided over a general crackdown on political dissent in the nation of 340,000 that has raised fears over the country`s stability and dented its image as a tourism paradise. In 2015, former leader Mohamed Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison on terrorism charges that were widely seen as politically motivated. Nasheed, who heads the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party from London where he lives in exile, became the country`s first democratically elected president in 2008, but was narrowly defeated by Yameen in a controversial 2013 election run-off. He was slapped with fresh terrorism charges last week after leading the opposition move in parliament remotely. The new charges against him stemmed from when Yameen was briefly detained in 2010, allegedly under orders from Nasheed, who was president at the time. Nasheed, who has pledged to return to the honeymoon islands to contest the 2018 election, said last month`s incident in parliament exposed the government`s shaky majority. (AFP)

Key opposition figure arrested in crackdown in Maldives

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has cancelled his state visit to the Maldives over the H1N1 outbreak in the island nation.&nbsp;

The government of Maldives announced the postponement of the Saudi king&#39;s visit in an emergency press conference held at the President&#39;s Office on Friday morning.

During the press conference, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohamed Asim, said that when the fresh dates are confirmed for the king&#39;s visit, it will&nbsp;be announced.&nbsp;

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz was scheduled to visit Maldives tomorrow as a last destination of his month-long Asia tour.&nbsp;

The monarch has already been to Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, and he is now in China. He was supposed to arrive in&nbsp;Maldives on Saturday, and&nbsp;was scheduled to spend a week in the Indian Ocean archipelago, out of which six days were planned as a holiday.

Maldives government had been preparing for the monarch&#39;s visit; Rehearsing for a red carpet welcome and conducting security drills.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, H1N1 influenza outbreak in the island nation has been spreading. More than 100 people have&nbsp;tested positive for H1N1 so far. Two people have died of the flu:&nbsp;A&nbsp;man in his twenties died early in March, while a 51-year-old woman died late Wednesday.

In the attempt to control the outbreak, schools, colleges, and universities have been shut for the time being, and the general public have been&nbsp;advised not to travel unless it&#39;s deemed absolutely necessary.&nbsp;

As pregnant women are one of the groups vulnerable to the outbreak, the government has temporarily relieved pregnant civil servants of duty as a precaution. Several independent authorities have relieved pregnant staff&nbsp;as well.&nbsp;

(WION)

The Saudi King will reschedule his visit as the influenza outbreak hits the island nation. Meanwhile, residents are also taking precautions

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has cancelled his state visit to the Maldives over the H1N1 outbreak in the island nation. The government of Maldives announced the postponement of the Saudi king's visit in an emergency press conference held at the President's Office on Friday morning. During the press conference, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Mohamed Asim, said that when the fresh dates are confirmed for the king's visit, it will be announced. Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz was scheduled to visit Maldives tomorrow as a last destination of his month-long Asia tour. The monarch has already been to Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, and he is now in China. He was supposed to arrive in Maldives on Saturday, and was scheduled to spend a week in the Indian Ocean archipelago, out of which six days were planned as a holiday. Maldives government had been preparing for the monarch's visit; Rehearsing for a red carpet welcome and conducting security drills. Meanwhile, H1N1 influenza outbreak in the island nation has been spreading. More than 100 people have tested positive for H1N1 so far. Two people have died of the flu: A man in his twenties died early in March, while a 51-year-old woman died late Wednesday. In the attempt to control the outbreak, schools, colleges, and universities have been shut for the time being, and the general public have been advised not to travel unless it's deemed absolutely necessary. As pregnant women are one of the groups vulnerable to the outbreak, the government has temporarily relieved pregnant civil servants of duty as a precaution. Several independent authorities have relieved pregnant staff as well. (WION)

Saudi King postpones state visit to Maldives over H1N1 outbreak

Former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed&nbsp;received the 2017 Geneva Summit Courage Award&nbsp;at the 9th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy on Tuesday.

The&nbsp;Rights&nbsp;Award was presented to Nasheed by former high commissioner of the&nbsp;Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe&nbsp;(OSCE),&nbsp;Astrid Thors, on behalf of the&nbsp;coalition of 25 non-governmental human rights groups.

