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Joint Press Statement: Accessibility Barriers in the Upcoming Local Council and Women’s Development Committee Election 2026 and the Concurrent National Referendum.
Four Maldivian civil society organizations issued a joint statement on 11 March 2026 expressing serious concern about accessibility barriers for Deaf and blind voters in the Local Council and Women's Development Committee Elections and the concurrent national referendum scheduled for 4 April 2026. They criticized the Elections Commission for lacking Maldives Sign Language interpretation, ballot papers available only in Dhivehi, and rules requiring blind voters to re-register for ballot templates at every election.
Sources1carried itTM0 of 19 news outlets we monitor + 1 official or other
Figures5as written, with their sentences
One outlet so far Only Transparency Maldives has reported this among the sources we monitor. A gap in what we monitor, not proof that others did not report it.
Who said what
the reports' own quoted words, each once
Accessibility, however, is not optional. It is a legal obligation and a fundamental requirement for inclusive democratic participation.
Joint statement by Blind and Visually Impaired Society of Maldives, Maldives Deaf Association, Transparency Maldives and Maldives Local Councils' Association·Transparency MaldivesOpen the report (Transparency Maldives)
The right to vote must be guaranteed for all citizens. Accessibility is essential to ensuring that elections are inclusive, fair, and democratic.
Joint statement by Blind and Visually Impaired Society of Maldives, Maldives Deaf Association, Transparency Maldives and Maldives Local Councils' Association·Transparency MaldivesOpen the report (Transparency Maldives)
Financial constraints cannot justify the failure to provide voters with information in a language they can access.
Joint statement by Blind and Visually Impaired Society of Maldives, Maldives Deaf Association, Transparency Maldives and Maldives Local Councils' Association·Transparency MaldivesOpen the report (Transparency Maldives)
How the reporting differs
one source so far
Transparency MaldivesNGO or other
Joint Press Statement: Accessibility Barriers in the Upcoming Local Council and Women’s Development Committee Election 2026 and the Concurrent National Referendum.
4.5% share of the electorate affected by systemic accessibility barriers
Nothing to compare yet. If another monitored source reports it, its headline appears beside this one.
Figures in these reports
as written, with the sentence they come from
4.5%share of the electorate affected by systemic accessibility barriersTransparency MaldivesAccording to data from the Maldives Census 2022 (Maldives Bureau of Statistics) these systemic barriers affect an estimated 4.5% of the electorate.
Word for word from the report in Transparency Maldives. Open the report
8,150 individualsblind or visually impaired individualsTransparency MaldivesThis total includes approximately 8,150 individuals who are blind or visually impaired (3.1%) and 3,813 Deaf individuals (1.4%).
Word for word from the report in Transparency Maldives. Open the report
3.1%share of electorate who are blind or visually impairedTransparency MaldivesThis total includes approximately 8,150 individuals who are blind or visually impaired (3.1%) and 3,813 Deaf individuals (1.4%).
Word for word from the report in Transparency Maldives. Open the report
3,813 individualsDeaf individualsTransparency MaldivesThis total includes approximately 8,150 individuals who are blind or visually impaired (3.1%) and 3,813 Deaf individuals (1.4%).
Word for word from the report in Transparency Maldives. Open the report
1.4%share of electorate who are DeafTransparency MaldivesThis total includes approximately 8,150 individuals who are blind or visually impaired (3.1%) and 3,813 Deaf individuals (1.4%).
Word for word from the report in Transparency Maldives. Open the report
Other events named
no clear day, as worded
Ballot templates introduced to enable blind and visually impaired voters to cast votes independently and by secret ballot2023MaldivesTransparency MaldivesIn 2023, ballot templates were introduced to enable blind and visually impaired voters in the Maldives to cast their vote independently and by secret ballot.
Word for word from the report in Transparency Maldives. Open the report