Govt. and MDP to discuss Anti Terrorism Act amendments

Discussions will be held between the government and the Parliamentary group of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) tomorrow.

There have been some concerns by the MDP MPs in the parliament regarding the amendments to the Anti Terrorism Act proposed by the government. The differences in opinion led to PG leader Ali Azim to state that their concerns would be shared with the government in discussions.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih also stated in a news conference yesterday that differences of opinion were not an issue and that discussions would pave the way for a solution. He stated that MDP and the government would discuss the concerns and differences of opinion regarding the amendments.

"The Parliamentary Group and Attorney General and President's Office will meet on September 21st. What we are trying to achieve and what is in the bill will be cleared up after that," said the President.

The President also stated that the amendments were for temporary and that if these amendments were not realized, it might result in the fight against terrorism being obstructed. He also stated that the parts of the bill that violated the constitution must be solved, but did not say how.

The first reading of the contested amendments is to be held on this Sunday in the parliament. The new amendments would allow police to detain and search people without a warrant and also detain people for 48 hours without a court warrant among other additional powers. Some of the fundamental rights of the detainees can also be withheld under these amendments.