Children housed in probationary homes are being kept within the centres for rehabilitation programmes because wardens fear they may attempt to escape if taken outside, according to the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs.

Speaking to The Daily Morning, Ministry Secretary Tharangani Wickramasinghe said children placed in probationary homes for minor offences had left the centres on several occasions despite security measures, making wardens reluctant to take them outside for rehabilitation programmes.

As a result, she said the Ministry was currently focusing on programmes that could be conducted within the probationary homes to engage with the children and create a more child-friendly environment.

"There have been instances in which children have managed to leave probationary homes despite the security arrangements in place. This has created practical difficulties in sending them outside the centres for rehabilitation activities. However, restricting children to the centres alone does not address the reasons that lead them to commit offences. We always pay greater attention to the circumstances in which they grow up. When we talk to these children, sometimes we understand that it is the environment that has caused the behaviour of the child.”  

She further said the current rehabilitation process includes psychological counselling aimed at changing the attitudes of the children, together with vocational training. “What we are doing is giving counselling to the children for an attitudinal change and providing them with vocational training. We are also looking at ways of creating an environment that would help children develop in a more positive manner from an early age."