New Delhi: Mohamed Muizzu, president of the Maldives, is facing one of the most serious domestic challenges in his almost two-year tenure—youth protests roiling across Malé over the police investigation into an incident involving the fall of a young Maldivian woman from the ninth floor of an apartment.
The protests, which began a week ago, saw large numbers of individuals participate in the early days, before it moved online Tuesday. On Wednesday, the organisers called for a “mega-protest”, alleging a police cover-up into an investigation against politically connected individuals.
On 18 April, Mariyam Yumnu, a 21-year old, was found injured on the rooftop of a warehouse, adjacent to an apartment building. She was reported to have been on the rooftop for over three hours, before neighbours alerted emergency services.
According to Maldivian authorities, Yumnu had fallen from the ninth floor skylight of the adjacent building sometime close to 5 AM in the morning.
Police investigators at a press conference last week indicated that there was “no foul play” in the incident, and that Yumnu was allegedly at a party with eight others—five men and three women—before the fall from the apartment in central Malé. It was later revealed that the apartment belonged to the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation Mohamed Ameen.
However, authorities released the information only after protests erupted around 22 April. Further, Maldivian authorities released personal information regarding Yumnu, but none about the others at the party, until the protesters stepped in.
Yumnu was airlifted to Malaysia, where she underwent a critical surgery to treat a fracture in the neck Tuesday.
Aishath Shiman, one of the early organisers, told ThePrint, “There were a lot of accusations being thrown. I was asking where the media coverage was, because there has been no coverage at all. A vast majority of people were extremely concerned. We don’t know if the people who were accused were involved or not. We just wanted to understand the situation and how it came about.”
She added: “We were frustrated by the local media, so I called out for a protest. I did not expect a large crowd. The first night there were a lot of demonstrators who came together. A lot of people are upset, and we want justice for the survivor and we have to talk about the underlying root causes which have led to cases like this.”
The lack of information, coupled with long-brewing frustration over the politically powerful being above the law, helped transform a social media call into a protest movement, which has taken to occupying streets in central Malé, as well as holding digital gatherings across social media platforms and even on online games such as Minecraft.
Two of Ameen’s nephews were in attendance at the party, Izdhiyaan Mohamed Maumoon and Yoosouf Ahmed Akram. The last person seen with Yumnu in the camera footage was Raudh Ahmed Zilal whose brother Daud Ahmed Zilal, is an undersecretary for communications at The President’s Office. Raudh was later detained by the police. The younger Zilal’s judicial remand was extended by 10 days Wednesday.
“Various people in this case have connections with ministers. We have reasons to believe that the police are trying to cover up for someone,” said Shiman.
The protesters have put forth 10 demands, which have been endorsed by Yumnu’s families, the protesters told ThePrint.
“Our Family fully endorse the demands put forward by the organisers. We urge everyone who can to join the protests, even tonight!! Your voice matters,” a social media account managed by a family member of Yumnu, Moomin Maumoon, posted on the social media platform X on 28 April.
Our Family fully endorse the demands put forward by the organisers.
We urge everyone who can to join the protests, even tonight!!
Your voice matters.
Massive thanks to everyone whos fighting for Justice!! #JusticeForYumnu #NoFlagsNoPoliticiansOnlyJustice #StandWithYumnu… pic.twitter.com/l9PKEyYYpr
— Mooch (@mooch3300) April 28, 2025
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Demands & resignations galore
The 10 demands include resignations of police commissioner Ali Shujau, Ameen and Minister of Homeland Security Ali Ihusaan and the officers involved in the original police briefing on 24 April, who are believed to have lied about the case according to Yumnu’s family and the protesters.
Other demands include a free and fair investigation, arrest of all suspects, explanations for inconsistencies in the footage released by the police of the situation leading to Yumnu’s fall, formal apology by the police to the family and the public for lying, an independent inquiry into the police investigation, public apology by Muizzu to the public for victim-blaming and full transparency in the sharing of evidence.
Shujau eventually resigned on 26 April. However, Ameen and Ihusaan remain cabinet members. On Monday the Maldivian Opposition submitted a motion of no-confidence against Ameen over the incident, which was rejected by the Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Ahmed Nazim for being “erroneous”.
Acting Commissioner of Police Farhad Fikry, was replaced within an hour of his appointment. The government replaced Fikry with Ismail Naveen, who is temporarily managing the activities of the Maldives Police Service.
“As someone who has worked in the area of civil rights in the Maldives, I find it extremely concerning that the youngest people have to come out and beg for their constitutional rights. This is amplifying a very deep problem in our country. Nepotism and corruption has a huge impact on everyone’s life, given that we are a very small country,” Aik Ahmed Easa, a lawyer and one of the organisers of the protests, said to ThePrint.
Both Shiman and Easa pointed to the initial protests, which came from the long-standing frustrations with regards to the state of policing in the country. While this incident set off the protests, Shiman said last September, police moved to declare the death of Zakiyya Moosa, another woman found dead in Holhudhoo atoll last September as self-inflicted.
“The police released the crime scene prematurely, which led to an uproar on the island and led to protests. The Minister of Homeland Security [Ihusaan] acknowledged that the police were negligent. No autopsy was conducted. The police kept claiming that she may have died by suicide,” said Shiman on the death of Moosa.
The government’s response
The protesters have also faced charges of being supported by the opposition parties or funded by different aid organisations, a charge Shiman categorically denied to ThePrint.
“We do not have a NGO, we are a bunch of individual people belonging to different backgrounds for this cause. The protests are fully financed by our own pockets. We are not a political party. We are individual people coming together. We are talking about systematic failures,” said Shiman.
However, some of the organisers including Easa, have not hidden their affiliation to political parties in the Maldives, pointing out it is not illegal to be a member and also raise their voice on matters of civil rights.
The government at first attempted to discourage the protesters, with President Muizzu first announcing a “Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry” into the incident Sunday. A day later, Muizzu was forced to change the composition of the commission, after one of the original members, Dr Mohamed Habeeb, resigned on account of being related to Raudh Ahmed Zilal—the only suspect to be arrested by authorities so far.
On Monday, Muizzu expanded the commission from a three-member body to one with five members to “establish the facts” behind the incident.
“He [Muizzu] assured the public that no obstacles would hinder the commission’s work, and that all relevant matters would be thoroughly investigated. He emphasised that all individuals involved would be questioned and no avenue left unexplored,” The President’s Office said in a statement Sunday.
Despite the decision by Muizzu to establish the presidential commission, the protesters are not deterred. The protests will not end until all 10 demands are met, both Shiman and Easa maintained.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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