Government delegation meets with the members of UNWGEID

A government delegation has met with the United Nations Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearance (UNWGEID) to give detailed information on the disappearance of the journalist from Minivan News, Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla.

The meeting took place at the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The Maldivian delegation led by the Permanent Representative of the Maldives to the UN office in Geneva, Dr. Hala Hameed includes officials from the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Attorney General’s Office and the Maldives Police Service.

Foreign Ministry said that the delegation presented that the investigation of Ahmed Rilwan’s disappearance made no indication to any involvement of any government entity and so raised the question as to the case being in the mandate of the UNWGEID.

According to the Ministry, the members of the UNWGEID said that it is not an entity that makes bias decisions on the cases that is presented to them and their purpose is to assist families of disappeared persons to ascertain the fate and whereabouts of their disappeared relative; and to monitor States’ compliance with their international treaty obligations.

Foreign Ministry has said that the information revealed so for indicates to people in a gang in Malé City to be involved in the disappearance of Ahmed Rilwan.

The Minivan News journalist went missing on the night of 7 August 2014.