In 1994, a court sentenced a Maldivian under this law to six months in prison for making allegedly false statements about the government. Authorities used the PTA to imprison several journalists in 1990, the last of whom was released in 1993. Journalist Mohamed Nasheed spent nearly nine months in prison and house arrest in 1996-97 on defamation charges over a 1994 article criticizing election procedures. The government can shut newspapers and sanction journalists for articles allegedly containing unfounded criticism. Two outspoken publications, which had their licenses revoked in 1990, remain closed.
Regulations make editors responsible for the content of published material.
Journalists practice self-censorship, although the mainly private press carries some criticism of the government. Nongovernmental organizations are legal, although there are no human rights groups and civil society is underdeveloped. Traditional norms generally relegate women to subservient roles, although many women find government employment. Unlike many Islamic countries, women have the same divorce rights as men, although inheritance laws favor men. Islam is the state religion, and all citizens must be Muslim.