&quot;To President Mohamed Nasheed, for inspiring the world with your extraordinary courage in the defense of liberty and universal human rights,&quot; Thors said while presenting the award.

&quot; It is a great honor to receive this award,&quot;&nbsp;said Nasheed, who thanked human rights lawyer Amal Clooney for helping in&nbsp;freeing him.

&quot;It&#39;s very encouraging to see so many good people doing good work,&nbsp;We may stumble, we may fall, but I assure everyone, we will pick ourselves up and continue with the same work with more vigour than the past.&quot; He said.

The annual summit,&nbsp;held on the eve of the United Nations Human Rights Council&#39;s annual session, seeks to address the human rights issues around the world that&nbsp;require global attention.

Nasheed&nbsp;joined top&nbsp;dissidents from Cuba, Russia, Turkey, Tibet, North Korea, Vietnam, Mauritania, Iran, Venezuela, who testified on&nbsp;abuses and urged the United Nations&nbsp;Human Rights Council, which opens its annual session next week, to address the human rights records of their home nations.

Nasheed,&nbsp;who has&nbsp;been charged with terrorism and sentenced to jail for 13 years&nbsp;over the abduction and arbitrary detention of a judge during his presidency, has been&nbsp;living in self-exile in the United Kingdom under political asylum for over a year.

(WION)

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Nasheed has been?living in self-exile in the United Kingdom under political asylum for over a year

Former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed received the 2017 Geneva Summit Courage Award at the 9th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy on Tuesday. The Rights Award was presented to Nasheed by former high commissioner of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Astrid Thors, on behalf of the coalition of 25 non-governmental human rights groups. "To President Mohamed Nasheed, for inspiring the world with your extraordinary courage in the defense of liberty and universal human rights," Thors said while presenting the award. " It is a great honor to receive this award," said Nasheed, who thanked human rights lawyer Amal Clooney for helping in freeing him. "It's very encouraging to see so many good people doing good work, We may stumble, we may fall, but I assure everyone, we will pick ourselves up and continue with the same work with more vigour than the past." He said. The annual summit, held on the eve of the United Nations Human Rights Council's annual session, seeks to address the human rights issues around the world that require global attention. Nasheed joined top dissidents from Cuba, Russia, Turkey, Tibet, North Korea, Vietnam, Mauritania, Iran, Venezuela, who testified on abuses and urged the United Nations Human Rights Council, which opens its annual session next week, to address the human rights records of their home nations. Nasheed, who has been charged with terrorism and sentenced to jail for 13 years over the abduction and arbitrary detention of a judge during his presidency, has been living in self-exile in the United Kingdom under political asylum for over a year. (WION)

Maldives: Former president Mohamed Nasheed receives 2017 Geneva Summit Courage Award

The president of the Maldives Abdulla Yameen&nbsp;said on Monday&nbsp;the government is ready to welcome self-exiled politicians abroad if they want to return home.

However, he&nbsp;highlighted the jail sentences to be served by some of the self-exiled politicians.

&quot;The people exiled&nbsp;abroad can return to Maldives. But if they have a sentence to serve, once they come back to Maldives it&#39;s up to them to decide whether they would go home or somewhere else. But there is nothing stopping them from coming back to the Maldives. We would even welcome that,&quot; President Yameen said speaking at a ceremony held in Himmafushi island.

He said his administration would not target politicians and arrest them out of the boundaries of the law.&nbsp;

Several politicians including former president Mohamed Nasheed and former vice president Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed are living in self-exile in the UK.

Yameen said Maldives still enjoys all the rights in the&nbsp;constitutional democracy including freedom of speech, freedom assembly&nbsp;and freedom of press.

However, in the past few years Maldives have&nbsp;witnessed a significant crackdown on the media. New rules and regulation restrict&nbsp;freedom of assembly as well as freedom of expression and speech.

One such law is the Anti-defamation and freedom of expression Act which limits freedom of speech and expression with hefty fines.

