The Maldives Parliament has moved its session online and will be meeting via video conference from now on until further orders in this regard. The rehearsals were done on Saturday, in which the Speaker of the House, Mohamed Nasheed, participated. The actual sessions will start from Monday and will continue until the health emergency is lifted.
Speaker of the Maldives Parliament Mohamed Nasheed, while speaking to Zee Media from Male, said, "A quarter of humanity is under de facto house arrest or some other form of isolation, including countless lawmakers. But the world’s parliaments cannot just stop representing their people during this crisis. The institutions of democracy must continue to function. The Maldivian parliament will go on meeting online and all of its work will continue unimpeded."
The Speaker explained that the "crisis will change the world order; how we live; and how we produce and consume goods and services" and that his country "has always managed to overcome challenges, no matter how big." Nasheed added that he is confident of the fact that the Maldives will emerge from this crisis, and prosper once more."
Director of Media and Communications of the Maldives Parliament, Hassan Ziyau, elaborated on the issue, "Despite members of the parliament not being physically present in the parliamentary chambers, the work of the parliament will continue as normal, with all parliamentary functions, such as votes, debates, and committee meetings, taking place online.”
Globally the shift is coming to make for meetings happening virtually. Last week leaders of the 20 biggest economies -- the G20 - met virtually and discussed a joint strategy to meet with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic outbreak, a crisis that is spreading like wildfire throughout the world.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, has been meeting with representatives of various sectors like pharmaceuticals, media, and others via video conference.
