Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) says that no hunger strikes were being carried out, in spite of the media reports to that effect. HRCM added that they had launched an investigation into it.

Speaking to press held to launch the annual report for the agency, HRCM Vice President Shifaq Mufeed said that he had contacted Commissioner of Prisons Ahmed Nihan and inquired of the issue.

As such, he said that there was a hunger strike, in which inmates had refused food for one meal time. Shifaq said that the strike was now effectively over and that the Commission was investigating the strike.

Shifaq said the strike was carried out in protest over stricter security measures in jail, including restricting the entry of mobile phones and charging wires.

He said the Commission will dispatch a team to visit the jail and will carry out an investigation independently from the senior officials of Corrections.

Sources report to Raajje.mv that inmates have been holding a hunger strike since Saturday morning, over jail conditions, including access to medical services. They also report that some inmates were living without electricity, with some being tortured in dark. Raajje.mv understands that around 70 inmates were involved in the strike.