President overjoyed at advanced press freedoms in Maldives

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has marked the Maldives' achievements in establishing press freedoms as the island nation moves up seven places in the World Press Freedom Index to the 79th position in 2020.

The World Press Freedom Index ranks 180 world nations based on assessments by Reporters Without Borders, and had ranked Maldives in the 120th position of the World Press Freedom Index in 2018. In 2019, the Maldives had been placed in the 98th position, and by the close of 2020, the Republic of Maldives ranks 79th place on the World Press Freedom Index. For the ongoing year, Maldives was ranked 72nd in the index, which is a seven positions ahead from 2020.

In a tweet posted on Wednesday, President Solih stated that he was very proud of the Maldives, as the island nation has moved from the 120th position in the World Press Index of 2018, to the 72nd position of the index for the ongoing year. President Solih added that the achievement underscored the incumbent administration's commitment to a safe environment, where independent and free journalism may be practiced.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) had placed the Maldives in the 103rd position of the World Press Freedom Index in 2013, which was the year ex-President Yameen assumed office. The environment for press freedoms in the Maldives deteriorated throughout his presidency, and the island nation had been booted 17 positions on the Index in the five years that followed.

Anti-defamation legislation introduced under the Yameen administration in 2016 has been noted by the RSF to be one of the main reasons why Press Freedoms continued to decline in the Maldives at the time. In addition to this, the ease with which parties such as the Police could obstruct journalists, or charge and prosecute them, have also been noted as one of the critical ways in which journalists had been oppressed at the time.

Former president Yameen had been no stranger to misusing legislation to inconvenience and deter the press; Raajje TV had been fined four times under the Yameen administration, with the total fine racking up to MVR 3.7 million. One of the most dated media publications in the Maldives, "Haveeru" had also been brought to a halt under the Yaameen administration, with the deaths of "Minivan News" journalist Ahmed Rilwan and democratic activist Yaamyn Rasheed also reported under the now imprisoned former president's autocratic five-year rule over the Maldives.