President declares himself the Head of Military and the Police and turned the country to a Military Dictatorship overnight.

Sometime before midnight President Nasheed on national TV declared himself the Head of both Military and the Police. Earlier, on his command the Military and the Police in a joint operation arrested two MP’s also leaders of the two main political parties, Gasim Ibrahim Leader of JP and Yamin Abdul Gayoom, Leader of PA. Their head hunt for other prominent most vocal MP’s like Vice Speaker of the Majlis still continues.
Both Leaders were immediately taken to the notorious Dhoonidho prison, where only political prisoners are kept and held in solitary confinement in the gravest conditions. The Dhoonidho prison is located in the island of Dhoonidho, isolated and surrounded by the sea where even an insect cannot fly in, without catching the attention of the Guards posted everywhere in the island.
Repeated requests by their Lawyers and the Court having send summon after summon for both Gasim and Yamin, the Police and the Military refused to release them and also refused to take them to Court. They both remain incarcerated in solitary confinement in the political prison of Dhoonidho where the 1st President of the 1st Republic died a horrible death.
The Police and the Military express their hatred every other day these past couple of months more frequent then ever, the beating with electric batons, use of excessive force and tear gas repeatedly during peaceful protests and how the MP’s get targeted in every such occasions means these two Leaders and MP’s are in grave danger. We should be very worried about their welfare.
The President since he declared himself the undisputed Head of the Military and the Police on National TV, is using the Military and the Police to barricade certain parts of the Capital City disabling the life of the quarter of the Maldives population that resides in the Capital.
We call on the Maldivian people to contact the international Human Rights Organisation and secure the release of these two leaders who displayed great courage and statesmanship in the face of indescribably horrible state persecutions. They remain in prison, in solitary confinement, because they stood up for the people. Therefore we have to play our part. Please prepare petitions and fax it to the UN Human Rights Commission. EU Human Rights Commission, Amnesty International, Asian Human Right‘s Commission etc.