Male’, Maldives – The Article on the suspension of political parties has been annulled from the newly formulated draft of the amendments to be brought to the Political Parties Act.
The final draft was forwarded to the Attorney General’s Office after discussions were held with the political parties regarding the new amendments
Prior to this, the Act allowed any political party not in compliance with the Act to be suspended, which was heavily criticized by the opposition.
President of the Elections Commission, Ahmed Shareef stated that the Article which allows the suspension of the parties was suspended following the discussions with the parties and that it was added to the draft of the amendment so that a party can only be terminated via the court.
The amendment also states that 33 percent of party leadership seats are to be reserved for women and that funds allocated for parties would depend on the number of votes it receives, according to EC Vice President Ahmed Akram.
According to the current laws of the country related to political parties, the only action the Election Commission can take against political parties is the termination and fining of the parties when in violation with the laws.
