'Operation Kurangi' is designed primarily to safeguard the rights of migrant workers rather than to penalise them, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu announced at a press conference at the President’s Office. Addressing journalists, President Muizzu detailed the administrative strategy intended to manage undocumented immigration while protecting vulnerable populations.
The effort to resolve the issue of undocumented migrant workers represents an administrative undertaking unprecedented in the nation’s history, President Muizzu asserted. To illustrate the progress of the initiative, he noted a dramatic increase in state intelligence concerning the expatriate population. When the administration took office, the government possessed data on merely 13 per cent of the migrant workforce; that figure has surged to 98 per cent within a span of two and a half years, according to the president.
Operation Kurangi is under no circumstances intended as a punitive measure against migrant workers, President Muizzu stated, dismissing notions of a systemic crackdown. Maintaining precise demographic data is a vital prerequisite for ensuring protection, he argued. "Safeguarding individual rights inherently requires us to know who these individuals are and where they reside," the president explained. "Historically, the administration of this issue in the Maldives completely undermined human dignity. It is evident that certain individuals exploited these circumstances strictly for their personal gain."
The administration is processing data to offer an expedited pathway for workers wishing to regularise their status, while deportation proceedings remain underway for those who must legally be removed. Identifying the crisis as one of the nation's most severe challenges, President Muizzu underscored a rigorous pursuit of a comprehensive solution.