Asia/South Asia
6 years ago

Maldives president fires second police chief in three days

Maldivian president Yameen Abdul Gayoom.  - Reuters
Maldivian president Yameen Abdul Gayoom. - Reuters

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The president of the Maldives fired a national police chief on Saturday for the second time in three days, as political unrest continued to grow in the Indian ocean archipelago after the Supreme Court ordered the release and retrial of political prisoners, including an ex-president.

President Yameen Abdul Gayoom's office said he dismissed Ahmed Saudhee and appointed Deputy Police Commissioner Abdulla Nawaz to act as interim police chief. No reason was given for the dismissal, reports AP.

Saudhee was appointed interim police chief on Friday, one day after Yameen fired Ahamed Areef, whose dismissal came after the police department announced that it would uphold the Supreme Court's order. Attorney General Mohamed Anil said Areef was fired because Yameen was repeatedly unable to reach him on the phone.

Thursday night's court ruling ordered the release and retrial of politicians opposed to Yameen, including exiled former President Mohammed Nasheed, saying their guilty verdicts were politically influenced.

The ruling has led to protests by opposition supporters urging the government to obey the order.

Protesters late Friday and early Saturday converged on a prison in the capital, Male, where the politicians are being held, demanding their immediate release, but police forced them to leave. They then moved to another location for a sit-in protest that was also broken up. Journalists were kept away from both events by police.

After the court's ruling was made public, street celebrations by government opponents transformed into three hours of clashes with police, who used tear gas and batons to break up the gatherings.

Known for its luxury tourist resorts, the Maldives became a multiparty democracy 10 years ago after decades of autocratic rule by the current president's half brother, strongman Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

But the nation lost much of its democratic gains after Yameen was elected in 2013. He has maintained a tight grip on power, controlling institutions such as the judiciary and police.

Yameen had been set to run for re-election this year virtually unopposed, with all of his opponents either jailed or exiled.

On Friday, Nasheed, whose conviction for abducting a judge was overturned by the court order, said he would mount a fresh challenge for the presidency this year.

Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison after he was convicted of the abduction charge under the Maldives' anti-terror laws in a trial that was widely condemned by international rights groups.

The court also reinstated 12 lawmakers who had been ousted for switching allegiance to the opposition. When those lawmakers return, Yameen's Progressive Party of the Maldives will lose its majority in the 85-member Parliament.

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