COLOMBO: Maldivian dissidents welcomed a proposal by European parliamentarians to impose sanctions on the Indian Ocean tourist paradise, where a state of emergency has been declared.

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said Thursday (Sept 16) a motion before the European parliament branding Maldives a "hell-hole" for locals could pressure President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom to halt the crackdown on pro-democracy activists.

The MDP, which is based in Sri Lanka and not recognised by Gayoom's administration, said it hoped the crisis would be resolved before sanctions are imposed on South Asia's most expensive tourist destination.

"We are very hopeful that things will change without anyone imposing sanctions on the Maldives," MDP spokesman Mohamed Latheef said. "My two daughters are still being held by Gayoom and they have been beaten up."

A group of European parliamentarians this week tabled a motion calling for the suspension of parts of a two-million-euro (2.44 million dollar) aid package and an EU entry ban for Maldives government members.

The motion is expected to be debated by the European Parliament this week, officials said.

"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," said a statement issued by the EU delegation office here.

The government of President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom imposed emergency rule last month after pro-democracy protests erupted in the capital Male.

Gayoom's office in a reaction to the move by EU parliamentarians said the government was hoping to lift the state of emergency "very soon and hopefully a matter of weeks."

Maldivian government spokesman Ahmed Shaheed said in a statement Wednesday that they welcomed the European parliament's interest, but a number of points had to be clarified.

Shaheed said detainees would have access to legal representation if charged.

"All those detained are in good health and are being kept under good conditions and not as some have alleged at risk of torture," he said in a statement sent here.

The spokesman said Male had welcomed an Amnesty International proposal to visit those detained and they were also in negotiations with the International Committee of the Red Cross on a programme of prison monitoring.

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 condition 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 follows 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 Maldivian government initially said it detained 185 people but on Friday (Sept 10) said 78 people remained in custody. The MDP said those still in detention included seven parliamentarians.

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