Main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Monday agreed to sit-down with the government in a bid to honour the Commonwealth led push to resolve the protracted political strife in the Maldives.
The MDP national council earlier Monday passed a motion to ask the party leadership to designate representatives for the talks with the government.
The party's deputy leader Mohamed Shifaz who submitted the motion pointed that the time for the opposition to engage in dialogue was ideal with the international community's attention firmly on the Maldives.
After placing Maldives on its formal agenda on Friday, the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) had called on both sides to compromise and sit-down for dialogue without any pre-conditions.
CMAG, a watchdog body comprising of eight foreign ministers, had laid out a six-point reform agenda in February, which includes the release of political prisoners and judicial reform.
During the body’s sit-down on Friday, the ministers expressed deep disappointment at the lack of progress in the priority areas.
“… in the absence of substantive progress across the priority areas, the Group would consider its options, including suspension from the Councils of the Commonwealth, at its next meeting, in March 2017,” a statement after the sit-down read.
Immediately after the CMAG meeting, the government had invited the opposition parties to designate representatives for the talks, shifted blame to the opposition after the UN led all party talks failed to make much headway.
In addition to the Commonwealth, the United Nations had also initiated proxy talks after the main opposition parties refused to sit-down with government demanding the release of all jailed political leaders as a pre-condition for the talks.
The opposition had announced a united front to oust president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom from office and form an interim government until the next presidential elections in 2018.
The Maldives United Opposition (MUO) brings together the Maldivian Democratic Party, the Adhaalath Party, two of president Yameen’s former deputies and his former defence minister.
The MUO was established in London where key members of the opposition are in exile including Yameen’s first vice president Dr Jameel and former president Mohamed Nasheed.
Nasheed’s jailing on a terror charge last year was a key trigger of the current political crisis. He was allowed to leave the country in an internationally brokered deal in January.
Jameel had meanwhile fled to the UK last July, days before he was impeached in a controversial vote. At the time, the Adhaalath Party leader Sheikh Imran Abdulla and former Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim were already in jail.
Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in jail last year but was given asylum in Britain after traveling there for back surgery. Nazim is serving an 11-year jail term for possessing a firearm, and former vice president Ahmed Adheeb Abdul Ghafoor was sentenced to 33 years in prison on corruption, two counts of terrorism charges, including an assassination attempt on the president.
MUO had announced that it would represent all political opponents in the talks.
However, the government has refused to recognize the opposition alliance.
Fisheries minister Dr Mohamed Shainee who is also the chief government representative in the all party talks, told Mihaaru earlier Monday that the government cannot achieve the Commonwealth laid reform agenda if the opposition refuses to engage in dialogue.
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