241 Committee Greenlights Expediting Consideration of ‘Israeli Passport Ban’ Bill

Parliament’s Committee on National Security Services (241 Committee) on Sunday approved to expedite committee proceedings on the bill introduced five months ago by the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) to ban the entry of persons holding an Israeli passport into the Maldives.

The Committee had, last week, decided to send inquiry letters to relevant, and ancillary, agencies requesting information and then subsequently, through December, hold hearings on the matter to consider their input — a decision which was changed on Sunday.

The Committee has now unanimously approved to proceed with hearings, where relevant authorities will be called to provide their input, starting on Monday, 25 November. The motion was forwarded by the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hulhudhoo, Mohamed Shahid [PNC].

Consideration of the issue was of utmost relevance, Committee Chair and MP for Eydhafushi Ahmed Saleem [PNC] said.

The deadline for the committee to complete its work on the bill has been set as 25 February 2025.

The bill to amend the Maldives Immigration Act (2007) to prevent persons carrying Israeli passports from entering the Maldives, proposed by Member of Parliament (MP) for South Galolhu, Meekail Ahmed Nasym [MDP], was accepted for consideration by Parliament and sent to Committee on 10 June — work on the bill has since been pending at the Committee for five months.

The opposition, and a significant section of the Maldivian public, have been critical of the Mohamed Muizzu administration and the administration-aligned supermajority in Parliament for the delays in getting the amendment through. Criticism intensified as the committee’s work extended to 2025.

While the Muizzu administration had announced its intention to impose the ban on 2 June, the President’s People’s National Congress (PNC) party, on 16 October, issued a statement calling for the bill to be expedited—an action Nasym termed as aimed at ridiculing the public.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Ahmed Usham said that there were necessary changes that had to be made to the bill proposed by the opposition before it could be approved.

“The bill should be amended somewhat. The bill should be amended by the Parliament [during the Committee stage] in line with the decisions taken by the Cabinet,” Usham had said on 8 June.