As the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) prepares to stage one of its largest rallies in recent years, the party has issued a stark call to the Maldives Police Service (MPS) not to stand against the constitutional rights of the people.

In a strongly worded statement, the MDP demanded that police refrain from obstructing the freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly, liberties enshrined in the Constitution and fundamental to any functioning democracy. The warning comes as the party accuses state institutions of increasingly acting as instruments of repression under President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu’s administration.

The rally, branded ‘Lootuvaifi, Lootuvaifi!’ which translated means looted, is scheduled to take place in the capital tonight and is expected to draw thousands. Protesters are uniting under a common message: opposition to the president’s deepening authoritarianism, and resistance to what the MDP describes as systematic looting of the nation’s resources, democracy, and dignity.

In a move widely seen as a preemptive attempt to stifle the demonstration, police announced that several areas of Malé City will be intermittently closed to both vehicular and pedestrian traffic throughout the day and night. The vague justification, “an ongoing police operation”, has sparked criticism and raised fears of a heavy-handed response to the protest.

Despite the warnings, large numbers of MDP supporters have already poured into Malé City from across the archipelago, signaling a groundswell of opposition and frustration with the current regime. The stage is set for a potentially historic night, one that could either mark a turning point in the country’s democratic backslide or further expose the fragility of its constitutional order.