Minister of Homeland Security and Technology Ali Ihusan states that no journalists were arrested at the protest staged by reporters against the media control bill, which was accepted by Parliament yesterday.
The journalists initially gathered outside the Parliament but then moved towards the President’s Office, which the security forces consider the Green Zone, where gatherings and protests are prohibited.
More than two reporters were seen being taken into police custody but later released, according to the Maldives Journalism Association.
Minister Ihusan said via a post on X that Police officers escorted some journalists out of the green zone after several verbal instructions and warnings were ignored.
He urged everyone, especially those in positions of high significance, to refrain from disseminating incorrect information.
The Minister’s clarification came as former President Mohamed Nasheed called on authorities to release the journalists arrested from yesterday’s protests.
The former President called on President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu not to ratify the bill, which is still in the early stages of the legislative process.
Nasheed said that whenever a government suppresses people’s right to freedom of expression, it inevitably makes the country less free and less prosperous.
