Civil Court awards Yamin MRF 244,000 in compensation

Civil Court has today passed a judgment ordering the Maldives Police Services MPS) to compensate Abdulla Yamin, prominent opposition figure and the Leader of the People’s Alliance political party for false imprisonment. The amount of compensation has been set at MRF 244031.25.

Court ordered the MPS to hand over the whole sum within 30 days to the court.

Abdullah Yamin, brother, and a member in the cabinet too, of former President Maumoon Abdul Qayoom was arrested with accusations of “plotting to overthrow the government”, on 29 June 2010 by the police on government orders. The reason given by the government for the continuation of his confinement was that he needed protection. Yamin’s representatives continuously stated that he had never requested for such protection, and that he was being detained against his will, although the government did not change its stance.

During the detention which lasted for 13 days, Yamin was kept under police custody in Aarah. After he was released, the Supreme Court made a decision stating that there was no constitutional basis for his detention. Following the decision, Yamin filed a civil suit at the Civil Court seeking compensation for false imprisonment.

In her judgment, Honorable Judge Aisha Shujoon sitting in the Civil Court said that while the Supreme Court had passed a judgment saying that there were no constitutional grounds for arresting and detaining Yamin, the question of false imprisonment was well-established.

The Judge awarded a package of compensation including general damages, aggravated damages and exemplary damages. Aggravated damages were awarded as malicious intentions were obvious on the part of the police, and exemplary damages were awarded for the inhuman and degrading treatment meted out to Yamin by the police during the detention. Also, special damages were awarded to cover costs of security measures taken to protect Yamin’s house during his absence.

Prosecutor General’s Office said today that they were considering appealing the case.

Qasim Ibrahim, leader of Jumhoory Party and another outspoken opposition leader was also arrested around the same time as Yamin, after similar accusations. However, he is yet to file any lawsuits to seek compensation.