Former
President Nasheed of the Maldives thanks Fiona Bruce MP
Former
President Nasheed of the Maldives requested a meeting with Fiona Bruce MP in
Parliament to thank her for her championing his cause after he was imprisoned
following a coup by a rebel group in the Maldives.
Following
representations made by Fiona Bruce MP as Chair of the Conservative Party Human
Rights Commission (appointed by David Cameron) and other MPs, former President
Nasheed has been released from prison for medical treatment in London, although
with the commitment he will return.
In
the meantime, MPs, including Fiona, continue to press the UK Government to
impose targeted sanctions on the Maldives until former President Nasheed’s
position is regularised and he is, hopefully, returned to power.
Speaking in the
House of Commons recently, the Prime
Minister stated in response to a request for targeted sanctions:
“It was an honour to meet former President
Nasheed, who I think did an excellent job for his country in cutting out
corruption and turning that important country round. He suffered terribly from
being in prison, and it is good that he is able to get out to seek medical
treatment, but we want to see a change in behaviour from the Maldivian
Government to make sure that political prisoners are set free. Yes, we are
prepared to consider targeted action against individuals if further progress is
not made. Let us hope that the diplomatic efforts, including by the Commonwealth
action group, will lead to the changes we want to see. Britain and its allies,
including Sri Lanka and India, are watching the situation very closely.”
Mohamed Nasheed said:
"While
I was sitting in jail in the Maldives, one of the things that gave me hope was
that there were organisations on the outside working tirelessly to secure my
release. One of those was the Conservative Party's Human Rights Commission. I
cannot thank them enough for their invaluable help in securing my release, and
for giving succour to countless other Maldivian human rights
defenders."
