A little respect would go a long way :: Maldives News :: Dhivehi Observer

Nashid Column

A little respect would go a long way

by Dr. Ibrahim Nashid - ibrahimnash@gmail.com, G. Keneree Ge, Male', 16 October 2005

Throughout his long rule, President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has promised many political reforms that would bring about real and substantial change. Whenever the political situation becomes awkward, he proclaims constitutional reforms. Twenty seven years of brutal rule have proven that these are just empty promises of a pathological liar. But instead of admitting to the lies he always puts the blame for failure on the parliament, even though it is his ministers and other government members, acting on Gayoom's orders, who are most responsible for derailing the reform processes. Gayoom's latest "substantial reforms" seems to be going down the same road as the previous ones.

While we are waiting for the legal changes that would guarantee the Maldivians inalienable fundamental human rights, the human rights situation of the country could be dramatically improved by a selected few if they were willing to show some respect towards the very profession that they serve: the judges, more than anybody at the moment, have the power to stop the brutality of those who are terrorising the society as a whole. A few small steps of the judges could go a long way in helping to prevent the torture that is regularly carried out in the name of law and order. One such step would be for the judges to indicate their keenness to be convinced of the arguments of the advocates rather than relying on the confessions of the accused. In this they would certainly have the backing of the backing of the current Attorney General, if he is brave enough to back his words. The Attorney General has many times stated his willingness to move away from the current practice of sentencing based on confessional evidence. In this respect it would be good to see the Attorney General actually doing something on his own initiative rather than being pulled around on a string like Gayoom's other ministers.

Another step in the right direction would be for the judges to declare any evidence obtained by means of torture or ill-treatment inadmissible in court. This in itself is not a novel idea in the Maldives. There have been cases in the past where the judge declared the confession statement of the accused inadmissible in court because it was obtained through torture. One very common reason for torture in the Maldives is to force the accused to sign a confession statement of the liking of the torturers in order to secure a conviction. If the torturers are made aware that confession statements obtained by means of torture would actually hinder rather help getting a conviction, it is very likely that they would refrain from torturing the accused for this purpose. This could lead to a situation whereby the police and the security officers try to keep a detainee in detention without charge. But this can be prevented by the judges because they have the authority to order the release of a detainee after seven days if they are not convinced of the need to extend the detention period.

Another means with which the judges could improve the human rights situation of the Maldives is to demand respect for the judicial process from all concerned. To begin with they can refuse to go to the detention centres and instead demand the detainee to be brought to the court room if the detaining authority wishes to apply for an extension of the detention period. The judges in the Maldives are not obliged by law to run a mobile judicial service at all hours of the day. The judges should aim to prevent their profession being run like a room service in one of the fancy resorts of the Maldives. This would give the public a chance to see the detainee and judge for themselves any indications of torture or ill-treatment. One of the most effective ways of preventing torture and ill-treatment is to publicise cases of such treatment. Furthermore, there will be less room for intimidation of the judge by the detaining authorities when they have to attend the court room for extension of the detention period.

Judges in the Maldives have more of a moral obligation than anybody else to ensure that the judicial process is respected by the society. They have the authority, extended by law, to fulfil this obligation. The President of the Republic may have the power to appoint and remove any judge who does not obey his orders, but in my opinion saving one person from torture is worth a thousand times more than any amount of praise from any president.

The judges are there to serve the country and not just the president. They have served the current president for more than twenty seven years and it is about time they started serving the country. It is always better late than never.

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