Shainee: Fewer protests not because of law

Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture, Dr. Mohamed Shainee has commented he did not believe fewer protests by the opposition was a result of amendment to law on peaceful gathering allowing limitations to protests and demonstrations.

With the amendment to law on freedom of peaceful gatherings in 2016, protests can only be held with prior permission of the police, and only in Alimas Carnival.

In a recent interview to Indian newspaper, The Wire, Minister Shainee said the government was open for dialogue with the opposition, but no longer believed there was any “urgent” need for it.

Speaking to “Sun”, Shainee said he did not believe the amendment to law to be the reason for fewer protests in the country.

“I don’t believe that. Some 50 or 100 people gathered and held protests in the Male’ and the islands even after that,” said Shainee, who has been appointed as government’s representative in all-party talks.

He said that protests were banned from streets of Male’ without prior permission because of its negative economic and social implications.

“This is a small city with a population of over 100,000 people. No country gives permission for protests in the capital which pushes all business activities to a halt,” he said.

Shainee said that given the size of Maldives, negative effects of protests were proportionally bigger.

“For example, if it’s in Majeedhee Magu, Male’ will come to a halt. How many businesses have to suffer? No country in the world will permit such a thing. Applying it to Maldives,

Maldives is a small place so the entire Male’ is visible. It’s bigger in Maldivian context. And some people politicize it because we live in such a small place,” he said.

Shainee said that every citizen benefited from the streets being peaceful, whether it’s because of a law, or any other reason.

“The government had to do this because of numerous complaints by businessmen. When their businesses suffer, the political parties will not come to compensate them. Government needs to protect the interest of all citizens,” he said.

In the interview to The Wire, Shainee said that the people of Maldives accepted and appreciated the development brought by President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom. And were no longer demonstrating against him.

“The world has come to know as well that there is no valid argument to come out on the streets. The public has seen and felt the level of engagement that the government has with the islands. There is development in almost every island. The people are seeing this physically. They don’t want to disrupt this development that President Yameen is bringing to the country,” said Shainee.