(WION)

President Abdulla Yameen said his administration would not target politicians and arrest them out of the boundaries of the law

The president of the Maldives Abdulla Yameen said on Monday the government is ready to welcome self-exiled politicians abroad if they want to return home. However, he highlighted the jail sentences to be served by some of the self-exiled politicians. "The people exiled abroad can return to Maldives. But if they have a sentence to serve, once they come back to Maldives it's up to them to decide whether they would go home or somewhere else. But there is nothing stopping them from coming back to the Maldives. We would even welcome that," President Yameen said speaking at a ceremony held in Himmafushi island. He said his administration would not target politicians and arrest them out of the boundaries of the law. Several politicians including former president Mohamed Nasheed and former vice president Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed are living in self-exile in the UK. Yameen said Maldives still enjoys all the rights in the constitutional democracy including freedom of speech, freedom assembly and freedom of press. However, in the past few years Maldives have witnessed a significant crackdown on the media. New rules and regulation restrict freedom of assembly as well as freedom of expression and speech. One such law is the Anti-defamation and freedom of expression Act which limits freedom of speech and expression with hefty fines. (WION)

Maldives govt ready to welcome self-exiled politicians

The Maldives police arrested a Maldivian man for allegedly trying to cross into Syria to join the civil war there, the Maldives Independent reported.&nbsp;

On Tuesday, in a series of tweets, the police said he was&ldquo;on his way to join Syrian civil war.&rdquo; The man&#39;s identity and the&nbsp;date of extradition were&nbsp;not disclosed.&nbsp;

&ldquo;In order to reduce the number of such cases, we are expanding cooperation with international actors and are working on increasing the police&rsquo;s capacity,&rdquo; the Maldives&nbsp;Police&#39;s tweet read.&nbsp;

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
A Maldivian arrested and brought back to Male&#39; on his way to join Syrian civil war.
&mdash; Maldives Police (@PoliceMv) <a href="https://twitter.com/PoliceMv/status/829039995122020354">February 7, 2017</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

According to media reports, this is the fourth Maldivian citizen to be arrested&nbsp;for&nbsp;trying to&nbsp;join the war in Syria. The other three are currently under trial&nbsp;facing terrorism charges,&nbsp;the Maldives Independent reported.&nbsp;

If convicted, they can get up to 20 years in prison.&nbsp;

Several Maldivians are leaving the beautiful island nation mostly to fight within&nbsp;al-Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as Al-Nusra Front, in Syria.&nbsp;

At least six Maldivians are believed to have died fighting in Syria.&nbsp;

Although no official figures are available, former Maldivian president Nasheed claims there could as many as 200 Maldivians fighting in Syria.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/exclusive-from-the-white-sand-beaches-to-the-arid-syrian-desert-young-maldivians-swell-the-ranks-of-islamist-terrorists-11241">WION</a> had earlier reported that the growing radicalism in the country could be attributed to some radical preachers educated in Saudi Arabia and spreading the strict Salafi version of Islam in the archipelago.&nbsp;

This not only poses a threat for the Maldives but for India as well, a close neighbour which has a fair share of its own citizens attempting to participate in the war.&nbsp;

In 2016, about 50 Indians have been arrested for having suspected links to the IS. The detainees mostly belonged to states of Maharashtra and Kerala, <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/india-52-detained-for-having-links-to-islamic-state-in-2016-11485">WION</a> reported.&nbsp;

After allegations that current President Abdulla Yameen&#39;s administration had failed to curb the threat, the Parliament in 2015 introduced a law which criminalises&nbsp;people joining foreign wars.&nbsp;

(WION)

The police said the man was brought back to the Maldives with the help of 'international' agencies

