Maldives : 16 prisoners held in “container” inside Male’ jail, reveals HRCM

In a shocking revelation and a seemingly blatant violation of human rights, a jail in Male’ has kept 16 inmates in a mere “18 by 10 feet container” for three months, it was revealed yesterday.

The revelation came at a news conference held by the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) yesterday.

Adding to the shock, the HRCM told reporters today that a toilet too has been located inside the container.

Although the jail was meant for 100 prisoners, it has far exceeded its capacity, housing 200 inmates in it, the Commission said.

Responding to the Commission’s statement, the President’s office today dismissed the word “container” calling it a “housing unit” with ventilation inside the jai.

“The word container is a loose description for a pre-fabricated housing unit with ventilation exhausts and fans,” President’s office Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair told Asian Tribune yesterday.

Yet President Mohamed Nasheed’s office pledged a probe into what it called a “sensational bit of news” by the Commission.

“The President’s office however is continuing inquiries into this sensation bit of news broken by the HRCM as the government has never condoned inhuman conditions for detainees or anyone else,” Zuhair said.

Yet he blamed the HRCM for not informing the President’s office or the Home Ministry of the incident earlier which was “just a phone call away.”

President’s office blames HRCM; Says the word container is a “loose description” for a ventilated housing unit, but pledges probe into this “sensational bit of news” by the Commission

“The President’s Office learnt this only through a report in the evening daily just before offices close for the week-end and as such there are the questions of why HRCM didn’t let us or the Home Ministry know as we are just one phone call away and why this unfortunate timing,” Zuhair queried.

He stressed the government is “working full time to alleviate congestion in detention facilities.”

And he went onto to allege that an opposition “DRP dominated parliament is delaying the government’s Bill on Clemency” which has not helped easing off over-crowded jails.

The Parliament in its second term now has not completed a single piece of legislation as yet.

The House failed to pass a single bill in its first term too, after holding sessions for three months.

The Maldives Opposition Movement representing the main opposition DRP was not available for an immediate comment, over delayed bills in parliament.

The subsidiary jail in Male’ was built in 2008 during the previous government.

It was for the purpose of easing the congestion in two other main jails which are already notorious for being over-crowded.

- Asian Tribune -