Editorial: Change in Maldives Wednesday, 08 February 2012 04:14

Despite president Mohamed Nasheed’s exit, democracy must win in this archipelago nation.

Democracy has suffered a huge setback in Maldives. The sudden fall of the president of the archipelago nation, Mohamed Nasheed, took the region by surprise because of the way he was ejected from power. Nasheed opted to resign after three weeks of opposition-led protests in the country ended in a police mutiny. A rebellion by the police forces is no good sign and speaks of a conspiracy or the role of some hidden forces at the highest level. Nasheed, a 44-year-old former political prisoner, is widely credited with ushering in a new era of democratic reform in the island nation and his rise to power, through independent, national elections held in 2008, marked the end of the 30-year dictatorship of Maumoon Gayoom.

Ideally, Nasheed should have been ousted through the election process if the people of the country or his opponents are unhappy with his performance, policies or wanted change. But his resignation yesterday seems to have been forced on him, and there are reports that forces loyal to Gayoom have precipitated the current crisis.

The trouble started in in January after Nasheed ordered the military to arrest a senior judge, thought to be close to Gayoom, on corruption charges. The arrest created a constitutional crisis and led to huge, continuous protests by supporters of Gayoom. These protests were normal, but the situation worsened when the police turned against the government, defying orders and siding with the supporters of Gayoom in attacking the offices of Nasheed’s Maldivian Democratic party (MDP).

If Nasheed had continued in power, the nation would have plunged into a serious crisis and violence. In a televised statement, Nasheed said he was resigning to prevent violence”I am not a person who wishes to rule with the use of power. I believe that if the government were to remain in power it would require the use of force, which would harm many citizens,” Nasheed said.

Recently, Islamist elements have gained influence in Maldives and there were protests against the unIslamic tourist practices in the country. Nasheed was projected as anti-Islamic by his opponents. Also, the president was famous globally for his environmental campaigns, bringing to the attention of the world the dangers of climate change to his archipelago nation. The most famous of his actions was the holding of an underwater cabinet meeting in 2009.

The new government has to protect democracy and freedom of expression. Elections must be held when they are due and Nasheed’s party and he himself must be allowed to participate in the election process without fear.

Maldives should not fritter away the democratic gains it has made in the last few years.