The Special Envoy to the Government of the Maldives Abbas Faiz, appointed by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, to monitor the investigation, prosecution, and trial of the May 6 terrorist attack against Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed has arrived in the Maldives. Upon his arrival, Abbas Faiz was received at the Velana International Airport (VIA) by Chief of Staff at the President's Office Ali Zahir.
The special envoy is mandated to ensure that all stages of the investigation, prosecution, and trial of the alleged perpetrators, and any related and necessary inquiries, comply with international best practices and national laws to ensure public confidence in the integrity of these processes. His oversight of the ongoing investigation will be conducted within the parameters set by the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO).
President Solih appointed Abbas Faiz to the position on May 19. Abbas Faiz is a British national who has more than 30 years of experience monitoring the human rights situation in South Asia, including the Maldives. He was previously employed at Amnesty International as the most senior advisor to the Secretary-General on the countries in his brief and has worked as a Lecturer in Law in the Schools of Law, Essex University for the past three years. He has also published articles on human rights in the Guardian, New Statesman, the Lancet, and in several South Asian newspapers, including several papers on the human rights situation of the Maldives.