Maldives Correctional Service (MCS) has today held a joint press conference with Ministry of Home Affairs to provide information on the operation held last night to take Former President Mohamed Nasheed back to prison. The press conference was held at Ministry of Home Affairs.
Speaking at the conference, Commissioner of Prisons Mohamed Husham said that the officers who went to collect Former President Mohamed Nasheed from Yaagoothuge did not go there with the intention of using force.
The Commissioner said that when MCS officers requested to meet Mr Nasheed, they were told to give 15 minutes and even after waiting for 30 minutes, our officers did not get to meet him.
“After the wait, our officers wanted to leave the premises but were denied the opportunity. We only requested the assistance from Maldives Police Service when our officers were held hostage. The operation was not conducted with any prior notice to the Police; we had conducted it as per the usual procedures,” said the Commissioner.
Responding to the queries regarding the alleged document from MCS stating that Mr Nasheed had been permanently released to house arrest, the Commissioner said that the document was not in the format of the form MCS used to authorise the release of inmates to house arrest.
The Commissioner also said that the form used to authorise the release of an inmate requires a declaration and fingerprint of the guardian the inmate is being released to, and the document circulating on social media contains several differing aspects, such as missing fingerprint and declaration of the guardian.
Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture Dr Mohamed Shainee who is temporarily in charge of Ministry of Home Affairs, said that it was irresponsible to believe that the government would send a document without following the necessary steps as stated in the Constitution of Maldives. He also said that President H.E Yameen Abdul Gayoom has not sent any notification to the Ministry of Home Affairs or Maldives Correctional Service regarding the release of Mr Nasheed to house arrest.
