Maldives strongman Yameen seeks second term amid fears of rigging
Published Sep 23, 2018 07:04 pm
By Agence France-Presse
President Abdulla Yameen cast his ballot Sunday in a controversial election in the Maldives just hours after police raided the opposition's campaign headquarters, fueling fears the vote has been rigged in the China-friendly strongman's favor.
Maldives President Abdulla Yameen (C) arrives at a polling station to vote in a controversial election that foreign observers have claimed is rigged in the strongman's favor (AFP / MANILA BULLETIN)
Yameen is expected to retain power and has imprisoned or forced into exile almost all his main rivals in a crackdown his critics say is returning the honeymoon island nation to authoritarian rule.
The process is being closely watched by regional rivals India and China, who are jostling to influence Indian Ocean nations. The European Union and United States, meanwhile, have threatened sanctions if the vote is not free and fair.
Yameen voted minutes after polling booths opened in the capital Male, where opposition campaign efforts had been frustrated by a media crackdown and police harassment.
Before polls opened, police raided the campaign headquarters of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and searched the building for several hours in a bid to stop what they called "illegal activities". There were no arrests.
Yameen's challenger, the relatively unknown Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, also cast his vote.
Solih has the backing of a united opposition trying to oust Yameen but struggled for visibility with the electorate because the media is fearful of falling foul of heavy-handed decrees and reporting restrictions.
Mohamed Nasheed, who was elected president of a newly-democratic Maldives in 2008 but now lives in exile, urged the international community to reject the results of the election.
There were long queues in Male and at embassies abroad, where the opposition had urged Maldivians to turn out and vote.
"There is a lot of enthusiasm," said MDP party worker Shauna Aminath.
Afrah Mohamed, one voter in Male, said voters had turned up in big numbers before voting even began.
"It shows how important the election is for the people. It shows no matter what happens, Maldivians still believe in democracy," he said.
Some 262,000 people in the archipelago -- famed for its white beaches and blue lagoons -- can vote in an election from which independent international monitors have been barred.
Only a handful of foreign media have been allowed in.
Maldives President Abdulla Yameen (C) arrives at a polling station to vote in a controversial election that foreign observers have claimed is rigged in the strongman's favor (AFP / MANILA BULLETIN)
Yameen is expected to retain power and has imprisoned or forced into exile almost all his main rivals in a crackdown his critics say is returning the honeymoon island nation to authoritarian rule.
The process is being closely watched by regional rivals India and China, who are jostling to influence Indian Ocean nations. The European Union and United States, meanwhile, have threatened sanctions if the vote is not free and fair.
Yameen voted minutes after polling booths opened in the capital Male, where opposition campaign efforts had been frustrated by a media crackdown and police harassment.
Before polls opened, police raided the campaign headquarters of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and searched the building for several hours in a bid to stop what they called "illegal activities". There were no arrests.
Yameen's challenger, the relatively unknown Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, also cast his vote.
Solih has the backing of a united opposition trying to oust Yameen but struggled for visibility with the electorate because the media is fearful of falling foul of heavy-handed decrees and reporting restrictions.
Mohamed Nasheed, who was elected president of a newly-democratic Maldives in 2008 but now lives in exile, urged the international community to reject the results of the election.
There were long queues in Male and at embassies abroad, where the opposition had urged Maldivians to turn out and vote.
"There is a lot of enthusiasm," said MDP party worker Shauna Aminath.
Afrah Mohamed, one voter in Male, said voters had turned up in big numbers before voting even began.
"It shows how important the election is for the people. It shows no matter what happens, Maldivians still believe in democracy," he said.
Some 262,000 people in the archipelago -- famed for its white beaches and blue lagoons -- can vote in an election from which independent international monitors have been barred.
Only a handful of foreign media have been allowed in.