COLOMBO – Sri Lanka’s government has decided to reopen the Bogambara Prison, one of the oldest prisons built in the colonial era and slated for a tourist project, for incarcerations following the deadly Negombo prison riot, according to a gazette published on July 8.
Sri Lanka’s overcrowded prison situation has been exacerbated by a government flagship project seeking to crackdown on drugs, which has led to more arrests but fewer trials due to delays within the justice system, and a backlog in receiving forensic reports due to a shortage in government analysts.
The Negombo prison riot death toll stands at 28, including eight prison officers.
The prison system is currently operating around 300% over-capacity, holding around 41,000 inmates against a designed capacity of roughly 10,500-11,000, Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said.
“Recently, due to the nationwide drug eradication operations being implemented and arrests being made while enforcing the law, this number has escalated further to 41,000 as of today.”
The Old Bogambara Prison, which was the second largest maximum security prison in Sri Lanka, was shut down in 2014 and converted to a cultural park in 2018.
Plans to transform the jail into a multi-use building with some cells and rooms turned into shops, some into shared workspaces and some turned into hotel accommodation, failed due a lack of investors.
The premises were refurbished at the Urban Development Authority’s expense with the intention of making it an attractive tourist destination.
-economynext.com
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