Democracy is alive and thriving in Maldives. Amidst fears of a controlled election, the island nation surprisingly ousted President Abdulla Yameen, who had brutally crushed dissent. The newly elected president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Maldives' seventh, won with 134, 616 votes.
“This is a moment for happiness. This is a moment for hope. This is a moment for history,'' said Solih, known as “Ibu”, in his speech on Monday. The “will of the people have spoken,'' he said, adding that it was “decisively for change.” A whopping 89.2 per cent of voters had braved the rain to come out to vote on Sunday.
Solih was the joint presidential candidate for an opposition alliance, which includes the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), the Jumhooree Party and the Adhaalath Party.
It was widely believed that the election would be a one-sided affair and Yameen of the Progressive Party of Maldives, who had imposed a state of emergency earlier this year, would emerge as the winner. This was the second time he had declared emergency in five years. The former president Mohammad Nasheed—the first elected president of Maldives—had been barred from contesting elections. Accused of treason, Nasheed had been in jail and had appealed to India to intervene, especially when Yameen imposed a state of emergency earlier this year.
In exile in Sri Lanka, Nasheed, who had led an international campaign to highlight the crumbling of democracy in Maldives, tweeted: “Congratulations to President Elect. You have done an extremely good service to not only the people of Maldives, but also to freedom loving people everywhere. Democracy is a historic inevitability.''
Things, however, were uncertain till Yameen accepted the verdict. There were rumours that his party would move the supreme court against the verdict. However, Yameen in a televised address after a closed door meeting with Solih, accepted his defeat, saying, "The Maldivian people have decided what they want.”
The official results will be announced in the next seven days and Yameen will only step down from office in November.
For India, the elections results bring hope. The relations between India and Maldives were at their lowest in the recent past. Yameen was largely seen as pro-China and had even signed a Free Trade Agreement with the nation. The latest point of tension was when Maldives wanted return a gifted helicopter to India.
With the new government in place, India will be looking to bring back the warmth in bilateral ties. Welcoming the results, the ministry of external affairs, in a statement, said: “The elections marks not only the triumph of democratic forces in Maldives, but also reflects the firm commitment in the values of democracy and the rule of law. In keeping with “Neighbourhood First' Policy, India looks forwards to working closely with Maldives in further deepening our partnership.''
