The Special Report

16th January 2000

Burst behind bars

By Faraza Farook, Nilika de Silva and Tania Fernando

Overcrowding, lack of rehabilitation programmes create powderkeg situation in prisons

With an increase in the crime rate in the recent past, the number of people sent to prisons has also increased alarmingly.

The country's prisons have a total capacity to accommodate only 6000 prisoners, but at present they are housing more than 20,000. This has resulted in a wide range of problems including a serious security threat.

The number of prisoners in the past eight months has risen by a staggering 8,000 despite government's efforts to reduce overcrowding in prisons.

The rise in the crime rate has been attributed in recent years to the drug menace, rape which is a relatively new phenomenon, child abduction, money laundering and other more modern crime trends.

Another reason for the increase in inmates maybe that unlike in earlier years when prisoners were released in large numbers on special days such as Vesak, and the Head of State's birthday now releases have been restricted to just one day (Independence Day).

As a result of the overcrowding of the prisons tensions within prisons have been running high.

Although the regular detention period under Emergency Regulations is 18 months some of the prisoners have spent as many as eight years within prison walls, many without even a hearing.

This is often attributed to witnesses being absent and delays in legal procedures. Some prisoners are released after 18 months or indicted. In the event that they are neither released nor indicted they are treated as remand suspects, The Sunday Times investigations revealed.

'For instance, when a suspect is taken in for stealing a coconut, he spends years behind bars since there is a delay in our justice system," an official at the Welikada Prison said.

With no immediate major plans to ease prison congestion and the crime rate on a steady upward curve, the problems are likely to be aggravated.

The Kalutara Prison where the recent riot broke out appears to be suffering from severe congestion, with three prisoners occupying a cell built for one.

This prison which primarily accommodates prisoners under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) is mostly full of Tamil prisoners.

At present 746 prisoners are being held in this prison which was initially built to house those convicted for petty offences. But since 1991 this prison was utilised to hold LTTE suspects.

The Kalutara prison is also politically volatile. Prisoners do agitate or react to the political events taking place in the country.

A year ago when EPDP leader Douglas Devananda visited the prison to discuss the grievances of the Tamil detainees, he was attacked with iron bars by the prisoners.

The danger of animosity being diverted towards outsiders is a predictable problem, yet the clashes which take place between factions within the prison are much more difficult to anticipate.

Three months ago in a clash, tear gas had to be used to stop the disturbance, Kalutara' s Chief Jailer Shantha Fernando said.

Even though there is a classification, clashes between prisoners cannot be avoided as sometimes differences and the caste system seem to play a role in starting riots between the prison inmates.

"When a large number of prisoners taken in for the same offence are concentrated in one place there is a tendency for them to gang up," said one prison official.

Some of the prisoners are uneducated to the point that it is very easy for other forces to instigate them towards rebellion. They do not understand the role a prison plays and how to cope within the reality of the situation.

Another major problemis that the judicial system has failed to cope with the number of cases and also inquiries against detainees or remand prisoners are not expedited.

"There are thousands of cases or inquiries which have not been completed in time or being delayed due to various reasons including the investigation reports not reaching them in time," a prison official who did not want to be named said.

Though there is a system where the prisoners are categorised into various groups depending on the seriousness of the crime., the congestion in prisons does not allow this system to work effectively. This may be cited as a reason for the clashes that take place within the prison.

Political prisoners cannot be treated as normal prisoners. They cannot be put to work in the kitchens for instance because knives and other sharp utensils are available there.

Remandees from Batticaloa and Jaffna have to be kept separately though they are taken in for the same reason because clashes between them are common.

While Sinhala prisoners are allowed to move about and do menial jobs around the prison camp, LTTE suspects are held within and not trusted with any type of task.

The Kalutara prison officers called the clash in 1997 'a big riot' where the prison suffered a lot of damage. The prison is always in the public attention thanks to prisoners constantly trying to stage jail breaks.

The internal security is handled by prison officers and security forces personnel are called in only when the necessity arises.

