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China wary of Indian role in restoring democracy in Maldives, draws flak for its veiled warning

Just Earth News | @justearthnews | 08 Feb 2018

China wary of Indian role in restoring democracy in Maldives, draws flak for its veiled warning

Male/Beijing: While Maldives is roiled by a political crisis with the imposition of Emergency by President Yameen amid desperate requests of the island nation's opposition leaders for an Indian intervention along with the international community to restore democracy, China's veiled warning to New Delhi to stay clear of Maldives' 'internal problems' is seen as Beijing's growing tendency to dictate terms in the Indian subcontinent.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said, "The international community should play a constructive role on the basis of respecting the Maldives sovereignty instead of taking measures that could complicate the current situation."

The Chinese spokesman however didn't directly mention India's name, though it is clear who he referred to.

"I made myself clear. We hope relevant parties in the Maldives can properly resolve the issue through consultation and restore national stability and social order as soon as possible. We believe they have wisdom and capability to address the situation independently," he said.

Speaking about China's relationship with Maldives, he said, "China maintains friendly cooperation with the Maldives including the FTA which serves the common interests of the two countries. The facts have proven that after signing of the FTA cooperation has benefited the two peoples."

Calling the situation Maldives' internal matter, he said, "The current situation in Maldives is its internal affairs. China follows the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of others."

However, the opposition in Maldives seeking an Indian assistance for restoration of democracy is not amused. China was attacked by former president Mohamed Nasheed for its stance vis-a-vis India.

"Saying ‘resolve things internally’ is akin to asking us to escalate the revolt, which can lead to chaos. Maldivians see India’s role positively: in ‘88 they came, resolved the crisis, and left. They were not occupiers but liberators. This is why Maldivians look to India now," said Mohamed Nasheed, the exiled former President of the Maldives.

Additionally, the state-run 'The Global Times' in China said in one of its editorial, "Political struggles are supposed to be internal affairs, and New Delhi has no justification to intervene in Male's affairs. The Maldives must be under huge pressure from India."

"The Maldives' sovereignty should be respected. The political unrest should be left to the Maldivian people to address. We urge all sides in the country to exercise restraint and end the crisis at the minimum cost, striking the correct balance between legal and governmental authority," it added.

The atrocious piece is typical of Beijing's arm-twisting technique and is not in sync with the global community, which has rapped Maldives' President Yameen for abandoning democracy.

"The suspension of several functions of the judiciary and Parliament, and the restrictions on a series of constitutional rights, create a dangerous concentration of power in the hands of the President,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said in a statement release by his Office (OHCHR).

"President Yameen has, to put it bluntly, usurped the authority of the State’s rule-of-law institutions and its ability to work independently from the executive,” Zeid said.

“The Maldives have seen in recent years attacks on political opponents, on journalists, on civil society and human right defenders, and what is happening now is tantamount to an all-out assault on democracy,” he warned.
  
Meanwhile, opposition in Maldives have alleged that Beijing's affectionate stance towards the latter's President has got to do with the controversial Free Trade Agreement with China, which he signed during his visit to Beijing in December.

Some opposition political leaders who are not taking China's name also seemed hoping for an Indian role in restoration of democracy.

Independent Member of Parliament Ali Hussain told Just Earth News: "Indian can play a major role and mediate in this situation along with UN, The UK and USA who have all showed concern. I do not want to comment on China now, but China has said that it does not have any interest in internal politics of Maldives."