prisoners engaging in self-harm and displaying suicidal tendencies by placing them in solitary confinement. The aggravation of the symptoms displayed by persons suffering mental illnesses coupled with the lack of medical treatment would create room for suicidal tendencies to foster and inmates to succumb to them. Delayed access to medical treatment, and especially emergency medical treatment at nighttime has reportedly led to the death of inmates. As discussed in the section on medical treatment, the lack of access to timely medical attention at night is an inherent flaw of prison healthcare, and the Commission has observed patterns where inmates have succumbed to injuries as a result. Most events which caused the death of inmates reportedly took place at night time, and the lack of prompt action taken by officers, coupled with a shortage of officers engaged in supervision and patrol duties, was seen as contributory factors to such deaths in prison. The Commission was informed that although judicial inquiry will be undertaken in all deaths that occur in custody, the prison administration would only compile a preliminary file, which outlines the circumstances surrounding the death to be reported to the Head Office. The file on the deceased would not contain a conclusion on the cause of death, nor an analysis of the circumstances of the death. This creates room for the causal factors, such as the lack of access to medical treatment, to not be identified. The lack of a complete internal process in the event of a death in prison, is reflected in the examination of death records maintained by prisons where some `Cause of Death’ forms did not contain adequate data on the circumstances surrounding the death. As details are not recorded accurately, the prison would limit its ability to self-correct as it would not be able to improve its internal systems and procedures by learning from such events. These shortcomings coupled with the severe shortage of resources and staff cause prisons to become a highly perilous environment for vulnerable prisoners. Most strikingly, the Commission observed the lackadaisical attitude with which the death of prisoners is regarded, which appears to indicate that the value of life diminishes behind bars. Non-judicial investigations into deaths in prison are primarily conducted by the Commission. Part II: The Rehabilitation Process 11. Rehabilitation in Prison Not individualization of rehabilitation is one of the main shortcomings of the penal system in Sri Lanka. In the Sri Lankan penal system prisoners are not assessed to ascertain their personal skill set, preferences or former professions and thereafter assigned to a suitable rehabilitation program. If rehabilitation programmes in prison were individualized, then the chance of more prisoners being rehabilitated and re-integrating into society successfully upon release would increase. However, in the current system, of hundreds of prisoners, only a few inmates would be able to successfully learn a skill that they could pursue upon release to earn a living wage. The Commission found that only a few ad-hoc programmes are xiv