Journalist detained briefly in the Maldives

Sun Media reported that one of its journalists was briefly detained by police for photographing a government building in Malé, the capital, on March 26, 2013. The media group is based in the Maldives and covers local and world news for online, print, and radio.

Officers told Ahmed Azif that he could not photograph the Justice Building without showing his press credentials, Sun Media reported. Azif said he showed the police his press card, but that he was taken to the police station in Henveyru, a neighborhood in the capital, where he was asked to sign a statement saying he had been arrested for obstructing police duties.

According to Sun Media, it is not illegal to photograph the Justice Building in the capital.

Azif was released from the station a few hours later. Police did not offer any details about his brief detention, reports said.