Jailed opposition leaders invited to join talks
“The government must not expect to hold our leaders as hostages at the negotiating table! Negotiations must be sincere and should pave way for political reconciliation,” Shidhatha Shareef, chair of the Adhaalath Party’s foreign relations committee, told The Maldives Independent.
20 Apr 2016, 9:00 AM
After previously ruling out negotiating with “convicts,” the government on Tuesday night invited the jailed leaders of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party and Adhaalath Party to join all-party talks.
Speaking at a press conference at the president’s office, Fisheries Minister Dr Mohamed Shainee – President Abdulla Yameen’s representative for the talks – said the government reversed its position in the hopes that the allied opposition parties will engage in dialogue.
“We have announced that we are ready to go to jail to talk to them in order to go forward with [the talks],” he said, adding that the government is willing to compromise for a solution.
The concession comes ahead of a review by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group of the Maldives’ progress in resolving a year-long political crisis sparked the imprisonment of former President Mohamed Nasheed and other high-profile politicians.
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