Allegations that the government is anti-religious require investigation: President

President Mohamed Nasheed has cited Islamic Minister Dr Abdul Majeed Abdul Bari and said that accusations of the government being anti-religious need to be investigated.

Speaking at his weekly radio address to the nation, President Nasheed cited Dr Bari and said that it is a serious allegation to accuse the government of being anti-religious, and that this requires investigation. He further said that such claims cannot be made without proper evidence and proof.

“It is a serious allegation to say that the government is anti-religious. As indicated by Dr Bari, investigations need to be conducted into these allegations, making the people who make such claims accountable and answerable. Even proof must be presented to substantiate their statements,” President Nasheed said.

The President further referred to Dr Bari and said that the country’s Constitution, state and government are based on the freedom to criticize one another’s actions; however, criticizing and making baseless allegations are two entirely different things.

“He said that the current Constitution, government system and state system are based on the freedom to criticize one another’s actions, and that the state is run by constantly revising decisions subsequent to criticisms. The three powers are separated and each power acts as a guard against the other two’s actions. It should be noted that criticisms of this sort and baseless allegations are two completely different things,” President Nasheed said.

He also said that he will do everything in his capacity to fight against the baseless allegations made in relation to religion, and will not back down in reestablishing justice and fairness in the country.

“I will do everything I can to fight against the baseless allegations made in relation to religion, as well as to reestablish justice and fairness in the country. I will not back down on these issues,” President Nasheed said.

The President also said that the accusation or decision that a person is anti-religious should come from the judicial system, and that such a ruling can, in that case, only be made by a court.

“As Dr Bari said, accusations of a person or group being anti-religious will be followed by penalties. For example, if the decision is made that a person is anti-religious, he would no longer be married to his wife. If this person or any of his relatives die, he will not inherit any possessions. As plenty of such judicial issues are involved in such allegations, Dr Bari noted that such accusations can neither be made by individual people, not by the media. He also said that if such an allegation is made, the case must be filed to court and evidence must be presented,” President Nasheed said.

The President further said that the allegations of the government being anti-religions imply that the government is made up of non-Muslims, and that this is a very serious accusation.

“So if they say that the government is anti-religious, it means that the whole administration is made up of non-Muslims. Dr Bari noted that saying that people are anti-religious increases the seriousness of the issue,” President Nasheed said.