Sri Lanka government says 3 inmates killed in separate prison clashes

Colombo, Sri Lanka experienced two separate prison clashes on Thursday and Friday, resulting in three deaths and over 20 injuries, according to the Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala. The first incident occurred late Thursday at Colombo Magazine Prison when approximately 40 prisoners, who had broken out of their cells, engaged in a violent confrontation with about 40 others.

The second clash took place early Friday at Kuruwita Prison, located about 80 kilometers from the capital, where two inmates lost their lives. In total, 23 inmates sustained injuries and were hospitalized due to the violence, which was attributed to disputes involving narcotics dealers and rival criminal gangs. Prison officials were unavailable for comment at the time of this report.

These tragic events occurred a month after a similar incident at Negombo prison on July 6, which left at least 26 people, including seven prison officers, dead. Sri Lanka's prisons are severely overcrowded, housing more than 39,000 inmates in a system designed for just 10,000, as highlighted by Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara in a recent parliamentary speech.

The prison population is reportedly four times the capacity. Senaka Perera, president of the Committee for Rights of Prisoners, stated that inmates have been enduring such conditions for too long. The majority of these inmates are suspects awaiting trial for alleged narcotics offenses, a situation exacerbated by recent laws that have tightened bail conditions, contributing to the overcrowding crisis.

Perera's organization has repeatedly urged authorities to treat drug addicts as medical patients and establish separate rehabilitation facilities to alleviate the constant agitation within these severely overcrowded prisons.