Kandakadu Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre

Last updated
Kandakadu Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre
Former namesKandakadu Drug Rehabilitation Centre
General information
Type Rehabilitation center
Town or city Welikanda, Polonnaruwa
Country Sri Lanka
Other information
Facilitiesmedical tools, Wi-Fi communication

Kandakadu Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre previously known as the Kandakadu Drug Rehabilitation Centre is a rehabilitation center located in the Welikanda, Polonnaruwa District, North Central Province in Sri Lanka. It is currently operated by the Bureau of the Commissioner General of Rehabilitation under the Ministry of Justice. The rehabilitation centre is currently used to treat drug addicts and COVID-19 patients along with Senapura Rehabilitation Center. [1] The centre was transformed into a Drug Rehabilitation Centre in 2014 to treat drug addicted persons by giving counselling, vocational education and training. [2]

Contents

In March 2020, the rehabilitation centre was proposed by the Government of Sri Lanka as one of the major quarantine centres to conduct PCR tests for passengers and tourists from foreign countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. [3] The Sri Lankan government made compulsory guidelines for passengers from foreign passengers to undergo a 14-day mandatory self quarantine at the centre. [4] The Sri Lankan Army in collaboration with the Ministry of Health upgraded the facilities of the centre by setting up necessary medical tools, Wifi communication tools, thermometers, laundry and entertainment facilities for the patients. [5]

In July 2020, the centre became a new epicentre of COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka recording over 300 cases in the month of July. [6] On 9 July 2020, Sri Lankan Army converted a quarantine centre into a COVID-19 hospital which is close to the Kandakadu Rehabilitation Centre. [7]

COVID-19 cluster

On 7 July, a new case was recorded from Welikada Prison, where an inmate had been transferred from the Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre in East Kandakadu for those addicted to drugs and controlled substances, to the prison on 27 June. [8] [9] [10] On 9 July 2020, a record tally of 253 inmates at Kandakadu Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre were tested positive for COVID-19. [11] [12] On 10 July 2020, a total of 283 people from the Kandakadu Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre were tested positive for COVID-19. The centre emerged as a new COVID-19 cluster in the country. [13] [14] [15]

Frequent Clashes & Controversies

The military's key involvement at the center has often be a topic of controversy amongst human rights activists [16] . Several clashes and inmate breakouts were reported in the recent past. Including the 2022 November clashes [17] the December 2023 escape [18] and the January 2024 clash and breakout.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Bureau of Prisons</span> Corrections agency of the US federal government

The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency within the U.S. Department of Justice that operates U.S. federal prisons and is responsible for the care, custody, and control of federal prisoners.

The Welikada Prison Massacre took place during the 1983 Black July pogrom against Sri Lankan Tamil minority in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Fifty-three prisoners were killed inside a high-security prison. No one has been convicted of crimes relating to these incidents.

The Welikada Prison is a maximum security prison and the largest prison in Sri Lanka. It was built in 1841 by the British colonial government under Governor Cameron. The prison covers an area of 48 acres (190,000 m2). It is overcrowded with about 1700 detainees exceeding the actual number that could be accommodated. The prison also has a gallows and its own hospital. The prison is administered by the Department of Prisons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bogambara Prison</span>

Bogambara Prison was a maximum security prison and the second largest prison in the country after Welikada Prison in Colombo, Sri Lanka. After operating for 138 years, the prison was closed on 1 January 2014, and the inmates were transferred to the new Dumbara prison complex in Pallekele. In 2019, the government declared the prison site would become a cultural tourism centre, the Bogambara Cultural Park.

The Welikada prison riot was a prison riot that occurred on 9 November 2012 at Welikada Prison in Sri Lanka. The riot broke out during a search for illegal arms. The riot left 27 people dead and 40 injured. The government has appointed a committee to investigate the riot. Welikada Prison, which has around 4,000 prisoners, has witnessed a number of violent riots in its history. This prison riot was the worst in Sri Lanka's history since the 1983 riot, also at Welikada Prison, which left 53 prisoners dead.

