President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has directed the Ministry of Homeland Security and Technology to take the necessary steps to implement the recommendations outlined in the report by the Presidential Commission set up to investigate the 18 April incident in which a young women fell from a building in Male’ City.
In a directive sent to the Ministry of Homeland Security and Technology regarding the matter, the President noted several lapses by the Maldives Police Service (MPS) in handling the case. These included:
- When Hawwa Yumnu Rasheed’s fall onto the roof of Mitaaz, Henveiru, was initially reported, MPS Command Centre delayed informing the investigation officer by approximately an hour. By the time the investigation officer arrived on the scene, the Crime Scene Officer had already collected evidence needed for the investigation. Due to the absence of an investigation officer at the scene, even after the crime scene was processed, the complete information and evidence required for the investigation could not be obtained at that time.
- The Crime Scene Officer who went to the crime scene did not adequately process all areas of the crime scene when processing the crime scene, and left the scene shortly after his arrival, without performing many of his duties as a scene of crime officer.
- No effort had been made to obtain any evidence from the roof of Mitaaz, the primary location where Yumnu was found. The scene was not secured with boundaries and it was not adequately protected.
In light of these findings, the President instructed the Ministry to revise the police’s standard operating procedures (SOP), familiarise staff with the procedures, and provide training to ensure the issues noted in the report by the presidential commission are not repeated. He also instructed the Ministry to investigate the negligence of the employees and take corrective action against them, as per the recommendations in the report.
The report further noted that Raud Ahmed Zilal, who is implicated in the case, went to Maairaa, Henveiru, on the morning on 18 April, where he was received by his brother, Daud Ahmed Zilal, as confirmed by eyewitnesses. While Daud gave contradictory statements to the police and the presidential commission, the report noted that it was determined that Daud gave a false statement to the investigation. The commission further noted that Yumnu was left on the roof without receiving any urgent care or treatment, which itself is an inhumane act. Therefore, the report concluded that Daud, as well as other individuals Raud met on the morning of 18 April at H Maairaa, were complicit in negligence by failing to report the incident. The commission recommended further investigating this aspect, and the President asked the Ministry to do the needful.
In a separate directive to the Ministry of Health, the President addressed failures in the response by Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) and the Family Protection Unit (FPU) in handling the case:
- The Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of IGMH notified the FPU of IGMH to investigate whether Hawwa Yumnu Rasheed has suffered any sexual assault. After FPU’s failure to attend to the request, the request was abandoned, which is against FPU’s SOP and how employees are instructed to conduct themselves. The commission said although an FPU staff fails to respond, doctors must proceed with the request without FPU consent if the family of a patient requests the assessment.
- When an injured young woman is discovered, and when she is taken to IGMH for emergency treatment, it should be assumed that sexual assault may have occurred. Even during the initial first aid treatment, external injuries must be documented and photographed, and necessary sample,s including vaginal, anal, and other swabs, must be collected without compromising the evidence. The Commission noted the need to strengthen the administrative arrangements of IGMH’s FPU to ensure that this can be done without delay.
Following these findings in the Presidential Commission’s report, the President directed the Ministry of Health to take necessary steps to strengthen the administrative functions of the IGMH and the FPU at the hospital to prevent such incidents from happening again.