(COLOMB) – The capacity in Sri Lankan prisons has exceeded 232 percent since 2015 to December 31, a recent Government audit has revealed.
The number of inmates in the overall prison system in Sri Lanka has increased from 139 percent to 232 percent, the report revealed.
Despite the prison capacity, the number of inmates too have increased, thereby yet again giving rise to the issue of overcrowding, with the highest number of inmates exceeding the prison capacity being recorded in 2022.
“The average monthly number of detainees held in the 12 months of the year 2022 is 22,097 and it has grown by 15 percent as compared to the average monthly number of 19,295 detainees in 2021”, the report read.
The overcrowding in prisons has also led to several other issues, including a lack of adequate space and sanitation facilities.
The report revealed there was a shortage of 187 toilets in 27 prisons, and 287 of the existing toilets were in a condition of repair, while 14 prisons across the island have a shortage of 108,689 square feet of space.
The report further identified two reasons behind the overcrowding of prisons; one being the influence of the economic, social, political and legal environment, in the context that difficulties faced during the economic crisis lead to higher rates of criminal activity which thereby lead to increased arrests, while the other reason was identified as the increase in imprisonments related to drug offences.
“A large number of Sri Lankan inmates have been involved in drug offenses. The number of prison inmates in Sri Lanka is 26,176, of which over 53 percent, i.e. 13,794, are inmates related to drug offenses as at 31 December 2022”, the audit revealed.
