Nasheed's 2008 appointments unlawful: Maldives SC

In a setback to ousted Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed, the supreme court has declared as unlawful his act of dismissing eight members of the interim parliament of 2008 and the nomination of his loyalists in their place.

The supreme court, in a verdict on Tuesday, said the then president Nasheed had made those appointments unlawfully.

When Nasheed assumed office on November 11, 2008, becoming the first democratically elected leader of Maldives, an interim parliament was in charge till the time of the next parliamentary election.

Nasheed dismissed eight nominated members of that parliament and instead appointed eight of his loyalists in their place.

While quashing the move, the supreme court asked the government to pay the due salary and allowances to the dismissed eight members from the date of dismissal till the date the interim parliament had functioned.

The interim parliament had functioned till the next parliamentary election was held in May 2009.

Meanwhile, the annual report of the human rights commission of Maldives has castigated the government of Nasheed for doing little to address the concerns raised by the body before it.

The report categorically mentioned that the home, health, and education ministries, besides the Male' city council, department of penitentiary and rehabilitation services, gender

department and labour authority, had not addressed concerns on human rights.

It said that 1,067 people, rendered homeless after the tsunami of 2004, were still living in makeshift shelters or tents.

The report also said that the government had implemented only three per cent of its 31 proposals to improve the condition of children, and only two per cent out of 62 proposals made to improve the conditions at the prisons, among a series of suggestions.

The report has been submitted to President Waheed Hassan, to the parliament and also made public.

Furthermore, the human rights commission of the Maldives said it will submit its investigation report on the detention of the chief judge of the criminal court on the orders of Nasheed, before the end of this March.