SAHIWAL: The High Security Prison (HSP) here has been hit by two strikes -- one by inmates and the other by warders over different issues.

No top official responded to phone calls and text messages by Dawn throughout the day to confirm the situation, but sources said 246 inmates continued their hunger strike for the third consecutive day on Monday against “coercive and authoritarian” behavior of the prison staff. Sources say of the total prisoners at the jail, 75 per cent have been on hunger strike while the rest have kept themselves away from the conflict.

It is learnt that the inmates went on strike on June 15 and refused to take regular breakfast and lunch served by the prison administration. There are reports that some prisoners have injured themselves for pressing the authorities to accept their demands. Four of them were shifted to the prison hospital.

In another development, sources said 100 warders went on strike on Monday to protest transfer of 50 of their colleagues. There are more than 250 elite security warders posted in the prison.Sources said a high-level team comprising Sahiwal Range Prisons DIG Kamran Anjum, Faisalabad Range Prisons DIG Rana Rauf, Bahawalpur jail superintendent Shahran Tauqeer and Pakpattan superintendent Riaz Khan negotiated with the protesters throughout the day but could not make any headway.

The Sahiwal High Security Prison is first prison in Pakistan which houses high-profile prisoners convicted in terrorism, subversive, anti-state and sabotage activities. It was built in a populous area of the city during the Gen Musharraf rule.

Reliable sources say when prisoners went on strike on Saturday, they refused to hold negotiations with HSP superintendent Naveed Ashraf. When their talks with DIG Kamran Anjum remained inconclusive, the Faisalabad region DIG was called.

It is said the inmates are unhappy with the attitude of superintendent Naveed Ashraf and quality of food. Their main demands are that they should be free from shackles when they go for a walk inside the prison and hold weekly meetings with their families. It is in this background that nine prisoners injured themselves within their barracks.

Admin affairs inside the HSP are not smooth. A few weeks ago around 40 security personnel had staged a public protest at the College Chowk and kept it blocked for more than two and half hours. The DIGs of Sahiwal and Multan prison ranges had jointly negotiated with the protesters for seven hours and prevailed on them to end the protest. The protesters had complaints against the highhandedness of ASPs and longer duty hours. On the recommendation of the inquiry committee, two ASPs were transferred.

Sources said on Monday, when the elites force security warders came for duty following change in shift, 100 were allowed to move inside while 50 were handed over their transfer orders. The warders claimed the transfers had been ordered as a punishment for their College Chowk protest.

A source close to the situation told Dawn that warders refused to accept orders and started protest along with other colleagues. To handle the situation, police were called who asked the warders to leave the HSP premises. It was learnt that more than 100 warders were still sitting in protest near the HSP at 8pm on Monday and demanded withdrawal of their transfer orders.

Published in Dawn, June 18th, 2019