Parliament sitting scheduled for evening, agenda not yet announced

Parliament has scheduled an extraordinary sitting for 4:00 pm today, though the agenda has not yet been announced.

It is widely speculated that the sitting will focus on the Media Regulation Bill, which the Independent Institutions Committee passed yesterday. The committee is scheduled to re-examine the bill at 2:00 pm ahead of the sitting.

The bill, submitted by Thulhaadhoo Independent MP Abdul Hannan Abubakuru and backed by the ruling PNC supermajority, has drawn criticism from journalists and rights groups.

Committee reviews were held in secret, and no consultations were held with journalists, despite a petition signed by more than 150 media workers urging withdrawal of the bill.

22 local and international organisations, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF), have called for the bill to be withdrawn, citing it would deal a severe blow to press freedom in Maldives.

Since early morning, journalists from various outlets have been protesting outside Parliament, chanting against the bill’s passage.

Police have set up barricades and pushed demonstrators back, but media workers and members of the public continue to demand that the bill be withdrawn.