Government

Press Secretary of President’s Office Mohamed Zuhair said last night that that the government’s actions regarding the case of the Chief Judge of Criminal Court Abdulla Mohamed are in line with the advice given by the United Nations.

An article published on Associated Press (AP) cited the Spokeswoman of UN Human Rights Commission Ravina Shamdasani and said that the Maldivian government should either bring the Chief Judge of Criminal Court Abdulla Mohamed before the court, or release him.

Responding to an inquiry by Sun, Zuhair said that Judge Abdulla is not in military custody, but that the military assisted with his arrest.

“Nobody is in military custody, nobody. The Police suspected Judge Abdulla of participating in the spread of baseless information about the government being involved in anti-religious activities. The Police asked MNDF for help in taking him in for questioning with regard to this issue, and they helped,” Zuhair said.

He further said that as noted by the UN, Judge Abdulla’s case is in process at the High Court. He has however not been produced at the court because doing so may pose a threat on public safety. He also said that hearings can be held even in the absence of the accused if he is not able to attend the court due to unavoidable circumstances.

Several lawyers belonging to opposition groups have repeatedly said that the arrest of Judge Abdulla is in conflict with the country’s Constitution, UN declaration of human rights, as well as several other international agreements signed by Maldives. Protests are held every night calling for his release. Judge Abdulla Mohamed was taken into military custody and taken to Girifushi, an island used for military training, 12 days ago.