Minister of Home Affairs, National Security and Law Enforcement Ali Ihsan has said that with the new law to prevent gang crimes and other dangerous offenses, gangs will no longer be able to operate beyond the reach of the law. Minister Ihsan said this while speaking at a meeting held at the President’s Office to ratify the bill on preventing gang crimes and other dangerous offenses. The law on preventing gang crimes and other dangerous offenses is a law that brings many legal changes needed to stop gang crimes in the Maldives and gives many powers to enforcement agencies to stop gangs.
Speaking at the ceremony held at the President’s Office to ratify the bill on preventing gang crimes and other dangerous offenses, Home Minister Ali Ihsan noted that a law was also introduced in 2010 to stop gangs operating in the criminal environment of the Maldives. However, the Minister said that the biggest problem with this law was that it did not define what gangs are. As a result, while no one could be sentenced under this law, the Minister said that many such issues would be resolved through the new law. “These are not easy changes. Special procedures, special powers have been given to the police institution, crimes have been defined in a certain way, and the President has today ratified a bill that makes it very difficult for many parties involved in these activities to continue what they are doing now,” said Minister Ali Ihsan.
This bill will define what gangs are, determine who is a member of a gang, and establish important procedures for preventing crimes. In addition, solutions to the issue of unjust enrichment and involving minors in gang crimes have also been included in this law. Minister Ihsan said that the goal of the President and the government is to distance minors from the criminal environment and make them useful members of society instead of punishing them. The Minister assured that enforcement agencies will work to ensure that there will be no safe haven for criminals under the new law.
“I believe this is a law that requires those who have been involved in such activities to think very carefully about moving away from this environment, and we can be sure that this is how it will go. I assure you that in the future, we will ensure that those who commit crimes in the Maldives will not have legal protection or be beyond the reach of the law in this way. The police will ensure that,” said Minister Ihsan.
Minister Ihsan noted that this law is a revolutionary change to the criminal environment to stop gang crimes. The Minister also said that positive changes will be seen once the law is implemented. The new law on preventing gang crimes will come into effect 3 months after the bill is ratified.”
