Protests remove Maldive president

Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed has resigned following weeks of public protests over his controversial order to arrest a senior judge.

Mr Nasheed presented his resignation in a nationally televised address after police joined the protesters and then clashed with soldiers in the streets.

“I don’t want to hurt any Maldivian. I feel my staying on in power will only increase the problems, and it will hurt our citizens,” he said. “So the best option available to me is to step down.”

The resignation came after weeks of protests in the Indian Ocean island nation known more for its lavish beach resorts than political turmoil.

It marked a stunning crash for Mr Nasheed, a former human rights campaigner who defeated the nation’s long-time ruler in the country’s first multiparty election. Nasheed was also an environmental celebrity, travelling the world to persuade governments to combat the climate change that could send sea levels rising and inundate his archipelago nation.

He fell out of public favour after he ordered the military to arrest Abdulla Mohamed, the chief judge of the Criminal Court.

The arrest came after the judge ordered the release of a government critic, calling his arrest illegal.

The vice president, Supreme Court, Human Rights Commission, Judicial Services Commission and the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights have all called for Mohamed to be released.

The government accused the judge of political bias and corruption. It said that the country’s judicial system had failed and called on the UN to help solve the crisis.

After weeks of protests, the crisis came to a head when hundreds of police started demonstrating in the capital, Male, after officials ordered them to withdraw protection for government and opposition supporters protesting close to each other. The withdrawal resulted in a clash that injured at least three people.

Later, troops fired rubber bullets and clashed with the police. When Nasheed visited the police and urged them to end the protest, they refused and instead chanted for his resignation.