Police in the Maldives used tear gas and batons on Sunday to break up an anti-government demonstration.
The opposition activists first gathered in the capital, Male, late Saturday. They demanded the resignation of President Mohamad Nasheed for failing to ease economic hardship in the country, whose 300,000 citizens face soaring food prices and high unemployment. The activists also accused the government of wasteful spending and financial mismanagement.
A police spokesman said officers used tear gas and batons in self-defense after protesters threw bricks and damaged property. Dozens of people on both sides were injured in the skirmish.
A spokesman for the opposition Dhivehi Raithunge Party said the protest was peaceful until the police used force and arrested at least 30 demonstrators, including two of the party’s lawmakers.
The unrest coincides with a visit to the Maldives by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert Blake, who is due to meet government officials, civil society representatives and political leaders later this week.
Mr. Nasheed became the Maldives’ first democratically elected president in 2008, unseating Asia’s longest-serving leader, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
In February, Mr. Nasheed said his government has rapidly liberalized the economy, established a free press, developed civil society and welcomed the arrival of dozens of international non-government organizations.
The Republic of Maldives is made up of about 1,200 islands scattered in the Indian Ocean, southwest of Sri Lanka.
