These days, most Israeli travelers to the Maldives are young surfers. With its foreign reserves falling, the archipelago is relying more than ever on its tourism sector. © Getty Images
BANGKOK — The Maldives is eyeing a ban on Israeli passport holders despite concerns for its tourism-dependent economy as public anger mounts in the Muslim-majority nation over the situation in Gaza.
A Maldivian parliamentary committee is reviewing a bill on the matter. Political insiders in Male, the capital, expect lawmakers on the security and services committee to echo the sentiments that emerged on Monday, when parliamentarians from across the divide spoke in favor of amending the country’s immigration act during the preliminary debate. This rare show of bipartisanship was further mirrored by 88 lawmakers who voted unanimously to support the bill tabled by Meekail Naseem, a member of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party.
The Maldives, an Indian Ocean archipelago famed for its luxury resorts, put Israeli holidaymakers on notice earlier this month when the government of President Mohamed Muizzu announced a plan for a passport ban in response to widespread public anger in the nation over the mounting death toll in Gaza. “We’re exploring the fastest legal route to this,” Minister of Homeland Security and Technology Ali Ihusan told local media. “Our objective is … to amend the laws in order to stop the entry into Maldives with Israeli passports.”
Soon after, U.S. news outlet Axios reported that U.S. Democrat Congressman Josh Gottheimer, a staunch ally of Israel, began seeking bipartisan support to draft legislation in response to the Maldives’ move. The legislation will be called the Protecting Allied Travel Here (PATH) Act, according to Axios.
A legislative showdown with a powerful adversary is unlikely to precipitate a sea change in the heavily tourism-dependent country, senior political figures told Nikkei Asia. The government and parliament, they added, have been under public pressure for months to respond to Israel’s war in Gaza, which erupted with a Hamas attack on Israelis in early October.
Large billboards expressing solidarity with the beleaguered Palestinians went up in some places late last year. In other corners, protests have been held to amplify pro-Palestinian messages. The president’s office has also been the target of protests held to decry the government’s delay in passing the Israeli passport ban.
“It was actually pressure from the public that prompted the president and the cabinet to act,” former foreign minister Dunya Maumoon told Nikkei. “The parliamentarians also do not have a choice in this matter anymore, given the feelings among the Maldivian public towards the people of Gaza.”
Such a national consensus underscores a country’s “sovereign right to decide which nationals should be permitted to enter its borders,” she added. “I definitely think we have the moral high ground and also are with the international opinions against what is happening in Israel.”
But there have been some voices of caution, according to Male-based diplomatic sources, pointing to influential figures in the money-spinning tourism sector. “Certainly the resort industry is concerned about the economic implications, recognizing the potential domino effect of others boycotting the Maldives,” one diplomat told Nikkei.
Last year, the country attracted a record 1.8 million holidaymakers, including 11,000 Israelis. This year through April, the islands have attracted 886,000 tourists, including 528 Israelis, most of whom were young surfers visiting the Thulusdhoo atoll north of Male.
These numbers show Israelis already seem hesitant to travel to the Muslim-majority country. In October, the month of the Hamas attack, Israeli arrivals declined to 518 from 1,776 in September. For the next three months, Israeli arrivals to the Maldives were in the double digits.
The numbers also show the Maldives is enjoying a tourism boom. Overall arrivals for the first five months of this year are on a pace to exceed the record set in 2023.
Tourism is the country’s main economic driver, contributing about 30% of gross domestic product and generating over 60% of foreign currency earnings.
The $5 billion economy, however, is under pressure. The International Monetary Fund early this year put the Maldives on notice about “debt distress” risks.
This month, the Maldives Monetary Authority, the central bank, revealed that in April its usable foreign currency reserves had shrunk to an estimated $114 million, down from $151 million a year earlier. This indicates the country has barely enough to cover two months of imports — less than the threshold of at least three months that is thought to lessen financial risks and economic instability.
Elected in September, Muizzu began his term in mid-November with debt alarms sounding. The country has had to service an average of $300 million in foreign debt every year since 2022. Next year that figure will go up to $363 million, according to Fitch Ratings, the global ratings agency.
Not surprisingly, the government is banking on tourism to keep its fragile economy afloat, but the move to ban Israeli passport holders could be at odds with this drive.
A government source said the international mix of tourist arrivals should cushion any immediate impact from the proposed ban. So too should the return of Chinese tourists, who this year have topped all arrivals to the Maldives. The Maldives’ second largest source of tourists is Russia, followed by the U.K., Italy and Germany. The U.S. was the Maldives’ eighth largest source of tourists.
source : asia.nikkei