Former President Mohamed Nasheed on early Wednesday joined a growing number of Maldivian political leaders urging against the enactment of a contentious media bill passed by the Parliament that seeks to replace the existing self-regulatory system with a government-controlled commission, warning that legislature severely restricts hard-won freedom of expression in the Maldives.
On August 18, Thulhaadhoo MP Abdul Hannan Aboobakr, an independent lawmaker aligned with the government, submitted a bill that seeks to dissolve the Maldives Media Council (MMC) and the Maldives Broadcasting Commission (BroadCom), replacing them with a single regulatory body — a seven-member Maldives Media and Broadcasting Commission (MMBC).
Journalists hold the Maldives national flag as they protest against the passage of a contentious media bill on September 16, 2025. (Sun Photo/Ahmed Firyal)
The bill, widely panned both local and international journalism groups for its vague and ambiguous terminology, is openly backed by the People’s National Congress (PNC) administration.
The Parliament worked through recess on the bill, and the PNC used its supermajority to ensure its passage with a majority vote of 60-1 in an extraordinary sitting on Tuesday, amid protests both within and outside the Parliament – the former of which led to several parliamentarians from the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) getting forcibly removed from the chambers.
Then-President-Elect Dr. Mohamed Muizzu visits the Parliament and meets then-Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed on October 3, 2023. (Photo/People's Majlis)
In a post on X on early Wednesday, Nasheed, a former journalist himself, described it as “a very sad day” for the Maldives.
He warned that the bill severely restricts hard-won freedom of expression in the Maldives.
“The Media Bill that parliament voted for today severely restricts freedom of expression-a freedom we won through so much pain, hardship and loneliness. We must make a stand,” said Nasheed, who currently resides overseas.
It's a very sad day for the Maldives. The Media Bill that parliament voted for today severely restricts freedom of expression-a freedom we won through so much pain, hardship and loneliness. We must make a stand.
— Mohamed Nasheed (@MohamedNasheed) September 16, 2025
Former Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, too, shared similar sentiments, warning that the contentious legislature signifies “the end of press freedom” in the Maldives.
Former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. (Sun Photo/Moosa Nadheem)
He also condemned the rushed passage of the bill despite widespread concerns over its implications.
“The underhanded manner in which it was forced through parliament, despite protests by journalists, opposition parties, media organizations, civil society, and the public, lays bare the government’s disregard for Maldivians’ democratic rights,” he wrote in a post on X on Tuesday night.
Solih added that his party, the MDP, will not give up its fight against the bill.
A sad day for democracy in the Maldives! President Muizzu, using his party’s supermajority in parliament, has rushed through the so-called Media Control Bill—a law that signifies the end of press freedom in Maldives. The underhanded manner in which it was forced through…
— Ibrahim Mohamed Solih (@ibusolih) September 16, 2025
“The Maldivian Democratic Party will not yield to this affront to the people’s will. We will stand firm and fight for the social and political rights of all Maldivians,” he wrote.
Other MDP leaders, including the party’s president Abdulla Shahid and chairperson Fayyaz Ismail, also condemned the passage of the bill.
MDP's leaders Abdulla Shahid (C) and Fayyaz Ismail (R) join the protest against the media bill on September 16, 2025. (Photo/MDP)
Shahid accused the PNC administration of choosing “fear over freedom” and declaring “war on free speech.”
“A government that silences journalists is a government that has lost the courage to face the truth. Instead of fixing the crises our nation faces, they are trying to censor the voices that hold them accountable,” he wrote in a post on X on Tuesday night. “History is clear! No government that tried to muzzle the media has ever ended well.”
The former foreign minister said that the MDP stands “with the independent media, and with every Maldivian who believes in democracy.”
Today, the Government of #Maldives has chosen fear over freedom. By forcefully pushing through the Media #CTRLBill in @mvpeoplesmajlis, they have declared war on free speech. A government that silences journalists is a government that has lost the courage to face the truth.…
— Abdulla Shahid (@abdulla_shahid) September 16, 2025
Fayyaz described the bill as “an insult to the memory of the thousands of activists who bled to secure freedom of expression and media for Maldivians.”
He asked all Maldivians to join the MDP “to protest this draconian control bill, and to fight for the future of our country.”
The Media Control bill passed by the Muizzu administration is an insult to the memory of the thousands of activists who bled to secure freedom of expression and media for Maldivians. I ask all Maldivians to join us to protest this draconian control bill, and to fight for the…
— Fayyaz Ismail (@faya_i) September 16, 2025
The Adhaalath Party (AP), led by former home minister Imran Abdulla, issued a statement warning the bill could cause massive damage to democracy in the Maldives.
AP warned that even with the amendments that were later introduced during the committee review stage, the bill still poses a serious threat to press freedom.
The party also alleged that the rushed passage of the bill during recess and without the extensive research it requires shows the government harbors “ill intentions.”
މޯލްޑިވްސް މީޑިއާ އެންޑް ބްރޯޑްކާސްޓިންގ ރެގިއުލޭޝަންގެ ބިލް ތަސްދީޤު ނުކުރުމަށް ގޮވާލާއި ޢަދާލަތު ޕާޓީއިން ނެރޭ ބަޔާން pic.twitter.com/omNODUI5CI
— Adhaalath Party (@AdhaalathOffice) September 16, 2025
The AP urged President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu to reject the bill.
The passage of the contentious bill had come just hours after a petition signed by 151 journalists from 41 different media outlets demanding the withdrawal of the bill was rejected by the Petitions Committee, which decided that the concerns raised in the petition had been properly addressed in the amendments made during the review by the Independent Institutions Committee.
Protesters sustain injuries as they are pushed back by police from outside the Parliament Building ahead of a vote on a contentious media bill on September 16, 2025. (Sun Photo/Ahmed Firyal)
While some of the contentious provisions in the bill were amended before it passed the final floor vote, journalists call these as superficial changes that fail to address the threat the bill poses, with vague terminology such as “refraining from leaning towards a specific political ideology”, “upholding national security”, “upholding the legitimate government”, and “protecting the dignity and private lives of individuals”, “differentiating between facts and personal opinions shared by individuals that are based on facts”, and “potential threats to the religion of Islam, national security, public order or public health”.
While journalist protest against the bill as a direct threat to press freedom and free speech and an attempt to stamp out all voices of dissent, the PNC administration touts it as important legislature that protects people from defamation, disinformation and misinformation, and paves the path for accountability in the media field.