Maldives Criminal Court Blocks President Nasheed’s Appeal
President Nasheed’s legal team has stated that the Maldives Criminal Court has effectively blocked the former President’s constitutionally mandated right to an appeal. The deadline for lodging an appeal expires on 26 March. But the lawyers have been unable to lodge an appeal because, in order to do so, they require the case report from… Read more
President Nasheed Denied a Practical Opportunity to Lodge an Appeal
President Mohamed Nasheed has been denied a practical opportunity to lodge an appeal at the High Court and therefore decided the appeal could not be filed without the full case report and adequate time for the legal counsels to prepare the appeal. As the case report of Criminal Court case number Cr-C/2015/132 is needed to… Read more
Nasheed’s Lawyers Raise Concerns over Right to Appeal Being Undermined
President Nasheed’s constitutionally-guaranteed right to an appeal is being systematically undermined by the Maldivian courts, Nasheed’s legal team have said. In the latest legal twist, the Criminal Court is refusing to release the full case report of President Nasheed’s trial — information the legal team needs to lodge an appeal against his conviction. On Thursday… Read more
Statement by the Legal Team on Appeal at the High Court (Translation)
President Nasheed will appeal the verdict delivered by Criminal Court on 13 March 2015, sentencing him for 13 years imprisonment on the charge of terrorism. The irregularities in the proceedings, based on procedural law and substantive law were such that President Nasheed was denied of the basic principles of fair trial and due process. According to… Read more
The Closing Statement prepared by President Nasheed for submission at his trial where he was charged with terrorism by the State (Translation)
(Note: This is a translation of the Closing Statement prepared by President Mohamed Nasheed for submission at his trial where he was charged with terrorism by the State. The statement was not delivered at the verdict hearing as he was not given sufficient time to prepare it.) Since becoming a Republic, the Maldives has… Read more
Criminal Court Conspires to Prevent Nasheed’s Conviction Appeal
The Criminal Court in the Maldives is deliberately refusing to release its court proceedings to former President Nasheed’s legal team, in order to frustrate their attempts at launching an appeal. President Nasheed was jailed by the Criminal Court for 13 years on Friday 13 March, ostensibly for ‘terrorism’, relating to the detention of a corrupt… Read more
President Nasheed Sentenced to 13 years in Jail; Nasheed Calls for Mass Protests; Wishes Mercy for his Jailers
The Maldives Criminal Court on Friday 13 March sentenced former President Mohamed Nasheed to 13 years in jail on charges of ‘terrorism’, for the detention, while he was still president in 2012, of a criminal court judge who had been accused of corruption, abuse of power and who had refused to obey police summons. In… Read more
Statement by President Nasheed’s Legal Team (Translation)
In the charges pressed against President Mohamed Nasheed by the state, he requested the legal team to work towards defending himself and the honour, pride and integrity of the Commander in Chief of Maldives and the Maldivian Security Forces along with military personnel. In this light, we would like to highlight that due to the… Read more
Nasheed’s Legal Team Quits; Court Refuses New Lawyers and Defence Witnesses
President Nasheed’s legal team withdrew their counsel on Monday, stating that inherent biases in Nasheed’s trial mean it is impossible to mount a proper defence. The four person legal team said they had completely withdrawn from the case because the Criminal Court has given them woefully little time to prepare. President Nasheed’s surprise trial for… Read more
Nasheed’s Lawyers Denied Adequate Time: Say Impossible to Provide Constitutional Right to Counsel
President Nasheed’s legal team excused themselves from court on Sunday, stating that it was impossible to provide their client with proper legal counsel because they were not provided with important documentary evidence on time. In Sunday evening’s hearing, President Nasheed’s legal team were supposed to evaluate prosecution evidence that had been given in audio and… Read more
Amnesty International: Nasheed Trial Is ‘Selective Justice’
Amnesty International has raised serious concerns over the fairness of former President Nasheed’s trial, calling it a “selective approach to justice”. In a statement released on 3 March, Amnesty International said: “The arrest of former president Mohamed Nasheed, and his apparent mistreatment in custody and lack of fair trial, highlight a selective approach to justice… Read more
Nasheed’s Lawyers Express Concerns of Rushed Trial With No Time to Prepare
The fourth hearing in President Nasheed’s surprise trial for alleged ‘terrorism’ will commence at 10 pm Wednesday 4 March at the Criminal Court in Male’, as his lawyer expressed concerns that have been given insufficient time to prepare their case. The former President’s legal team have frequently asked the bench for more time to mount… Read more