A new presidential commission in Maldives is investigating the abduction of Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla and the murder of Yameen Rasheed.
The following is an excerpt of an 18 March 2019 CPJ blog post by Aliya Iftikhar/CPJ Asia Program Research Associate.
Mission Journal: With a new presidential commission investigating the abduction of Ahmed Rilwan Abdulla and the murder of Yameen Rasheed, CPJ’s Asia program research associate Aliya Iftikhar travels to Malé in late February to speak with the bloggers’ families about their pursuit of justice, and with authorities about the progress and challenges in the cases.
In her pink hijab and floral dress, Fathimath Shehenaz was easy to spot in the small crowd of protesters gathered outside the Malé parliament building, carrying signs emblazoned with #FindMoyameeha and #WeAreYaamyn. Shehenaz has been a mainstay at these protests, as she seeks answers to the abduction of her brother, Ahmed Rilwan, five years ago.
On the afternoon that we met at the protest, parliament had refused–for the fourth time–to vote on a bill to give investigative powers to a newly formed presidential commission on enforced disappearances and murders.
