Chief Justice Ahmed Faiz Hussain has stressed that the death penalty is not something new to the Maldives and can be enforced within the current legal system. Speaking to reporters after the minute of silence observed by members of the judiciary and lawyers in memory of lawyer Ahmed Najeeb who was stabbed to death last Sunday, Faiz detailed that according to the statistics of the last decade; more than ten people had been sentenced to death.
As the Maldives’ judicial system is meshed with Islamic Shariah, implementing the death penalty was possible even in the present legal system.
“The justice system in the Maldives is shaped in a way that following a court verdict, the sentence or the punishment is enforced by a separate entity. The result of a verdict can only been seen if the sentences are enforced. This doesn’t apply only to the death penalty,†Chief Justice added.
While most murder cases have been delayed, three hearings on Najeeb’s case have already taken place on the same day the case had been forwarded to the Prosecutor General’s office upon completion of the investigation.
Chief Justice admitted that the case in question had been different and noted that the investigation had received the full cooperation of all relevant authorities. He also highlighted that the process of forwarding the case to the PG’s office had been smooth and without any glitches.
He explained that several reasons were behind the alarming rise in criminal offences. He detailed that the only solution is to strengthen the constitution, the justice system and to complete the much needed laws to the judicial system.
“Once the constitution came into effect, there are some important tools needed for the Judiciary for it to function effectively. Parliament members are currently working on bills such the criminal procedural act, penal code and evidence act. When these Bills are ratified the justice system would be more complete and the crime rate would be curbed,†Faiz detailed.
In addition to the Chief Justice, Prosecutor General Ahmed Muizzu, Attorney General Aishath Azima Shakoor, Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, Human Rights Minister Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed, Judges and lawyers participated in the event held to commemorate the untimely demise of Najeeb.
The brutalized body of Najeeb was found in a garbage can on Sunday night. Both suspects arrested in the case Ahmed Murrath, 29 and Fathimath Hana, 18 had confessed to Najeeb’s murder.
Tweet Bookmark Print Badge the Comments! Give badges to the best comments you see! You will get four badges a day 0 Comments To have full access to the interactive features available in Haveeru Online please register or sign in. or Post a Comment Loading comments... Please wait
No comments:
Post a Comment