Embassy of The Maldives, Japan.

30 July 2008, Male’

His Excellency President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom yesterday announced that he would ratify the new Constitution of the Republic of Maldives on 7 August 2008. The President made the announcement during a press conference held at the President’s Office.

Detailed Preparations for Ratification
Since receiving the draft constitutional text on 2 July, the President has sought to balance the need to ratify the new Constitution as expeditiously as possible in order to pave the way for the country’s first multiparty presidential elections later this year with the need for legal exactitude and the protection of the public interest. Many of the laws and regulations created under the old Constitution will become obsolete upon ratification. It is imperative that this does not lead to a legal or institutional vacuum which could seriously compromise the proper functioning of the State.

Thus, the President’s Office has, since receipt of the draft document, undertaken a careful analysis of the implications of the new Constitution for governance and the rule of law in the Maldives. This analysis has in-turn fed into and informed a detailed seven-pronged strategy in order to fully prepare for ratification.

The seven key areas of focus are:

1. Enactment of important enabling legislation – The President’s Office identified a number of crucial pieces of legislation that need to be enacted before the ratification of the Constitution in order to avoid any legal or institutional vacuums. The first was the Police Act which for the first time lays down the precise powers and responsibilities of the Maldives Police Service. The Police Act was adopted by the Parliament last week. Secondly, the President’s Office identified a number of important regulations that were introduced under the present Constitution and would become obsolete upon ratification of the new Constitution. Thus, the Government with the support of the Core Group of Parliamentarians (representing a cross-section of political views) compiled an Enabling Law for General Regulations that would maintain authority of those laws and regulations that will be “orphaned” upon ratification of the new Constitution. The Enabling Law was adopted by the Parliament yesterday.

2. Preparing for the establishment and staffing of new independent bodies and commissions foreseen be the new Constitution – e.g. the Independent Elections
Commission.

3. The President sought and received a detailed Legal Opinion on the new Constitution by the Attorney-General, the Government’s top lawyer.

4. The President sought and received the views of the Cabinet and the respective departments in order to understand the implications of the new Constitution
across Government and across society in general.

5. The President’s Office has prepared detailed Directives for all Government Ministries, Departments and Bodies in order to prepare them for the enormous
changes that will take place upon ratification.

6. The President has sought clarification from the Speaker of the Special Majlis on various technical and legal issues encountered during the various analyses and checks outlined above. The President has asked for these issues to be addressed by the Special Majlis before ratification.

7. The President has assessed the possibility of holding a referendum on the new Constitution as had been indicated at the outset of the Reform Agenda. Unfortunately, due to the time taken to draft the Constitution by the Special Majlis (3 years and 11 months) – far longer than had been anticipated – the President concluded that it would not be possible to hold a referendum and leave enough time to prepare for the impending presidential elections.

Legal Clarifications
Regarding point 6 above, the President made it clear that he is not sending the Draft Constitution back to the Special Majlis. Rather he is merely requesting for some clarifications by the Speaker of the Special Majlis on minor yet important technical details that need to be addressed in order for the document to be a cohesive text.

7th August
After providing these details on the ratification process, the President committed to the ratification of the new Constitution on 7th August.

Enabling Law for General Regulations
The Bill adopted yesterday gives legal effect to those regulations, orphaned by the redundancy of the exiting Constitution, that are crucial to state governance, the provision of public services, and the enforcement of laws that do not come under an enabling Act of Parliament.

The Bill provides that all such regulations remain in effect for one year from the date the law becomes effective unless a statute is passed by the Parliament on a subject of that particular regulation (in which case they will fall). The Bill also states that in the case of any regulation or part of any regulation being contradictory to the new Constitution or any other law, that regulation or part of the regulation could be repealed either by the Regulation Committee of the Parliament or by a court of law.

Eighty three regulations were given legal protection under this Bill; which were listed as schedules to the Bill. The Bill stipulates that all the regulations listed in the schedules must be published and be readily available to the general public.

ENDS

28th July 2008, Male

The Government has read with surprise the recent Press Statement issued by the European Commission (EC) Delegation Office in Colombo regarding alleged “delays” with the ratification of the Maldives’ new Constitution.

The European Union has been a long-standing and trusted partner throughout the evolution of the Government’s Democratic and Human Rights Reform Agenda. The relationship between the Maldives Government and the EU has been based upon dialogue and cooperation; and there is no doubt that this cooperation has made a key contribution to the major democratic strides made by the country over the past four years. With this in mind, the Government is disappointed that the EC Delegation in Colombo has decided to make an ill-informed and ill-judged public intervention at such a crucial and sensitive juncture in the Reform Agenda.

The Government fully understands the urgent need to ratify the new Constitution in order to pave the way for the country’s first multiparty presidential elections later this year. Under the current Constitution, the President has 90 days to ratify a new text. Notwithstanding, H.E. President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom has consistently made clear that, due to the urgency of the situation following a longer-than-expected drafting and adoption process, he will move to ratify much faster than allowed-for under the existing Constitution.

However, the President has also made clear that this urgency must be balanced against the need for legal exactitude and the protection of the public interest. The new Constitution introduces massive changes to the governance and legal infrastructure of the Maldives, and many of the laws and regulations created under the old Constitution will become obsolete upon ratification. It is imperative that this does not lead to a legal or institutional vacuum which could seriously compromise the proper functioning of the State. The decision to ratify must therefore be based on careful analysis and legal certainty. This explanation lies behind the President’s assertion that ratification is not a procession but a major national responsibility.

