Lack of judicial independence dampens investments: IBAHRI

The International Bar Association Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) has condemned the removal of two Supreme Court justices, and called their removal was in violation to international standards.

Three seats of the top court’s bench became vacant following the dismissal of Justices Dr. Azmiralda Zahir and Mahaz Ali Zahir, as well as the resignation of Husnu al-Suood who had been in suspension at the time.

At the time the Maldives parliament removed both Dr. Azmiralda and Mahaz from the top court’s bench, the two were presiding over a case challenging the constitutional amendment that added anti-defection clause to the Constitution.

All three Justices in question were suspended by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) not long after hearings on the constitutional case began.

Several individuals from the legal fraternity, including the suspended judges described this as the government’s attempt to coerce and intimidate the judiciary. The judges in question were not given the opportunity to respond regarding their suspension as well.

IBAHRI urged the Maldives government to respect the independence of the judiciary and to revert its decision to dismiss the judges.

“The government must ensure it takes all necessary steps in ensuring the safety of the judiciary in accordance with the international standards,” the association said in a statement.

The association’s co-chair, Mark Stephens has claimed the government’s actions in dismissing the Supreme Court justices has greatly undermined the sanctity of the Maldivian judiciary. He further said that the actions violated the basic legal rights of the judges and warned about the consequences of such actions.

Stephens also highlighted that World Bank and Oxford University researches have shown a correlation between the rule of law in a state and foreign investment opportunities. He further said that if foreign investors lose confidence about the judicial independence of the Maldives, they may pull back their investments.

Another co-chair of IBAHRI, Heena Jilani said that the government’s actions in dismissing the judges have compromised the procedural fairness and asserted that the judicial independence was one of the pillars of a constitutional democratic state. She further added that comprising the judiciary would weaken the rule of law, which in turn could infringe basic human rights.