Members of the Joint Opposition who are currently detained unlawfully and kept ‘forcibly silenced’ will soon be freed and ‘Maldivians will then know who the really prisoners are,' says Jumhooree Party leader Qasim Ibrahim.

The Maamigilli constituency MP said this through a post on his Twitter account on Tuesday following the Maldives Broadcasting Commission’s directive to the press to refrain from broadcasting interviews of people serving criminal sentences.

Qasim’s tweet translates to, ‘Who are the real prisoners? The time will soon end when people are arbitrarily detained and punished against laws, against the Constitution and against procedure. Maldives will then see who the real prisoners are’.

The Commission’s decision has been described as being a politically motivated attempt to hinder the Joint Opposition’s activities. The coalition has two leaders who are currently in self-exile after having been sentenced to jail terms over charges also described as politically motivated.