Much of the public apprehension about Rasmalé is not about valuation or lease terms. It is about Palestine.
Maldivians, without exception, feel deeply about what the Palestinian people have endured over the decades, the occupation and violence they still face today, and the genocide in Gaza. I share those feelings. Those concerns deserve a straight answer, not a dismissal.
But the answer starts with being precise about what we are talking about.
There is no precedent for this fear
The fear being spread is that Rasmalé will become a foothold for Zionist settlement. There is no precedent for it.
Zionism is a project to build a Jewish state in historic Palestine, and its settlement programmes are designed to bring Jews from other countries to Israel, not to send them elsewhere. Israel's Law of Return and the agencies built around it exist for exactly that purpose.
Where Israeli settlement has spread, it has been in territory Israel took and held by military force: the occupied Palestinian territories, the Golan Heights, and Sinai until it was returned to Egypt. There is no reported case anywhere of such a takeover happening through foreigners buying holiday homes or leasehold property in a sovereign country that controls its own borders, visas and land.
While this remains evident in what the world has seen to date, those who claim otherwise are spreading unfounded fear, and abusing the Palestinian struggle and Maldivians' sentiments to score political points without any say from the Palestinian people themselves.
Palestinians deserve our solidarity, not to be used as a prop in our domestic politics.
The passport ban already draws the line
In April 2025 this government barred entry on Israeli passports. No previous Maldivian government had put such a ban into law. We did it despite considerable pressure not to.
To suggest that the same government would now quietly compromise on that principle through a property deal is simply not credible.
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The ban covers Israeli passports, not Israeli citizens. Around one in ten Israelis are estimated to hold a second nationality, and they can enter on that other passport, because Immigration cannot verify dual citizenship at the border.
That gap exists today at every resort in the country. Rasmalé does not create it, but a property purchase gives us a far better chance to close it than a border check ever could.
Protections that will make the rules stricter
Every concern raised has a clear answer. These safeguards will strengthen the protections already in place.
- Exclusion by nationality across the whole ownership chain. No Israeli nationals or Israeli-controlled entities would be allowed as buyers, beneficial owners, shareholders, financiers or sales agents.
- Declaration and forfeiture. Every buyer and beneficial owner would declare every nationality they hold or have held. A false declaration would void the lease, the property would revert to the state, and the purchase price could be forfeited. The checks would repeat at every transfer.
- Residency only through the existing corporate residence visa. Investors would be eligible for the corporate residence visa introduced in 2015 under President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom, just like investing in any other eligible business. That scheme placed no restriction on any nationality, including Israel. However, under this government, every application would be subject to the Israeli passport ban and to the nationality screening above. Owning a property, even as an eligible buyer, would never lead to permanent residency or citizenship.
- Ownership caps. Caps would limit how large a share of the units any single nationality or individual can hold.
- The land stays ours. Only approved buyers could hold a lease, and every buyer would pay for it. No buyer would have the option to renew a lease and hold a property in perpetuity. There would be no freehold.
- Priority for Maldivians. Our aim is for Maldivians to have the first right to buy a share of units in every phase, paid in MVR. The ownership caps for foreign buyers would not apply to Maldivians.
The choice in front of us
Today, to provide for our people, the government too often has to go to other countries and ask for help. That help never comes free. It brings with it expectations, and those expectations have consequences for our nation and for the positions we are able to take.
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Open the tracker (opens in a new window)We can stand firmly against the Israeli state's conduct and in support of Palestine, and still build our nation without compromising those values. In fact, building our own economy is how we protect that stance.
A Maldives that can pay its own way does not have to choose between providing for its people and standing by its principles.
Dr Abdulla Muththalib is Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development. He holds a PhD in civil engineering from University College London. This article reflects the author's own views. A version of it was first published by the author on LinkedIn.
Good Morning Maldives publishes opinion articles from contributors across public life. Opinion articles are the author's own and are not reported or endorsed by Good Morning Maldives.