Infectious diseases within American correctional settings are a concern within the public health sector. The corrections population is susceptible to infectious diseases through exposure to blood and other bodily fluids, drug injection, poor health care, prison overcrowding, demographics, security issues, lack of community support for rehabilitation programs, and high-risk behaviors. The spread of infectious diseases, such as HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, hepatitis C (HCV), hepatitis B (HBV), and tuberculosis, result largely from needle-sharing, drug use, and consensual and non-consensual sex among prisoners. HIV and hepatitis C need specific attention because of the specific public health concerns and issues they raise.

Baddegama Samitha Thero also simply known as Samitha Thero was a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk and a politician. A member of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), Ven. Baddegama Samitha Thero was a member of the Sri Lankan parliament for Galle District from 2001 to 2004. He represented the Southern Provincial Council under United People's Freedom Alliance. Samitha Thero is regarded as the first ever Buddhist monk to enter the Parliament of Sri Lanka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Sri Lankan parliamentary election</span>

Parliamentary elections were held in Sri Lanka on 5 August 2020 to elect 225 members to Sri Lanka's 16th Parliament. 16,263,885 people were eligible to vote in the election, 31.95% of whom were young voters.

This page lists notable events that took place during the year 2020 in Sri Lanka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka</span> Ongoing COVID-19 viral pandemic in Sri Lanka

The COVID-19 pandemic in Sri Lanka is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus. The first case of the virus in Sri Lanka was confirmed on 27 January 2020, after a 44-year-old Chinese woman from Hubei, China, was admitted to the Infectious Disease Hospital in Angoda, Sri Lanka. As of 1 September 2021, a total of 462,767 COVID-19 cases had been recorded in the country, 386,509 patients had recovered from the disease, and 10,140 patients had died.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on prisons</span> Impact of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted prisons globally. There have been outbreaks of COVID-19 reported in prisons and jails around the world, with the housing density and population turnover of many prisons contributing to an increased risk of contracting the virus compared to the general population. Prison crowding and lack of sanitation measures contribute to the risk of contracting diseases in prisons and jails. As a mitigation measure, several jurisdictions have released prisoners to reduce density and attempt to reduce the spread of the illness. There have also been protests among prisoners, riots and prison breaks in multiple countries in response to prisoner anger over their risk of contracting illness in prison conditions. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, health services within prisons had issues providing adequate care for incarcerated people, and this has only been exacerbated by the impacts of COVID-19. Minority groups within the prison system have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COVID-19 pandemic in Assam</span> Ongoing COVID-19 viral pandemic in Assam, India

The first case of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Indian state of Assam was reported on 31 March 2020. As of 9 January 2024, the Government of Assam has confirmed a total of 89,468 positive cases of COVID-19 including 67,641 recoveries, three migrations and 234 deaths in the state. The state's as well as northeast's largest city, Guwahati, has been worst affected by coronavirus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">COVID-19 pandemic in South Asia</span> Epidemiology of COVID-19 pandemic in Southern Asia

Countries and territories in South Asia have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The first South Asian country to report a confirmed case was Nepal, which documented its first case on 23 January 2020, in a man who had returned from Wuhan on 9 January. As of 2 July, at least one case of COVID-19 has been reported in every country in South Asia. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Maldives have implemented lockdowns, Sri Lanka has responded with quarantine curfews while India and Nepal have declared a country-wide lockdown. Countries have also instituted various levels of restrictions on international travel, some countries have completely sealed off their land borders and grounded most international flights.

