23 questioned, one arrested, on night one of checks targeting expats

The police stopped and questioned 23 migrant workers and arrested one on early Thursday, as controversial night-time checks targeting expatriates kicked in.

On Wednesday, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu announced he had instructed the police to stop and question migrant workers out in the streets and in public spaces between 12:00 am and 06:00 am.

According to him, the decision was made because “some of the migrant workers living in the Maldives are out in the streets in the middle of the night engaging in acts that disturb public order and go against society standards.”

A police spokesperson told Sun that the police in Male' questioned 23 migrants under the new orders, and arrested one of them, who was found to be irregular.

We are working on handing over the migrant into the custody of Immigration, said the spokesperson.

The stop and question order on migrant workers has sparked widespread concern, with many calling it xenophobic and a blatant violation of human rights.