The Maldivian Supreme Court has cancelled the imprisonment of the deposed former president and 8 other opposition leaders.
While this opens up the avenue for them to contest the upcoming elections, the government has been resorting to repressive tactics.
What are the contours of the current Maldivian Polity?
In the 2013 election, the incumbent President Abdulla Yameen defeated Mohammad Nasheed who was deposed from presidency in 2012 by a coup.
While the results of the election are still contested, Yameen has ruled the island since then with an authoritarian streak.
Meanwhile, Nasheed was sentenced in 2015 to 13 years in prison for charges of terrorism, and has remained in exile all these years to avoid arrest.
Recently, the Supreme Court cancelled his imprisonment and that of eight other political leaders, which the current ruling dispensation hasn’t liked.
The order also reinstated 12 parliamentarians who were disqualified last year also asked the government to convene the parliament (Majlis).
As Yameen hasn’t complied with the order thus far, this pits his government directly against the judiciary, polity and sections of the bureaucracy.
What were the violations on the part of the government?
The government has openly refusal to cancel the imprisonment of the nine leaders, most of whom formed the core of the previous Nasheed Government.
The President has also refused to allow the Majlis to meet, which has led to the resignation of its Secretary General.
Contrarily, the government sent in the army to stop lawmakers from entering the premises, besides arresting two parliamentarians at the airport.
Several officials, including two police chiefs and the prison chief have resigned or been sacked, as they’ve tended to comply with the court directives.
The Attorney General has now termed the court directives as “illegal orders” which can’t be adhered to by the executive.
Maldives is clearly in the midst of a constitutional crisis due to stifling of the opposition, with less than a year away for the next general election.
What have been the international reactions?
India has joined the U.S., the European Union and several other countries in calling for Mr. Yameen to carry out the Supreme Court’s order.
But notably, India’s clout over the ruling Maldivian dispensation has been on the wane ever since the Nasheed was deposed.
Compounding this is the reality that SAARC has become dysfunctional and Maldives has quit the “British Commonwealth”.
It will require concerted action from the international community to persuade Mr. Yameen to steer the Maldives out of this crisis amicably without coercion.
Ensuring the fairness of the upcoming elections, with an equal playing field for the opposition and other dissenting parties is the only way out.
