بســم اللّـه الرّحمـن الرّحيــم
Beloved People of the Maldives:
On February 7th of this year, I took oath of office as President of the Republic of Maldives when the former President tendered his resignation as stated in Article 121 (a) of the Constitution of the Maldives. If the office of the President becomes vacant for any reason, the Vice President assumes office of the President according to Article 112 (d) of the Constitution. It is in line with this clause of the constitution that I assumed the office of the President.
Within less than 24 hours of my assumption of office as President, the opposition MDP challenged the legitimacy of my government, claimed that the government of former president was toppled by a coup d’état, took to the streets, and began creating unrest. They torched public buildings, caused irreparable damage to property and destroyed the peace and stability of the nation. They conducted many unlawful activities. The damage that was caused to the nation, its people and property within a very short while amounts to hundreds of millions of Rufiyaa.
In my address to the nation after assumption of office as President I assured the people of the Maldives that I shall not go against the constitution or existing laws of the country. I also assured the people that I shall not exert any influence on the work of the courts or any institution of the judiciary. My resolve was to make certain that my government does not breach the constitution or any of the laws of Maldives. I resolved to ensure that the people of the Maldives are treated fairly and in an equitable manner and that steps are taken in accordance with existing legislation to address illegal activity. I still stand firm and reiterate this resolution.
Beloved People of the Maldives:
When I assumed the office of the President of the Maldives, there was a lot of political conflict within the country. There were major differences in the perceptions of people. On the one side some people believed that an elected president was overthrown by a coup d’état. Others believed that the elected president went against the constitution and laws of the Maldives and gave unlawful orders to the security services, and that he resigned when he could not tolerate the conflict that he himself created. And that he had started work to regain the presidency within 24 hours. I believed that it is imperative for the truth to be established for the purpose of ascertaining peace and stability in the nation and for the historical records of the Maldives.
On the 21st of February I created a Commission of National Inquiry by Presidential decree for the purposes of ascertaining the facts surrounding the events that led to the transfer of power on February 7th in an independent and just manner. The Commission was mandated to prepare a report regarding the transfer of power. I appointed three highly experienced, qualified, independent and respected members of the community to this Commission. The Commission was headed by Mr. Ismail Shafeeu. The other two members were Dr. Ibrahim Yasir and Dr. Ali Fawaz Shareef. These three individuals have provided an invaluable service to the nation.
The work of the Commission was initiated and conducted with the advice of the international community. It had always been of paramount importance to me to ensure that the findings and conclusions of the Commission were credible and acceptable to the people. Proceeding on that basis, and with the advice of Commonwealth, I later included on that Commission an experienced judge from an overseas jurisdiction and a representative from the former president who resigned from office. The overseas judge was a retired Justice of the Supreme Court of Singapore, Justice Panneer Selvam. We should be deeply thankful to his sincere and valuable service. The representative of the former president was Mr. Ahmed Saeed. I thank him for his services as well. The Commission was reconstituted on June 17th with the inclusion of these two additional members. I also welcomed the suggestion to attach two international experts to the Commission in an advisory capacity - one from Commonwealth, and the other from UN. The re-constituted Commission was accepted as credible and independent by all stakeholders. Even MDP accepted the Commission’s credibility.
The work of the Commission was conducted with utmost independence – to an extent that it would not have been possible to conduct similar work anywhere else in the world. I never attempted to exert any influence on the work of the Commission. Whenever the Commission sought my assistance, I extended my sincerest cooperation. In this regard, I attended the Commission on two separate occasions to give them information, on their request.
It is my belief that the Commission of National Inquiry conducted their work in a fair and just manner. Several individuals were interviewed and their testimonies taken. Video footage and pictures were gathered and studied extensively. Relevant institutions of the State were also called in to discuss their findings regarding events surrounding the transfer of power.
The Commission concluded its work and the members of the commission submitted their report to me about two hours ago. All members of the commission except Mr. Ahmed Saeed who resigned yesterday attended the meeting held in this office to submit the report.
