Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Act ratified to mandate license for chemical importers

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, on Sunday, ratified the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Act – which will mandate chemical importers to be licensed. 

The bill submitted on behalf of the government by Mathiveri MP Hassan Zareer was passed by the Parliament in its 43^rd sitting of the third session of this year held on November 28 with the unanimous votes of 56 MPs who were in attendance.

Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Act, as the name implies, prohibits production, stockpiling, and use of chemical weapons and defines the procedures for disposing of them in the Maldives in line with the United Nations Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction; a convention Maldives is a party to.

A ‘Chemical Weapons Unit’ needs to also be established by the designated ministry to govern the enforcement of the law. The law also defines the powers and responsibilities of the body. Upon ratification of the law, only the parties licensed by the ‘Chemical Weapons Unit’ will be permitted to import and export any chemicals that fall within its purview.

A six-month period from ratification has been granted to draw up guidelines and policies outlined in the law.

The law has been published in the Government Gazette upon ratification and will go take effect in three months.