MP for Kendhoo constituency, Ali Hussain, has stated that the government has made "lacklustre" efforts for prison reform.

Highlighting that prison reform was an electoral pledge of the incumbent government, Hussain claimed that the government's efforts for prison reform have been inadequate.

Further, Hussain stated that for prison reform to be effective, competent and professional people must be put in charge of the prisons.

While MP Hussain has expressed concern over the conditions of Maldives' prisons, reports of a hunger strike by 133 detainees placed in remand at Maafushi prison facility has surfaced. Nevertheless, no authority has confirmed nor denied these reports yet.

As such, Inspector of Correctional Service (ICS), Ahmed Mohamed Fulhu, has confirmed that corrections officers used force to control detainees during an operation on Sunday, 5th January.

This comes at a time where video clips and photos depicting corrections officers pepper-spraying detainees have gone viral on social media. Some of the photos reveal that the Commissioner of Prisons Abdulla Munaz was present when the incident took place. However, the statement released by Maldives Correctional Service (MCS) denies that any confrontation took place and claims that corrections officers dealt with the incident calmly and with patience.