The Maldives police arrested a Maldivian man for allegedly trying to cross into Syria to join the civil war there, the Maldives Independent reported. On Tuesday, in a series of tweets, the police said he was“on his way to join Syrian civil war.” The man's identity and the date of extradition were not disclosed. “In order to reduce the number of such cases, we are expanding cooperation with international actors and are working on increasing the police’s capacity,” the Maldives Police's tweet read. A Maldivian arrested and brought back to Male' on his way to join Syrian civil war. — Maldives Police (@PoliceMv) February 7, 2017 × According to media reports, this is the fourth Maldivian citizen to be arrested for trying to join the war in Syria. The other three are currently under trial facing terrorism charges, the Maldives Independent reported. If convicted, they can get up to 20 years in prison. Several Maldivians are leaving the beautiful island nation mostly to fight within al-Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as Al-Nusra Front, in Syria. At least six Maldivians are believed to have died fighting in Syria. Although no official figures are available, former Maldivian president Nasheed claims there could as many as 200 Maldivians fighting in Syria. WION had earlier reported that the growing radicalism in the country could be attributed to some radical preachers educated in Saudi Arabia and spreading the strict Salafi version of Islam in the archipelago. This not only poses a threat for the Maldives but for India as well, a close neighbour which has a fair share of its own citizens attempting to participate in the war. In 2016, about 50 Indians have been arrested for having suspected links to the IS. The detainees mostly belonged to states of Maharashtra and Kerala, WION reported. After allegations that current President Abdulla Yameen's administration had failed to curb the threat, the Parliament in 2015 introduced a law which criminalises people joining foreign wars. (WION)

Maldives: Police arrest fourth Maldivian man trying to join Syrian war

Ever since Abdullah Yameen was elected as the President of the Maldives in November 2013, there has been quite a bit of traffic between the heavenly archipelago and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. &nbsp;

Officials from each country&nbsp;are seen making frequent visits to the other. And, these are not vacation tours, at least not entirely. They are all about business and politics, big business and big politics.&nbsp;

Businessmen from the Kingdom and members of the royal family (House of Saud)&nbsp;itself are increasingly investing in the Maldives, a country which depends extensively on international investments to keep its economy going. And more investment also means more influence for Saudi Arabia.&nbsp;

After securing a massive project for the construction of a new passenger terminal for the Maldives international airport, the construction conglomerate Saudi Binladin Group - founded by Osama Bin Laden&#39;s father - leads the Saudi investment front.&nbsp;

The airport&#39;s new wing is part of an ambitious plan the Maldives government launched in 2014, a&nbsp;$800-million&nbsp;investment meant to boost the archipelago&#39;s tourism sector. Part of the funding will come from the Saudi Fund for Development, a government managed fund formally meant to support developing countries and often used as an instrument of influence and soft power. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Awarding the contract to the Binladin Group&nbsp;was controversial right from the word go. The same contract had previously been allotted to MGR, a major Indian infrastructure company which is seeking $1&nbsp;billion as compensation from the Maldives government for not respecting a valid contract.&nbsp;

In 2014, no less than Saudi Arabia&#39;s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, crown prince back then, donated $1 million to the Maldives ministry of Islamic affairs and $1.5 million for health initiatives. He also promised to build ten &quot;world-class&quot; mosques in the country, the biggest of which will be in the capital city of Mal&eacute;:&nbsp;a six-storey structure which can hold 6,000 people.&nbsp;

It was again the Saudi Investment Fund which gave the Maldives $1 million to conduct a feasibility study for building a transhipment port and an attached Special Economic Zone in 2015. &nbsp;

In March 2016, Adam Shareef Umar, the Maldivian&nbsp;defence minister, travelled to Saudi Arabia to meet his counterpart,&nbsp;deputy crown prince Mohamed Bin Salman al-Saud, who pledged $50 million for a military housing project in&nbsp;Maldives. As the world has learnt from China, infrastructure development is the most surefire away of exerting influence on countries.

The role of Islam&nbsp;

It is not only profit which brings the two countries together. The Maldives are a Muslim nation by constitution, the population mostly Sunni. After the election of President Abulla Yameen, religion has increasingly stepped out from its traditional&nbsp;private sphere to make its effect felt in public life.&nbsp;

This change matches&nbsp;Saudi Arabia&#39;s aspiration to become the most influential actor among all Sunni - if not Muslim - countries in the world, an ambition that Iran&#39;s growing influence in West Asia has negatively impacted. &nbsp;

In November 2015, the Maldivian&nbsp;President invited the Saudi Islamic affairs minister Saleh bin Abdulaziz with the aim of building a &quot;religious bridge&quot;&nbsp;between the two countries. Saudi Arabia agreed to help the Maldives in collection of Zakat&nbsp;(an Islamic tax),&nbsp;in translating books on Islam into English, to send preachers across and to host and provide religious education to Maldivian scholars.&nbsp;

