Most expat drug smugglers have terminal diseases: Mariya
Mariya assured that there will always be the right to change regulations and if it is changed, it will be implemented.
Defence minister Mariya Ahmed Didi said on Wednesday that most of the people who carry drugs into the Maldives suffer from terminal illnesses and that the regulations have been changed to allow them to be deported on site in order to reduce the cost of taking care of them.
Mariya was summoned to parliament on Wednesday for questioning on her duties.
Maafannu Central MP Ibrahim Rasheed asked Mariya about the amendment to the rule that allows foreigners who smuggle drugs into the Maldives to be deported on the spot. He asked:
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Did the Defence Ministry give any advice to the president at the time of framing the rules?
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Isn't it a threat to national security?
Replying to the question, Mariya explained the idea behind changing the rules so that foreigners caught with drugs could be deported.
"People with terminal illnesses are mostly coming to the country with drugs. So, there are many people who are suffering from AIDS, those with major kidney ailments, and many like that are still in jail," Mariya said.
"This was done because the state, on behalf of the people of the Maldives, had to put people on remand, so that there should be a rule that is directly visible so that it does not do so."
According to Mariya:
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They are kept in jail for a long time and then face more trouble when trying to deport
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Even before the rules were framed, they can be deported if the court directs them under a later amendment to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act
"Something that has been done in the past, has been practised for a long time. I was not satisfied since the regulation was not gazetted and publicised, it does not allow the people to know, then fingers will be pointed, even those who are already in parliament, will become concerned about it," Mariya said.
Mariya assured that there will always be the right to change regulations and if it is changed, it will be implemented.
In February, lawmakers had called for an amendment to the rule that allows foreigners to be deported from the Maldives, saying it was illegal.
