"Long trial delays will erode confidence in the criminal justice system"

The government’s special envoy Abbas Faiz has expressed concern that long trial delays of the kind that we are witnessing in the cases of May 6 attack can have the negative impact of eroding confidence in the criminal justice system.

In a statement he published on May 5 2022, the special envoy stated that the trials of May 6 attack have not kept pace with the time bound momentum of the investigation and prosecution.

He stated that expectations that May 6 attack trials need to be expedited are legitimate because of the far-reaching impact of this criminal act on the society, social harmony, and political health of the country.

Stating that there is an urgent need for renewed efforts towards ensuring that these trials take place without further delays, Abbas Faiz stated that he has brought this to the attention of the Chief Justice and the esteemed members of the Judicial Service Commission.

In his statement, the special envoy highlighted that the Prosecutor General has been available at all times to the Police investigation team, offering guidance on how the investigation should be conducted to avoid evidential deficiencies. He stated that the Prosecutor General has taken serious care to ensure that the cases are firmly based on the type of evidence on which a charge could be brought, and on legal provisions that relate clearly to the crimes committed.

The special envoy of the government in his statement said that cooperation between the Prosecutor General's Office and the Maldives Police Service has been a major factor in ensuring the legal consistency of the cases relating to May 6 blast attack that have been submitted to the court for trial.

The statement read that the envoy has been apprised that any borderline cases – either due to the quality of the information gathered, the type of evidence required or issues regarding the application of legal provisions – would remain under scrutiny pending a final decision.

Moreover, the envoy in his statement highlighted that the investigation of the May 6 attack require focus on two distinct but interconnected areas. One was the investigation of the physical attack and its financiers; the other area was the investigation of wider links and wider financial motives.

As such, he disclosed that his assessment so far is that the investigation of the physical attack itself, and that of the financial footprints of the accused linked to the physical attack have been conducted in line with international best practice. He said that the investigation team have succeeded in gathering the information that is needed to build strong cases and forwarded those to the Prosecutor General for his detailed scrutiny and charging decision.

Faiz stated that this has resulted in charges based on solid evidence being brought against the accused.

Additionally, Faiz said that there are legitimate concerns in the Maldives that the May 6 attack could not have been planned and executed without encouragement and financial support from outside the current circle of suspects.

He stated that this is why the investigation into any wider links and wider financial motives of the attackers needs to remain a crucial part of the process of investigation of the May 6 attack.

Raising concern that there has been no breakthrough in this area of the investigation, the special envoy stated that Maldives Police Service need to redouble their efforts and conduct a detailed and rigorous investigation that could yield results in line with their success in investigating the physical attack.

Highlighting that this is a crucial task, the special envoy stated that success in this part of the investigation can yield positive results not just for the prosecution and trial of any other elements linked to the May 6 attack, but also for the protection of politicians, personalities, and civil society activists against attacks of a similar kind.