[7] When the Majlis was due to elect a new president in 1978, it was widely believed that Haleem would have won if the constitution had not prevented women holding the post.

She eventually went into exile in 1980; having visited Sri Lanka where her younger sister was receiving medical treatment, she was advised not to return as the government began arresting members of her family.

[5] After the Maldivian government requested she be put under surveillance, she was asked to leave Sri Lanka and moved to London, where she stayed with a friend of her sister.

[4] After discovering that the Maldivian government's only aim was to stop her returning home, she was able to move to Colombo in Sri Lanka, where she was joined by her children and mother.

[4] She eventually returned to the Maldives in 2008 after newly elected president Mohamed Nasheed (who succeeded Gayoom) called her and told her she could come home.