The government was ready to welcome any political leaders living in self imposed exile if they decide to return to the Maldives, president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom said Monday.
Speaking during the ceremony held to commemorate the conclusion of the land reclamation project in Kaaf Atoll Himmafushi island on Monday, president denied opposition accusations that the government was constricting fundamental rights in the archipelago.
"Maldives enjoys all the rights in a constitutional democracy. We still have the right to peaceful protest. Journalists still have the freedom to write what they want. But we're only asking them not to defame people. Don't violate the rights of others," president explained.
"The principles of democracy remain. We still have the freedom of movement. Right to free speech. Even the people living in exile abroad can return. But because of their sentences it's up to them to decide whether they would return and go home or go somewhere else. But there's nothing stopping them from coming to the Maldives. We would even welcome that."
Several top opposition figures including former president Mohamed Nasheed and former vice president Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed are living in self imposed exile in the UK.
Nasheed had been granted asylum in the UK after he was allowed to leave for medical treatment in an internationally brokered deal in January.
Nasheed’s jailing on a terror charge last year was a key trigger of the current political crisis. He was allowed to leave the country in an internationally brokered deal in January.
Jameel had meanwhile fled to the UK last July, days before he was impeached in a controversial vote.
