The Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) scandal was a major corruption scandal in the Maldives. In the scheme, more than $90 million was embezzled from Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation. The scandal was made public by a 2016 investigation in Al Jazeera . [1] It culminated in the conviction and imprisonment of former president Abdulla Yameen.
The embezzlement began ahead of the 2014 Maldivian parliamentary election, where funds from MMPRC were used to cover election costs and broker deals for votes in parliament. A second deal involved the leases of at least 50 islands being obtained by private companies for tourism development without public tender, for the benefit of several Maldivian government officials. [2] [3]
It implicated former president Abdulla Yameen, who was charged with corruption and money laundering in 2019 in relation to the deals. [4] He was convicted in 2022, and sentenced to 11 years in prison. [5] A number of other lawmakers were also implicated. [3] As of 2023, [update] Maldivian Police and the Anti-Corruption Commission have investigated 338 people in connection with the scandal. [6] On April 18, 2024, Abdulla Yameen's 11-year prison sentence for money laundering and corruption was overturned by the Maldives High Court, which ordered a retrial on the grounds that the 2022 hearings were "unfair". [7]
The history of the Maldives is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions, comprising the areas of South Asia and the Indian Ocean. The modern nation is formed of 26 natural atolls, comprising 1194 islands. Historically, the Maldives has held strategic importance due to its location on the major marine routes of the Indian Ocean. The Maldives's nearest neighbors are the British Indian Ocean Territory, Sri Lanka and India. The United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, and some Indian kingdoms have had cultural and economic ties with the Maldives for centuries. In addition to these countries, Maldivians also traded with Aceh and many other kingdoms in what is today Indonesia and Malaysia. The Maldives provided the primary source of cowrie shells, which were then used as currency throughout Asia and parts of the East African coast. Most likely, the Maldives were influenced by the Kalingas of ancient India. The Kalingas were the earliest region of India to trade with Sri Lanka and the Maldives and were responsible for the spread of Buddhism. Stashes of Chinese crockery found buried in various locations in the Maldives also show that there was direct or indirect trade contact between China and the Maldives. In 1411 and 1430, the Chinese admiral Zheng He (鄭和) visited the Maldives. The Chinese also became the first country to establish a diplomatic office in the Maldives when the Chinese nationalist government based in Taipei opened an embassy in Malé in 1966. The Embassy of the People's Republic of China has since replaced this office.
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom is a Maldivian politician, statesman, diplomat and scholar who served as the 3rd president of the Maldives from 1978 to 2008. He previously served as the Minister of Transport from 1977 to 1978, and as the Permanent Representative of the Maldives to the United Nations from 1976 to 1977. The longest-serving Maldivian president, Gayoom was the longest-serving leader in Asia.
The Maldivian Democratic Party is the first political party formed in the Republic of Maldives with a total membership of 50,980 individuals as of July 28, 2024.
Mohamed Nasheed GCSK, also known as Anni, is a Maldivian politician and activist who served as president of the Maldives from 2008 until his resignation in 2012. A founding member of the Maldivian Democratic Party, he subsequently served as the 19th speaker of the People's Majlis from May 2019 until his resignation in November 2023. He is the first democratically elected president of the Maldives and the only president to resign from office. He is currently a member of The Democrats.
The president of the Republic of Maldives is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Maldives and the commander-in-chief of the Maldives National Defence Force.
The Progressive Party of Maldives, is a political party in the Maldives with a total membership of 35,044 as of 25 April 2024. The stated goal of the party is driving Maldives towards an independent and democratic, safe and secure, high income, high human capital, developed nation state with a diversified and robust economy whilst preserving its Islamic heritage. The party is to be dissolved.
Presidential elections were held in the Maldives on 7, 9 and 16 November 2013. The first round was held on 7 September. As no candidate received a majority, a second round was planned to be held in 28 September between the candidates who received the most votes in the first round, former President Mohamed Nasheed and Abdulla Yameen, paternal half-brother of former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. Incumbent President Mohammed Waheed Hassan was eliminated in the first round after receiving less votes than three other candidates.
Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom is a Maldivian politician who served as president of the Maldives from 2013 to 2018.
Diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and the Maldives were established in 1972. China has an embassy in Malé which opened in November 2011, and the Maldives has an embassy in Beijing which opened in 2009. Approximately 70 percent of the Maldives' total debt is attributed to Chinese projects, with an annual payment of US$92 million to China, constituting around 10 percent of the country's entire budget. China has become pervasive in the Maldives, exerting influence over infrastructure, trade, and energy sectors, raising concerns of a new form of Chinese entrapment.
Ahmed Adeeb Abdul Ghafoor is a Maldivian politician who briefly served as Vice President of Maldives in 2015. Prior to his appointment on 22 July 2015, he served as the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture.
Maafushi Prison is a prison in Maafushi on Kaafu Atoll in the Maldives, 18 miles (29 km) south of the capital, Malé. It is the largest prison on the islands and has held numerous political prisoners over the years, including former presidents like Mohamed Nasheed and Abdulla Yameen.
Presidential elections were held in the Maldives on Sunday, 23 September 2018. Incumbent president Abdulla Yameen of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) was seeking re-election for a second five-year term. His only challenger was Ibrahim Mohamed Solih of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), who was nominated as the joint candidate of a coalition of opposition parties.
Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Frequently referred to as Ibu, is a Maldivian politician who served as the 7th President of the Maldives from 2018 to 2023.Solih was a Parliamentarian for 15 years, He Represented the Hinnavaru constituency and the Lhaviyani Constituency during his tenure. He played a significant role in the democratic reforms of the Maldives and led the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) to victory in the 2018 presidential election. Solih was elected president on 23 September 2018 after winning the 2018 presidential election as the candidate for the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP). His presidency focused on democratic governance, environmental sustainability, and strengthening international relations.
Kirill Androsov is a Russian businessman, economist, and investor.
Presidential elections were held in the Maldives on Saturday, 9 September 2023, with a second round held on 30 September. Incumbent president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih was seeking re-election, after defeating the-then Speaker of the People's Majlis Mohamed Nasheed in the Maldivian Democratic Party primaries. People's National Congress candidate and Malé mayor Mohamed Muizzu won the election with 54% of the votes, defeating Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and becoming President-elect of the Maldives. It was the fourth consecutive election in which a Maldivian president failed to win reelection, the last to do so having been Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who ran unopposed, in 2003.
The following lists events that happened during 2023 in the Maldives.
Maldivian presidential assassination attempts have been numerous, ranging from the early twentieth century since the establishment of the first republic of the Maldives. In 1980, President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was first Maldivian president to experience an assassination attempt, when three attempts were made to overthrow Maumoon's government and assassinate the president.
The Criminal Court of the Maldives is a Maldivian court of justice of first instance responsible for the practice of Criminal law.
Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom's tenure as the 6th President of the Maldives began on 17 November 2013 after he won the 2013 Maldivian presidential election against then-President Mohamed Waheed Hassan and ended on 17 November 2018 after he lost to Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in the 2018 Maldivian presidential election.
Corruption in the Maldives remains a persistent problem. The country was ranked in the 84th position on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index in 2022. Key issues include high-level corruption and weak enforcement of anti-corruption measures. Incidences of corruption hinder political, social, and economic development and expose Maldives to peace, safety, and security risks.