News Desk
MALE’, – A foreign national was remanded by the Criminal Court after being arrested for allegedly locking up a Nepalese migrant worker inside a guest house in the capital city of Malé for 10 days, officials said.
The case has cast a spotlight on the persistent issue of human trafficking in the Maldives, a destination country for forced labor involving migrant workers from the South Asia region.
According to the police, the Nepalese national had been trapped at the Sky Land guest house in Maafannu ward on the island of Malé. Though no injuries were reported, two Bangladeshi nationals were arrested, with one later released.
The court’s decision to remand the other Bangladeshi suspect underscores the Maldivian government’s recent efforts to strengthen enforcement against human trafficking. However, prosecutions remain limited, and advocacy groups say more needs to be done to identify victims and protect vulnerable populations.
The alleged case of forced labor in Malé is part of a broader pattern across South Asia, where migrant workers from countries like Bangladesh, India and Nepal often fall prey to unscrupulous traffickers and employers.
The Maldives, with a population of just over 500,000, hosts approximately 230,000 migrant workers, the total number may vary as there are no counts of the total expatriates in the country, according to U.S. State Department figures. Many arrive to work in the country’s booming construction and tourism industries, only to have their documents confiscated by employers and handlers and wages withheld.
Trapped in debt bondage, these workers find themselves forced to toil in grueling conditions with little recourse. Women are also vulnerable to sex trafficking in the Maldives.
In an effort to gain better control over its undocumented foreign labor force, the Homeland Security Ministry of Dr. Muizzu administration has begun a program to register workers lacking proper immigration papers through collecting biometric data like fingerprints and photographs.
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“Traffickers target both domestic and foreign workers, confiscating their identity documents and forcing them to work with little to no pay,” the State Department’s 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report stated, designating the Maldives as a “Tier 2 Watch List” country that does not fully meet minimum anti-trafficking standards.
Government Efforts and Challenges
In an effort to combat the scourge, the Maldives passed a law in 2013 criminalizing human trafficking and identifying offenses like forced labor and sex trafficking. During Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s administration, the government designed a National Action Plan aimed at accelerating anti-trafficking initiatives despite reduced resources during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Maldives Police Service has also partnered with the International Organization for Migration to build investigative capacity, including operating a dedicated hotline for victims.
Yet significant challenges remain. The State Department has urged the Maldives to establish a permanent shelter for trafficking victims, provide support materials in migrant workers’ languages, and hold employers and recruitment agencies accountable for labor violations.
Rapid economic development in the Maldives, driven by an ambitious agenda to boost GDP through mega infrastructure projects and tourism expansion, has increased demand for cheap migrant labor. This growth combined with limited enforcement capabilities has fueled exploitation, according to anti-trafficking advocates.
The Maldivian judiciary, too, has faced criticism for its handling of human trafficking cases. Though judges participated in a colloquium last year aimed at strengthening judicial processes, the country has prosecuted only a single case under its anti-trafficking law — a case that is still awaiting judgment nearly a decade later.
As the South Asian island nation contends with the latest allegations of forced labor within its borders, activists say sustained commitment from the highest levels of government will be needed to protect the rights of migrant workers and break the insidious cycle of human trafficking.
