Maldives' deputy speaker urges caution before Israel decision
Nazim believes that Maldives' decision should ensure its independence and security and not harm it in any way.
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By
Shahudha Mohamed
The decision to ban Israelis from entering Maldives should be one that does not harm Maldives from an economic, safety and security perspective, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ahmed Nazim said on Monday.
He was speaking on Monday during the preliminary debate on the immigration law amendment bill submitted late last month, against the Israeli genocide of Palestinians, aiming to ban Israeli passports.
Supporting the MDP to send the bill to the Security Services Committee of Parliament for consideration, Nazim said the consequences of banning Israeli passports should be studied properly at the committee stage.
Some of the things he mentioned include:
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There will already be people who have made reservations to come to Maldives on Israeli passports
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The resorts will also be concerned about the cancellation of bookings and if they cancel, they will have to refund the money
He said Maldives' decisions should always be in Maldives' interest instead of following the wishes of other major powers or countries. He also called on the people to recognize that love for the country and nationalism are two things.
"Loving the country is being proud of what the country does. Nationalism is being proud of the country and defending whatever the country has done and being satisfied with it. I believe that responsibility is not about us deciding things blindfolded," he said.
"Loving the country does not mean collecting enemies. And it is not about claiming that our position is stronger than others”.
Nazim believes that Maldives' decision should ensure its independence and security and not harm it in any way.
He called on the committee to study the matter carefully and take the best decision after consulting the Foreign Relations Committee.
Many people are calling for Israelis to be stopped from entering Maldives in protest of the ongoing genocide. The cabinet decided on 2nd of this month to make the necessary changes to the law to ban Israelis from entering the country, amid widespread criticism of the government’s slow response to the call.
The ruling PNC parliamentary group on Monday supported the opposition MDP's bill to include Israeli passport holders among those banned from entering Maldives.
Some businessmen and resort operators are concerned that the Israeli passport ban will hurt tourism and affect the economy. Villa Group founder and Mamigili MP Gasim Ibrahim also said that Maldives should think carefully when banning Israeli passports.
