Maldives High Court overturns ex-President Abdulla Yameen’s prison sentence
Al Jazeera
Decision comes days before the Indian Ocean archipelago nation holds parliamentary elections.
A court in the Maldives has overturned the conviction of former President Abdulla Yameen and cancelled his 11-year prison sentence.
The High Court said on Thursday that his 2022 trial had been unfair and ordered a new trial.
“The lower court ruling was not fair,” Judge Hassan Shafeeu said while reading out a lengthy decision that was broadcast live.
The decision was made three days before the Indian Ocean archipelago nation holds a parliamentary election, in which Yameen is fielding candidates from a political party he formed while serving his sentence.
Yameen was convicted on two charges when a court found he had accepted a bribe to grant a lease on an islet for tourism development while he was in power from 2013 to 2018.
