to prepare an adequate defence. Furthermore, they will also not be able to hold their lawyers accountable and ensure they are not being subject to lawyer misconduct or malpractice. Court hearings may be incomprehensible for persons who cannot follow the legal jargon at the hearing or do not speak the language of the region. Requests for translators have the counter effect of causing year-long delays in the case proceedings, rather than improving the defendant’s chances of preparing a vigorous defence. A combination of the above-mentioned factors results in defendants from low income strata of society not being able to enjoy the due process rights to which they are entitled. The right to trial without undue delay is not followed, but rather trials continue for a prolonged duration of time, and many remandees and appellants spend that period of time in prison. The Commission was informed that the prolongation of the trial can also result from administrative delays in the Attorney General’s Department or the Government Analysts Department, particularly in drug related cases. Thus, the deprivation of liberty is attributable to the inefficiencies of state institutions. Prolonged court cases reportedly encourage many people to plead guilty, solely to conclude the proceedings, as a defined sentence period is thought to be preferable to indeterminate remand. The overcrowding of prisons is also impacted by the large number of convicted prisoners serving imprisonment due to the inability to pay fines and the non-payment of debt and maintenance payments. The incarceration of such persons, rather than awarding them a non-custodial alternative which will enable them to earn an income and even pay back maintenance arrears, illustrates that the poor are disproportionately imprisoned for their lack of finances. Inmates also complained to the Commission about their transfer from prison to court, whereby multitudes of prisoners are transferred in a single bus, and many elderly prisoners are required to stand during lengthy journeys. Persons attending appeal court hearings from outside Colombo reported they were not provided meals during the journey and have to use polythene bags to relieve themselves, while in handcuffs. The prison authorities informed the Commission that, as a result of the lack of officers and the inadequate vehicles provided to the prisons, they are forced to transfer prisoners in this manner. At the Magistrate’s Court, remandees would be held in the Magistrate’s Court cell, where defendants are required to stand all day and are not provided access to toilet facilities, although some may receive meals during lunchtime. Part VI: The Continuum of Violence 24. The Continuum of Violence The Commission has observed that violence is an entrenched feature of the criminal justice process, with persons who are arrested being subject to violence in police custody, remand prison and during incarceration. Violence in police custody was found to be an inherent element of the investigation process, whereby torture is inflicted to extract information, confessions and evidence from detainees. xxxi