Amal Clooney Accused Of Using Celebrity Status To Manipulate Media To Release President Of The Maldives From Prison

Published on: February 4, 2016 at 12:00 PM

Amal Clooney lived in relative peace until she became engaged to and then married actor George Clooney. The couple recently attended the premiere of Hail Caesar! , looking stunning on the red carpet.

George joked with People that Amal prefers to hide inside when the press swoops down for the red carpet interviews.

“Let’s face it. She’s got to look at this like… ‘I’ll be in there if you need me.’ That’s why she runs in when you get here.”

But he also spoke very highly of his wife, Amal Clooney, about how much she appreciates the hard work he does.

“I think she appreciates the work because one thing I think people never quite understand is when you’re doing it, it is actually a lot of work and takes a long time to do. And because she’s seen me working behind the camera a lot, she’s seen that it’s an ongoing process. So I think she understands that.”

He also spoke about how hard Amal Clooney works as a lawyer, and the difference she makes in the world.

“The president of the Maldives was let out of prison, because of a lot of the hard work that [Amal] was doing.”

It’s evident that Amal Clooney does some amazing work. However, the Age reports that she works on both sides of the human rights contest, sometimes using some questionable advocacy to defend clients . This happens to be the case in Clooney’s example to help get the president of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, out of prison. Last February, Amal Clooney wrote an opinion piece for the Guardian , stating that Nasheed was forced from his presidency.

“His presidency was cut short in February 2012 when he was forced to resign at gunpoint.”

Apparently, the Commission of National Inquiry found no evidence of a forced departure and that his resignation was voluntary, then the following day Nasheed said he was forced from office at gunpoint.

“I was forced from office at gunpoint.”

Ultimately, Dr. Michael Kennedy of Western Sydney University believes that Amal Clooney used her celebrity status to manipulate the media.

“An inquiry by the Commonwealth secretariat supported none of Nasheed’s claims that he was forced to resign after a military coup. It’s seldom reported that in his pursuit of an old enemy, a Supreme Court Justice, he ignored the constitution and bypassed the Police Service. He and his legal team are now calling for sanctions against the Maldives. This could cause widespread human rights abuses by way of hardship and unemployment.”

Aside from this controversy, Amal Clooney is a pretty remarkable woman. Vogue reports that Amal Clooney, born in Beirut, Lebanon, and raised in England, has set up the Amal Clooney Scholarship as a way to give back to her native country. Every year, she chooses one female Lebanese student to receive the scholarship and attend United World College in Armenia. Clooney said the scholarship is intended to give Lebanese women the opportunity of a lifetime.

“This scholarship will give young women from Lebanon the opportunity of a lifetime. Cross-cultural learning and studying abroad can be transformative. I am grateful to 100 Lives for helping to open doors for these bright and talented young women.”

Kudos to Amal Clooney for giving back. And now that Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, what will happen in the Clooney family? George Clooney has told E! News he is prepared.

“I’m ready for it. I’m prepared.”

But he didn’t reveal details because he didn’t want to ruin the surprise for Amal.

[Photo by Tinseltown/Shutterstock]

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