Inmates in the Unit Two block of Maafushi jail have torn down walls separating the different sections of the unit, according to the department of penitentiary and rehabilitation (DRPS).
Speaking to Minivan News today, DRPS Director General Mohamed Rasheed said the authorities were in the process of negotiating with prisoners to resolve the situation peacefully.
“They did this with the intention of causing damage to the jail,” he said. “We are telling them to get inside their cells peacefully and I hope they will obey.”
He added DPRS will take a “diplomatic” approach to negotiate with the rioting inmates.
Rasheed said negotiations were ongoing and he could not comment on the progress of the talks.
“But, if they show disobedience, we will not bear responsibility,” he said. “We will try to resolve this without suspending any of their benefits, but if they keep doing these kinds of things, we might be forced to cut it off.”
Following a visit by Home Minister Mohamed Shihab last month, said Rasheed, inmates were let out to the yard for three hours every day.
He added DPRS will assess the damage to the block and begin repair work immediately.
Inmates also destroyed the bars and locks of their cells using metal bars found inside the
walls, he said.
The government had a responsibility to control the jail, he continued, and DPRS will take measures to bring the situation under control.
An inmate who spoke to Minivan News today said the Star Force (riot police) from the Special Operations Department arrived in the island this afternoon.
Inmates tore down the walls connecting units 2, 10 and 11 within the U2 block, he said, allowing inmates to move freely within the units.
Following a riot in April, inmates smashed half of the units before setting them on fire. In the aftermath of the incident, almost two-thirds of the jail population were transferred to Unit Two.
At present, there are 344 inmates in 86 cells of the block. With four inmates in each cell, two have to sleep on the floor
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