Chinmaya IAS Academy – Current Affairs Chinmaya IAS Academy – Current Affairs
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Indian diplomats are very smart, and we have learnt a fair bit from them, says exiled former Maldivian President Following the upset victory of the joint Opposition candidate, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, in the Maldivian presidential elections, exiled former President Mohamed Nasheed , among the fiercest critics of outgoing President Abdulla Yameen, spoke of the need to restore civil liberties, implement the Opposition’s common manifesto and his hopes of returning to the island nation . Two days ago, you told the media that President Abdulla Yameen will lose but hold on to power, and asked the international community to reject the outcome of a “rigged election”. Today, Mr. Yameen has conceded defeat and promised a smooth transition. Was your assessment unfair, or did something change since? When history is on the march, as I told you yesterday, it is very difficult for us mortals to change it. Yameen’s speech today [Monday] conceding defeat was full of bitterness — as if to suggest: “People can’t reject me; I have done all this, and people are ungrateful.” There was no magnanimity. Anyway, I commend him for having conceded. I think it was the outcome of growing scrutiny by international media, the work of local activists, NGOs, pressure from diplomats and all of that. Will the ideologically and politically very diverse constituents of the joint Opposition coalition that challenged Mr. Yameen, hold together after the victory? The MDP [Maldivian Democratic Party] decided on Honourable Ibrahim Mohamed Solih as the candidate because he is the man to bring different ideas together. He is highly respected by the rank and file of our parties and the leadership. Our parties, our national council members, agree that in him we have a candidate who will have a grip on the situation and will stabilise Maldives’ politics. The joint Opposition’s manifesto will be followed to the letter.
