President Dr Mohamed Muizzu’s family on Saturday announced their intention to pursue civil charges over the endangerment, harassment and bullying of his children led by the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).
The incident in question transpired on 12 March when a member of the MDP employed harmful and abusive language towards the First Son while speaking during the demonstration.
During the rally, Mariyam Zubair accused the President of banning vape products in the Maldives because his son was caught vaping. The First Son has since faced a barrage of abuse and threats on social media.
First Lady Saajidhaa Mohamed in a statement, vehemently denied the accusations adding that such baseless allegations had endangered the life of her son and undermined his future.
In the statement, the First Lady insisted that she had never spoken up, or defended the policies or decisions of her husband in his capacity as the President.
However, First Lady Saajidhaa said as a mother, she cannot stand idly by when her underage children are berated, harrassed and bullied by political rivals endangering their lives while undermining their safety and dignity.
"Today, as a mother, I have decided to take action because my first and foremost duty is to protect my children when their safety and future are threatened," the statement said.
Former Attorney General Aishath Azima Shakoor who is the family lawyer told reporters that the first family will be seeking civil charges against Mariyam Zubair, MDP and its Chairman Fayyaz Ismail.
She said the legal team believes that MDP is legally liable as the incident occurred during a rally organised by the party. Civil charges against Fayyaz are being pursued because he had defended and encouraged more hate against the First Son in a post on X, she added.
Despite the criminal nature of the incident, Azima said the First Family will only pursue civil charges, as a criminal investigation and subsequent criminal charges remain under the mandate of the relevant authorities.
The Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) and the Elections Commission of Maldives (ECM) meanwhile had separately issued admonitions to MDP to desist from actions that could potentially harm children, underscoring that such actions do not fall under the purview of freedom of expression.