Mohamed Nasheed

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Topics: Human Rights, Interfaith, Proselytization, Separation of Church & State, Terrorism, Yoga

About Mohamed Nasheed

Mohamed Nasheed Keneryge Male (Dhivehi: މުހައްމަދު ނަޝީދު) (b. May 17, 1967), commonly referred to in the Maldives as Anni, former Parliament member for Malé, is the chairman of the Maldivian Democratic Party and an outspoken critic of the Maldivian PresidentMaumoon Abdul Gayoom and his policies. Due to his criticism of the dictator, over the years he was arrested and sentenced several times. He was made an Amnesty International Prisoner of Conscience in 1991 when he was being held in prison for writing for the popular political magazine known as "Sangu".

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On April 8, 1992 he was sentenced to three years in prison for "withholding information". He was released in June 1993 and was re-arrested in 1994 and 1995. In 1996 he was sentenced to two years imprisonment for an article he had written.

) sent by Umar Zahir to Anbaree Abdul Sattar on October 23, 2001]]
In 2000, he was elected as a member of the parliament representing the people of Malé. Six months later, in 2001 he was tried and sentenced to two and half years banishment for the theft of unspecified "government property" from H. Velaanaage - the former residence of former president Ibrahim Nasir. Supporters of Nasheed believe that it was a fabricated charge against him motivated by political desires. This was later proved to be so, when Dhivehiobserver (of Ahmed Shafeeq Ibrahim Moosa) published a leaked letter, sent by then Minister of Construction and Public Works Umar Zahir to the former Minister of Defence (and now High Commissioner to Delhi) Anbaree Abdul Sattar. The letter, dated on October 31, 2001, was published on the website on October 10, 2005. According to this letter, Nasheed did take some files from the residence which were about to be destroyed as they were of no value to the government. According to Umar Zahir there was no restricted area for the public in the residence. In his letter Umar Zahir stated "Later that day I did check the storage place from which Mohamed Nasheed apparently took that material. There was nothing there that could be of use. There remained only old written materials and books. Those things have now been burned."

In November 2003, Nasheed left the Maldives and joined Mohamed Latheef to help establish the Maldivian Democratic Party, in exile, in Sri Lanka and the UK. He was recognized as a political refugee by the British government in 2004. After about 18 months in self-proclaimed exile, Nasheed returned to Malé on April 30, 2005.

After returning to the Maldives he began promoting MDP before it was officially recognized by the Government. With the decision to allow political parties in the Maldives, on June 2, 2005 and the official recognition of the MDP's existence, Nasheed accelerated his support campaigns for the party. He made several trips to the Atolls, and neighbouring countries on behalf of the party.

On August 12, 2005, Nasheed was arrested again when he was sitting in the center of the Republican Square, with supporters of MDP, to mark the second anniversary of the Black Friday. His arrest provoked a civil unrest in Malé and some other Atolls. After his arrest acting Government Spokesman Mohamed Hussain Shareef told reporters Nasheed had been detained for "his own safety." Contradictorily, on August 22, 2005, the state announced Nasheed is to be charged for terrorism under the Terrorism Act.

  1. Mentioned In 6 Articles

  2. Jihad and Islamism in the Maldive Islands

    Explore Article The Jamestown Foundation (Feb 12 2010) Terrorism

    ...ouths in that country to join global jihadi groups. Notes 1. For a complete transcript of President Mohamed Nasheed’s interview, See “Radicals in Pak recruiting our youth: Maldives”, CNN-IBN, New Delhi, Oct 25, 2009... (Read Full Article)

    Comment on Article Mentions:   Karachi   Mohamed Nasheed   Lahore

  3. Almost no religious freedom for migrant workers

    Explore Article Forum 18 Latest News (Jun 23 2009) Human Rights

    Almost no religious freedom for migrant workers ...uld endanger their lives. It remains unclear though how far the government of the current President Mohamed Nasheed – who took up his post in November 2008 - is continuing this practice. One tactic the authorities h... (Read Full Article)

    Comment on Article Mentions:   Canada   Human Rights Commission   Mohamed Nasheed

  4. US sees rights problems in South Asia

    Explore Article The Daily Star (Feb 26 2009) Human Rights

    ... monarchy to a democracy. It also noted the transition in Maldives, where former political prisoner Mohamed Nasheed ousted Asia's longest serving leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in the archipelago's first multi-party el... (Read Full Article)

    Comment on Article Mentions:   Bhutan   Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam   Afghanistan

  5. US sees South Asia rights problems

    Explore Article Yahoo! Asia News (Feb 26 2009) Human Rights

    ... monarchy to a democracy. It also noted the transition in Maldives, where former political prisoner Mohamed Nasheed ousted Asia's longest serving leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in the archipelago's first multi-party el... (Read Full Article)

    Comment on Article Mentions:   Nepal   Bhutan   U.S. Department of State

  6. US sees South Asia rights problems

    Explore Article Google (Feb 25 2009) Human Rights

    ... monarchy to a democracy. It also noted the transition in Maldives, where former political prisoner Mohamed Nasheed ousted Asia's longest serving leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom in the archipelago's first multi-party el... (Read Full Article)

    Comment on Article Mentions:   Nepal   Bhutan   U.S. Department of State

  7. Religious freedom survey, October 2008

    Explore Article Forum 18 Latest News (Oct 15 2008) Human Rights

    ...n 28 October) will take place between President Gayoom and the largest opposition party's candidate Mohamed Nasheed. In 2003 the death of a prisoner, who had allegedly been beaten by police, sparked public protests.... (Read Full Article)

    Comment on Article Mentions:   Asma Jahangir   Sri Lanka   Malaysia

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