Police failed to fulfill duty in letting protesters near Supreme Court, says PIC

A group of MDP supporters were able to go up to the very doors of the Supreme Court of the Maldives and conduct illegal demonstrations against the Court and the Judiciary of the Maldives because of the failure of the Maldives Police Service to fulfill their responsibilities, said Shahinda Ismail, President of the Police Integrity Commission (PIC).

Speaking to the press today, at the Office of PIC, Shahinda said that the demonstrations conducted on the 20th of this month was pre-planned, and that it was not a sudden occurrence, implying that the Police had sufficient time to take measures to stop protesters from going near the Supreme Court.

“They announced on the streets that they were going for it. We all heard them, and I believe that the police should also have heard them”, said Shahinda.

A Police Statement issued last night said that the Supreme Court building area was closed, and that people who had not listed their names to enter the hearings managed to get near the Supreme Court with one of the parties to the case held at 15:30 that day. “The police had no knowledge of who had and who had not been authorized to enter the hearing. If the police had tried to force those who were protesting in front of the Supreme Court to disband and go away, only more chaos and violence would have followed. As such, the police tried to stop any more people from breaking through police lines into the crowd in front of the Supreme Court, and to stop any protesters from entering the court premises”, read the Police Statement.

In responding to the Police Statement, Shahinda said that since the areas where Court buildings stood were to be protected by the police in accord with the law, and since the police should reasonably have had the knowledge of planned protests near the court buildings, they should and could have prepared to close the areas and prevent any protesters from getting near the Supreme Court.

“If they first let protesters near the Supreme Court, and then claim that they can’t force those people to go away because it would cause disruption in the hearing, is not a very convincing story for me. I do not think that the police should have let those protesters to gather around the Supreme Court, in the first place”, said Shahinda.

Shahinda also said that the PIC was already conducting enquiries into the mob violence perpetrated at Endherimaage, the private residence of former President Maumoon Abdul Qayyoom. She said that some four public members had filed pleas at the PIC requesting enquiries into the matter. In the incident, a violent mob, led by MDP leaders and senior activists, attacked and caused damage to Enderimaage, and threatened former President and his family members who live in the residence with death and grave bodily harm.