Former Maldivian President Mr. M Nasheed who has been exiled from his country urged India to help and act swiftly in resolving the political crisis. The political crisis in the island nation worsened after the current President Abdulla Yameen ordered the troops to arrest the Supreme Court Chief Just and declared a state of emergency. The country was in utter chaos after Supreme Court demanded the release of nine politicians from the opposition. The court said that the arrests were politically motivated and not justified.
Former President asked the Indian government to step in and help in releasing the political prisoners whose trials were unfair. He also urged the US to help in curbing leader’s financial transaction. President Abdulla Yameen defied court’s order and refused to release the prisoners leading to chaos and protests in the streets of Maldives. Mr. Nasheed urged the people to remove him from power.
There has been an emergency declared in the state and Chief Justice has been arrested with no reason given about his charges. The Maldives is a small island nation which actually situated in the Indian Ocean. It is made up of more than thousand individual islands and 25 coral atolls while tourism contributes to a large part of the country’s GDP.
Tourism Ministry of various countries including US, UK, China, and India have warned travelers t remain cautious while traveling in the nation. The UK said that the parts away from the capital near international airports are relatively safe.
On Monday, The President declared a 15-day emergency in the state. Abdulla Yameen ordered the military troops to storm the Supreme Court and arrest the Chief Justice along with former president Mr. M Nasheed. As the situation got worse, India advised its citizens to defer all travels in the honeymoon island which are not essential.
The people in the honeymoon island are in a panic and there has been protests and chaos all over country’s capital. The protests started after the Supreme Court Chief Justice was detained on the order of The President without explaining any details or valid reason.
This was not the first case, as the President has been jailing almost all of his tough political rivals since he acquired power in 2013. The chaos has not been good for the economy as it has taunted the image of holiday paradise lately.
President Abdulla Yameen on Monday ordered for the detention of his estranged half-brother Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who himself was former President of the island nation. Abdul Gayoom had sided with his opposition and was campaigning against him lately, he was president of Maldives for more than 30 years till 2008. He was detained from his residence in the capital Male, a tweet by his daughter said.
Mr. Gayoom had posted a video on his official Twitter handle for his supporters. Heavily armed police special operations unit had earlier stormed the Supreme Court building to detain Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and others. People gathered around the court in thousands and started a protest and the troops had to use pepper spray to disperse them.
