Govt considering to ban massage parlours, pork and alcohol nation-wide: Zuhair

Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair has said that the government is considering on banning all massage parlours, trade of pork and alcoholic beverages nation-wide as a response to the 23 December mass demonstration.

In a press conference held at the President’s Office yesterday, the President’s Press Secretary said that the government will take immediate measures to fulfill all the demands of the “Maldivians In Defence of Islam” demonstration.

Zuhair said that the government has decided to ban massage parlours and spas because the government has received many complains that many spas and massage parlours are being used as brothels.

In view of the demand of the protestors to cancel all flights of the Israeli National Carrier El Al, Zuhair said that this demand can only be fulfilled by the businessmen. He said that the tourist resort owners should cancel all bookings so that the airline receives no passengers.

Regarding the demand to remove all idolatrous monuments placed in Addu City, he said that the decision was in the hands of Addu City Council. He said that government will not obstruct the decision of the council to remove the idols.

Remarking on the demand to apologise for the derogatory comments of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay against the Islamic penalty for fornication, Zuhair said that her speech at the Peoples’ Majlis was organized by the Majlis and not by the government. He said that it was the Majlis who remained silent even when she made the remarks against flogging in front of all the MPs.

“During her meeting with the President she did not make any such remarks that might be taken as mockery and ridicule of Islam,” he said.

Zuhair said that the government is now considering on banning the trade of alcohol and pork nation-wide although the trade is not conducted by the government. He said that the only part of the government in the trade of alcohol in the country is receiving a large profit from the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

The Press Secretary noted that MATATO and MATI have not raised any concern regarding the demand to ban the trade of alcohol. He said that this shows that the tourism industry has no worries regarding the ban.

Meanwhile, despite these claims of the Press Secretary, many politicians and political analysts believe that the government will not make a nation-wide ban on alcohol and pork trade. Opposition parties have said that the government is intimidated by the “Maldivians In Defence of Islam”, the biggest protest ever to be witnessed in Maldives, and that the government is now trying to pull the wools over the eyes of the public.