The question arises as to where the prisoners get iron rods etc. to start clashes, despite regular checks by prison officials. The inmates are able to collect the equipment within a matter of minutes, by breaking up drains, walls and even items like carrom boards, bats etc. which are given by the NGOs for recreation. Toilet fittings are broken to make ready made weapons.

The jailers are at the best of times very vulnerable.

With a 300% overcrowding, is it not surprising to note that clashes between prisoners are on the rise, officials of the Welikada prison said.

In Kalutara Prison the language barrier serves to distance the prisoners from the jailers. A majority of prisoners there are LTTE suspects, so the language problem does arise with the prison guards not knowing Tamil and not being able to communicate with those prisoners who don't know Sinhala.

Since it is not possible to turn a blind eye to the communication problem the need to address it is clear. One solution would be to have classes in Sinhala and Tamil for jailers.

Prison is a place where people are sent to pay the price for their misdeeds and hopefully come out one day as better citizens. But in Sri Lanka are prisons playing this role? Or after serving a jail term do petty thieves graduate as hardened criminals?

Perhaps this can be attributed to the fact that while behind bars the rehabilitation process which is expected to take place is completely insufficient and in the case of Kalutara prison it is non existent.

In most countries prison is a place where reformation is possible due to survival being easy. The prison services play a major role in providing the prisoner a direction to take once he is freed. A future being planned very often prevents culprits from returning to the crime they practised.

Even though prison officials are aware of the need to have a rehabilitation programme, they argue that due to logistical difficulties implementation is delayed.

However, for those who wish to better themselves opportunities for higher studies are provided. At the Kalutara prison where the majority of the prisoners are between the ages of 19 and 25, the prison is treated as an exam centre and last year 85 inmates sat the O/L examination while 13 sat the Advanced Level examination. One of those at the A/L exam obtained three passes, while several others passed in some subjects.

The welfare officer makes available the necessary syllabus, past papers and books for the students to study. The Red Cross provides books to keep the prisoners occupied.

An interesting point that should be noted is that prisoners too are entitled to rights. But how many of the prisoners do actually know that they have a body they could rely on to fight for their rights. In the event the prisoners are faced with problems they can seek the assistance of the Human Rights Commission (HRC) to look into their grievances.

Welikada prison officials said prisoners were well informed that in case of grievances they could seek redress.

Regular visits are made to police stations by the HRC officials to look into complaints, says S. Wijegoonawardena, Secretary to the HRC.

He cited an example where seven or eight girls were brought from Jaffna and one had an infectious disease (chicken pox) and on the intervention of the HRC a separate cell was provided to the girl.

Manpower shortages behind prison walls to maintain security and take care of the prisoners are an area which needs indepth attention.

It is the same cadres we had ten years ago that we still manage with, said ASP Kenneth Fernando. The Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA) carried out a survey and recommended a further 1000 to enhance the cadre, he added.

In the event that a special prisoner has to be produced in court, a team comprising several officials have to provide an escort. This is done to prevent prisoners from being attacked or from escaping. The team would include a jailer, an overseer, a guard and two guards in charge of firearms.

Justice Ministry Secretary M.S. Jayasinghe believes the situation in prisons will be eased when steps are taken to construct prisons in other areas to reduce the congestion in the existing prisons.

While Rs. 115 million has been allocated for this purpose, new prisons are being put up in Homagama, Galle, Boossa and Kuruwita and in Colombo several new cells are to be put up to accommodate prisoners, he said.

The Kuruwita prison when ready will be able to accommodate up to a thousand prisoners and the Boossa Camp which can accommodate about 400 inmates will begin taking in prisoners next month.

Maybe it is the overriding problem of congestion which has led to prison cells being kept unbarred allowing free movement and interaction for the prisoners within the corridors. This was the case in Kalutara.

The overcrowding in prisons needs immediate attention to minimize the security risk and to ensure the welfare of the inmates while legal procedures need to be expedited to complete investigations..

Inside the glass house

Editorial/ Opinion Contents