"Final day for press freedom": media bill passes amid arrests and expulsions

The "media control bill" was pushed through with 60 votes from the People's National Congress. Velidhoo MP Mohamed Abbas from the Maldives Development Alliance cast the sole dissenting vote. After protesting inside the chamber, seven of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party's dozen lawmakers were expelled before the vote.

Outside the People's Majlis in Malé, MDP leaders and activists joined journalists as they protested since 8:30am, warning that the bill's passage could "mark the final day for independent free press and free speech in the Maldives." Government supporters meanwhile staged a counter-protest, holding up placards urging lawmakers to "Pass the bill" and "Regulate the media."  

The extraordinary sitting convened during recess started around 5pm, less than two hours after the independent institutions committee met to consider legal advice from parliament's Counsel General Fathmath Filza, who had reviewed the final draft of the bill with amendments approved on Monday evening. The PNC majority on the committee voted to send the bill to the floor with Filza's recommendation as MDP MP Meekail Naseem – the only opposition lawmaker on the oversight committee – loudly objected to the lack of adequate time to study the recommendations.    

Ahead of the committee meeting, riot police moved in to push back protesters from the parliament building. When the crowd of about 50 people refused to comply and sat down, police officers forcibly lifted and dragged them back behind barricades set farther away. 

Adhadhu journalist Leevan Ali Naseer, a member of the Maldives Media Council, was arrested and taken into custody. Taxi driver Mohamed Shamin was also detained during the crackdown. Both were later released.

Meanwhile, inside parliament, Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim – who was presiding in the absence of Speaker Abdul Raheem Abdulla, who departed in the morning on an official visit to Pakistan – ordered the expulsion of seven MDP MPs, who challenged alleged breaches of the standing orders, which requires a six-hour notice for sittings. The agenda had been shared with MPs at 4:59pm and the committee report was emailed after the sitting began at 5pm, leaving less than half an hour for submitting amendments. 

But Deputy Speaker Nazim denied any procedural violations. The normal rules do not apply to out-of-session sittings, he said. 

Two amendments proposed by Meekail – including one to change the bill's title to the "Maldives Media Control and Censorship Bill" – were not put to a vote as he had been expelled from the chamber. 

The final bill as amended by the committee was not available of the parliament website when it was passed shortly before 7pm.