In the same year, for the first time ever, Saudi Arabia opened its first diplomatic mission in the archipelago. &nbsp;

In January 2016, Abdullah bin Mohamed bin Ibrahim Al-Sheikh, the first speaker of the King-nominated Saudi&#39;s Shura Council to visit the Maldives, announced the formation of a joint committee to address issues of mutual interest. He also donated $100,000 to the recently established Islamic University of Maldives.&nbsp;

The Saudi religious influence in the Maldives translates ultimately into the spread of Wahhabism. The hardline doctrine is, in fact, the Kingdom&#39;s official belief and is changing the common perception of Islam in the Maldives, where&nbsp;people had practised a traditionally and majorly&nbsp;tolerant version.&nbsp;

Beside being a perfect holiday destination, the Maldives&#39; location in the middle of the Indian Ocean makes the archipelago a strategic foothold for Saudi Arabia, which&nbsp;is using all its means to cement its position.

The Kingdom&#39;s influence in the Maldives&nbsp;has become so strong that for the first time in its history, the country has been pulled into the boiling cauldron of Sunni-Shia rivalry. In May 2016, the Maldives became the first Asian nation to sever&nbsp;its diplomatic relations with Iran after 41 years, without any solid reason. Saudi Arabia did the same in January.&nbsp;

On a similar note, it is worth remembering that the Maldives are a member of a 34-country military coalition led by the Saudis which is aimed&nbsp;to fight&nbsp;terrorism, at least on paper. In this alliance, there is no place for Iraq, Iran and Syria, all Shia-led countries. &nbsp;

It seems the struggle for hegemony of the Muslim world,&nbsp;till now mainly restricted to West&nbsp;Asia, is spreading to faraway lands. &nbsp;

(WION) 
&nbsp;

The Kingdom has increased its investments and is trying to turn the islands into a Wahhabi archipelago

Ever since Abdullah Yameen was elected as the President of the Maldives in November 2013, there has been quite a bit of traffic between the heavenly archipelago and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Officials from each country are seen making frequent visits to the other. And, these are not vacation tours, at least not entirely. They are all about business and politics, big business and big politics. Businessmen from the Kingdom and members of the royal family (House of Saud) itself are increasingly investing in the Maldives, a country which depends extensively on international investments to keep its economy going. And more investment also means more influence for Saudi Arabia. After securing a massive project for the construction of a new passenger terminal for the Maldives international airport, the construction conglomerate Saudi Binladin Group - founded by Osama Bin Laden's father - leads the Saudi investment front. The airport's new wing is part of an ambitious plan the Maldives government launched in 2014, a $800-million investment meant to boost the archipelago's tourism sector. Part of the funding will come from the Saudi Fund for Development, a government managed fund formally meant to support developing countries and often used as an instrument of influence and soft power. Awarding the contract to the Binladin Group was controversial right from the word go. The same contract had previously been allotted to MGR, a major Indian infrastructure company which is seeking $1 billion as compensation from the Maldives government for not respecting a valid contract. In 2014, no less than Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, crown prince back then, donated $1 million to the Maldives ministry of Islamic affairs and $1.5 million for health initiatives. He also promised to build ten "world-class" mosques in the country, the biggest of which will be in the capital city of Malé: a six-storey structure which can hold 6,000 people. It was again the Saudi Investment Fund which gave the Maldives $1 million to conduct a feasibility study for building a transhipment port and an attached Special Economic Zone in 2015. In March 2016, Adam Shareef Umar, the Maldivian defence minister, travelled to Saudi Arabia to meet his counterpart, deputy crown prince Mohamed Bin Salman al-Saud, who pledged $50 million for a military housing project in Maldives. As the world has learnt from China, infrastructure development is the most surefire away of exerting influence on countries. The role of Islam It is not only profit which brings the two countries together. The Maldives are a Muslim nation by constitution, the population mostly Sunni. After the election of President Abulla Yameen, religion has increasingly stepped out from its traditional private sphere to make its effect felt in public life. This change matches Saudi Arabia's aspiration to become the most influential actor among all Sunni - if not Muslim - countries in the world, an ambition that Iran's growing influence in West Asia has negatively impacted. In November 2015, the Maldivian President invited the Saudi Islamic affairs minister Saleh bin Abdulaziz with the aim of building a "religious bridge" between the two countries. Saudi Arabia agreed to help the Maldives in collection of Zakat (an Islamic tax), in translating books on Islam into English, to send preachers across and to host and provide religious education to Maldivian scholars. In the same year, for the first time ever, Saudi Arabia opened its first diplomatic mission in the archipelago. In January 2016, Abdullah bin Mohamed bin Ibrahim Al-Sheikh, the first speaker of the King-nominated Saudi's Shura Council to visit the Maldives, announced the formation of a joint committee to address issues of mutual interest. He also donated $100,000 to the recently established Islamic University of Maldives. The Saudi religious influence in the Maldives translates ultimately into the spread of Wahhabism. The hardline doctrine is, in fact, the Kingdom's official belief and is changing the common perception of Islam in the Maldives, where people had practised a traditionally and majorly tolerant version. Beside being a perfect holiday destination, the Maldives' location in the middle of the Indian Ocean makes the archipelago a strategic foothold for Saudi Arabia, which is using all its means to cement its position. The Kingdom's influence in the Maldives has become so strong that for the first time in its history, the country has been pulled into the boiling cauldron of Sunni-Shia rivalry. In May 2016, the Maldives became the first Asian nation to sever its diplomatic relations with Iran after 41 years, without any solid reason. Saudi Arabia did the same in January. On a similar note, it is worth remembering that the Maldives are a member of a 34-country military coalition led by the Saudis which is aimed to fight terrorism, at least on paper. In this alliance, there is no place for Iraq, Iran and Syria, all Shia-led countries. It seems the struggle for hegemony of the Muslim world, till now mainly restricted to West Asia, is spreading to faraway lands. (WION)

