Jennifer Latheef works with Native Operators On Rights in the Maldives, researching, creating awareness and reporting on the drug situation in the Maldives; researching and reviewing the Maldivian judiciary; and documenting incidences of torture. Operating in a country under a long standing dictatorship puts Ms Latheef and other human rights defenders at increased risk with arrests and detentions of journalists and human rights defenders a constant threat.

"For those who don’t know where the Maldives is, it’s in the Indian ocean. it has about 350,000 people and the longest serving dictatorship in South Asia, a brutal dictator at that. Maldives was seen as a paradise until September 2003 when a 19 year old was brutally beaten to death in jail after a demonstration and four other people were shot dead and many injured.

The truth about the paradise came out. I was arrested 2 days later after the demonstrations. I was kept in jail, in solitary confinement for 58 days. But for me it was something I had to do. The previous regime killed many members of my father’s family. My great grand father, grand father and uncles were all killed. The women and children were banished. Many women were raped. The State media publicised their actions against my family and an entire country watched.

So, demonstrating against the brutality was something that had to be done. We’ve kept silent and allowed the atrocities to continue by our silence and fear. Ever since I can remember my father has been in and out of jail for opposing the government. The 20th September 2003 was the first time in our history a large group of people came out against any regime.

The 20th September was the beginning of the movement for democracy. After I was released I became involved in human rights. At first I was in the opposition party my father had founded in exile, in Sri Lanka. I was arrested in August 2004. Lawyers, musicians, businessmen, religious leaders, human rights defenders who opposed the government were arrested and a State of Emergency declared. We were all released after the tsunami, in December 2004. The foreign aid was tied to the release of political prisoners. The government was pressured by the international community to register political parties, opposition newspapers, NGO’s. All of it has been done, except none of it is allowed to work the way it should. Because the law is not respected courts are still used to falsely incarcerate people and to keep them silent through fear. The police, the government and government-related people are still above the law.

In the meantime, the international community is giving the dictator the chance to reform the constitution. Within the last three/four years, since certain freedoms were “allowed” to a certain degree, the extremists have gained strength too. As the regime had its hands full with the opposition, they turned a blind eye to the work of extremists. And there is more of a Talibanisation of the country. And we’ve had our first bomb. I see things getting worse. I do not know if the dictator or the future is worse. I do not see how reform or a respect for human rights can be achieved by a dictator. The overwhelming social problems, such as the huge drug problem, gang violence, tourism that doesn’t benefit the people, is, I believe, creating the perfect environment for extremists to spread their kind of fear in a 100% Muslim country. I would like the international community to keep a watch on the Maldives. If the awareness is not there, the country could be led into a different brand of oppression. Our country is a small country, but please don’t forget about us."