4th President of the Maldives
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11 November 2008 – 7 February 2012
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Personal details
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Born
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17 May 1967
Malé, Maldives
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Political party
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Maldivian Democratic Party
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Spouse(s)
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Laila Ali Abdulla
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Children
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Meera Laila Nasheed
Zaaya Laila Nasheed |
Alma mater
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Liverpool John Moores University
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Religion
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Islam
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In the October
2008 presidential election, opposition coalition defeated Gayoom in the second
round, assuming office on 11 November 2008. On 7 February 2012 Mohamed Nasheed
resigned in front of local media from his presidency under disputed
circumstances, following weeks of protests by opposition which had then been
joined by majority of military and police forces. The next day, Nasheed stated
that these protesters had joined with "powerful networks" of Gayoom
loyalists to force his resignation in a coup d'état, and that he was forced to
resign "at gunpoint" by police and army officers. Nasheed's successor
Mohammed Waheed Hassan denied these claims and stated that the transfer of
power was voluntary and constitutional. On 30 August, the Maldives' National
Commission of Inquiry stated that it had found no evidence to support Nasheed's
version of events, a verdict supported by the US and the Commonwealth of
Nations.
Early life
Nasheed was born
in Maldives to a middle-class family. He attended Majeediyya School in the
Maldives, between 1971 and 1981. He continued his secondary school education
overseas at the Overseas School of Colombo, from 1981 to 1982 until he
completed his GCE Ordinary Level Certificate. In August 1982 he moved to the
United Kingdom where he completed his Higher Secondary Education at the
Dauntsey's School in Wiltshire. Straight after his A-Levels, Nasheed moved
north to Liverpool where he spent the next three years reading for a Bachelor
of Arts in Maritime Studies at Liverpool Polytechnic (later Liverpool John
Moores University), graduating in 1989.
Imprisonment
Nasheed was held
in prison for an article in the political magazine Sangu, published in 1990,
alleging the government of rigging the 1989 General election. He was named an
Amnesty International prisoner of conscience in 1991. He has stated that he was
tortured while in detention, including being chained to a chair outside for 12
days and forced to eat food containing crushed glass. He was later alleged by
the government to have withheld information about a bombing plot. On 8 April
1992, he was sentenced to three years in prison on that charge. He was released
in June 1993, and then re-arrested in 1994 and 1995. In 1996 he was sentenced
to two years imprisonment for an article he had written about the 1993 and 1994
Maldivian elections, and was again designated a prisoner of conscience. In all,
he was arrested more than twenty times during Gayoom's rule, missing the births
of both of his daughters. During his time in jail, he spent significant amounts
of time studying, producing three books on Maldivian history.
Parliament
In 1999, he was
elected as a Member of Parliament representing Malé. However, he was forced to
leave office on a theft charge that the BBC and other international media sources
described as politically motivated.
In September 2003
Nasheed requested that a doctor view the body of Hassan Evan Naseem, a
19-year-old prisoner who had died in Maafushi Jail while serving a term for
drug possession. The subsequent investigation revealed that Naseem had been
tortured to death. This revelation, and the violent suppression of the prison
riot that followed, sparked the anti-government protests of the 2003 Maldives
civil unrest, leading to the first State of Emergency in Maldivian history and
a "turning point" in its history.
In November 2003 Nasheed left the Maldives and
joined Mohamed Latheef to help establish the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP),
in self-exile, in Sri Lanka and the UK. He was recognised as a political
refugee by the British government in 2004. After about 18 months, Nasheed
returned to Malé on 30 April 2005.
After returning
to the Maldives he began promoting MDP before it was officially recognised by
the Government. With the decision to allow political parties in the Maldives on
2 June 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 12 August 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 civil unrest in Malé and some other Atolls. After
his arrest, acting Government Spokesman Mohamed Hussain Shareef told reporters
that Nasheed had been detained for "his own safety." However, on 22
August 2005, the state announced that Nasheed was to be charged with terrorism
under the Terrorism Act.
