Home Minister: The government will move forward by listening to the press

Home Minister Sheikh Imran Abdulla, on Sunday, said the government’s goal was to ensure that the steps it took towards the development of the press were taken after consulting with the press, so that it did not deviate from the ideology of the press.

In his address on occasion of World Press Freedom Day, Imran said that the freedom of the press was essential to upholding independence and democracy in Maldives.

Imran said that the local press had previously faced threats and challenges, but that the current government, since it came to power had taken effective steps towards eliminating the challenges and promoting press freedom.

He said that it had been due to the steps taken by the government that Maldives had climbed up in the ranks of World Press Freedom Index from 120th in 2018 to 79th this year.

Describing the press as an important partner in the Maldivian democracy, Imran said that the government had always sought to remedy the challenges facing the press.

He referred to a conference organized by Home Ministry in December 2019, in which editorial staff of media stations gathered to discuss the challenges facing the press.

Imran said that while Maldives had made progress in improving press freedom, it also needed to develop the different branches of the press and people to lead the different branches.

Imran also said that the press also needed to maintain ethical and professional standards in order to mitigate the damage caused to the community by spread of false information.

Noting that the Maldives faced an outbreak of COVID-19 within its borders, Imran thanked the press for their efforts to bring timely and verified information to the people.

The theme for World Press Freedom Day 2020 is ‘Journalism without Fear or Favor’. Referring to this, Imran said the government was committed to eliminating all obstacles which stood in the way of press freedom.