The Hon. Harshana Nanayakkara, Attorney-at-Law — Minister of Justice and National Integration
In response to a Standing Order 27(2) question by Hon. Sivagnanam Shritharan, the Minister provided figures on Tamil suspects and prisoners connected to LTTE activities held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, including 4 suspects and 88 prisoners with various sentence statuses. He identified the prisons where they are detained and noted that transfers may occur for court or security reasons. He outlined the legal avenues for release, including completion of sentence, bail, acquittal or discharge by court, appeal outcomes, and presidential pardon or remission under Article 34 of the Constitution.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Release of Tamil Political Prisoners: Statement by the Minister of Justice and National Integration.
¶ 02 Hon. Speaker, in response to the question raised by Hon. Sivagnanam Shritharan under Standing Order 27(2) on 28.02.2025:
¶ 03 1. Under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), the following Tamil suspects and prisoners connected to LTTE activities are currently in custody: - LTTE suspects: 4 - LTTE prisoners: 88 (including 3 sentenced to life; 28 sentenced to life and appealed; 2 sentenced to death; and 1 other prisoner)
¶ 04 2. Those detained under the PTA are held at: - Welikada Prison, - Magazine Prison, - Colombo Remand Prison, - Mahara Prison, - Dumbara Prison, - Negombo Prison. (Transfers may occur for court productions and for security/intelligence reasons.)
¶ 05 3. Release modalities under the PTA: - Prisoners are released upon completion of their sentence; - Suspects may be released on bail by court; - Prisoners may be released if acquitted on appeal; - Suspects may be released if discharged/acquitted by court.
¶ 06 4. Article 34 of the Constitution contains the legal provisions for grant of pardon or remission.
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Thursday, 7 August 2025 ·No. 1755509552009433 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Harshana Nanayakkara, Attorney-at-Law — Minister of Justice and National Integration. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 7 August 2025. No. 1755509552009433. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/24287