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| Friday, 11 June 2004 |
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Maldives leader unveils democratic reforms COLOMBO, Thursday (Reuters) Maldives President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom announced sweeping democratising reforms that would loosen his stranglehold on power and seek to address the poor human rights record in the tiny resort island nation. Gayoom, Asia's longest-serving leader with 26 years in power, proposed constitutional changes that limit the term of the presidency, allow for the formation of political parties and strengthen the judiciary. "The aspirations for our country...require a strengthening of our democratic structures and institutions," Gayoom told a specially convened meeting in the capital Male. The Indian Ocean nation - a series of 1,200 tiny islands dotted over 800 km - is best known for its pristine beaches and coral reefs, but a prison crackdown last September that led to an unprecedented riot spotlighted simmering unrest. It also overshadowed a referendum one month later that gave Gayoom his sixth five-year term. But he seemed to take a lesson from the brief display of opposition, establishing a human rights commission and promising to focus on reform. "A number of advisers, together with the prison incident, have brought the president to the realisation he needs to do some liberalising or it's going to get done for him," said one Western diplomat. Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has accused the government of "endemic torture, unfair trials (and) abuse of power by security personnel" and the United States said in an annual report that its rights record worsened last year. But diplomats say the human rights body Gayoom established last December has substantive power. He appears to realise the need for change and wants to build a political legacy that goes beyond economic success, they said. Wednesday's announcement propose removing the president's role in the judiciary, limiting the presidency to two five-year terms, abolishing the category of appointed members of parliament and strengthening the House by creating the office of prime minister. To be passed into law they must be endorsed by parliament, which a government spokesmen said would happen later this month.. |
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