According the Commission’s report, their main findings are as follows:
1. The change of President in the Republic of Maldives on 7 February 2012 was legal and constitutional
2. The events that occurred on 6th and 7th February 2012, were, in large measure, reactions to the actions of President Nasheed
3. The resignation of President Nasheed was voluntary and of his own free will. It was not caused by any illegal coercion or intimidation.
The Commission’s findings are clearly stated. I do not believe there is any room to raise any questions about the transfer of power.
I take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation for the untiring efforts of each and every member of the Commission, and thank each of them profoundly. I sincerely thank the administrative staff attached to the Commission and all those who assisted the Commission in performing their duties.
I would like to highlight that the personal attacks by some against members of the Commission, especially the attacks on co-chair Justice Selvam’s character are not acceptable in a civilized society. I strongly condemn these attacks.
Beloved people of the Maldives:
The country has faced a series of challenges since the transfer of power on February 7th. We should now ask ourselves how we have spent the last six months. What have we spent our energy on? How much have we damaged our economy due to the harm inflicted on our main industry? How have we lived as a people with fear in our hearts and no peace in sight? How much suffering have we endured as a people due to actions by some only to further their own interests? The damage to our economy and social fabric within the last six months cannot be easily recovered.
Most of my time and that of my colleagues in government have been consumed in finding ways to contain the loss and minimize damage to people and country. With serious harm inflicted on our tourism industry, we had to work in partnership with the industry to find ways to overcome serious challenges. We had to respond to allegations made to discredit the government and its officials. Much work had to be done to explain the truth to the people of the Maldives and members of the international community. In visits made by ministers and senior officials overseas, the truth regarding what actually transpired in the Maldives was explained to international partners. I myself have communicated widely regarding this matter with various Heads of States and international organisations in different meetings.
With the will of the Almighty Allah the tourism industry is improving and the number of tourist arrivals has shown an increase. In spite of this, it would take us a long while to overcome the many other challenges faced by our economy and steer the nation’s economy back on track. Much is being done even now to regain the confidence of investors that were lost with political unrest, breach of peace, and torching of property and buildings. With the grace of the Almighty Allah and with the cooperation of the people of Maldives, I am confident that we can improve our economy. I am also confident that the social fabric of the country and strong bonds of friendship among our people can be strengthened.
Beloved People of the Maldives:
This is the time to move forward with our nation, the time to work together for the betterment of our country with a renewed spirit of unity, friendship and co-operation. This is the time to be sincere and resolve to eliminate disharmony and disunity.
We are a people of one nation, one religion, one language and one generation. No other country has these characteristics. This is an enormous blessing and I thank the Almighty Allah for this blessing. I call upon all Maldivians to make the best of this blessing.
Beloved people of the Maldives:
I appeal to the people of the nation to respect the principles of Islam and to work in the spirit of maintaining peace and stability of the nation. I call on everyone to put the nation’s needs before their own and assist the government in the work to overcome the challenges that we currently face. I appeal to the beloved people of Maldives to utilize their courage and efforts for the development of the country. To show to the world that Maldives is a peaceful country. To strengthen the foundation of our development and to open a new page in the development of the nation.
Beloved People of the Maldives:
It has now become clear that the transfer of power on February 7th was legitimate. Therefore it is time to stop questioning the legitimacy of the government. It is time to stop illegal activities and activities that go against generally acceptable social norms.
With the CoNI Report, many things have become clear. The Maldivian people too would come to understand this once they read the report. This is now the time to stop brutality. This is the time for political leaders to show their leadership and the time to put the nation’s interest before individual interests. This is the time to learn from lessons of the past and the time for peaceful dialogue and constructive consultation.
The report of the Commission regarding the transfer of power on February 7th and the recent reports of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives on the events leading to February 7th, advise us to institute a series of administrative and legal reforms. It is imperative that sittings of the People’s Majlis resume in order implement these reforms. I assure you that I will also implement the recommendations of the Commission.
The consultative process that I had earlier initiated with the political parties of the country would re-commence tonight with a fresh resolve. I am hopeful that the consultations amongst parties would happen in a cordial and friendly environment.
May the Almighty Allah bestow upon the people of Maldives a better tomorrow. May Allah keep our country a peace loving nation. May Allah keep this land of ours independent and peaceful forever.
Aameen.