Opposition MPs lobby resolution to free ex-pres Nasheed

Opposition parliamentary group on Wednesday submitted a resolution to the parliament, seeking to order Prosecutor General Aishath Bisham to annul the 13-year jail sentence imposed on former President Mohamed Nasheed on terrorism charges.

The resolution states that Nasheed's arrest on February 22, 2012, was unlawful. Opposition also claimed that Nasheed was deprived of his constitutional rights during his trial, which commenced the day after his arrest, and his conviction 19 days later. He was convicted to 13 years over the arbitrary detention of a high court judge during his regime.

The opposition pointed out that as per Article 16 of the Constitution, fundamental rights and freedoms are guaranteed to all persons in a manner that is not contrary to any tenet of Islam, and thus the government was not authorised to infringe any of these rights.

The resolution also highlighted that the United Nations (UN) Working Group on Arbitrary Detention had ruled on September 4, 2015, that Nasheed was convicted in violation of the Constitution and international pacts.

Furthermore, the resolution seeks to overturn the order to arrest Nasheed over absconding after he was allowed to go abroad for medical treatment after his conviction, and the additional terrorism charges he faces over arresting the incumbent President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom and Junhooree Party founder Qasim Ibrahim during his presidency.