In a police state? :: Maldives News :: Dhivehi Observer

Nashid Column

In a police state?

by Dr. Ibrahim Nashid - ibrahimnash@gmail.com, G. Keneree Ge, Male', 3 April 2006

With every action Gayoom makes it become clearer that honest political reform is the last of his intentions. His most recent act is the Police Bill that the government has sent to the parliament for debate. The proposed bill makes it quite clear that the police for Gayoom are a force that is used to prop up is dictatorial regime and not an institution that should work in the interest of the community.

In most countries that favour a democratic form of government, wide public debate is held before such a bill is proposed to the parliament for discussion. Thus the interests of the community on the one hand and the rights and liberties of the individual on the other hand can be thoroughly debated. A bill on police powers proposed after such a debate would then strike a balance between these two aspects.

But of course, Gayoom is neither interested in the community nor does he care much about the rights of the individual. The proposed bill simply maintains the existing system and gives the minister in charge all the powers. Giving the minister responsible such power is a widely used practice in various parts of the world. But the fundamental difference between these countries and the Maldives is that we do not have the power to sue the police in the Maldives and more importantly, the judiciary in these countries is independent.

Article 8 of the bill states that once this bill becomes law, the Maldivian Police Services, created in 2004, will become the police service stated in this bill. It also adds that the police service will function under the auspices of a minister decided by the president. To maintain the integrity of the police service the minister responsible has to create a Police Integrity Commission that will investigate complaints against members of the police service. If the Maldives had not been ruled by a dictator nearly thirty years, there might be hope in such a commission being fair and equal. However when seen in the light of the investigation relating to the death of Evan Naseem, we cannot but be skeptical of such a commission. The presidential commission that investigated the events relating to the death of Evan Naseem and others in prison was supposed to be independent and impartial. But a few days into the investigation, the Commissioner of Police, Adam Zahir intervened to exert his influence on the outcome of the investigation, thereby losing the little trust people had in the investigation. It is reasonable to assume that Adam Zahir will keep his job as long as Gayoom is in power.

The Police Integrity Commission will have some credibility if its members are elected by parliament in a similar manner to the Maldives Human Rights Commission. To gain further trust among the population, the Police Integrity Commission should be obliged to make public the outcome of complaints against the members of the police service and other areas of its work.

According to article 29 c (noonu) of the bill, if injury is caused or property damaged due to force used by the police during arrest due to non-cooperation of the suspect being arrested, the police are relieved of any blame and the responsibility falls on the suspect. In a country where the judges are appointed by the president and the police are seen as a force that keeps an aging dictator in power, there is no hope whatsoever of justice ever being done. It is more likely that the police will abuse this law to do damage to property or injury to people in order to put more blame on the suspect.

It is common knowledge in the Maldives that the police listen to every single telephone conversation, read every email and note down every sms of people who they think are against the government. The proposed bill in article 6-a (haa) (15) gives legal backing to this without any hindrance, thereby violating the privacy rights of the citizens. Such information gathering should only be allowed for a limited duration with the written authority of a judge.

Article 34 of the bill indirectly forces all persons in the Maldives to carry identity cards with them at all times. It gives the right to the police to demand identification from a person anywhere they think a crime might be committed. However, the article fails to specify the consequences of failure to produce identification. If the current practice is anything to go by, the person would probably have to spend a couple of nights in the police station.

The bill also allows the police to cordon off areas as long as they wish or ban a person from a particular area for a period of up to twenty four hours. In all likelihood the government's idea is perhaps to prevent demonstrations and protect Gayoom's residence.

With all its shortcomings, the most noticeable aspect of the bill is the lack of a need for any kind of warrant from a judge or another party before police action. People can be arrested, their houses raided and their neighborhoods cordoned off at the whim of a police officer. Although it is very likely that a rule forcing the police to obtain a warrant from a judge before arresting a person or searching somebody's house will be abused, it is still important for them to be written down so that we have some kind of a check on an already too powerful a force.

Instead of reforming and liberalizing the political landscape of the Maldives, this bill strengthens the authoritarian rule furthermore. If this bill becomes law without amendments, we might as well appoint Adam Zahir as Vice President and declare Maldives officially a police state!

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