MP raises the political situation in the Maldivespublished at 19:02 Greenwich Mean Time 6 March 2018
Adjournment debate
House of Commons
Parliament
The final, short debate today is led by Conservative MP Sir Hugo Swire, a former Foreign Office Minister, and concerns the political situation in the Maldives.
In February a former president of the island nation off the Indian subcontinent, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who was in power for three decades, was arrested at his home as a crackdown on the opposition intensified.
President Abdulla Yameen has declared a state of emergency to investigate a "coup" against him, while the opposition has called for other countries to intervene in the crisis.
Since President Yameen took power in 2013 the country has faced questions over freedom of speech, the detention of opponents and the independence of the judiciary.