President Gayoom continues to dominate the political landscape

Official results of Friday's poll gave Mr Gayoom, who has governed the Maldives since 1978, more than 90% of the vote.

Turnout among the islands' 150,000 voters was 77%.

Last month, parliament unanimously chose him as the sole candidate.

News of the election result came as the Maldives Government accused the BBC of trying to interfere in the vote.

A statement from the Ministry of Information, Arts and Culture said a BBC report broadcast on polling day had sought "to influence the outcome of the presidential election".

The report discussed the islands' human rights record and featured interviews with the president and opponents of his government following unprecedented civil unrest last month.

The BBC is investigating the complaint.

Hardliner

Mr Gayoom's referendum victory comes three weeks after the disturbances in the Maldives capital, Male.

The trouble began on 19 September when prison inmates on an island near Male protested at alleged torture.

Two prisoners were killed in a police crackdown which sparked riots in which government buildings were burned, including the election office.

Two more prisoners died after being flown for treatment to Colombo, the capital of nearby Sri Lanka.

A resident said there were no immediate street celebrations following the result, although people had stayed up to watch the election announcement on television.

MALDIVES BASICS 1,200 islands in archipelago Population is over 300,000 Majority is Sunni Muslim One-party rule since 1978 Low-lying islands vulnerable to rise in sea-levels

It took two days to tally up the result because ballot boxes had to be brought to Male by boat.

Mr Gayoom begins his new term on 11 November.

He won just slightly less than the 90.9% he got when he last elected president for a five-year term in October 1998.

Aged 65, he has ruled the Maldives with an iron fist for 25 years and is the longest-serving Asian leader.

Human rights groups have accused Mr Gayoom of silencing dissent and imprisoning political opponents.

But the president denies this is the case.

"There is no systematic human rights abuses in the Maldives. And there are no arbitrary arrests," he told BBC World's Asia Today programme on the eve of the referendum.

"The vast majority of people believe that we have a good democracy and our democratic system is good and healthy."