Can take Yameen and associates to International Criminal Court, over gross human rights violations: ex-AG

Former Secretary General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) has said that cases against incumbent President Abdulla Yameen and his cronies can be submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Dhiyana Saeed, who is also a former Attorney General, said this while speaking on RaajjeTV’s FalaSurukhee programme on Sunday night, and noted the gross human rights violations by the current administration.

Noting that ever since President Abdulla Yameen assumed office, Dhiyana said that “he has been discriminating, and harassing certain individuals,” adding that the incumbent President and his cabinet members can ben taken to ICC for this.

Dhiyana, who was also a member of the People’s Special Majlis (Constitutional Assembly), further noted that “there is no room” to say that Supreme Court’s ruling on February 1 was fraudulent.

Noting that every single justice at the court has the right to issue their own ruling, Dhiyana said that “if the state is saying that three of the judges were coerced into signing the ruling, they are saying that the three justices are no longer eligible to remain in position”.

“This is not acceptable,” she added.

Furthermore, Dhiyana emphasized that even if two of the five justices that signed the ruling are facing accusations, that the ruling issued on February 1 is still valid, and that it will remain so “even if the two are found guilty”.

The ruling issued by the Supreme Court on 1st February ordered to release nine high-profile political prisoners and reinstated the 12 opposition parliamentarians dismissed by the Elections Commission. However, President Yameen refused to implement the order, calling it a ‘judicial coup,’ and had instead declared a 15-day state of emergency on 5th February. The same night, Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and Justice Ali Hameed of the Supreme Court were forcefully arrested, along with former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, over conspiring to overthrow the government.

While the state of emergency was extended by an additional 30 days through a parliament vote held without the constitutionally required quorum, the Criminal Court has since ordered to keep the three in remand for the remainder of the investigations and trial against them.

The state of emergency was lifted at 12pm on March 22, a few hours before expiration.