Bangladesh: Maldives has 124 Bangladesh detainees

There are 124 Bangladesh citizens detained at various jails in the Maldives, says the Bangladesh government.

Speaking at a parliament meeting last Sunday, Minister of Commerce of Bangladesh Tofael Ahmed said more than 15,000 Bangladesh citizens were imprisoned in various jails, worldwide.

He said the figure included 124 Bangladesh citizens imprisoned in Maldives.

Bangladesh newspaper Daily Star reported Minister Tofael Ahmed said Maldives was the only South Asian country with Bangladesh detainees. He, however, did not disclose any details regarding the detainees during Sunday’s parliament meeting.

Maldives hosts a large number of expatriate workers – most of them from neighboring Bangladesh. The number of arrests involving Bangladesh citizens is also subsequently high.

Five Bangladesh citizens kept under Maldives Correctional Service’s charge at the Hulhumale’ Detention Center escaped in a highly publicized case in August of this year.

Bangladesh citizens have also been arrested for major crimes such as homicide, production of alcohol and assault.

At Sunday’s parliament meeting, Minister Tofael Ahmed said the Saudi Arabia has the largest number of Bangladesh detainees outside of the country. He said the number of Bangladesh detainees in Saudi Arabia stood at 10,885.

He said the United Arab Emirates has 977 Bangladesh detainees; Malaysia 810 Bangladesh detainees; Oman 661 detainees; Kuwait 384 Bangladesh detainees; Qatar 304 Bangladesh detainees; Greece 257 Bangladesh detainees; Libya 239 Bangladesh detainees; and Italy 134 Bangladesh detainees.

In addition, Iraq has 115 Bangladesh detainees; Singapore has 84 Bangladesh detainees; Hong Kong has 79 Bangladesh detainees; Jordan has 59 Bangladesh detainees; Japan has 32 Bangladesh detainees; South Korea has 27 Bangladesh detainees; Mauritius has 7 Bangladesh detainees; and Thailand has one Bangladesh detainees, according to Minister Tofael Ahmed.