MALE: Maldives President Abdulla Yameen lifted a 45-day state of emergency on Thursday, a day after senior political opponents were locked up indefinitely for allegedly trying to topple him last month.

Yameen chose not to extend the draconian laws he had invoked on Feb 5 following a Supreme Court ruling that threatened to lead to his impeachment.

“Though there still exists a diminished threat to national security [...] in an effort to promote normalcy, the president has decided to lift the state of emergency,” Yameen’s office said in a statement.

The country’s united opposition said lifting the emergency made no practical difference because “Yameen no longer abides by laws and the constitution”.

The opposition urged foreign intervention in the Muslim Indian Ocean archipelago of 340,000.

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2018