The detention on Thursday of 20 undocumented Bangladeshi migrants in the Maldives will not result in deportations by the authorities, the Bangladesh envoy in Male told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
On the contrary, the Maldives government plans to legalise all undocumented Bangladeshi migrants living in the island republic, Bangladesh High Commissioner to the Maldives Rear Admiral Kazi Sarwar Hossain said.
He told the Dhaka Tribune over the telephone that the decision had been taken last October during a diplomatic meeting between the two countries on undocumented Bangladeshi migrants.
Maldives is taking the initiative under the Shared Responsibility programme to legalise Bangladeshi migrants who do not have the proper paperwork.
The Shared Responsibility programme was introduced in the Maldives to locate and legalise illegal aliens and give them a chance to work legally.
Under the programme, undocumented migrants will be allowed to work for designated companies and then leave the country when the contract ends.
“The governemnt of the Maldives has appointed nine business organisations to appoint undocumented migrants under them,” the Bangladesh High Commissioner said.
“This is a great achievement for Bangladeshis living in the Maldives. This is also a great achievement for the diplomatic relations of the two countries,” Sarwar said.
He said all Bangladeshi migrants will be documented and will be able to join the workforce legally within the next six months.
Currently there are around 85,000 Bangladeshi expatriates living in the Maldives, a country of 350,000 people, mostly without valid documents, according to unofficial figures.
The High Commissioner said that those labourers who are not attached to an employer would be appointed employers by the Maldives authorities.
Undocumented Bangladeshis arrested
Several Bangladeshi workers were arrested on Thursday by Maldivian immigration officials in the capital, Male.
Haveeru Online, citing a Maldivian immigration official, said at least 20 Bangladeshis were taken into custody on Thursday morning.
Bangladesh High Commissioner Kazi Sarwar said the number of Bangladeshis detained was higher and added that the High Commission was aware of the situation.
Sarwar said the arrests were part of a crackdown on violations of a prohibition on foreign nationals working as cashiers in the Maldives.
“At present 20 Bangladeshis remain in custody. The others, who had legal documents, were released after I met with Mohamed Anwar, the controller of immigration and emigration,” Sarwar said.
“The crackdown by the Maldives immigration department is routine. It is illegal for expatriates to work as a cashiers in shops, cafés and restaurants. The department also fined the businesses that employed expatriates as cashiers,” he said. “This coming Sunday we will meet to discuss the Bangladeshis still in custody.”
A high ranking High Commission official, asking not to be named, told the Dhaka Tribune that the remaining detainees would be released following the meeting.
