Maldives' tourism industry 'strongly condemns' anti-PM Modi posts, says India has always been first responder in crises

Amid a diplomatic row between India and Maldives over disparaging remarks made by Maldivian ministers after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Lakshadweep, the Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) on Tuesday said that it “strongly condemns” the derogatory comments made on social media platforms against India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) strongly condemns the derogatory comments made by some Deputy Ministers on social media platforms, directed towards the Prime Minister of India, His Excellency Narendra Modi as well as the people of India: Maldives Association… pic.twitter.com/QJkAWBkKq6

— ANI (@ANI) January 9, 2024

“The Maldives Association of Tourism Industry strongly condemns the derogatory comments made by some Deputy Ministers on social media platforms, directed towards the Prime Minister of India, His Excellency Narendra Modi as well as the people of India. India is one of our closest neighbours and allies. India has always been a first responder to various crises throughout our history and we are immensely grateful to the close relationship that the Government as well as people of India have maintained with us,” said MATI in a statement on Monday. MATI said India has also been a consistent and significant contributor to the tourism industry of the Maldives. “A contributor that has greatly assisted our recovery efforts during COVID-19, right after we re-opened our borders. Since then, India has continued to remain as one of the top markets for the Maldives,” the statement added. “It is our sincere wish that the close relationship between our two nations endures for generations to come and as such, we refrain from actions or speech that may have any negative impact on our good relationship,” the statement further added. The government of the Maldives suspended three of its deputy ministers on Sunday after they criticised PM Modi for his post on X following his visit to Lakshadweep, inferring that it was an attempt to project the Union Territory as an alternative tourist destination to the Maldives. Maldives is a travel hotspot for Indians, with more than two lakh of them visiting it every year after the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Maldives tourism ministry statistics, more than 2.09 lakh Indians visited the island nation in 2023. The number was more than 2.4 lakh in 2022 while over 2.11 lakh Indians flew to the Maldives in 2021. After the row, there were posts on social media claiming that some Indians are cancelling their scheduled trips to the Maldives. Hashtag “Boycott Maldives” was also trending on social media. EaseMyTrip on Monday said it has suspended all flight bookings to the island nation on its website “in solidarity” with India. The Maldivian foreign ministry said the government is aware of “derogatory remarks” made on social media platforms against foreign leaders and that the personal views do not represent the country’s position. Amid the row, many prominent personalities, such as cine stars Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar and cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar, appealed to people on Sunday to explore “Indian islands” and coastal destinations. Situated in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the Maldives is home to nearly 1,200 tiny coral islands that stretch along a length of 871 kilometres. Meanwhile, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Monday called upon domestic traders and exporters to refrain from conducting business dealings with the Maldives. CAIT secretary general Praveen Khandelwal said the derogatory comments targeting Modi have been deemed unacceptable by the business community, and this call to boycott aims to express solidarity and register disapproval against such disrespectful behaviour. With inputs from agencies