By our Correspondent in Male’

A demonstration calling for the voting age to be lowered to 18 for the upcoming referendum on choosing a system of government has ended at Artificial Beach on Friday. The demonstration organized by the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has raised more questions over the top priorities for the party.

MDP had decided to hold the demonstration at a time when the most pressing political issue was the voting age for the referendum. Heated debates in the People’s Special Majlis (Constituent Assembly) and protests outside the Special Majlis had brought the issue to the forefront, with the pro-government MPs insisting that the present constitution does not allow people below 21 years to vote in the referendum while opposition MPs countered that the constitution does not say anything over voting age for such referendums.

However, with the discovery of the severely beaten body of Hussain Salah from Male’s southern harbour on April 15, the important issue of the week has been the mysterious death. Matters have reached a sensational point with the family of the deceased and several people pointing fingers at the police who had held Salah under their custody days before the discovery of his dead body. The police insist that they released Salah from custody before he was fished out of the water. Inconsistencies in statements issued by police at different times and a past culture of police torture including killings of detainees add to the suspicions that the police are involved in a cover-up. Salah’s family has faced various obstacles from the authorities as they tried to take the body abroad for a post-mortem.

Despite huge banners calling for the resignation of Commissioner of Police Adam Zahir, who is an icon of torture in the Maldives, MDP’s demonstration did not focus much on Salah’s mysterious death and the accusations of torture. The news website Dhivehi Observer reports that a minute’s silence was observed in memory of Salah at the beginning of the demonstration.

Most of the speakers at the demonstration were members of MDP Parliamentary Group, who are generally against street activism and protests. Instead of highlighting the government’s attempts to cover-up what may have been another brutal murder by police, the speakers stressed their illustrious work inside the Special Majlis and how they were going to win their stand on the voting age for the referendum. Their speeches were full of confidence over a victory they will achieve in a motion of no-confidence to take place on May 3 against the Speaker of the Special Majlis, who is seen as upholding the government’s viewpoint in the Special Majlis. Only very few speakers touched on the death of Solah and the police brutality.

The BBC website reported on Friday that the Maldives opposition was planning a protest over the death of Salah.

The Maldives is braced for more clashes between the police and opposition activists demonstrating over a man allegedly killed in police custody.

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) says it is determined to go ahead with a protest on Friday.

They say it is clear that Hussein Salah was murdered while being detained by the police.

It is not clear from the BBC report who gave the information to BBC that Friday’s protest was over the death of Salah. However, for several people who witnessed the demonstration Salah’s death was of lower priority for MDP Parliamentarians than their own cat and mouse games inside the Majlis.

MDP Chairperson Mohamed Nasheed returned from Sri Lanka on Friday afternoon and joined the demonstration. His speech brought some change in the mood and tone of the demonstration as he stressed the need to remove the despotic dictator Gayoom from power as soon as possible.

Nasheed himself received a dose of police brutality as he was badly beaten and arrested on April 15, during a protest of people who were shocked over the violent death of Hussain Salah. Nasheed went to Sri Lanka to seek medical care for the injuries he sustained from police beatings.

Nasheed has told BBC that torture has become a “police culture” in the Maldives.

“They have to be able to intimidate the public if they are to remain in power,” he said, “it is the only means they know.”

But many pro-democracy activists feel that Nasheed’s solitary voice is not enough as a reaction to the present day realities from the party he co-founded after the nation’s conscience was shaken from the brutal murder of inmate Hassan Eavan Naseem in September 2003.