CHAPTER 1
General Explanations

Title 1.

This Law shall be cited as the “Penal Code of the Maldives”.

This Law shall have effect in respect of the State of the Maldives, its territorial jurisdiction and every living being, tree, land, sea and every other living creature within that jurisdiction.

DRAFT CRIMES & SENTENCING CODE



PART I: THE GENERAL PART

PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

CHAPTER 10. PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

Section 13 – Jurisdiction

(a) Statement of Jurisdiction.

The State has jurisdiction to prosecute:

(1) (A) any offense for which any conduct, described as an

element of that offense, is committed in the Maldives; or

(B) any offense in which the results cause substantial

harm, described as an element of that offense, in the Maldives; or

(C) any inchoate offense that, if completed, would include

the conduct or result described above in the Maldives; or

(D) any inchoate offense for which:

(aa) an element of such an offense is committed in

the Maldives, and

(bb) the intended place for the completion or the

effect of the offense is outside the Maldives, and

(cc) the offense would be illegal both in the

intended place of completion or effect, if completed, andin the Maldives, if it were performed there; and

(2) any offense that results in substantial harm to citizens, agents,

or property of the State, and any inchoate offense that, if completed,

would have likely resulted in substantial harm to citizens, agents, or

property of the State; and

(3) any offense committed by or in cooperation with a citizen of

the Maldives or a person domiciled in the Maldives regardless of the

location of the offense; and

(4) [any offense committed in gross violation of international

law, regardless of the site of such offenses or the domiciles of the parties

involved,]1 and any offense over which the State is required to assume

jurisdiction due to the State’s adoption of an international treaty, though,

unless stipulated otherwise, such a treaty shall not limit the jurisdiction

of the State over such offenses; and

(5) any offense committed against or on board vessels or aircraft

flagged or registered in the Maldives.

(b) Jurisdiction Not an Element of an Offense. Establishing jurisdiction

is a prerequisite to prosecution and not an element of an offense. The

prosecution need not prove the culpability of the defendant as to any of the

criteria for jurisdiction.

(c) Power of the Court. This Section does not affect the power of a

court to punish for contempt or to employ any sanction authorized by law for

the enforcement of an order or civil judgment.

(d) Claims for Extradition. Unless explicitly stipulated in an

international treaty, a defendant has no standing to challenge a failure of the

State to extradite him to another country.

(e) Definitions.

(1) The “Maldives” includes the land, water, and the air space

above such land and water over which the Maldivian government has

jurisdiction, including the inhabited and uninhabited islands, and

territorial waters, as defined by law and treaty.

(2) The “State” means the government and territory of the

Maldives.

(f) Exclusive Economic Zone. The State has jurisdiction under

international law to enforce criminal law in order to explore, exploit, conserve,

and manage the natural resources within the Exclusive Economic Zone. For

any offense committed in the Exclusive Economic Zone over which the State

may seize jurisdiction under international law, the term the “Maldives” as used

in this Section shall also include the Exclusive Economic Zone, as defined by

law and treaty. The range of penalties available in such a case may also be

defined by international law.