Government held 'secret' talks with ex-Pres. Nasheed: Minister Shainee

Chair of the government’s initiative for inclusive dialogue, Fisheries Minister Dr. Mohamed Shainee has revealed that the government had held “secret” talks with former President Mohamed Nasheed.

At a press conference held at the President’s Office on Monday, the minister stated that the government had taken the initiative to restart dialogue with the opposition, via a third party. He added that Nasheed had reached out to the government, on behalf of the opposition coalition.

“There were some documents shared between us. We were able to discuss some of the conditions [in the documents], and were able to reach an agenda,” said the fisheries minister.

Noting that the government wanted to be certain that Nasheed was speaking to the government on behalf on the opposition, Shainee said he had given them the full assurance of this.

Furthermore, the minister said that the government had chosen to keep this a secret because of an agreement between them and the opposition, to keep the talks a secret until a solution is reached. However, he said that the opposition had breached this agreement, by speaking on the matter at a press conference held on 15th February.

According to Shainee, some of the preconditions by the opposition include, release of all arrested judges, and not to speak on the enforcement of the Supreme Court ruling issued on 1st February, in the international arena. He added that the government did not want to hide anything, and wanted to be able to discuss the matter with the international media and organizations.

In addition, Shainee highlighted that the government had denied the condition to release any detainees, “as the government does not meddle in the courts”. However, he said that the government and opposition “can have discussions on the matter”.

He further said that the government tried to continue the talks, despite the opposition breaching the agreement, adding that they are yet to respond to the government’s call.