Amnesty International Report 2003 - Maldives

Covering events from January - December 2002

REPUBLIC OF MALDIVES
Head of state and government: Maumoon Abdul Gayoom
Death penalty: abolitionist in practice
International Criminal Court: not signed

The government continued to impose severe restrictions on freedom of expression. Critics of the government continued to be detained, or imprisoned following unfair trials; they were prisoners of conscience.

Background

Political parties were not allowed to function and by the end of the year the authorities had still not allowed the Maldivian Democratic Party, an independent political party, to be registered.

Prisoners of conscience

At least seven prisoners of conscience and possible prisoners of conscience were held during 2002. Some were sentenced to imprisonment. They were not permitted to consult with, or engage the services of, a lawyer before their trials or in court. AI called on the government to provide information about the detention of political prisoners and to reform its legal system to safeguard fundamental rights.

• Mohamed Nasheed was "expelled" from parliament in March after he lost his appeal against his conviction in November 2001 for the theft of a few children's exercise books at an auction; the charges were believed to be politically motivated. He was initially banished to a remote island and then placed under house arrest in Malé. He was released on 29 August, but denied his parliamentary seat.

• Four prisoners of conscience, Mohamed Zaki, Ibrahim Moosa Luthfee, Ahmed Ibrahim Didi and Fathimath Nisreen, were arrested between 30 January and 1 February by the National Security Service (NSS). They were accused of writing for Sandhaanu, an Internet e-mail magazine critical of the government which continued to be circulated clandestinely. The four were held in solitary confinement with no family visits for about five months. On 7 July, Mohamed Zaki, Ibrahim Luthfee and Ahmad Didi were sentenced to life imprisonment for "insulting" the President, calling for the overthrow of the government, causing hatred against the government, spreading false news, and forwarding Sandhaanu to others via e-mail. Fathimath Nisreen was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment for writing "false information" in Sandhaanu, criticizing government policies, calling for the overthrow of the government and assisting Sandhaanu originators. They were held in the island prison of Maafushi where food is reportedly not hygienic, prisoners are at times kept in handcuffs for days, and access to health care is severely limited.

• Naushad Waheed, an artist and businessman held in detention or under house arrest since 9 December 2001, was sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment by a court in Malé on 14 October. Charges reportedly related to his involvement in public debates deemed critical of the government. He was a possible prisoner of conscience. His place of detention was not known.

• Ibrahim Fareed, a postgraduate scholar of Shari'a (Islamic Law), was arrested in Malé on 8 June by members of the NSS, reportedly accused of calling for civil disobedience. He was a possible prisoner of conscience and was believed to be detained either at the island prison of Guraidhoo or Dhoonidhoo at the end of the year.