State Minister for Higher Education Dr. Abdulla Fairoosh has opposed the cabinet’s decision to amend laws to bar entry to the Maldives with an Israeli passport.
The government decided to ban the Israeli passport over the genocide of the Palestinian people. It came after calls from the Maldivian public for the past six months.
In his first post on X on the issue, Fairoosh said the country’s foreign policy should not be based on opinions expressed by the public on social media or aimed at pleasing social media users.
“Instead, it must result from a careful calibration of national resources, strategic considerations, economic health, and the overall benefit to the nation,” Fairoosh wrote.
Secondly, he replied to a post from Faris Maumoon asking for reasons not to ban the Israeli passport.
Banning the Israeli passport would prevent Muslims from the country and persons with dual citizenship from coming to the Maldives, he said. Moreover, the decision would damage the Maldivian economy and endanger national security, Fairoosh said.
Many people have been criticising Fairoosh on social media over his posts.
Fairoosh was appointed as a state minister at the Higher Education Ministry in January this year. He is paid MVR 43,500 a month from the state as a salary.
Retirement from police and working in Australia
Fairoosh retired from the police in January 2021. He retired with honour upon request after serving for 20 years.
However, Parliament decided that the Home Ministry had failed to consider serious allegations against Fairoosh before he retired. The Majlis decision came in a case submitted by then-Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed over Fairoosh's retirement.
Recommendations made in a report compiled by the 241 Committee after reviewing the case noted that serious allegations had been made against Fairoosh under the civil standard.
Allegations made against Fairoosh in relation to the unrest that occurred in the country in February 2012 had been noted at a meeting with Home Minister Imran Abdulla during the review.
At the committee, MPs expressed concern over allowing a person facing such allegations to retire with honour.
After retiring, Fairoosh moved to Australia and worked as a lecturer at a university in the country.
