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The politics of Maldives take place within the framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President is both the head of state and head of government. Through a multi-party system, Maldivians elect the President, who exercises Executive power with a government. Legislative power is exercised by the People's Majlis, a unicameral body elected by Maldivians with proportional representation. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislative. Traditionally, Maldivian politics have had strong connections to the state religion, Islam. The last decade has seen the Maldives transition from an authoritarian political system into a multi-party democracy. Throughout this period, the country has seen numerous events of political instability.
History[edit]
Monarchy and Sultanate[edit]
The first recorded political system in the Maldives was as a monarchy ruled by King Koimala in 1117. After the country's conversion to Islam in 1153, the Maldives became a Sultanate, with largely seven dynasties ruling over the country till 1952. Each Sultan usually had a small council of advisors. Overtime, aspects of constitutional monarchy were introduced into the political system, helped by the arrival of the British to the Maldives. A first constitution was enacted in 1932, and a legislative body was established with a Prime Minister. After Maldives became a British protectorate, the country had a short period where it made the decision to become a republic in 1952.
Independence[edit]
The Maldives attained independence from the British in 1965. Soon after, a presidential democratic republic was established with President Ibrahim Nasir. It was a non-partisan democracy. Nasir's successor was Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom, who stayed in power for 6 terms using authoritarian means to limit freedoms to criticise, detaining opposition, and running only single candidate elections. Mass political unrest led to Gayyoom allowing a new multi-party system to form in the country in 2008.
Multi-party democracy[edit]
The 2008 reconstitution saw the establishment of new political parties, freedoms in expressing opposing political opinions, the election of Mohamed Nasheed as the first democratically elected President, the election of a brand new legislation and regulations for an independent judiciary. In the subsequent years, the country has faced several instances of political instability, including quick changing coalitions between parties and the Executive as well as major political events such as the February 2011 political unrest, and the MMPRC corruption scandal.
Executive[edit]
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The President assumes the role of both the head of state and head of government of The Maldives. They are the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces as well as the leader of the Cabinet.
The President and the Vice President are elected into 5 year terms by a universal suffrage two-round system. These posts are held under the authority of the Maldives Constitution.
The President forms the Cabinet they require to run the government, subject to the approval of the People's Majlis.
Legislative[edit]
The People's Majlis is the legislative authority of the Maldives. It is a unicameral body with a seat for each of 87 proportionally represented electoral constituencies. The members are elected for a 5 year term by the respective constituents. Since it is a multi-party system, the majority of candidates are affiliated with a political party, with the aim of acquiring a majority in parliament. The Cabinet cannot concurrently serve on the Majlis.
Sessions of the Majlis are presided over by the Speaker of the People's Majlis. They are selected in a secret ballot in the first session of parliament. The Speaker of the People's Majlis is third in line to the Presidency.
Judiciary[edit]
The Supreme Court of the Maldives is the highest authority of administering justice in The Maldives. It is the final court of appeal. Maldives has court hierarchy, with the High Court being the first appellate court. The lower courts consist of Magistrate Courts in each first-level administrative division except the capital city. In Malé, five superior courts exist instead of a Magistrate Court.
The Supreme Court has to have an uneven number of Justices, presided by the Chief Justice of The Maldives. The Chief Justice is the fourth in line to the Presidency.
Administrative Divisions[edit]
Maldives has two levels of administrative divisions.
The first-level administrative division is either a City, which requires an urban population of at least 25,000 or an Island, which requires any smaller population. Each division has their own local council who governs the area. Currently, there are 180 Islands and 3 Cities in Maldives. Each division, except for Malé, the capital city, has a Magistrate Court.
The second-level administrative division is an Atoll, which is a group of Islands. Currently, 18 such divisions oversee the Islands across the country. Usually, this administrative division will have some correlation with the natural atoll formations in the archipelago.
Electoral constituencies[edit]
The country is also divided into 87 electoral constituencies, with each Atoll covering at least a minimum of 2 constituencies. Each constituent population get one representative seat in the legislative People's Majlis. If the constituency is within an Atoll, they also vote in at least one representative seat on the Atoll Council, the superior local government body.
Elections[edit]
There are three election cycles that occur in the Maldives -
- Presidential Election every 5 years, followed the next year by
- Parliamentary Election every 5 years and
- Local Government Election for Island Councils, Atoll Councils and City Councils every 3 years
The Presidential Election is a two-round system, whereas the other two elections are a simple majority system. The majority of candidates in all three cycles would be affiliated with a political party.
A central, independent Elections Commission plans and implements all three election cycles.
Political Parties[edit]
Political parties were introduced to The Maldives in 2005, as the beginning of the multi party system. Since then, numerous parties have been registered to varied success and longevity. The Maldivian Democratic Party, who was at the forefront in the push towards the democracy is currently the longest-lasting and biggest political party in the country. Their 2018 Presidential Election victory was in a coalition with three other parties. The main opposition party currently is the Progressive Party of Maldives.
Foreign Relations[edit]
Since 1978, the Maldives has followed a policy of international engagement, intensifying links with strategic partners and the international system.