Press Freedom
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Media warned against ‘promoting convicts’
Broadcasting interviews and statements from convicted politicians violates the Jails and Parole Act, authorities claimed.
30 May 2018, 9:00 AM
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Regulator wants ‘broadest possible’ journalism under new rules
The media regulator wants journalists to practice their profession “as broadly as possible” within new legal restrictions.
06 May 2018, 9:00 AM
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Maldives falls again in press freedom index
The Maldives is now ranked between Nigeria and Angola on the 2018 press freedom index.
25 Apr 2018, 9:00 AM
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Maldives accused of intimidating, silencing media
Transparency Maldives has condemned the government for proposing a bill that would merge two existing media watchdogs and “expand its sphere of state control on print and social media as well”.
07 Nov 2017, 9:00 AM
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Broad powers for proposed media regulator
If written or broadcasted content is deemed to pose a danger to Islam, national security, public order or public health, the new Maldives Media Commission can ask the police to stop publication or broadcast.
30 Oct 2017, 9:00 AM
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Seven journalists arrested from opposition protest
The journalists were accused of obstructing police duty while Specialist Operations officers attempted to disperse the “unlawful gathering”.
27 Jul 2017, 9:00 AM
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Police question Vnews editor over ‘misleading’ headline
The police contended that the headline, ‘Adam Azim arrested on charges of trying to topple the government,’ misrepresented the content of the arrest warrant. The senior opposition figure was accused of speaking in a manner that encouraged the illegal overthrow of the government.
11 Jun 2017, 9:00 AM
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Raajje TV fined MVR1m over speech defaming Yameen
The broadcasting regulator has slapped an MVR1 million (US$64,850) fine on the Raajje TV for airing a speech at an opposition rally in October that was deemed defamatory towards President Abdulla Yameen.
06 Apr 2017, 9:00 AM
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Maldives fights rumours of island sales to Saudi Arabia with clampdown
Police officers on the island of Magoodhoo in Faafu atoll forced a journalist working as a stringer for The New York Times to sign a statement saying he would not interview islanders about the rumoured multi-billion investment from Saudi Arabia.
02 Apr 2017, 9:00 AM
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Raajje TV journalist cleared of second obstruction charge
Delivering a verdict on Tuesday, Judge Ahmed Shakeel said the prosecution’s evidence was insufficient
28 Mar 2017, 9:00 AM
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Police interrogates Mihaaru editor after complaints by judiciary
Echoing the criminal court’s threat of legal action against journalists, the broadcasting regulator has also accused some media outlets of “spreading falsehoods and slander that encourages terrorism, tarnishes the country’s good name internationally, and strains the Maldivian state’s diplomatic relations”.
21 Mar 2017, 9:00 AM
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Criminal court threatens to take action against journalists
The criminal court has threatened to take “legal action” against journalists who “encourage terrorism” and threaten the peace, stability and sovereignty of the Maldivian state.
19 Mar 2017, 9:00 AM
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Raajje TV cameraman fined US$195 for obstructing police
Following the guilty verdicts and US$1,800 fines handed to Raajje TV journalists Mohamed Wisam and Leevan Ali Nasir last month, Adam Zareer becomes only the third journalist to be convicted in the Maldives in more than a decade.
27 Feb 2017, 9:00 AM
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Rilwan’s family goes to court for truth behind disappearance
The family filed a right to information request at the civil court asking its intervention to find out “the available facts of the events” that followed Rilwan’s abduction on August 8, 2014.
07 Feb 2017, 9:00 AM
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CPJ urges Maldives to drop charges against Raajje TV journalists
“Raajje TV journalists Mohamed Wisam, Leevan Ali Naseer and Adam Zareer are guilty of nothing more than covering events of significant public interest,” the CPJ said.
21 Jan 2017, 9:00 AM
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‘Even if I were to go to jail, I will come back as a journalist’: Journalists at risk in their own words
Three Raajje TV journalists, on trial for obstructing police officers, share their thoughts on journalism and describe why they continue to report despite the risk of jail.
16 Jan 2017, 9:00 AM
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Court hears closing arguments in case against Raajje TV journalists
A verdict will be delivered on December 19, the court said. Prosecutors reiterated that Wisam and Leevan had tackled a police officer to prevent him from making an arrest.
24 Nov 2016, 9:00 AM
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After forced shutdown, CNM team returns with new site
Four months after Channel News Maldives shut down citing pressure from the government, the hard-hitting team of journalists behind the popular online paper have made a comeback as the Voice of Free Press.
20 Oct 2016, 9:00 AM
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Witnesses testify in trial of Raajje TV journalists
The criminal court heard both prosecution and defence witnesses Tuesday night in the trial of opposition-aligned Raajje TV journalists Mohamed Wisam and Leevan Ali Naseer on charges of obstructing police officers.
28 Sep 2016, 9:00 AM
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How the defamation law has changed Maldives’ media landscape
The new defamation law has forced newsrooms across the Maldives to practice self censorship, use broadcasting delays and control what is said by politicians on talk shows
24 Aug 2016, 9:00 AM