11 Sep 2019, 9:00 AM
A Maldivian man who received multiple death threats online has been arrested on charges of insulting Islam on social media.
The suspect was arrested from the island of Thinadhoo in Gaafu Dhaalu atoll, police said.
The 2015 penal code criminalises “criticism of Islam in a public medium with the intention of causing disregard for Islam,” which is categorised as a class one misdemeanour that carries a maximum prison sentence of one year. The 1994 religious unity law also prohibits “attempting to disrupt the religious unity of Maldivians or talking in a manner that creates religious conflict among people.”
Islam is the state religion of the Maldives and the constitution states a non-Muslim cannot become a citizen.
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