By our correspondent in Male’

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) put forward its scheduled demonstration of November 10, and urged party members and supporter to gather near the Parliament Building on Monday.

However, as the parliament building was heavily guarded, people gathered near the MDP Office in Sosun Magu in Male’ at 10.30 am. MDP Chairperson Mohamed Nasheed (Anni) and Vice President Ibrahim Hussain Zaki addressed the crowd from the balcony of the MDP Office.

Riot police moved in and ordered the people to move away from the area. Several people lingered. The police did not use the brutal and heavy-handed approach they normally adopt in such circumstances. The presence of several international observers and journalists must be the reason why the police were restraining themselves.

However, a few arrests were made including the detention of Shehenaz Abdulla, one of the coordinators of the November 10 demonstration. Police behaviour was not entirely abnormal; they could not resist the urge to barge into MDP office and destroy the sound system used to relay messages to the crowd. It is reported that pepper spray was used inside MDP office. There was heavy police presence the whole day in the area.

The number of people who showed up for the gathering is disappointing. The gathering was not planned in advance and it was not publicized well. The gathering could have been a preparatory exercise for the large demonstration planned for November 10. MDP has called upon people from across the Maldives to come to Male’ to pressure members of the People’s Special Majlis (Constituent Assembly) to speed up the process of amending the constitution. It has been two years since the current People’s Special Majlis was convened, but the assembly has been disappointingly slow in performance.

A frustrated public accuses President Gayoom, who has been in power since 1978, of using his influences over the Special Majlis, to deliberately delay the amendment of constitution, so that he can buy more time to stay in power. Gayoom is facing unprecedented opposition over his iron-fisted rule in this tiny Indian Ocean archipelago.

As people from Male’ and the rest of the Maldives gets ready for the demonstration of November 10, Gayoom’s government is using all weapons in its arsenal to ensure that the demonstration is not held. In an effort to crush the ‘backbone of the opposition’, the government is deploying police and Coast Guard to intercept vessels on the sea as they travel with people who wish to participate in the demonstration. A dhoni from Naifaru island has been stopped at sea on Saturday and 10 people from the vessel have been detained at Dhoonidhoo, the notorious detention island.

Police are continuing a terror campaign in Thinadhoo island, where they have arrested scores of reformists and are hunting for more. Tension remains high in Addu Atoll, where several pro-democracy activists fear that they will be arrested. Captains of vessels, which were to carry people to Male’ for the demonstration, have been detained by the police.

State media, including the state-owned TV station, is spreading propaganda on a massive scale, creating fear in people’s minds and stating that the November 10 demonstration is illegal despite the fact that freedom of assembly is enshrined in the constitution of the Maldives.

However, people are still determined to go ahead with the demonstration. In capital Male’, the night remains tense and there is heavy police patrol near the Mercury Light, a café in Majeedhee Magu; a popular gathering point for reformists. There are reports that another gathering will be held near the commercial port of Male’ on Tuesday afternoon.