The government on Friday night unblocked the registered news website 'Furathama' as pressure mounted over limiting space for freedom of expression.
The news website's official X account posted that the website was unblocked after 24 hours.
The first to be blocked were anti-government websites "Dhiyavaru.com" and "Kurusee.com" on Thursday night. The two websites are still inaccessible.
The news website's official X account posted that the website was unblocked after 24 hours.
The government first denied blocking Furathama.com which is a registered news website. But the Maldives Journalists Association (MJA) accused the government of lying.
"Despite the government's denial of blocking Furathama.com, MJA received the help of foreign cyber security experts affiliated with the association to confirm evidence of blocking before issuing the statement," the MJA retaliated.
"They [experts] told the MJA that Furathama.com was blocked directly by the Maldives service provider and evidence does not indicate the action was taken by the site owner."
Ahmed Ahtif, the head of Furathama.com, was the Deputy Minister of Tourism during the government of former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
Ahmed Azif was registered as the editor of the newspaper. He is a journalist for Sun Online. 'Furathama News' was registered on November 25, 2019.
Three companies provide internet services in the country. Customers using the services of these companies are not allowed to access certain websites upon notification by the Communications Authority of Maldives.
The authority is currently under the Ministry of Cities, Local Government and Public Works.