Presidency
2008 presidential election
Main article:
Maldivian presidential election, 2008
In the 2008
Presidential campaign, Nasheed ran for the post of President and along-side him
stood the Gaumee Itthihaad's candidate Mohammed Waheed Hassan as the Vice
Presidential Candidate on an MDP ticket; this was the first time the country
had held a multiparty presidential election by popular vote. In the first
round, Nasheed and Waheed placed second with 44,293 votes (24.91%), placing
second behind President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom of the governing Dhivehi
Rayyithunge Party (DRP), who received 71,731 votes (40.34%).
In the Second
Round of elections, President Nasheed's MDP, created a coalition with Dr.
Hassan Saeed (Gaumee Party), Gasim Ibrahim (Jumhoory Party), Sheih Hussain
Rasheed (Adhaalath Party, Islamic Party), Ibrahim Ismail (Social Democratic
Party) and Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik (Gaumee Ithihaad).
In the second
round, Nasheed and Waheed were backed by the unsuccessful first round
candidates (Watan Edey Coalition) and won 54.25% of the vote against 45.75% for
Gayoom.
Following the
election, Nasheed and Waheed were sworn in as the President and Vice President
of the Maldives on 11 November 2008 in a special session of the People's Majlis
at Dharubaaruge.
Cabinet
President Mohamed
Nasheed's first cabinet included 14 Ministers. The posts were handed to
politicians from the coalition with respect to the contribution to the
"Watan Edhey" Coalition. As per the coalition agreement, President
Nasheed created the first ever Islamic Ministry in the Maldives, with a cabinet
post representing it.
Within four
months after his first cabinet was formed, President of Jumhoory Party, Qasim
Ibrahim resigned as Home Minister. This was followed by the President of Gaumee
Party, Hassan Saeed, Civil Aviation Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, and Attorney
General Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed. The next appointment for the Attorney General,
Husnu Suood, also resigned, followed by Finance Minister Mohamed Inaz.
Later the
remaining main party in the Coalition, Adhaalath Party (Islamic Party) cut ties
with the ruling MDP, citing religious matters. By the end of the first year of
his presidency, President Nasheed's cabinet contained only ministers from the
ruling party.
Policies
With regard to
the threat posed to the very low-lying islands by changes in sea level caused
by global warming, in March 2009 Nasheed pledged to set an example by making
the Maldives carbon-neutral within a decade by moving to wind and solar power.
He argued that the cost of the change would be no higher than what the Maldives
already spends on energy. As part of a wider campaign by international
environmental NGO 350.org's campaign publicising the threats of climate change
and its effects on the Maldives, Nasheed presided over the world’s first
underwater cabinet meeting on 17 October 2009, off the island of Girifushi with
the meeting participants underwater in scuba diving gear. The following month,
Nasheed founded the Climate Vulnerable Forum, an association of countries
affected disproportionately by climate change.
June 2010 crisis
On 29 June 2010
Nasheed's 13 cabinet ministers resigned en masse, protesting the behaviour of
opposition MPs who they said were “hijacking” the powers of the executive and
making it impossible for the cabinet Ministers to discharge their
constitutional duties and deliver the government’s election manifesto. The
ministers called on the President to investigate why certain MPs were blocking
the government's work, citing allegations of corruption and bribery in
parliament.
On 7 July,
Nasheed reappointed all thirteen Ministers of the Cabinet, at a ceremony held
at the President’s Office in Malé. Speaking at a press conference held shortly
after presenting the Ministers with their letters of appointment, Nasheed said
his government would "work towards fulfilling its pledges to the
people." Nasheed noted that the government had investigated the reasons
why cabinet members felt they had to resign and the police had taken
appropriate action. The President reiterated that only a small number of MPs
are implicated in alleged corruption, saying that "the reputation of the
People’s Majlis should not be tarnished because of corruption allegations
against a few parliamentarians." After the re-installation of the cabinet
on 7 July, the cabinet was sent to the parliament for endorsement.
On 22 November
the parliament voted and declared that only five out of the 12 appointees would
be accepted. They also called for the rejected ministers to step down
immediately. This resulted in heated arguments between ruling party MDP and
opposing DRP, who holds majority seats in parliament. The parliament ruled that
the rejected appointees would not be considered as ministers, and refused to
allow Finance minister, Ali Hashim present the 2011 state budget for parliament
approval. Members of MDP responded to this by declaring that neither parliament
or supreme court had rights to dismiss ministers and threatened high members of
the parliament.
