Parliamentary motion calls for immediate action on threats to reporters
Siyam asked to take down the article immediately saying he was issuing the “last warning”, and the death threats starting coming in after that.
By
Fathmath Ahmed Shareef
An emergency motion was moved in parliament on Monday demanding an inquiry into the threats issued to senior associate editor Ahmed Naaif and a senior editor of Atoll Times’ sister newspaper Dhauru.
Journalist Naaif and a senior editor, who wrote the article ‘Siyam and Hilton: A red warning to investors', received death threats after it was published in Dhauru website on Thursday. A complaint was lodged on Friday on behalf of Dhauru and Naaif himself. They have received threat messages even after the complaint was filed.
MDP MP from Central Henveiru Constituency, Ali Azim, moved an emergency motion in the Parliament. The emergency motion moved by Azim was accepted and the debate began on Monday. Thus:
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Monday’s house passed a vote with 18 of the 19 lawmakers who took part in the vote
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One member voted not to accept the motion
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Even if 28 MPs turned up for Monday’s session, nine abstained from voting
During the debate, Azim said that it was not a common occurrence in Parliament. He referred to the fact that two lawmakers belonging to the government left the parliament floor after the emergency motion was taken up in the parliament, and said that he saw it as an opportunity given to pass the motion.
"I think two MPs supporting the government or the president left the floor to give me this opportunity. I would like to thank Hoarafushi MP Ahmed Saleem and Velidhoo MP Mohamed Abdulla Shafeeq," Azim said.
Naaif, who is also the Secretary General of the Maldives Journalists Association (MJA), was threatened after he wrote an article related to the Sun Travels company of MDA party leader Ahmed Siyam Mohamed, who has formed a coalition with President Solih for the upcoming election.
The emergency motion said that journalists are being threatened with death in the wake of a published article, but in the past, the state governments have failed in ensuring for them by conducting thorough investigations into cases of threats, abductions and attacks on journalists.
Even under this government, the freedom of the press has taken a back seat year after year and if action is not taken against such threats, it will lead to loss of freedom of the press, the motion said.
