Forgiving perpetrators of child sexual abuse not acceptable: President

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu stated today that those accused, charged and convicted of child sexual abuse should not be granted pardon.

He made this statement in a post on X, expressing concern over the release of a man arrested last year for sexually abusing his own grandchild in Thaa atoll Veymandoo.

President Muizzu also said that the government had asked the Prosecutor General to appeal against court decisions to release those arrested on charges related to child sexual abuse.

“Granting clemency or releasing those arrested or convicted of child sexual abuse is simply unacceptable”, he said. “The government has asked the Prosecutor General to appeal such cases without delay”.

The President further urged the public to unite and combat such horrific crimes.

He made the remarks without referring to a specific case. However, last year, a 13-year-old girl was sexually abused by her 69-year-old grandfather. He was arrested in August of last year but released on conditional bail by the Veymandoo Magistrate Court.

At the time of his release, the trial of sexually abusing his granddaughter was pending in court.

Earlier, the Prosecutor General’s Office informed ‘Mihaaru News’ that an appeal against the release of the accused would be filed tomorrow.

Upon his release, a number of the island's residents expressed their outrage on social media. The girl, who was sexually abused inside their home, initially confided about it to her teacher. She also informed her mother that the abuse occurred on multiple occasions. The mother had reported the case to the police.