Home Minister orders removal of anti-police posters

Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer has ordered the police to remove any displays advocating hatred towards the police.

Speaking at an event in Iskandhar Koshi last night to mark the retirement of Police Commissioner Abdulla Riyaz, Home Minister Naseer announced that he has ordered the police to remove any anti-police displays in the country, and publicly asked the Maldives Police Service to execute the order.

“I have ordered all policemen and police stations in the Maldives. I have ordered them to remove any publicly displayed writing, drawing, poster or billboard that might promote hatred towards the police,” Home Minister said.

Police has to gain the public’s trust and respect to maintain peace in the country, the Home Minister said, and noted that a local group is trying to discredit the police. He said that countries that had failed to deal with such groups had failed to maintain peace.

“Efforts to discredit the police, to create animosity against the police have been going on for a long time. This is continuing in some countries around the world. But in all countries that this has happened, they have failed to maintain peace,” Umar Naseer said.

Praising former Commissioner of Police Abdulla Riyaz, Umar Naseer said the police institution had achieved great progress within the two years it was under Riyaz’s leadership. He said the police are proud of the service Riyaz had provided and thanked the former commission for his contributions.