3 perpetrators of 2003 Maafushi Jail shooting incident jailed

The three men convicted for the perpetrating the 2003 Maafushi Jail shooting incident have been jailed yesterday.

Speaking to the media, State Minister of Ministry of Home Affairs Mohamed Naeem said that although 13 men were sentenced to death, the former President Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom changed the death sentence to 25 years in prison.

Naeem said that the convicts were prisoned in Maafushi Jail for some time but were later changed to Dhoonidhoo custodial. However, he said that after that nothing was recorded of them.

“What happened to these convicts is an injustice to the victims of the shooting incident. This is in fact a violation of the human rights of the victims. They cannot be released on parole only after them spending time in the prison,” he said.

Meanwhile, the killing of the inmate Evan Naseem by Prison Guards on 19 September, 2003, resulted in a violent protest in Maldives which then lead to unrest in Maafushi Prison. To control this unrest NSS personnel at Maafushi shot several unarmed prisoners killing 3 and injuring 17 others.

News of the death of Evan broke out quickly in the capital city Malé. A large number of people gathered at his burial service. While people were at the cemetery, news of the shooting incident reached the already angry public. Civil unrest in Malé grew with this news. Several police stations were set on fire, government buildings were attacked, and government vehicles were set on fire or destroyed by the angry mob. The government of Gayyoom controlled the unrest by around 2300hrs and declared a State of Emergency, for the first time in the country's history, in Malé and nearby islands. A curfew was imposed in Malé.