Members of the constitutional drafting committee on Thursday said prospects of a presidential election in August were “unlikely”, as efforts to draft the crucial chapter on transitional arrangements once again reached deadlock.
Despite a demand this week by the Speaker of the Special Majlis (constitutional assembly), Gasim Ibrahim, that a draft be handed over to the assembly by Thursday, a revised draft on transition has proved as contentious as the last.
Drafting committee member Mohamed “Nafa” Naseem said the government’s new deadline of the end of March for completion of the constitution was unlikely to be met, and committee chair Ibrahim Ismail (Ibra) said he thought an August election no longer possible.
The ongoing delays mean elections are likely to occur in October, as the religious observances of Ramazan will take place in September, and the president’s term under the existing constitution finishes in November.
But the new draft specifies a six to eight month transitional period, meaning time is short even for October polls.
Meanwhile international observers continue to wait on an election date, with Rosham Lynam, Head of Politics and Trade at the European Union delegation in Colombo, saying: “Without knowing a date we cannot start anything”, though dates of “either August or October” had been mentioned.
The new draft on transitional arrangements, leaked to local press on Thursday, appears to meet the demands of the ruling Dhivehi Raiyyithunge Party (DRP) – unlike the previous one, which came in for heavy DRP criticism due to perceived opposition bias.
The new version stipulates the current president and parliament will remain in place until elections, and that presidential and parliamentary elections should take place together, with local elections later.
Drafting committee members from the largest opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) insist the revised draft is unacceptable, and meanwhile three members of the five-strong drafting panel are on strike over the DRP’s accusations their work was inadequate.
After an earlier draft was leaked to the press, the DRP held two press conferences in two days to condemn the panel, who have originated all constitutional material so far.
Three panel members – lawyers Hassan Latheef and Ahmed Abdullah Afeef and linguist Mohamed Amir – then requested that Gasim refute the DRP’s accusations publicly.
Receiving no response, the three withdrew from work, saying they would not return until Gasim made a statement.
But after 40 DRP members signed a petition asking that the draft be revised before submission to the Special Majlis, the reduced panel developed the new version alongside Canadian consultant Professor Douglas Schmeiser, who has spent extended periods in the Maldives since constitutional work began in 2006.
The new draft has yet to achieve approval from the parliamentary drafting committee and reach the Special Majlis, despite Gasim’s request.
And the normal drafting procedure - in which drafts travel from the panel, to the committee, to the Special Majlis - has already been overturned.
Naseem said today that given the incompatibility of MDP and DRP demands, the two drafts might ultimately have to be put to a Special Majlis vote.
Meanwhile attempts to break the deadlock are ongoing. “All I can say is that I...would very very much like to see an agreement before I leave...on March 21st,” said Professor Schmeiser.
“If you’re looking for a fresh start, it is important... for new Majlis [parliament] elections to be held as quickly as possible,” he said. “[But] I’ve been advised, and I agree...that to hold reasonable elections for the Majlis it would take at least six to eight months from the time of ratification.”
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