Photos from the frontline: pepper spray and sonic weapons in Majeedhee Magu standoff

The rally began around 9pm with MDP leaders addressing the spirited crowd as they waved the national flag and called for the resignation of President Dr Mohamed Muizzu. MP Mauroof Zakir announced five demands: repeal the anti-defection constitutional amendments, settle outstanding payments owed to private contractors within five weeks, restore council powers under changes made to the decentralisation law, repeal the "media control law," and ensure the availability of medicine through the Aasandha health insurance scheme. 

When the protesters attempted to march along Majeedhee Magu, police officers in riot gear blocked their path with shields. In the tense nearly three-hour standoff that followed, riot police indiscriminately pepper sprayed protesters on the front line, seized the vehicle with the sound system, arrested several protesters, and deployed sonic weapons for the first time.

Police used a Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD), a sound cannon designed for crowd control by sending off a loud alarm. 

The MDP ignored "repeated advice and warnings" to march along the approved route on Ameenee Magu, police said around 10:30pm, accusing protesters of throwing rocks and water bottles. Legal action will be taken over the alleged violence and obstruction of police duties, it added. 

In a counter statement, the MDP condemned the "violent dispersal of peaceful protesters" and the "indiscriminate arrests carried out by the Muizzu administration." According to the party, at least 13 protesters were taken into custody, including former lawmakers. The MDP accused police of denying the detainees access to lawyers. 

A total of eight people were detained, the MDP clarified later, including former MPs Yaugoob Abdulla and Yasir Abdul Latheef as well as Maafushi Council President Hassan Solah and Addu City Councillor Hassan Zareer. On Saturday afternoon, the criminal court released one of the protesters with conditions and remanded six into custody for 15 days. The Addu City council member is to be released in 24 hours, according to the MDP. 

Mohamed Raslan, an MDP council member, suffered a heart attack after he was pepper sprayed at close range and subjected to the LRAD, the MDP said. "The use of LRADs is unprecedented in the Maldives and poses serious risks of permanent hearing damage, dizziness, nausea, and other severe health impacts," it added.

The Maldives Journalists Association meanwhile raised concern over multiple reports of targeted pepper spraying of journalists and cameramen. "Police also denied requests by journalists to move behind police lines to do their work," the MJA said, calling on the authorities to "stop obstructing the press and ensure journalist safety."

As the standoff continued past 11pm, the MDP leadership, including former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih as well as Chairman Fayyaz Ismail and President Abdulla Shahid, sat down in front of the police shields.   

The protest ended at midnight with a prayer. It was the largest anti-government demonstration since President Muizzu assumed office in November 2023.

In a statement on Saturday morning, the foreign ministry defended the police actions with reference to the controversial freedom of assembly law of 2013, which restricts demonstrations in Malé to designated spots. Despite instructions from the police, the MDP "defied the designated route and forced their way into Majeedhee Magu – the busiest street in the capital Malé, disrupting public order, breaking police barricades and seizing police shields and obstructing police duties."

The government insisted that police officers "acted responsibly and with restraint in ensuring public safety, even in the face of obstruction and provocation from the protesters."

The ruling People's National Congress also condemned the "violent and unlawful actions" of the MDP, characterising the clashes as "deliberate, coordinated acts of aggression intended to incite violence, disrupt public order, and create instability." 

All photos by Anoof Junaid for the Maldives Independent.