Analysis: Religion and money fuel Saudi Arabia's influence in Maldives

Police sent another case for prosecution against former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed over the detention of current President Yameen Abdul Gayoom during Nasheed&#39;s administration.

Prosecutor General Aishath Bisham told the local media that former president Nasheed is yet to be charged over the detention of the then parliamentarian member Yameen under military custody.

She said prosecutor general&#39;s office is still reviewing the case and is working with the police to complete formalities for prosecution.

Defence minister of Nasheed&#39;s administration Ameen Faisal has also been charged with terrorism over Yameen&#39;s detention. Faisal&#39;s trial began end of December.&nbsp;

Meanwhile,&nbsp;Nasheed&#39;s office has issued a statement today claiming that the case sent by the police for prosecution over Yameen&#39;s detention is an action of the government for its political gain and called the Prosecutor General to send the case back without prosecution.

Nasheed has already been charged with terrorism and sentenced to jail for 13 years, over the abduction and arbitrary detention of a judge during his administration.

While he serving the sentence, the government allowed him to leave the country for medical treatment.&nbsp;

He is now living in self exile in the United Kingdom.&nbsp;

(WION)

Nasheed is yet to be charged over the detention of current president Gayoom, a parliamentary member during Nasheed's tenure as president

Police sent another case for prosecution against former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed over the detention of current President Yameen Abdul Gayoom during Nasheed's administration. Prosecutor General Aishath Bisham told the local media that former president Nasheed is yet to be charged over the detention of the then parliamentarian member Yameen under military custody. She said prosecutor general's office is still reviewing the case and is working with the police to complete formalities for prosecution. Defence minister of Nasheed's administration Ameen Faisal has also been charged with terrorism over Yameen's detention. Faisal's trial began end of December. Meanwhile, Nasheed's office has issued a statement today claiming that the case sent by the police for prosecution over Yameen's detention is an action of the government for its political gain and called the Prosecutor General to send the case back without prosecution. Nasheed has already been charged with terrorism and sentenced to jail for 13 years, over the abduction and arbitrary detention of a judge during his administration. While he serving the sentence, the government allowed him to leave the country for medical treatment. He is now living in self exile in the United Kingdom. (WION)

Maldives: Another case filed against former president Nasheed over detention of current president in 2010

maldives-0

Maldives, News on Maldives, stories on Maldives, articles on Maldives, Maldives stories at Wion, Maldives news, Maldives latest news

maldives 0