Rule of law and fundamental freedoms ‘under attack’ in Maldives

The Maldives government is undermining the rule of law and intensifying a brutal crackdown on its critics, a new report said Sunday.

The report, from the international non-profit CIVICUS and Maldives-based rights group Voice of Women (VoW), said authorities have repressed all forms of dissent including “violently breaking up peaceful demonstrations, arbitrarily arresting and detaining protesters, attacking journalists and threatening news organisations with closure.”

It also said the judiciary had been undermined through the “arbitrary arrest” of two top judges and that scores of opposition politicians and activists faced “trumped up charges” ranging from bribery to terrorism.

The Maldives was thrown into turmoil earlier this year when the Supreme Court ordered the release and retrial of President Abdulla Yameen’s jailed opponents.