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Maldives questions its Speaker being in SL’s COP27 team

08 Nov 2022

The presence of former Maldivian President and incumbent Maldivian Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed, who was appointed by President Ranil Wickremesinghe as his International Climate Advisor, in Sri Lanka’s delegation led by the President to the 27th Conference of Parties (COP27) United Nations Climate Change Conference has become embroiled in controversy, with the Maldivian Parliament confirming that the trip was not funded by the Maldivian State. The Maldivian Parliament said on 5 November that the State budget was not used to pay for Nasheed's trip to participate in the international environmental summit. Nasheed had left with the Sri Lankan delegation on 4 November for Egypt’s Sharm El-Sheikh. Regarding his visit, the Maldivian Parliament had issued a statement on the same day, stating that he would attend COP27 as a representative of the Sri Lankan national delegation. Maldivian Vice President Faisal Naseem and Environment Minister Aminath Shauna are heading the Maldivian delegation at COP27. Former President of the Maldives Democratic Party and former Attorney General Dr. Mohamed Munnawar had criticised Nasheed’s trip in a tweet on 5 November, questioning Nasheed's loyalty to his own country when he was going on trips to represent another country while utilising State funds.  “Where's the country? What about being loyal to the State?” Dr. Munawwar questioned. Former Maldivian President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom echoed the same on Twitter. Former Attorney General Diyana Saeed, the first Attorney General under Nasheed's Government, also defended Dr. Munawwar’s remarks, noting: “It's a matter with legal burden. It’s actually a legit issue.”  Saeed cited Article 75 of the Maldivian Constitution, which holds that lawmakers/MPs should act in the national interest and welfare of the people, and that no MP shall use his/her office to promote the favoured interests or personal interests of any other person in relation to the lawmaker.  “The question is whether the Speaker representing another country is permissible,” Saeed noted. Former Assistant Commissioner of Police Abdullah Fairoosh, in a series of tweets, questioned whether Nasheed’s prioritisation of another country while acting as Speaker posed a conflict of interest. When Munawwar queried Parliament to clarify how Nasheed's trip was funded, Maldivian Parliament Communications/Media Director Hassan Ziyau said that all expenses of the said trip were handled by the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF – a group of countries most affected by climate change).  “The Maldivian State budget was not used for that trip,” he had said. Responding to the criticism, Nasheed's supporters said that environmental issues are related to humanity as a whole, and that therefore, it was not a problem for Nasheed to represent and advocate for another country in such a humanitarian matter. Those who expressed such views said that the Maldives and Sri Lanka share the same policy on climate issues.  “Nasheed's representation of Sri Lanka also protects the interests of the Maldives. There’s nothing wrong with it, as he is advocating for humanity. This criticism is politically motivated,” said a Twitter user. Others said that not only Nasheed, but others holding political positions in different countries represent and advocate for other nations on different platforms for the cause of combatting climate change. Some are also saying that it is nothing new in the universal climate.  “It's about not knowing how the world works. This is not something Nasheed is doing alone,” said a Twitter user who defended Nasheed. Nasheed will be on this trip until tomorrow (9).  


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