On 10 December
2010 the Supreme Court of Maldives ruled that the ministers not endorsed by the
parliament cannot remain in their posts, and requested their immediate
resignation from office. Three days later, Nasheed appointed two new ministers
and acting ministers for four more offices. He also reappointed the rejected
Attorney General, Dr. Sawad.
Resignation
Less than a year
into the presidency, cabinet members representing other political parties in
the coalition began to resign in protest of an alleged lack of respect for
transparency and the constitution. The last major party to sever its ties to
the ruling party was Adhaalath Party (Islamic Party). Another issue taken up by
the opposition parties was that Nasheed's government, like Gayoom's, allowed
spas and resort islands to be exempt from the laws that prohibited alcohol and
pork products elsewhere in the largely Muslim nation. Protests became a
frequent occurrence in the streets of the capital city of Malé after the
president’s coalition slowly dissolved.
An opposition
alliance (Madhanee Ithihaad) was formed on December 2011, including all the
parties that supported the President in his 2008 presidential race. Those
parties included Gaumee Party, Jumhoory Party, and Adhaalath Party. On 23
December, the capital city saw major opposition protests against Nasheed and
his government. Former cabinet minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed was repeatedly
summoned to the police station in connection with the protests, at one point being
detained at Dhoonidhoo, a Maldivian prison island. Chief Justice Abdulla
Mohamed ordered his release, but according to the police his non-compliance
with their on-going investigations against him led in turn to his being
arrested by members of the Maldives National Defense Force.
Due to the arrest
of the judge the opposition parties' protests gained momentum and demanded
Judge Abdulla Mohamed's immediate release. During the detention of the judge,
the HRCM was able to visit him in his place of detention, a military training
base, and confirm his safety. Opposition leaders also called for an independent
investigation into the constitutionality of the arrest, a call echoed by the
Human Rights Commission of the Maldives, the Judicial Services Commission, the
Prosecutor General’s Office, the International Commission of Jurists, Amnesty
International, and the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner. Military and
police rejected the orders by High Court to release Abdulla Mohamed.
The opposition's
protest in the Republic Square lasted for 22 consecutive days. On 6 February
2012, the Maldives Police Service declined to use force to control or disperse
the protests and joined the protest. In early hours of 7 February 2012,
President Mohamed Nasheed was seen inside the military headquarters. The
Maldives National Defense Force subsequently had a standoff with police who had
joined the protesters, in which the MDF fired rubber bullets into the crowd.
(The President's office, however, denied these reports.)
Military forces
increasingly joined the opposition, and Nasheed stepped down that day. His
statement read: "I believe if I continue as the President of the Maldives,
the people of the country would suffer more. I therefore have resigned as the
President of Maldives. I wish the Maldives would have a consolidated democracy.
I wish for justice to be established. My wish is for the progress and
prosperity of the people. And I thank you all for your support and
contributions to achieve success for the past three years." He also stated
his hope that his resignation might avoid international pressure on the
Maldives over the unrest. Vice President Mohammed Waheed Hassan, who claims to
have opposed Abdulla Mohamed's arrest, was then sworn in as the new president,
and a warrant was issued for Nasheed's arrest.
Nasheed later
wrote that he was forced to resign "at gunpoint", and that
"powerful networks" of Gayoom loyalists had manipulated events to
"strangle" Maldivian democracy. The coup interpretation was also
backed by UK MP David Amess, Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group to
the Maldives, but contradicted by UK Prime Minister David Cameron, who asserted
that Nasheed "had resigned". Nasheed's successor and opposition
forces also stated that the transfer of power was voluntary. A later British
Commonwealth meeting concluded that it could not "determine conclusively
the constitutionality of the resignation of President Nasheed", but called
for an international investigation. The Maldives' National Commission of Inquiry,
appointed to investigate the matter, found that there was no evidence to
support Nasheed's version of events. The US State Department and the
Commonwealth of Nations Secretary Kamalesh Sharma welcomed the release of the
report, and called on Maldivians to abide by its decision.
