Spokesperson says consultations underway on legislation following Alimatha cave tragedy

The government intends to introduce legislation to permit technical diving in Maldives and is currently consulting relevant authorities, Senior Government Spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Shareef (Mundhu) said Saturday.

Responding to a journalist’s question during the weekly Presser With The Spox, Mundhu said the administration plans to enact a law governing technical recreational diving, and discussions are now underway.

He noted that Maldives has many highly skilled and experienced divers.

“We have very talented, very experienced divers in Maldives who have been working for a long time. Maldives has very good divers,” he said.

Maldives currently has no legal framework for technical diving. Mundhu said the proposed law would ensure that underwater researchers and technical recreational divers meet required experience and safety standards before engaging in such dives.

While he said the legislation would not be delayed, he did not specify when the government would submit a bill to Parliament.

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The spokesperson added that the government’s intention to regulate technical diving follows the devastating incident near V. Alimatha, where five Italian tourists died after entering a sea cave during a dive last week.

Sergeant First Class Mohamed Mahudhy, who attempted to rescue them, also died in the operation.

The bodies of two of the missing divers were recovered on the 19th of this month, and the remaining two on the 20th. All were found inside the cave. The recovery operation involved the MNDF Coast Guard, Maldives Police Service, and three experienced Finnish divers appointed by the Italian government.

The government announced Friday that the bodies of the Italian tourists would be repatriated this morning.