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Opposition parliament leader remanded for nine days

Ibrahim Mohamed Solih was arrested under the state of emergency, which deprives detainees of the right to be taken before a judge within 24 hours, but was later accused of entering the restricted Republic Square and obstructing police duty.

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Opposition parliament leader Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has been remanded to police custody for nine days.

The long-serving Maldivian Democratic Party MP for Hinnavaru was among 141 people arrested from Friday night’s opposition mass protest in Malé.

Ahead of Monday’s remand hearing, the ruling party parliament leader was accused of lying to a visiting Inter-Parliamentary Union delegation about Solih being set free. MP Ahmed Nihan later clarified that he meant the minority leader would be released as he was not a violent offender.

But the judge decided that Solih posed a danger to society and could try to destroy evidence, his lawyers said.

According to police, Solih was arrested under the continuing state of emergency, which deprives detainees of the right to be taken before a judge within 24 hours. But he was later accused of entering the restricted Republic Square and obstructing police duty, a misdemeanour charge.

Mohamed Hussain Shareef, the Maldivian ambassador to Sri Lanka, told the foreign press in Colombo last night that the government “has no intention of extending” the 45-day emergency when it expires Thursday, the AP reported.

In the past few days, the authorities have been seeking remand orders to keep suspects in custody under normal legal processes.

MDP MP Ali Azim, who was also arrested during the mass protest, was remanded for nine days on Monday afternoon. On the previous day, MP Abdulla Riyaz, a former police chief and deputy leader of the Jumhooree Party, was brought to court for a trial on charges of influencing official conduct.

But Riyaz was also arrested under emergency powers during an opposition demonstration on March 2. According to his lawyers, the Kinbidhoo MP was illegally transferred from the police detention island to the high-security Maafushi prison this week.

About 50 individuals were detained after President Abdulla Yameen invoked emergency powers and suspended constitutional rights last month, contending that a shock Supreme Court order for the release of nine prisoners was part of a plot to remove him from office.

The alleged coup plotters include two Supreme Court justices, two ex-police chiefs, five opposition lawmakers, the MDP’s vice president, and eight Special Ops police officers.

Several MDP national council members and activists arrested from daily demonstrations since February 1 were released this week.

According to ambassador Shareef, the two top judges have been charged with “accepting bribes to topple the government through the court order while Gayoom and another court official will also be charged shortly.”

Investigations are continuing into 38 people still in custody, he said.

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