Prison overcrowding can lead to serious consequences

Overcrowding in prisons has been a long-standing problem in Sri Lanka. According to the latest statistics released by the Prisons Department, there are around 30,000 inmates housed in the country’s 30 prisons while their capacity is only for 13,241 inmates. More than half this number are remand prisoners, who are forced to remain behind bars for long periods of time given laws delays, adding to the congestion.

Amidst the news of the alarming level of overcrowding comes the news that the spread of measles among several prisoners and prison officials in Vavuniya Prison has led to its closure for visitors for two weeks. The outbreak has sparked fears that the highly contagious disease would spread in the area and steps are being taken to vaccinate both the inmates and staff members.

Overcrowding is one main reason for the spread of contagious diseases within prisons, but it is only one of many problems that arise due to prisoners being kept in such conditions. Cells meant for one prisoner are occupied by three or four at times while overcrowding means inmates lack sleeping space, proper sanitary conditions, etc. The Colombo Welikada prisons which were built during colonial times have not been modernised or maintained so as to ensure that those held there are kept in humane conditions.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers and Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment who visited Sri Lanka in 2016 undertook a visit to several prisons including Boosa and Vavuniya and noted the appalling conditions in which prisoners were kept and called for immediate reforms but that has been slow in coming. They observed levels of population exceeding capacity by well over 200 or 300%. This is the same situation today where the prison population has kept growing but the facilities to hold them remain the same.

It is obvious that the safety and welfare of prisoners are not a priority for the Government. The current State Minister of Plantation Industries and former State Minister of Prison Management and Prisoners’ Rehabilitation Lohan Ratwatte who threatened prisoners at gunpoint remains without any charges framed against him even though a committee headed by a former High Court Judge that investigated the incident recommended that charges including those of attempted murder be filed against Ratwatte.

It is easy to understand why the authorities choose to turn a blind eye to any incident involving prisoners given that there is little public empathy for those behind bars even though many of them are suspects who could walk free once court hearings against them are concluded. There is hardly any differentiation between a convicted criminal and those who are remand prisoners as in the public eye they are guilty even before they are proven guilty by a court.

Changing public attitudes toward prisoners is an uphill task but the Government and relevant authorities cannot remain indifferent and neglect the welfare and safety of prisoners which have been seriously compromised in the past. The infamous massacres of Tamil prisoners at Welikada in 1983 and the subsequent killings of inmates at the same prison in 2012 illustrate that prisoners are not safe even when they are entrusted to prison authorities.

Which is why the Government cannot turn its back on prisoners and remain without addressing the problem of overcrowding which in turn leads to numerous other issues. For years, different committees have been set up to address the issues of law delays so that cases can be expedited but there is a long way to go in this regard. Among those in remand prisons are some who are unable to pay for their bail. There are many held under the Prevention of Terrorism (PTA) Act for years, some without trial. There are repeat offenders, mainly drug addicts who should be in rehabilitation, not prisons.

These are issues that need to be addressed immediately by the Government. Overcrowding can also lead to unrest, and a standoff between prisoners and authorities can lead to deadly results, as can be seen from past experiences.