Atoll sale to Saudis will erode sovereignty, said MP Hussein

Government's plans to sell Faafu atoll to Saudi Arabia endangers Maldivian sovereignty and the unified preservation of Islam in the country, opposition MP Ali Hussein said.

The Jumhooree Party (JP) MP said despite Maldives and Saudi Arabia’s similar aversion towards religions other than Islam, the atoll’s sale would result in undoubted erosion of its citizen’s rights.

“Saudi Arabia is a hundred percent Muslim state, but the nature of a sale is that anything can be done with it, who is to say that future circumstances will not require people of other religion to settle there” he continued “Who is to say that it won’t be rented to the Chinese, or big Jewish corporations”.

MP Hussein’s primary concern was the unpredictability of allowing foreign operations in the country, adding that non-compliance with said foreigners could result in subjugation, or loss of civil liberties, of citizens living in this territory.

Hussein also reflected on how transaction could not be tracked, and that this was permanent decisions that future generations cannot walk away from.

“If we were to terminate this contract at some point in the future, it will result in a whole host of other problems for us, this is not a simple matter” he said.

Government plans to sell the atoll had sparked concern from politicians aligned both with and against the government.