The meeting of the Parliament Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations held to discuss the matter of illegal expatriate workers living in the country was held behind closed doors.

During the meeting on Wednesday, discussions about illegal expatriate workers living in Maldives were put on the agenda and Minister of Home Affairs, Sheikh Imran Abdulla as well as officials from the Immigration department and Labor Relations Authority were presented for questioning.

Further, the committee was scheduled to investigate the matter forwarded by the Foreign Relations Department, seeking comments and changes to the documents of the “SAARC Vision 2030” for South Asia.

While the meeting was closed off, expatriate workers living illegally in the Maldives is a rising concern, with Commissioner of Police Mohamed Hameed having stated that it is a pressing issue that may threaten the country’s national security.

The Immigration department’s statistics reveal that 63,000 expatriate workers are currently living in the country illegally.