AG Riffath: President’s letter in no way correlated to EEZ

Attorney General Ibrahim RIffath, on Monday, has remarked that the letter sent to the Mauritian prime minister by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih is in no way correlated to the south Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Maldives.

A no-confidence motion was filed against Riffath by an opposition alliance which comprises of the opposition PPM-PNC coalition, ‘The Democrats’, headed by Nasheed, and Maldives National Party – citing negligence in advocating for Maldives’ best interests in the border dispute between Maldives and Mauritius at International Tribunal for the Law of the Seas (ITLOS). 

Riffath appeared before the parliament on Monday for the debate on the no-confidence motion. Many lawmakers posed the question as to why the letter has not been shared with the parliament as a confidential document despite the letter being mentioned in the ITLOS’ ruling.

Responding to the no-confidence motion, Riffath denied allegations that the government changed its stand with respect to the Maldives’ southern EEZ through the letter to the Mauritian prime minister.

“It is absolutely false to claim that the letter, dated August 22, 2022, sent to Mauritian prime minister by President Solih changes the government’s stand on the southern EEZ. The letter is in no way related to the topic of the southern EEZ.  The letter does not comprise of any statement that led to the unanimous decision of the ITLOS’ judges,” he said

Speaking further, Riffath said he acted within the confinements of law in the maritime border dispute. He assured that the government has no intention of hiding anything related to the case. Furthermore, he reiterated that it was Maldives that won the ITLOS’ case.

Riffath, underscoring there were differences between political work and legal work, stated that the point of the law being written down is to guarantee legal protection for each and every citizen. He questioned what law he had violated for 13 parliamentarians to sign the no-confidence motion against him claiming he had acted outside the confinements of law.

“Article 101 (a) of the constitution states that a no-confidence motion against a cabinet minister cannot be filed without citing a reason. Sentiments by 13 lawmakers including the parliament speaker on how I advocated in the dispute over the southern EEZ is not a legitimate reason as per the law,” he stressed.

A no-confidence motion has also been filed against Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid over the border dispute. The opposition alliance is also pursuing a no-confidence motion against President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.