Maldives President lifts state of emergency

Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom on Thursday lifted the 45-day State of Emergency that he imposed on February 5.

Yameen imposed a state of emergency on February 5 for 15 days to annul a February 1 Supreme Court ruling that quashed convictions against nine opposition leaders and ordered his government to free those held in prison. 

He later extended the state of emergency for another 30 days with parliament approval, a move challenged by the opposition. 

Under the emergency, Yameen’s administration arrested former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, the chief justice, another Supreme Court judge, and a Supreme Court administrator on allegations of attempting to overthrow the government. They have all rejected the charges. 

Maldives police said on Saturday that at least 139 opposition protesters were arrested as they attempted to defy orders under the state of emergency and march into the high-security zone in capital Male. 

Now, The Maldives Police have been able to progress substantially into their investigation of corruption and other crimes relating to the Constitutional Crisis. 

The Prosecutor General issued a statement on 20 March 2018 outlining the charges to be filled by her Office regarding the submissions by the Maldives Police Service to date.