COLOMBO: European Union parliamentarians have demanded a halt to non-essential aid to the Maldives and branded the South Asian tourist spot a "hell-hole" for locals since the declaration of emergency rule, a statement said.

The European Parliament unanimously passed a resolution this week calling for the suspension of parts of a two-million-euro aid package and a EU entry ban for Maldives government members, said the statement released by the EU mission here on Wednesday (Sept 15).

"After a month of terror on the Maldives, the EU should not hesitate in blocking any further payment of non-essential elements of the two million euro aid budget to these islands," the statement said.

The government of President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom imposed emergency rule last month (August) in South Asia's costliest tourist destination after pro-democracy protests erupted in the capital.

It has said it will lift the state of emergency "very soon" in the nation of 1,192 coral islands scattered across the equator but set no date. A midnight-to-dawn curfew is in place in the capital.

The EU parliamentarians added in the "urgency" motion that "guidelines about tourism to exotic places like this, or Burma, or Cuba, are long overdue. Mass tourism often brings nothing to the local people."

"It is simply not good enough for travel companies to make deals with dictators of paradise island hell-holes and then shrug off criticism as if the conditions of the local people is none of their business," they said.

The economy of the Indian Ocean archipelago depends largely on the half a million tourists who visit annually. The parliamentarians called the poverty of the 339,330 islanders "appalling."

The EU parliamentary motion followed a visit to the Maldives by EU envoys based in Colombo who said last week they were denied access to detained pro-democracy activists.

The government of Gayoom, Asia's longest serving leader, expressed unhappiness over a statement by the EU mission following its visit, saying its contents were "not factual" and were "not appreciative of the efforts being made by the government of Maldives to resolve the difficulties at hand."

The Maldivian government initially said it detained 185 people, but said Friday 78 people remained in custody. Maldivian pro-democracy sources in Colombo said those still in detention included seven parliamentarians.

"It is essential that maximum international pressure is applied to ensure these innocent people's release," the EU parliamentarians said. "They are in grave danger, and represent the islands' democratic future."

Gayoom had signed "all sorts of international agreements", including one banning torture, and has flouted every one of them," the statement added.

EU envoys had said the imposition of emergency rule and mass arrests appeared to be disproportionate to what was a largely peaceful pro-democracy demonstration last month and called for its immediate repeal.

Courtesy Agence France Presse