President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom has lifted the state of emergency under the powers granted to him by the Constitution of the Maldives.
The announcement of a State of Emergency was precipitated by a constitutional crisis created allegedly by two Justices of the Supreme Court who conspired with political actors to violate both the constitution and standard legal norms and practices in order to illegally overthrow a lawful government, and whose actions constituted an imminent threat to national security. The State of Emergency was annulled after a period of 45 days.
According to the President's Office, Maldives Police Service, under the guidance of the Office of the Prosecutor General, has been able to progress substantially into their investigation of corruption and other crimes relating to the constitutional crisis. The Prosecutor General issued a statement on March 20, 2018 outlining the charges to be filled by her office regarding the submissions by the Maldives Police Service to date.
The State of Emergency was declared by a Presidential Decree (No. 2018/3) issued on February 5, 2018 for national security reasons. It was extended via a resolution of the Parliament on February 20, 2018 for a period of 30 days, applicable only to those under investigation for crimes relating to the constitutional crisis. This extension was deemed valid by a decision of the Supreme Court on February 26, 2018.