UK Grants Asylum to Former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed

File photo: Former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed. (Photo: AP)

Britain has granted refugee status to Mohamed Nasheed, the former president of the Maldives, who was jailed in 2015 after a trial that drew international criticism, his lawyer said on Monday.

Nasheed who is a member of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) was jailed for 13 years under anti terror laws. The arrest was slammed as deeply flawed by the international community.

Nasheed was arrested after illegally ordering the arrest of a judge in a trial that cast the spotlight on instability in the Indian Ocean archipelago known as a paradise for wealthy tourists.

Since his release from jail, Nasheed has called for sanctions against current President, Abdulla Yameen and his allies for detaining political prisoners, mainly opposition leaders, and for alleged human rights abuses in the Maldives.

Nasheed, on Monday issued a statement accusing Yameen of jailing all opposition leaders and cracking down “on anyone who dares to oppose or criticise him”.

In the past year, freedom of the press, expression and assembly have all been lost. Given the slide towards authoritarianism in the Maldives, myself and other opposition politicians feel we have no choice but to work from exile - for now.

<b>Mohamed Nasheed, Former President of Maldives</b>

The Maldives government on 16 January granted permission for Nasheed to travel to Britain for surgery after pressure from the international community including human rights groups and his lawyer Amal Clooney.

In 2009, Nasheed led the world’s first underwater cabinet meeting to draw attention to the threat to his country posed by rising sea levels.

(With inputs from Reuters.)