UN to help normalize situation in Maldives
Hameed Shaheen
ISLAMABAD – The United Nations is sending its senior official later this
week to the Maldives to “help the country deal with its recent tensions”, says UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s statement on the
developing situation in the Indian Ocean country where protests forced President Nasheed to resign. Maldives is an active member of the 8-state SAARC
body in the region.
Assistant Secretary-General Oscar Fernandes-Taranco will lead a UN political mission to the Maldives to help it to tackle
tensions there. Mr Fernandez will meet government officials, opposition and civil society representatives to have an on-the-spot feel of the evolving
scenario. Maldives Vice President has taken over power following presidential resignation.
UN Secretary General in his statement expressed
“strong hope that this handover of power, which has been announced as a constitutional step to avoid further violence and instability, will lead
to the peaceful resolution of the political crisis that has polarized the country in recent months.”
Mr. Ban called on all Maldivians to
“refrain from violence and engage constructively” in tackling the challenges facing the country, adding that he hoped the Maldives will be
able to build on “the important gains” it has recently made in establishing democracy and the rule of law.
“The
Secretary-General acknowledges the important contributions of President Nasheed, the country’s first democratically-elected president, to the
establishment of democracy in the Maldives and his role in raising international awareness of the dangers of climate change and rising
seas.”
The Maldives public protests were sparked by the arrest of a senior judge of the criminal court there. The SAARC Secretary General
Ms Fatimath had to tender her resignation over the arrest of the judge as violation of human right.
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