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| Interpol denies acting against Maldives political prisoners and opposition party to Reporters Without Borders (RSF) 6 January 2006 Letter to RSF from Interpol - PDF file - 165k Dear Sir, I am writing in response to the press release issued by Reporters Without Borders entitled 'Colombo-based exile radio and website raided in manipulation of Interpol.' The Interpol General Secretariat has found no evidence to show that Interpol channels were used in the transmission of messages between the Maldives and Sri Lanka which resulted in the search of the Minivan premises in Colombo in December 2005, nor that Interpol officers from the National Central Bureau were involved in the investigation and operational response. It would appear that any information regarding this case was shared bilaterally between the two countries, and did not involve either the Interpol General Secretariat or its National Central Bureaus in Sri Lanka or the Maldives. The claim that Ahmad Didi was arrested in Sri Lanka in 2002 as a result of 'wrongful' accusation to Interpol that he had a false passport is also incorrect, as Interpol General Secretariat does not, and has never held any information on Mr Didi. Similarly there is also no information held by the Interpol General Secretariat on either Ibrahim Luthfee or Ibrahim Asif. Any information or allegations relating to these individuals to different countries would therefore have been made on a bilateral basis. According to Article 3 of Interpol's constitution, it is 'strictly forbidden for the organization to undertake any intervention or activities of a 'political, military, religious or racial character.' This prohibition is taken extremely seriously by Interpol. We would ask that you publish this response in full in order to ensure that the non-involvement of Interpol in these cases is made clear. Yours sincerely, Rachael Billington Chief Press Officer Interpol top |
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