Lankan 'witch doctor' alleges he used black magic to bring Maldivian president to power

A Sri Lankan 'witch doctor' has gone public allegedly claiming he deployed black magic to win the presidency for Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen, the Telegraph reported.

Ayela Wickramasinghe told The Telegraph that he sabotaged Mr Yameen's political foes through rituals conducted after burying items such as eggs and coconuts in significant locations around the capital Male, including the main cemetery.
"We invited the devil to destroy the political power of Mr Yameen's opponents and to win others to his side," he said. "Look at the result. That's the proof. Look at how voting changed."

After the first round of voting in elections in 2013, Mr Yameen was trailing heavily to Mohamed Nasheed, the ousted and later jailed ex-president who is now receiving medical treatment in Britain.

But on the second ballot, Mr Yameen emerged as an implausible victor after the third-place candidate surprisingly threw his weight behind him. Mr Nasheed's supporters blamed behind-the-scenes shenanigans, but Mr Wickramasinghe has now provided an alternative explanation.

"I analysed the situation spiritually and politically," he said. "I identified the weak points of the opposition and I focussed on those."

"I used my mantra-based spirituality and performed certain acts. In the Maldives, they call it black magic."
The allegation that the leader of a conservative Islamic regime consulted a foreign sorcerer who draws on Buddhist and Hindu spirituality has only heightened political intrigue in the country.

The country has come under fire for its treatment of political opponents, most notably Mr Nasheed, who became the country's first democratically elected president but was later forced from office and jailed last year on controversial terrorism charges.

Amal Clooney, the British human rights lawyer and wife of the actor George Clooney, is part of the international legal team that has represented Mr Nasheed and called for sanctions. He was recently released from jail to travel to Britain for medical treatment, but is supposed to return to the Maldives to complete his 13-year jail term.