MALDIVES-POLITICS/NASHEED LAWYERS-NEWSER Ex-Maldives president's lawyer Amal Clooney tries to secure his release

Record ID: 141248

  • Title: MALDIVES-POLITICS/NASHEED LAWYERS-NEWSER Ex-Maldives president's lawyer Amal Clooney tries to secure his release
  • Date: 10th September 2015
  • Summary: VIHAMANAAFUSHI, MALDIVES (SEPTEMBER 10, 2015) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS OF KURUMBA RESORT HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYERS AMAL CLOONEY AND JARED GENSER ARRIVING FOR NEWS CONFERENCE INTERIOR OF NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER, AMAL CLOONEY, SAYING: "The next stage will be to pursue targeted sanctions, travel bans and any other action and recourse that we have against the government until this matter is resolved. Now, it is disappointing that it has come to this." VARIOUS OF JOURNALISTS AT NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER, AMAL CLOONEY, SAYING: "So we came to the Maldives hoping to move forward on discussions with the government and I am grateful to the attorney general of the Maldives who agreed to meet with me yesterday and we had a constructive meeting. We discussed different ways consistent with the Maldivian domestic legal framework according to which President Nasheed could now be released, that includes the power of President Yameen to grant clemency. That is a power he can exercise now should he choose to do so. We also discussed other avenues that could be pursued and the attorney general recommended that I meet with the prosecutor general to continue those discussions. Unfortunately, today I was informed that the prosecutor general was not willing to meet with me." VARIOUS OF JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER, AMAL CLOONEY, SAYING: "What is important about what happened yesterday is that the high court held this hearing and appeared to be open to the idea that even though under Maldivian law an appeal is prevented after ten days have passed after the conviction and the judgement, it might be possible to still file an appeal in this case." CLOONEY AND GENSER LEAVING
  • Embargoed: 25th September 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Maldives
  • Country: Maldives
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA91OYN3DJXA0EJERQQU718GZ10
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: International human rights lawyer Amal Clooney said on Thursday (September 10) that the next step in efforts to free the jailed former president of the Maldives will be to call for targeted sanctions against members of the country's government.
    On Tuesday (September 8), Clooney met with Mohamed Nasheed, who was ousted in 2012 and convicted of terrorism for ordering the arrest of a judge.
    The Maldives' first democratically-elected leader is serving a 13-year jail term.
    The United Nations, the United States and human rights groups have said President Abdullah Yameen's government failed to follow due process during the quick trial and that the case against Nasheed was politically motivated.
    Clooney travelled to the prison where Nasheed was taken on August 23 from house arrest.
    Following a 90-minute discussion with Nasheed, Clooney said the former president was in "remarkably good spirits".
    Clooney was also given an audience with the country's attorney general with whom she discussed the case.
    "We came to the Maldives hoping to move forward on discussions with the government and I am grateful to the attorney general of the Maldives who agreed to meet with me yesterday and we had a constructive meeting," said Clooney.
    "We discussed different ways consistent with the Maldivian domestic legal framework according to which President Nasheed could now be released, that includes the power of President Yameen to grant clemency. That is a power he can exercise now should he choose to do so. We also discussed other avenues that could be pursued and the attorney general recommended that I meet with the prosecutor general to continue those discussions. Unfortunately, today I was informed that the prosecutor general was not willing to meet with me," she added.
    The country's High Court held a hearing on Wednesday (September 9) on an appeal by the prosecutor general's office.
    Clooney said the hearing showed signs of progress in the case.
    "What is important about what happened yesterday is that the high court held this hearing and appeared to be open to the idea that even though under Maldivian law an appeal is prevented after ten days have passed after the conviction and the judgement, it might be possible to still file an appeal in this case," Clooney said.
    Prosecutor General Muhthaz Muhusin told Reuters that a High Court decision to review the case would help Nasheed to appeal against his sentence.
    The human rights lawyers say that the next step will be to put pressure on the government, including the possible application of sanctions against certain individuals.
    "The next stage will be to pursue targeted sanctions, travel bans and any other action and recourse that we have against the government until this matter is resolved. Now, it is disappointing that it has come to this," said Clooney.
    U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al-Hussein last week called on Yameen's government to release Nasheed.
    He also called for a review of criminal cases against several hundred of Nasheed's party supporters who have been arrested in protests since May in the Maldives.
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