Christmas Pardon: Sri Lanka Releases Over 1,000 Prisoners

In a festive gesture to mark Christmas, Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has granted amnesty to more than 1,000 convicts, releasing them from jails across the country, as confirmed by a government official.

Prison Commissioner Gamini Dissanayake disclosed that among the 1,004 individuals released on Monday were Sri Lankans who had been incarcerated due to their inability to pay outstanding fines. This act of clemency aligns with the President’s commitment to providing relief to those imprisoned for non-violent offenses.

Sri Lanka, predominantly a Buddhist nation, has a tradition of granting amnesties during significant religious and cultural celebrations. A similar release of convicts occurred in May, coinciding with the holiday of Vesak, which commemorates the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, and death.

This latest amnesty follows a weeklong military-backed anti-narcotics drive that resulted in the arrest of nearly 15,000 individuals. The operation, which concluded on Christmas Eve, saw 13,666 suspects taken into custody, while almost 1,100 drug addicts were detained and subsequently sent for compulsory rehabilitation at a military-run facility.

Sri Lanka’s prison system has long grappled with chronic overcrowding, and recent statistics underscore the severity of the issue. As of Friday, official data indicates that the nation’s jails, designed to accommodate 11,000 inmates, currently house almost 30,000 individuals. The President’s decision to grant amnesty not only aligns with the spirit of the season but also aims to address the challenging conditions within the country’s prison facilities.