Following such an analysis, by both the Attorney-General and the Cabinet, a small number of vital preliminary steps were identified that must be undertaken before
ratification in order to avoid legal and institutional uncertainty. These steps include the adoption of the Police Act by the People’s Majlis and the adoption of a “catch-all regulation” covering all those laws and provisions “orphaned” by the redundancy of the old Constitution. Once these few – yet vital – steps have been taken (the Police Act was already adopted last week, while the “catch-all” regulation has been drafted and is currently being scrutinised by the People’s Majlis), the President would be ready to ratify with the minimum of delay.

In addition, the Government would also like to bring to attention the work it has been doing to ensure that the forthcoming elections conform to international standards of freeness and fairness. The state broadcasters, Television Maldives and Voice of Maldives have, in this regard, come to agreement with all registered political parties on how airtime should be divided for purposes of political campaigning. The Ministry of Legal Reform, Information and Arts have been conducting campaigns on voter education, while a number of Non Governmental Organizations have been running their own campaigns on educating the voters on the requisites for free and fair elections.

On 24th July 2008, the Government provided detailed information on the above-mentioned arrangements and preparations for ratification, to the European Commission at its headquarters in Brussels. On that day, H.E. Dr. Mohamed Asim, the Maldives Ambassador to the EU, met with key officials responsible for the Maldives and the wider South Asian region. The Government of the Maldives finds it surprising that none of the concerns raised in the EC Delegation in Colombo’s Press Statement were mentioned during the Brussels meeting.

Throughout the conception and implementation of the Reform Agenda, the Maldives Government has made every effort to keep the EU institutions fully abreast of developments, and has also sought, wherever possible, to involve the EU in the process of change. The Government therefore regrets the decision of the EC Delegation in Colombo to issue the above-mentioned Press Statement, but reaffirms our commitment to furthering our common relationship premised on open-dialogue, shared understanding, and mutual respect.

ENDS

Note to Editors:
The Commission’s Press Statement was issued by the Delegation of the European Commission in Colombo, and not European Commission Headquarters in Brussels.

I send my warmest greetings and felicitations to my fellow Maldivians, both abroad and at home, on the occasion of our Independence Day. It is an occasion that provides us with the opportunity to take stock of our past achievements and to determine the course for the pursuit of greater progress.

Periods of Prosperity
Our country has made remarkable progress since it gained independence on the 26th of July, forty three years ago. Our economy has grown steadily, our livelihoods have improved significantly and our standard of living has risen rapidly, over this short span of time. Behind this prosperity was the spirit of unity, solidarity and industry we had valued, protected and preserved as a society.

Today, as we celebrate the 43rd anniversary of our independence, we are beset by both internal and external events that are rocking the very pillars on which peace and prosperity had rested in our society. Although we have virtually no control over the external developments, we can, as a society, mould together the internal developments to suit the best interests of our society. That requires resilience on the part of our political parties to rise above partisan prejudices and engage in rational and constructive debate. That also requires resilience on the part of the Maldivian people so that the power of multi-party politics could be harnessed better for the common good of our society.

Internal Developments
Independence Day 2008 is greeting us amidst soaring hopes, rising expectations, growing concerns and mounting challenges. The 43rd anniversary of our independence comes at a historic time, as we eagerly await the ratification of our new Constitution adopted by the Peoples Special Majlis recently. This would introduce a fresh democratic infrastructure, and fuel the Government apparatus with positive change, as we embark on our very first multiparty Presidential election later this year. We are confident that these changes would build a more democratic and just society, erect a more responsible, accountable and transparent Government, eliminate corruption, promote human rights and build greater trust between the people and the Government.
As we strive towards these cherished goals, we should act responsibly and respect the rule of law. We must work harder and in concert. We must build our nation while preventing our enemies from bulldozing the core values, creed and customs of our society.

External Challenges
The internal challenges confronting us today are compounded and aggravated by external developments. As we remain anxious about the adverse impacts of climate change on our archipelago, our economy is being severely shaken by mounting fuel and food prices across the globe. In the distance, we see another marker, the graduation from the LDC status, which could pose serious challenges to our economy.

Sources of Hope and Strength

This challenging backdrop makes it imperative that we pledge, on this Independence Day 2008, to strengthen our faith in our society and in the resilience of our people. The differences in viewpoints among political parties, I am sure, reflect their prime concern for the well being of our country and our society. Certainly, we are a people capable of confronting the challenges and conquering them readily.

Our development partners have played a caring, constructive and crucial role in the progress we have achieved. We will continue to work with them in overcoming the impediments that surround us, and we will deepen our relations with our neighbours and the Muslim brethren who have been immensely helpful and sympathetic to us. Our relations with the international community have been expanded considerably in the past year, and we will continue to be more active in our engagement with them on issues of national and global interest.

Our forefathers have steered our nation steadily and safely through several severe storms. As we recall the sacrifices they made to deliver us a proud, vibrant and independent Maldives, we must resolve today to do the same for our posterity.

I wish all Maldivians abroad and at home a happy Independence Day.