The government has submitted a bill to Parliament that designates hanging as the method for carrying out the death penalty and sets out detailed procedures for enforcement.
The Bill on the Determination and Execution of the Death Penalty was introduced by Guraidhoo MP Hanan Mohamed Rasheed. It aims to provide a statutory framework for sentencing and carrying out capital punishment in line with the Constitution and the rights of those involved.
Under the bill, executions would be carried out by placing a noose around the convict’s neck and suspending the person until death. The Maldives Correctional Service would perform the executions, which must not take place in public view. Equipment and methods must be designed to cause death as quickly as possible with the least pain.
A seven-member oversight panel would be established to manage the process. It would include a state prosecutor appointed by the Prosecutor General, a member from the Supreme Council for Fatwa and representatives from other relevant bodies. The panel would decide the date and time of an execution within 30 days of being formed.
The bill lists circumstances in which an execution must be postponed. These include pregnancy (until the woman has given birth, recovered and the child reaches two years of age), certain medical or mental health conditions, and while a judicial review or Supreme Court application remains pending.
Senior officials, including representatives of the police, the Prosecutor General and a medical practitioner, would be required to be present. Convicts would be allowed a final meeting with family members.
The Maldives has not carried out an execution since the 1950s. Courts have continued to impose death sentences, particularly in murder and certain drug trafficking cases. Human rights groups have long called for the moratorium to be maintained and for capital punishment to be abolished.
The bill is now before the People’s Majlis for consideration.
