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Prisoners on death row: Demand commutation to life term

26 Jun 2021

  • Multi-stakeholder talks underway 

  • Prisons Dept., Justice Ministry involved 

  • Death row inmates commence agitation 

By Yoshitha Perera  Discussions are presently underway between the Prisons Department, the Justice Ministry, and other relevant stakeholders with regard to the commutation of the sentence given to death row prisoners to a term of life imprisonment, The Sunday Morning learnt.  Prisons Department Media Spokesman and Prisons Commissioner Chandana Ekanayake informed The Sunday Morning that all death row inmates are requesting that their death sentence be commuted to life in prison.  “There are a total of 509 death row inmates in Sri Lanka and most of them have requested that their death sentence be commuted to a term of life in prison, with effect from the day that they were sentenced,” Ekanayake noted.  The Prisons Department has had several discussions with the Justice Ministry and other relevant authorities with regard to the matter.  In the wake of former parliamentarian Duminda Silva, who was sentenced to death upon conviction for murder, receiving a special presidential pardon, a group of 70 death row inmates at the Mahara and Welikada Prisons last week launched a hunger strike, demanding the commutation of their sentence.  The President also released another 93 prisoners including 16 former LTTE cadres on a presidential pardon, on 24 June, the Poson Poya Day.    According to a statement released by the Prisons Department, the 16 ex-LTTE cadres were detained under the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act No. 48 of 1979 (PTA), while the other 77 prisoners had been jailed for minor offences. 


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