Pres Muizzu meets journalists as pressure builds over contentious media bill

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu agreed to a sit-down with a team of leading journalists on Thursday, as his administration faces criticism for backing a new media bill that both local and international media agencies slam as a direct threat to press freedom in the Maldives.

On August 18, Thulhaadhoo MP Abdul Hannan Aboobakr, an independent lawmaker aligned with the government, submitted a bill that seeks to dissolve the Maldives Media Council (MMC) and the Maldives Broadcasting Commission (BroadCom), replacing them with a single regulatory body — a seven-member Maldives Media and Broadcasting Commission (MMBC), composed of four members elected by the media and three appointed by the President with parliamentary approval, with the President also given the authority to appoint the commission’s head. It also empowers the MMBC to impose major penalties against media outlets as well as individual journalists, including during the investigative stage.

In an extraordinary sitting on Wednesday, as journalists demonstrated against the bill outside the Parliament, the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) used its supermajority to accept the bill into the Parliament and send it to the Independent Institutions Committee for review.

Dozens of journalists later gathered outside the President’s Office and Muliaage, demanding a meeting with President Muizzu, before they were pushed back by riot police.

Sun has been informed that President Muizzu agreed to meet with a team of leading journalists to discuss concerns at 01:30 pm Thursday.

In addition to allowing the President power over appointment of its members, the new bill also empowers the proposed commission to impose major penalties against media outlets as well as individual journalists, including during the investigative stage. This includes:

• Fines of MVR 5,000 -25,000 against journalists for failure to comply with the commission’s instructions.
• Fines of up to MVR 100,000 against media outlets and magazines for legal violations.
• Temporary suspension of registrations during ongoing commission probes.
• Permanently revoking registrations through the courts.
• Blocking websites during ongoing probes.
• Ordering the cessation of broadcasting.

During the preliminary debate on Wednesday, Ibrahim Falah, the PNC's parliamentary group leader, said that he is a victim of false media reports and  imprisonment alone is not enough for such acts. He suggested that journalists should be executed by ulubeyndhun or impalement - an ancient torture and execution method.

The remarks sparked widespread condemnation, including from the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the Maldives Journalists Association (MJA), the latter of which demanded a public apology from Falah as well as the ruling party.

The Independent Institutions Committee has set a September 15 deadline for the bill, with a 10-day window for public opinion, and a three-day window for consultation with media outlets and other stakeholders.