and are beaten up when caught doing so, rather than being provided medical and psychiatric
treatment and counselling. Young offenders caught committing offences during their time at
Wataraka would be transferred to the Pallansena Youth Correctional Centre where they are
given the status of convicted prisoners.
The Commission found that remandees under the age of right are held in remand and closed
prisons meant for adults. They are housed in wards designated for young offenders, which
may also contain persons aged up to twenty-two years. These young offenders suffer similar
conditions as young offenders in Wataraka, and do not receive the legal aid, counselling and
post-release support they require. Their interaction with adults in the remand prison is
restricted by confining all young offenders to a single ward, and limiting their outside hours.
This was a noted point of contention among young offenders who complained about minimal
time for exercise, sporting activities and fresh air.
Holding persons under the age of eighteen in adult prisons can lead to the criminalization of
young persons as they may be exposed to criminal behaviour while in prison. Further, the
social stigma of imprisonment can have severe adverse consequences on the life
opportunities available to young persons. This is particularly concerning in female prisons
where there is no segregation of prisoners at all.
17. Foreign Nationals
Foreign nationals in the Sri Lankan prison system experience similar challenges to those of
their local counterparts, but their conditions in prison are exacerbated by the language and
cultural barriers they face, as well as the lack of family support. Foreign nationals typically
spend lengthy periods in remand prison and prolonged remand periods become a precursor
to pleading guilty, simply to expedite court proceedings, because a definite sentence is
considered better than indeterminate remand.
Foreign nationals grapple with language barriers in a criminal justice procedure which
primarily operates in Sinhala language. The Commission was informed that their requests
for translators in court have resulted in delays of up to two years, during which their
proficiency of English and Sinhala improves, and the request subsequently becomes
redundant.
As foreign nationals do not receive family visits, they do not have access to basic provisions
and toiletries and become reliant on local inmates to source necessary items. Prisons also do
not provide foreign nationals with means to communicate with persons abroad resulting in
them becoming virtually cut off from contact with family as well as access to their finances.
The lack of communication with their family was the single biggest reported grievance
mentioned by every foreign national, and the underlying cause for their suffering in prison.
Foreign nationals complained they are not able to communicate with prison officers due to
language barriers, and in an altercation between local inmates and foreigners, officers are
more likely to accept the version of events presented by the local inmates as foreigners are
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