200 massage parlours in Male', 104 shut down within a month: President

President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has announced that 104 massage parlours operated as fronts for prostitution have been shut down in Male' over the past month. 

Speaking at the ceremony held last night to officially inaugurate the ruling People's National Congress (PNC) office, the President said that based on public discussions and views, efforts have been commenced to crack down on activities leading to undesirable practices. 

The President noted that massage parlours are operated in both Male' and the atolls without obtaining necessary permits. 

He said that although previous administrations also worked to shut down such operations, it did not yield the desired outcomes. However, this administration has shut down 104 such massage parlours in the last month alone, he said. 

"Efforts to address this began on the 9th of last December. The efforts were strengthened by many degrees, and within the month from December 9 to today, 104 massage parlours in Male' have been shut down," the President said. 

According to the president, there are over 200 massage parlours facilitating indecent activities in Male'. The President appealed to those conducting such activities to cease the operations at the earliest. He said that the wisest option would be to send back employees of such places brought on tourist visas and to shut down such operations of their own volition. 

"We are undertaking many such efforts to address issues in this country," the President stated. 

One of the issues that the president highlighted is that of expatriate workers. 

He announced that from November 15, 2025, 362 expatriates have been deported. All of these were expatriates who had failed to provide biometric data within the granted window. 

The government has previously announced that any expatriates found to have failed to provide biometric data would be immediately deported. 

In his speech last night, the President said that since the administration took office, 922 expatriates have been deported for various reasons. 

He asserted that this administration is making the strongest effort to resolve the issue of expatriate workers. 

"We are making sincere efforts to resolve the issues faced by this country."