Premadasa questions prison security after Negombo violence

Politics
By Editor_1
Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa speaking during an adjournment debate in Parliament on the Negombo Prison incident on Tuesday (July 7, 2026) questioned the government's ability to ensure public safety if authorities could not maintain security inside prisons - NW

COLOMBO – Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa on Tuesday (7) questioned the government’s ability to ensure public safety following the deadly violence at Negombo Prison, arguing that if authorities could not maintain security inside prisons, they could not guarantee the safety of Sri Lanka’s 22 million people.

Speaking during an adjournment debate in Parliament on the Negombo Prison incident, Premadasa said the Justice Minister had failed to discharge his responsibilities and should be held accountable for the prison unrest, which has left 27 people dead and around 100 others injured.

Premadasa recalled that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, while in the opposition, had maintained that the government bears full responsibility for the safety of prisoners and detainees in state custody.

“That responsibility has not been fulfilled,” he said, noting that the government had failed to prevent the violence at Negombo Prison.

He said the government’s policy framework, ‘A Thriving Nation, A Beautiful Life’, had pledged reforms to the prison system and improvements in the management of inmates, but argued that the latest incident demonstrated that meaningful reforms had yet to materialize.

“The government promised a new political culture and a new system. What happened at Negombo shows that the old system is still functioning,” he said.

Premadasa also highlighted chronic overcrowding in Sri Lanka’s prisons, saying correctional facilities continue to house far more inmates than their intended capacity, and  questioned what measures the Justice Minister had taken to address the issue despite repeated warnings and previous prison disturbances.

He said authorities had failed to learn lessons from past incidents, including the deadly clashes at Welikada and Mahara prisons, and noted that the position of Commissioner General of Prisons remains vacant.

The Opposition Leader further questioned whether the minister had received intelligence warnings before the violence erupted, referring to remarks by the minister that he had been unable to monitor developments on social media during the incident.

He also accused the Justice Minister of neglecting broader issues affecting the justice sector while interfering with the independence of the judiciary.

“If the government cannot strengthen security inside prisons, how does it expect to ensure the safety of the 22 million people outside them?” Premadasa asked.

He alleged that the minister’s handling of prison administration had contributed to the escalation of the Negombo violence and said the public already knew what action was expected from the minister.

“The decision now rests with him,” Premadasa said, in an apparent reference to calls for the minister to accept political responsibility for the incident.

-ENCL

Editor_1
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