US Ambassador to the Maldives, Atul Keshap has said that despite the state of emergency being lifted, the Maldives has a long way to go, for the archipelago nation to be able to return to democracy.

In a tweet sent a few hours after the President’s Office lifted the state of emergency, the Ambassador said that in the Maldives, “politically motivated prosecutions continue, and many citizens remain in jail for exercising their fundamental rights”.

“For democracy to return, independent and impartial justice and a fully functioning Majlis are essential,” he added.

On Thursday morning, legal affairs minister at the President’s Office Azima Shakoor, and Attorney General Mohamed Anil announced that the state of emergency has been lifted, effective from 12:00 PM.

A 15-day state of emergency was declared on 5^th February, and was extended by 30 days on 20^th February, through a vote held without the constitutionally required quorum. The validity of both the initial declaration and extension has been questioned by both the local and international community.

Shakoor and Anil revealed that the decision to lift the long-standing state of emergency ‘comes after security forces assured the president that they could maintain stability in the nation without its authority’.