U.S issues second warning over 'electoral rigging' case; says appropriate measures will be taken

The United States of America has on Saturday, issued it’s second warning against the government of Maldives to consider “appropriate measures” against anyone who “undermines a peaceful transfer of power”.

The U.S Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs had revealed this via a tweet in the early hours of Saturday, where Deputy Spokesperson at the U.S Department of State Robert J. Palladino had expressed growing concern by the “troubling actions” by outgoing President Abdulla Yameen that “threaten to undermine the will” of the Maldivian people.

"The US is concerned by troubling actions by outgoing Pres Yameen that threaten to undermine the will of the Maldivian people, and will consider appropriate measures against anyone who undermines a peaceful transfer of power in #Maldives" reads the tweet.

Highlighting that issues of concern include the Supreme Court complaint filed by President Yameen, who initially conceded to defeat following the announcement of the temporary results on the day of the election, as well as the reports that surfaced of the serious threats against members of the Elections Commission.

Stating that while the Maldivian people turned out in “record numbers” during their recent election to “decisively” choose opposition candidate Ibrahim Mohamed Solih fielded by Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), Palladino added that the Elections Commission had even certified the results.

“The U.S and the international would view with great concern any attempts to undermine the democratic process including any delay to the inauguration scheduled for 17 November. The U.S will consider appropriate measures against anyone who undermines democracy, the rule of law, or a free and fair electoral process in Maldives” said the Deputy Spokesperson.

Adding that the U.S urges all parties to respect the will of the Maldivian people and to ensure a smooth and peaceful transition, Palladino went on to mention the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Alice Wells’ visit to the Maldives last week.

While Wells met President-elect Solih this week, discussions were held in which Wells emphasized that the U.S is “eager to expand cooperation” with Solih’s government and to assist Maldives in its return to a democratic path.

In her exclusive interview with RaajjeTV, wells congratulated the people on a “democratic experiment”, well conducted, going on to state that the US is ready to work with the new government and that they would like to work with the Maldivian People.

The Ambassador had also agreed that the statements by U.S regarding the Maldives continuous backslide in democracy, had brought out a positive outcome.

The government of U.S had extended their congratulations to Solih following his momentous win, describing the polls on the 23rd of September to be peaceful.

The first warning by the U.S came in early September, with the State Department publishing a statement which revealed concerns on “continued democratic backsliding” in the country, this was at the time elections were approaching. Back then they had urged the government, along with the international community to release political prisoners who had unfairly been detained, as well as for the immediate implementation of the initial Supreme Court ruling on the 01st of February that ordered the release of political prisoners and reinstatement of opposition lawmakers.

While the U.S had made this declaration, in early August, the European Union revealed the decision to impose sanctions on certain entities and bodies of the Maldives that go against human rights practices and violates the rule of law with a hint that sanctions could be stepped up if there are no visible improvements to the country’s political situation. Since, the EU’s council adopted the framework for “targeted restrictive measures against persons and entities responsible for undermining the rule of law or obstructing an inclusive political situation in the Maldives as well as persons and entities responsible for human rights violations” adding that “this decision makes it possible, if the situation does not improve, to impose travel ban and asset freeze on relevant individuals and entities”. It was later revealed that the proposed sanctions list for Maldives contains 41 names.

While the authorities have since released most of the political prisoners doing time for unjust convictions, they have also decided to reinstate some of the dismissed opposition-aligned MPs. However, they are yet to implement the Supreme Court ruling on the 01st of February.