It has been revealed that 96 individuals, including convicted inmates and those held in pre-trial detention, are being deprived of their statutory rights due to being held in custodial facilities.
In the Maldives, correctional facilities are categorized into three tiers: general prisons for convicted inmates, remand centers for those held pending the conclusion of their trials, and custodial jails for individuals under investigation.
The rights afforded to detainees differ across these facilities. For instance, an individual in a remand center is entitled to more frequent family visits than someone held in a custodial jail.
By law, convicted inmates are entitled to extensive rights, including conjugal visits, family meetings, and the right to make purchases. However, Adhadhu has learned that 54 individuals who should be in general prisons are still being held in custodial facilities. Furthermore, Adhadhu has confirmed that 42 individuals who should have been transferred to remand centers remain in custodial detention.
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The National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), in its annual report for last year, also highlighted the issue of convicts and remand detainees being held in custodial jails.
"It was observed during the NPM's 2025 visits to all police stations that prisoners under the jurisdiction of the Maldives Correctional Service (MCS) for sentence implementation were being held under Maldives Police Service custody," the NPM report stated.
"It is noted that because these detainees are spending their detention periods in police facilities, they are being deprived of several services and rights guaranteed to them under Law No. 2013/14 (Maldives Prisons and Parole Act)."
The classification of detention facilities is as follows:
- Individuals detained for investigation: Must be held in a custodial jail.
- Individuals detained after investigation but before trial or sentencing: Must be held in a remand center.
- Individuals serving a judicial sentence: Must be held in a general prison.
The NPM report further clarified that certain services and rights available to remand detainees under the Maldives Correctional Service—as mandated by the Prisons and Parole Act and its regulations—are not available to those held in police facilities.
"It has been observed that due to remand detainees being held in police stations, they do not receive several services and rights they would otherwise be entitled to at an MCS facility under the Prisons and Parole Act," the report said.
Rights lost by convicts held in custodial facilities:
- Deprivation of conjugal visits with spouses.
- Lack of family visitation.
- No opportunity for time outside of prison cells.
- No access to prison shops for purchases.
- No opportunity to earn an income through work.
- No access to electronic devices (such as radios).
Rights lost by remand detainees held in custodial facilities:
- Lack of timely access to physical exercise.
- Lack of family visitation.
- No opportunity to make purchases.
While the law mandates that general and remand prisons be managed by the Maldives Correctional Service, the Maldives lacks a dedicated administrative structure for a remand prison. Instead, specific units and cells within existing prisons managed by Corrections are designated as remand facilities.
Currently, Corrections operates remand units within Maafushi Prison, Hulhumale’ Prison, the Hulhumale’ Prison Annex, and the remand cells at the Juvenile Detention Center in Himmafushi Asseyri Prison.
The total capacity of these remand facilities is 309. However, the NPM report noted that by the end of last year, a total of 342 individuals were being held under the custody of Corrections.
Following its inauguration, the current administration closed the Male’ Prison—which had a capacity of approximately 400—due to its proximity to Dharumavantha School and the resulting negative impact on students. To date, this administration has added 200 spaces to the prison system, with ongoing efforts to further increase capacity.
The government’s long-term vision involves constructing a "Central Prison" on 30 hectares of land in Uthuru Thila Falhu to house all detainees.
In June 2024, the government announced its target to complete the Central Prison within three years. Minister Ali Ihusaan previously stated that once the new facility is operational, the prisons in Hulhumale’ and Himmafushi will be decommissioned.
