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Former judge Hassan Ali's passport withheld over Rilwan's disappearance

Ahmed Aiham
05 October 2020, MVT 20:02
The suspended High Court Judge Hassan Ali, formally handed in his resignation in July. PHOTO: MIHAARU FILES
Ahmed Aiham
05 October 2020, MVT 20:02

The Commission on Investigation of Murders and Enforced Disappearances, on Sunday, revealed that the passport of former High Court judge Hassan Ali is currently being withheld, in connection to the ongoing investigation regarding the disappearance of journalist Ahmed Rilwan.

However, no further details were disclosed by the Commission.

During his tenure as the Immigration Controller, Hassan Ali was accused of attempting to prove that Rilwan died after he fled Maldives to participate in a foreign conflict.

It was alleged that he worked with intelligence officers of Maldives Police Service to produce a passport and falsify proof that the missing journalist had departed from the country. He is further accused of attempting to coerce at least one media company, NDTV, report misinformation regarding the journalist.

Prior to his resignation, Hassan was suspended by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) for their investigation into the matter.

Two years have passed since the commission reopened investigations into Rilwan's case, but as of yet, no suspects have been charged in relation to the journalist's abduction.

In 2019, DDCom noted that Rilwan was murdered following his abduction, in a report which stated that Rilwan's murder resulted from a clash between some liberals and an extremist group, the latter reportedly being an affiliate of the militant multi-national extremist organization, al-Qaeda.

Rilwan's family has raised concern on several occasions over the slow progress in ensuring justice for the abducted journalist.

His family, on the six-year anniversary of Rilwan's disappearance, accused President Solih of misusing Rilwan and Yameen's names to secure votes in the 2018 elections, by pledging to ensure justice for the victims and their families.

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