COLOMBO: The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), headed by the former Maldivian President Muhammad Nasheed, has welcomed the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group’s (CMAG’s) decision to place the Maldives on its formal agenda.
A statement issued by MDP’s Colombo-based spokesman, Hamid Abdul Ghafoor, said on Sunday that the MDP also called upon the Yameen government to immediately sit for talks with the opposition, as stipulated by the CMAG.
In placing the Maldives on its formal agenda, the CMAG expressed “deep disappointment” with the state of affairs in the Maldives and cited a clear lack of progress in the six areas it had previously identified at an extraordinary meeting in February 2016.
“The MDP calls upon the Government to immediately engage in political dialogue with all stakeholders to resolve the current political crisis. The MDP urges the Government to take steps to uphold human rights of all citizens, and for the urgent restoration of democracy in the country, through strengthening of democratic institutions and the release of all political prisoners. The MDP urges the Government to fulfill these steps in order to avert suspension from the Commonwealth,” Ghafoor said.
“The people of Maldives rely upon their livelihood from trade in an interconnected world. It is in the interest of all stakeholders that the country doesn’t slide towards suspension. Alienation from the Commonwealth family and the international community would be to the detriment to all Maldivians, and the MDP urges the Government to immediately implement the reforms recommended by the CMAG.”
“President Yameen must immediately halt his devious designs to consolidate absolute power. He must prevent the suspension of the Maldives from the Commonwealth, and return to the community of democratic nations,” Ghafoor said.