"Consistent with standard practices, the phones of all visitors are kept at the reception of the Ministry. The Ministry has no basis to and did not tamper with the phones of the convenors," the statement said. The statement also denies the allegation that the convenors were coerced into a meeting with Cabinet. "The conveners were invited for a meeting to which they voluntarily attended. The allegation that they were coerced into a meeting is therefore untrue. "Additionally, in instances where the Agencies of the Ministry have need to investigate the electronic devices of a person, legal methods such as a proper court warrant are employed. The phone cloning allegation is also therefore false and baseless.