Type of Intervention: Advisory
Sectors Involved: Corrections / Justice
Intervention Categories: Legal and policy; Regulatory change
Level of Jurisdiction: National
Lead People/Agency: President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Commissioner General of Prisons and Bar Association of Sri Lanka
Overview: President Gotabaya Rajapaksa directs the legal experts and the Department of Prisons to look into ways of granting some relief to the prisoners who were charged with minor offences and those who are unable to meet their bail conditions.
President issued these instructions during a meeting held at the Presidential Secretariat today (24) with the members of the committee appointed to make recommendations by the 26th of March on the possibility of providing legal redress for the prisoners who had committed minor offences.
Full details here: http://www.pmdnews.lk/possibility-of-releasing-prisoners-charged-with-minor-offences-explored/
Other links: 1
Type of Justification: Advice of INTERNAL government advisory committee or group, Perception of an increased threat
Evidence/Justification: Presumably to reduce congestion of prisons. There is evidence from other countries that the overcrowded prisons could be a source for outbreaks of COVID.