North-Henveiru constituency MP Abdulla Shahid has submitted the Joint Opposition’s motion to repeal the anti-defamation law.

MP Shahid said outside the parliament premises on Thursday that the motions aims to repeal the act and that the Joint Opposition is doing so in honour of the ‘brave journalists’ that have served the country.

“This act aims to repeal the defamation law, to remove the tape on the mouths of Maldivian citizens and to break the bonds that entrap our journalist. I submit this motion in honour of [abducted journalist] Ahmed Rilwan and other brave reporters”, Shahid, a former speaker of parliament as well, said.

Defamation and Freedom of Expression Act passed in 2016 as journalists protested its capacity to obstruct freedom of expression.

The act criminalized defamation and imposes heavy fines on individuals that make allegations that are not substantiated by comprehensive evidence – individuals can be fined by as much as MVR 50,000 while news stations could face penalization by millions.

President-elect Ibrahim Solih said on Wednesday that a motion to repeal the law will be submitted in parliament on Thursday, ‘and the next sitting after will see the motion passed’.