Commonwealth refutes Enquiry Commission endorsed reports

Commonwealth has refuted media reports suggesting that the Commonwealth Special Envoy to Maldives, Sir Donald McKinnon had endorsed the National Enquiry Commission (NEC) set up to probe the circumstances surrounding the transfer of power on February 7. The Commonwealth Secretariat had issued a statement countering the media report which originated from PR Newswire that McKinnon had endorsed the NEC in Maldives as "impartial, credible and broadly acceptable.”

Commonwealth Secretariat stressed that the original report dated May 25, 2012, published by PR Newswire was “misleading”.

The Commonwealth further noted that McKinnon had not stated that the work of the National Enquiry Commission (NEC) is currently constituted as "impartial, credible and broadly acceptable,” yet his efforts had focused on achieving the common objective in his visits to the Maldives.

“The Commonwealth wants to support an independent and impartial Inquiry Commission that helps the people of Maldives address the events of 7 February 2012 in a manner that moves the country forward in its democratic journey. Our efforts today have paved the way for such an effort. I look forward to former President Nasheed confirming a suitable candidate to join this Commission by the time it begins its work on 1 June 2012,” McKinnon said in his departure statement.

In his departure statement, McKinnon further stated that he had reached a commitment with the Government of Maldives to better focus the scope of the inquiry, strengthen the powers of the Commission of National Inquiry and broaden its composition with the participation of an international co-chair plus a nominee of former President Nasheed. Efforts to implement that understanding are still ongoing.

Despite Commonwealth’s rebuttal, McKinnon's departure statement had stated that “Sir Donald engaged with key stakeholders to facilitate the strengthening of the Commission of National Inquiry so as to make it more impartial, credible and broadly acceptable,” while the headline in the Commonwealth website regarding the departure statement had read “Commission of National Inquiry strengthened in Maldives.”
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