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| Wednesday, 18 August 2004 |
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Maldives, an Indian Ocean archipelago off the southwest coast of Sri Lanka is in turmoil today due to the tyrannical attitude and administration of President Maumoon Gayoom, who has been the President of that country for the past 26 years,says the Maldivian Democratic Party. Speaking at a media conference held at the Galle Face Hotel, Colombo on Monday (August 16th) to explain the current position of Maldives, spokesman for the Maldivian Democratic Party formed in Diaspora, Mohamed Latheef said that the situation in the Male' was extremely volatile. He said that in response to the international outcry against his rule, he called for open debate. This was well received by the people who longed for greater freedom and participatory democracy. When the President found that the people were taking his offer seriously, the President systematically reneged on his promises and clamped down on the people's constitutional rights to freedom of Association, Assembly and freedom of Speech. The people protested his moves and when they took to the streets calling the government to release those detained and also called for the resignation of some of President's hard-line ministers, and the end result was rampage of state violence against pro-democracy activists. Spokesman Latheef who heads the Head office of the MDP in exile called upon the international community to take the dangerous development in Maldives seriously and to take positive and effective steps to ensure that the country does not slide into further chaos and violence. Member of the European Parliament for South East England Nirj Deva who is also a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the EU Parliament said that during the 25 year rule of President Gayoom and his regime had flouted international human rights agreements, laughed in the face of democracy and had brought about terror to innocent people. He said he has posed a list of questions to the European Commission regarding Maldives, which is a popular destination of the British, Italian and German tourists. While calling upon the international community to stop going there as tourists and cancel their holiday bookings with immediate effect to show solidarity to the people who suffer under dictatorship. "Unless the Maldivian government begin a process of vast political and social reform in the country, including freeing innocent people put behind bars, the European Union trade sanctions as well as a Travel ban will be immediately imposed upon the nation. Now is the time to act", he said. |
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