Maafushi jail situation still tense with several inmates on hunger strike

Male' - Reliable sources have confirmed that the situation in Maafushi is still very tense despite the claims by Golhaabo that everything is back to normal now. An inmate told DO today that they have not have any food for over 48 hours now and that some of the Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Services staff also participated in the hunger strike because they themselves are being victimised as a result of the poor administration of the jail. According to our source, inmates staged the protest on Tuesday night because they wanted to help those in solitary confinement who were being tortured because some of them were sick and demanded medication. The source also said that apart from minor clashes with police, there was no other operation and that the allegation by Golhaabo that they had broken into the Medical Centre is totally false. "We are in jail but we are also human and we have rights too, that is what we are fighting for," said our source, who is serving a short sentence for drug use. He also confirmed that more than 40 escaped from jail yesterday and are now at large in Male'. "What they (Police) will now say is that these people were taken for medication to Male' and they escaped from the hospital," said the inmate