Shani Abeysekara is a former Sri Lankan police officer and former director of Criminal Investigation Department. He was leading in investigations into numerous high-profile cases of human rights abuses such as the disappearance of Prageeth Eknaligoda and assault on Lasantha Wickrematunge. He was also accused of several other allegations including his involvement in giving pressure to the current Sri Lankan government led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. In January 2020, he was suspended from the Service of Sri Lanka Police after his leaked telephone conversations with Ranjan Ramanayake which was termed as a discredit to the police services of the country. On 25 November 2020, he was tested positive for COVID-19 and was transferred to a different prison. On 16 June 2021, he was granted bail by the Court of Appeal after spending jail term for nearly one year.

Senapura Rehabilitation Centre is a rehabilitation centre located in the Welikanda Divisional Secretariat, Polonnaruwa District, North Central Province in Sri Lanka. The rehabilitation centre is currently used to treat drug addicts and COVID-19 patients along with Kandakadu Treatment and Rehabilitation Centre.

Mahara prison riot was an arson attack which took place between the prison inmates and police officials from 29 November 2020 to 30 November 2020 at the Mahara Prison in Sri Lanka at the outskirts of the capital city of Colombo in Mahara. As of 30 November 2020, 11 inmates were reportedly killed and about 117 inmates were severely injured during the prison riot. Police guards opened fire to control the arson attack and also in order to prevent a jail break. A fire also spread from the Mahara fire following gun shots, and most of the deceased inmates succumbed to gun shots. It was revealed that prison inmates set fire to the kitchens inside the prison facility and briefly took 2 wardens hostage. The riots occurred following the rumours and speculations regarding the transferring of COVID-19 infected prisoners to Mahara Prison from other crowded prisons. Initially the prison inmates staged unrest demanding the officials and authorities to increase the PCR testing following the surge in COVID-19 cases in Sri Lankan prisons. Prior to the riots, around 12 prisoners tested positive for COVID-19.

The following lists notable events that took place during the year 2021 in Sri Lanka.

The following lists notable events that took place during the year 2022 in Sri Lanka.

Angunakolapelessa Prison, is a maximum security prison in the Hambantota District of Sri Lanka. The prison complex occupies a site of 26 ha and the total number of inmates that can be accommodated at the prison is 1,200

References

  1. Nathaniel, Camelia. "Kicking the deadly drug habit". Daily News. Retrieved 2020-08-05.
  2. "dec_detail". www.cabinetoffice.gov.lk. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  3. "Sri Lanka : Two quarantine centers in the East for visitors to Sri Lanka from COVID-19 hot spots". www.colombopage.com. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  4. Francisco, Dinuli. "Mandatory quarantine process starts today". Daily News. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  5. "Sri Lanka : Sri Lanka security forces prepare quarantine facilities for expatriates and foreigners". www.colombopage.com. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  6. "Coronavirus cases in Kandakadu on the rise". Sri Lanka News - Newsfirst. 2020-07-11. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  7. Nathaniel, Camelia. "Kandakadu Centre to become COVID hospital". Daily News. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  8. "How a Prison inmate became infected with COVID 19 is still a mystery – officials". EconomyNext. 2020-07-08. Retrieved 2020-07-12.[ permanent dead link ]
  9. "Another Welikada Prison inmate tests positive for Covid-19". Ada Derana. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  10. "Welikada Inmate tests positive for COVID-19". News First. 7 July 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  11. "COVID-19 daily report on 9 July 2020" (PDF). Epidemiology Unit. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-05-17. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  12. "56 inmates & counsellor at Kandakadu Rehab Centre tested positive for COVID-19". News First. 9 July 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  13. "Steps taken to prevent spread of COVID-19 to communities; Army Commander". News First. 10 July 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  14. "Sri Lanka finds 300 Coronavirus cases as Kandakadu cluster expands, over 1000 to be tested". Economy Next. 10 July 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  15. "Sri Lanka may find more COVID 19 cases at virus struck rehabilitation centre – Army Chief". Economy Next. 10 July 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  16. "Military therapy not deemed right for drug addicts".
  17. "President calls for full report on Kandakadu violence".
  18. "Seventy-five inmates escape after clash between two groups".