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STORY: OHCHR / SRI LANKA PRISON VIOLENCE
TRT: 1:28
SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 10 JULY 2026, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Various shots, exterior, Palais Wilson, Geneva, headquarters of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, UN Human Rights Office spokesperson:
“The outbreak of deadly violence this week at a jail, and the reports of reprisals against inmates by guards at other prisons are deeply alarming. The families of the dozens who were killed and injured, including inmates and prison officers, deserve to know the truth and to see accountability. We welcome the authorities pledged to carry out investigations into the incidents, and these must be prompt, independent and transparent. The violence also underscores the urgency of tackling structural concerns around detention in Sri Lanka. These include prolonged pretrial detention, overcrowding and inadequate conditions in detention facilities. A disproportionate number of people are also detained for drug-related offences, many of whom should benefit from health-centered responses as opposed to incarceration. We urge the authorities to grant the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka unfettered access to Negombo and to all other detention facilities, including prisons, where the prisoners were transferred and allegedly subjected to torture and other forms of ill treatment.”
3. Various shots, exterior, Palais Wilson, Geneva, headquarters of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
UN human rights spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said that the recent prison violence in Sri Lanka is “deeply alarming.”
In a recorded message today (10 Jul), the human rights spokesperson said, “the outbreak of deadly violence this week at a jail, and the reports of reprisals against inmates by guards at other prisons are deeply alarming. The families of the dozens who were killed and injured, including inmates and prison officers, deserve to know the truth and to see accountability.”
The human rights office welcomed that “the authorities have pledged to carry out investigations into these incidents. They must be prompt, independent and transparent.”
Shamdasan continued, “the violence also underscores the urgency of tackling structural concerns around detention in Sri Lanka. These include prolonged pretrial detention, overcrowding and inadequate conditions in detention facilities.”
She added, “a disproportionate number of people are also detained for drug-related offences, many of whom should benefit from health-centered responses as opposed to incarceration.”
The UN human rights office urged the authorities to “grant the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka unfettered access to Negombo and to all other detention facilities, including prisons, where the prisoners were transferred and allegedly subjected to torture and other forms of ill treatment,” Ravina Shamdasani said.