On 8 February the
MDP convened an emergency executive meeting and called for its members to go
into streets. President Mohamed Nasheed then attempted to lead the protesters
to the Republic Square. Before his march reached the square, however, the
Maldives Police Service dispersed the protest with batons and pepper spray. An
Amnesty International spokesperson later condemned the police tactics as
"brutal" and "outright human rights violations".
Post-presidency
In the weeks
following Nasheed's resignation, he requested that the Commonwealth of Nations
threaten the Maldives with expulsion unless new elections are held. The
Commonwealth supported Nasheed's call for early elections, calling on both
Nasheed and Waheed to enter talks to arrange new polls before the year's end.
A documentary
about Nasheed's efforts to halt climate change, The Island President,
was filmed throughout 2009 and 2010. It was directed by Jon Shenk, produced by
Actual Films, and features a soundtrack with songs by Radiohead. The film won
the Cadillac People's Choice Documentary Award at the 2011 Toronto
International Film Festival and opened in New York City on 28 March
2012. The New York Times describes the film as "unabashedly
pro-Nasheed" and "the biggest media event Mr. Nasheed could have
hoped for" to publicize his cause. The film proved popular in the
Maldives, with scalpers reportedly selling tickets at twice their value. The
Island President received generally positive reviews from U.S. critics,
holding a 98% "Fresh" rating at Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 72 out
of 100 at Metacritic.
On 1 April 2012,
Nasheed stated that he was unsure of the official charges against him in the
Maldives: "One time they said it was terrorism, another time they said it
was acting against the constitution, another time they said it was
alcohol." In September, Nasheed was put on trial for abuse of power for
his actions in arresting Abdulla Mohamed; however, his trial was cancelled
without explanation.
On 8 April,
Nasheed was arrested after violating a court order not to leave Malé Atoll, the
island on which the Maldivian capital is located. He was detained overnight and
then released on the condition that he answers questions about his alleged
abuse of presidential powers within 25 days.
Awards, honours and praise
In May 2009
Nasheed was presented with Coral Cultivation Initiative Award by Huvafen Fushi
Resort and Underwater Spa, Maldives in recognition of his active participation
in cultivating coral in the resort’s nursery as well as for his efforts in
creating greater awareness on the impact of climate change in the Maldives. One
month later, the Anna Lindh Memorial Fund awarded Nasheed the 2009 Anna Lindh
Award for the role he played in bringing democracy to the Maldives and in
recognition of his efforts "to put people and their human rights at the
heart of the debate on climate change".
President Nasheed
during the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference.
In September 2009
at the global premiere of the "Age of Stupid", Nasheed was presented
with a "Not Stupid" Award for his efforts to tackle climate change
and for the Maldives' announcement to become the first carbon-neutral country
in the world. In the same month, Time magazine named Nasheed to its
"Leaders & Visionaries" category within its annual list of "Heroes
of the Environment".
On Earth Day 2010
Nasheed was awarded the United Nations' Champions of the Earth Award. He
received it at a gala event in Seoul, Republic of Korea, in conjunction with
the B4E Business for the Environment Global Summit. According to a press
release by the United Nations Environment Programme, the award was in
recognition of Nasheed's being "an articulate voice for the vulnerable and
the poor facing the challenges of global warming and also a politician who is
showcasing to the rest of the world how a transition to climate neutrality can
be achieved and how all nations, no matter how big or how small, can
contribute". That year, he was also named by Foreign
Policy magazine to its list of top global thinkers.
In March 2011
following his official visit to the Republic of Mauritius, he was decorated by President
Anerood Jugnauth and was awarded the highest distinct order of merit in the
country, the Grand Commander of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean during the
official lunch hosted by Jugnauth at the Château of Réduit.
In a 2011
interview with The Guardian, British Prime Minister David Cameron
described Nasheed as 'my new best friend' and said that he, Bill Clinton, Barack
Obama, Nicolas Sarkozy and John Key would be the five world leaders Cameron
would invite on his stag weekend.
On 28 June 2012,
Nasheed received the James Lawson Award from the International Center on
Nonviolent Conflict at Tufts University in Massachusetts, US. The award was
given to "recognize his leadership in opposing the long dictatorial regime
that lasted before his election and to recognize his opposition to the armed
coup earlier this year which forced him from power, and his renewed nonviolent
action on behalf of restoring genuine democracy in his country".
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