Sri Lanka’s Vavuniya remand prison holds three times its capacity and is “worse than a concentration camp”, one of the eight Tamil detainees who was arrested during the Shivarathri prayers at the Vedukkunaari earlier this month, told reporters after their release. 

A group of eight Tamil devotees who were assaulted and arrested by Sri Lankan police officers at the Vedukkunaari temple had the case filed against them dismissed, after being detained for more than a week in custody.

The eight individuals including the chief priest were manhandled, assaulted, and arrested when they were taking part in the Shivarathri observances at the temple earlier this month. Sri Lankan police unleashed violence and raided the site, which Sinhala Buddhist nationalists have claimed as an ancient Buddhist area, in the Tamil homeland.

Speaking to reporters at the Vavuniya Press Club, one of the released devotees said that the Vavuniya Prison can only accommodate 200 however there are 586 prisoners in there.

“There is only one small water tank for all of them of about 10 feet or less. We each get about three buckets of water and because it is scarce, we have to allow others to use it. There are times when we wait at least two and a half hours just for those few buckets of water.”

The claims are in line with a recent government audit based on data collected between 2015-2022, which notes that the prison capacity has been exceeded by 232%. The report says the overall prison population in Sri Lanka increased from 139% to 232% of the capacity of the prisons. 

The overcrowding in prisons has also led to several other issues, including a lack of adequate space and sanitation facilities. As per the performance audit, there was a shortage of 187 toilets in 27 prisons, and 287 of the existing toilets were in a condition of repair, while 14 prisons across the island have a shortage of 108,689 square feet of space. Meanwhile, the insufficient space for female inmates in cells and wards in the Negombo and Vavuniya Prisons as at 1 July 2022, was 240 and 141 square feet,

Speaking further he added that due to the hot weather, many of the prisoners have developed skin conditions and rashes across their body. “There are no places for us to sleep,” he said. “Some sleep near the latrines, the food is paltry and not healthy.”

They also raised concerns about how prisoners were being segregated and huddled together. “This looks to us like it is planned by the government. Those who have committed grave crimes are not classified as suspects while the rest of us who are behind bars on trumped-up charges are treated as criminals. Many people who go into those prisons will only come out more determined to commit crimes.”

“Even though we are saying this because we are out, it is the request of many all of the prisoners, that the government look into the welfare and conditions.” 

They also expressed their gratitude the civil society organizations, activists, and clergy both in the homeland and overseas for showing their support towards their release.