Commonwealth expresses disappointment over Majlis conduct

Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma’s Special Envoy to the Maldives Sir Donald McKinnon has expressed disappointment over how the the opening session of the Peoples’ Majlis was carried out on Monday.

Commonwealth Special Envoy Sir Donald said this speaking after the opening. He said that he was disappointed at the manner in which the opening session of the Majlis was conducted.

Sir Donald also said that he is concerned about the security situation in Malé and calls on all sides to demonstrate maximum restraint.

According to the Commonwealth, the Special Envoy remains in Malé and is committed to make available his good offices to all parties to find common ground. Sir Donald said, “I know that the situation can only be resolved through open and honest dialogue.”

Meanwhile, some political analysts say that the Commonwealth seems to be more concerned about the interests of a particular individual. Some believe that the failure of the Commonwealth to mention the reason for the disappointment of the Commonwealth Special Envoy at the manner in which the opening session of the Majlis was conducted shows that the organisation is not sincere regarding solving the political turbulence in the Maldives. They say that if the organisation is sincere they would have mentioned the reason for the disappointment and the people at whom the commonwealth is disappointed with.

“Their statement is ambiguous. It can be interpreted as the commonwealth being disappointed because the Majlis has been opened or because the President managed to make the Presidential address. Or it can be interpreted as the commonwealth being disappointed with the MDP MPs for their low conduct. When such ambiguous statements without any clarification is issued, then more doubts will be raised regarding the sincerity of the commonwealth,” one analyst said.