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Covid-19 goes behind bars

15 Nov 2020

  • Three dedicated treatment centres allocated for inmates
  • New inmates sent on mandatory 14-day quarantine at Bogambara and Boossa
By Sarah Hannan  The Department of Prisons is once again challenged by the spread of Covid-19 in a few of its prisons, with the amount of infected persons this time hitting record numbers.  Given the present virulence of the virus, the prisons system in Sri Lanka has to now look at decongesting the prisons and ensuring that any inmate who comes into contact with a Covid-19-positive inmate is separated and placed under quarantine in a separate unit/prison until the necessary PCR testing is conducted, while being closely monitored for at least 14 days.  With the outbreak of what is now identified as the second wave of Covid-19 in the country, strict health guidelines have been issued for many institutions that deal with large crowds.  [caption id="attachment_105086" align="alignleft" width="300"] A group of inmates that was transferred to the Bogambara Prison for Covid-19 quarantine and to undergo PCR tests launched a protest on the roof of the complex demanding their PCR testing be expedited, 12 November 2020[/caption] The Sunday Morning spoke to Commissioner General of Prisons Thushara Upuldeniya on the measures that are in place this time to ensure the wellbeing of the inmates.  “We were following the health guidelines that were issued to us when the first wave took place. Therefore, the virus wouldn’t have been transmitted by a person that was remanded. Since the beginning of the first wave of Covid-19, we placed new inmates in a separate ward for up to 14 days in an attempt to prevent the virus from spreading.”  In the meantime, as the second wave of Covid-19 hit the country, the Department of Prisons had commenced the conversion of several prisons into quarantine centres/isolation centres and treatment centres.  Accordingly, the Bogambara Prison Complex that was decommissioned and vested under the authority of the Urban Development Authority (UDA) in order to convert it into a shopping precinct and cultural park, was reacquired to move inmates for the purpose of quarantining them.  Last Thursday (12), a group of inmates that was transferred to the Bogambara Prison for Covid-19 quarantine and isolation purposes and to carry out the necessary PCR tests and health screenings, had climbed onto the roof of the complex and launched a protest demanding to be taken back to the Welikada Prison Complex and demanding that their PCR testing be expedited.  “Most of these inmates who were transferred to the Bogambara Prison Complex are drug offenders, and they were acting in a very unruly manner. We were later able to settle the matter and calm them down. Just because they protest, we cannot take them back to Welikada Prison. We will keep them in that facility until their quarantine period is completed and they are cleared by the health authorities as healthy before transferring to the respective prisons,” Upuldeniya noted.   Strict health guidelines  With several inmates from the Welikada, Bogambara, and Matara Prisons in the recent weeks testing positive for Covid-19, the Department of Prisons is said to have imposed strict health guidelines. Movement within the prison premises is restricted to ensure that the disease does not spread.  Upuldeniya also noted that the prison officers and wardens too are now working on a shift basis and they too undergo the necessary health screenings routinely.    “When inmates test positive for the virus after the PCR tests, we transfer them to the Kandakadu Treatment Centre, Gallala Treatment Centre, and Welikanda Treatment Centre through the Covid-19 Prevention Task Force,” Upuldeniya explained.  He added that the Bogambara Prison Complex and Boossa High Security Prison Complex are dedicated quarantine facilities and any new prison admissions are directed to these prisons before they are sent to the respective prisons at which they have to serve their term.   Managing the congestion  The Sunday Morning then asked the Commissioner General as to how the prison system is going to decongest the already overcrowded prisons and whether the persons arrested over violating the Quarantine and Prevention of Diseases Act are also admitted to the prisons.  [caption id="attachment_105087" align="alignleft" width="300"] Department of Prisons transfers new inmates to Bogambara Prison Complex for Covid-19 quarantine and isolation purposes, 12 November 2020.[/caption] Responding, Upuldeniya noted: “We are setting up temporary shelters within the prison premises and are moving inmates to them to ensure they can follow social distancing regulations. The arrests that are made for violating the Quarantine (and Prevention of Diseases) Act and laws are handled by the Police Department entirely and they are held in lockups. So, we do not have to worry about the overcrowding that would have been caused by them.”  Attorney General (AG) Dappula de Livera had issued instructions to the Police Department on measures that can be taken to decongest the prisons. Apart from that, Minister of Justice Ali Sabry PC and State Minister of Prisons Reforms and Prisoners’ Rehabilitation Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle have been in discussions with the Prisons Department on looking at measures to decongest the prisons.  “Dr. Fernandopulle is also in discussion with the Ministry of Health and the relevant sections on ensuring that the necessary healthcare facilities and the healthcare staff would be allocated to the treatment centres that have been set up. She is very keen on the wellbeing of the prisoners and, as a doctor, she understands the gravity of the present pandemic and how it affects them,” Upuldeniya noted. Female inmates and children  Among the Department of Prisons’ Covid-19-infected inmates, the majority that was reported this time were female inmates. The Sunday Morning asked the Prisons Commissioner General Thushara Upuldeiniya as to what measures are in place to ensure they are receiving medical care and that the rest of the female inmates and children are separated or quarantined accordingly to ensure the disease does not spread.  Responding, Upuldeniya said: “We have converted the Pallansena Prison in Negombo to treat female inmates and children that test positive for the virus, and then we place under quarantine any female inmate or child who comes into contact with the Covid-19-positive inmate. Moreover, the Prison Hospital Ward in the Welikada Prison Complex too has been converted into a Covid-19 treatment and quarantine centre.”  Riot in March resulted in inmate deaths  Even during the first wave of Covid-19 in the country, the prison system was affected and prison visits had to be halted while there was also a food shortage that the inmates faced since their families were not allowed to visit them. This resulted in riots in March at the Anuradhapura Prison, where inmates became restless when their food supplies ran out, and due to the congestion in the said prison, the inmates had demanded that they be sent home to protect themselves from contracting the virus.  Amid the operation to take control of the situation by prison officials and then the special task force that was deployed, two prisoners were killed as they attempted to escape the prison premises by scaling the walls, whilst several others sustained injuries and were admitted to the Anuradhapura Hospital. 

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