Police confirm rubber bullet use as violence rocks Male’

However, the country’s security forces insisted they had employed a policy of “minimum force” against anti-government protesters.

Despite international calls for calm, and pledges to conduct peaceful anti-government protests, images of violence were the one constant across all Maldivian media as President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan was finally able to give his state of the nation address.

The president still required several attempts, having to shout over loud heckling and protests by several Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) supporters to get the job done.