MJA urges President not to ratify media regulation bill

Maldives Journalists Association (MJA) has urged President Dr Mohamed Muizzu not to ratify the media regulation bill passed by Parliament last Tuesday, warning that unresolved concerns could undermine press freedom.

Speaking at a press conference last night, MJA’s new president Ahmed Naif said the association’s position on the bill remains unchanged and called for it to be returned to Parliament without ratification.

Naif, who is also the associate editor of Dhauru Online, said the association would "not recognize" the law even if it comes into force, pledging to "challenge" it through protests, civil disobedience and public awareness campaigns.

“Our call is for self regulation. We are not against regulation, but it must be led by a self regulatory mechanism, not one influenced by the government,” Naif said.

He warned that the bill, even in its amended form, would dismantle existing self regulation and replace it with a system vulnerable to political interference.

The MJA highlighted several key concerns, including provisions allowing Parliament to appoint three of the seven members of the new commission, remove all members at its discretion, and appoint the commission’s president. The association said these powers compromise the independence of media oversight.

While the most controversial sections imposing fines of MVR 5,000–25,000 on individual journalists were removed during committee review, newspapers and magazines can still face fines of up to MVR 100,000 for violating the code of conduct. The bill also requires media outlets and journalists to issue corrections or apologies when notified of publishing false information.

Maldives Media Council (MMC) has also opposed the bill, sending a letter to President Muizzu requesting that he withhold ratification and sent the bill back to Parliament.