Malé, Maldives – President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on Thursday gazetted a decree to stop the India Out campaign after the opposition lead campaign to remove Indian military from the Maldives was deemed a threat to national security by the National Security Council.
President Solih released the decree today after Speaker Mohamed Nasheed urged the police to remove “India Out” banners to immediate effect.
The decree titled Banning movements under various slogans to incite hatred against specific nations (Decree no.: 5/2022) stated that while the incumbent government strives to provide free speech and other democratic values to the highest extent, now some are taking undue advantage of this.
The decree read that the “India Out” campaign is a deliberate attack against the civil peace of the Maldives and a threat to the historic relationship between India and the Maldives.
The “India Out” campaign is a threat to the development of Maldives and regional peace.
President Solih
The President further detailed that the Maldives is a signee of Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961) and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (1963) under which the host nation must ensure the safety of foreign diplomatic missions and their staff.
The Maldives is also a signee of International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1966) which prohibits discrimination based on ethnicity and race.
The decree further highlights that such acts are a criminal offence under Article 124 (a)(3) and Article 615 (a)(6) of the Maldives Penal Code (Law No.: 9/2014).
With this, the President called on relevant authorities to take immediate action to stop all such campaigns.
