After five months of protesting, an inmate at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre who had been consuming nothing but liquids has begun eating again.

Mark McDiarmid asked to go to Whitehorse General Hospital Thursday to begin the re-feeding process under a doctor's care, Dan Cable, a Department of Justice spokesperson, confirmed to the Star today.

"When you haven't been eating regular food for such a long period of time, food needs to be re-introduced into your system in a very controlled way,” Cable explained.

The 34-year-old's decision came one day after the government filed documents with the Yukon Supreme Court seeking an emergency court order forcing him to begin the process.

It is the first application of its kind ever filed in the Yukon.

Currently, the emergency hearing is still scheduled to go forward on Thursday of next week.

"No decision has been made at this point regarding the court process,” Cable said.

"Clearly, things have changed, so we will have to review the situation.”

The Department of Justice is seeking an order that it can transfer McDiarmid from jail to the hospital without his consent.

The documents also ask for a court order that McDiarmid "participate in a dietary regime prescribed by a medical practitioner to regenerate a balanced diet for his consumption.”

With McDiarmid in the hospital, it's not clear if he will have representation at the hearing if it goes forward.

The Dawson City man has been representing himself on all his charges in court.

McDiarmid is facing several criminal charges, including the attempted murder of a police officer.

He was arrested by Dawson City RCMP in October 2011 after having been shot by police.

He has been in custody ever since.

Details surrounding evidence in the case are covered under a publication ban.

A year after his arrest, McDiarmid began his protest.

He has been consuming juices, coffee, tea as well as kelp tea and honey, the government's application claims.

He has refused to see a doctor at the jail and mental health professionals.

He was taken to the hospital twice in February, examined and released.

McDiarmid's protest surrounds his lack of access to a laptop to work on his case, the poor heating system at the new $70-million-plus jail and allegations of too little food being offered to the inmates.

He also claims he has been unable to obtain the services of an unbiased lawyer, the documents say.

The government claims it has now provided McDiarmid with a laptop, that heating issues are being dealt with, and he has access to a phone to contact a lawyer.

The government continues to say the meals offered to inmates are appropriate.

In a series of phone interviews with the Star last month, McDiarmid said by his estimate, inmates are sometimes not getting any more than 1,300 to 1,500 calories a day, when a grown man should be eating 2,500 or more, depending on his weight.

The Department of Justice has flatly denied those accusations.

A copy of the meal plan provided indicates inmates receive an average count of 2,531 calories per day through the four-week meal schedule.

The lowest daily count in the month is listed as 2,271 calories.

But questions about inmates' diets have not gone away.

Food at the jail has become a topic of discussion online, including on a Facebook group.