Maldives officials quit,say president blocks reform

COLOMBO, Aug 5 (Reuters) Two top Maldivian government officials resigned from President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom's cabinet today, accusing Asia's longest-serving ruler of stalling on democratising reforms.

Justice Minister Mohamed Jameel and Attorney General Dr. Hassan Saeed said reforms ranging from independence of the judiciary to freedom of assembly and a new constitution have been repeatedly blocked or delayed.

Gayoom pledged wide-ranging democratic reforms in late 2004 to revamp the power structure in the nation of 300,000 mostly Sunni Muslims in response to criticism of his government's rights record.

''Most of the reforms have not been passed,'' Saeed, a presidential appointee, told Reuters by telephone from the Maldivian capital of Male. ''The constitution is not in place.

None of the criminal justice-related laws have been passed.'' ''I don't believe in the current process,'' he added. ''Gayoom has been in power for a long time ... and found promising reforms was a good way of getting support. But then the international pressure was gone, domestic pressure was gone and he thought he could take it easy.'' Gayoom's critics accuse him of cracking down on dissenting views to stifle opponents and hold onto power and maintain control of tourism resorts, which rake in millions of tourist dollars each year.

Gayoom has been in power since 1978, and his autocratic rule has been likened by critics to a sultanate of old.

The Indian Ocean island cluster is due to a hold a public referendum on Aug. 18 on whether to adopt a Westminster-style parliamentary system or US-style presidential system.

Gayoom has said he plans to stand for re-election at the island's first multi-party elections due next year and then aims to retire in 2010, or whenever his reform programme is complete, his spokesman said.

''I don't think that is a wise decision for the interests of the nation,'' said Jameel. ''Many excuses have been produced ...

but really no concrete steps have been taken within the reform agenda.'' The Maldives, a chain of 1,200 mostly uninhabited islands 500 miles (800 km) off the toe of India, only legalised the existence of opposition parties in 2005.

Chief Government Spokesman Mohamed Shareef said the resignations were timed to make Gayoom and his government look bad ahead of the referendum and suspects they may have made a pact with the fractured opposition.

''There is very little substance to their claims about the reform agenda,'' Shareef said. ''Our main focus is to replace them as soon as possible.'' REUTERS RS VC2223