2023-07-01
News Categories : Committee News
The youth representatives present at the Sectoral Oversight Committee pointed out that the current general education system has failed to teach young convicts who have been convicted and are being punished, and training should be given to them to make progress in their spiritual and behavioral patterns.
It is more effective to provide vocational education for them and thus open them to a job, as well as introducing things like an income generation method in the remaining 2 years after the training period of about one year. Accordingly, in providing such vocational education, it would enable them to leave with some economic ability when they depart after the 3-year residency period, as well as reduce the temptation to re-offend.
These views were expressed by the Watareka Training School for Youthful Offenders and Department of Community Based Corrections under the Ministry of Justice, Prison Affairs and Constitutional Reforms as they presented themselves before Sectoral Oversight Committee on Reconciliation and National Unity.
The Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Integration met in Parliament recently under the Chairmanship of Hon. Dilan Perera, Member of Parliament.
Young offenders who have been sentenced by the Magistrates' Courts under the Criminal Code for having committed an offense between the ages of 16 - 22 are admitted to this institution. The punishment period is not a prison sentence but a compulsory 03-year waiting period and these children can apply for a government job in the external environment after the waiting period, the Senior Assistant Secretary of the Watareka Training School for Youthful Offenders Mrs. A.V. Vajira Damayanthi said.
According to institutional data, it was pointed out that the tendency of young convicts being imprisoned during the period of 2013-2022 is decreasing and it was revealed that the family relations of many children who enter this exercise college are broken and after the waiting period, problems arise regarding the custody of some children.
Schooling is provided by the Ministry of Education in Wataraka Training School for Youthful Offenders and schooling is made compulsory there. Its children appeared for the General Examination, but the passing rate is at a very low level. In the year 2014, although the number of children who appeared for the ordinary level examination was 16, the number of children who passed was one. Only one child has passed in 2021.
Officials emphasized that it is a problem to effectively provide vocational education to those children has become challenging given that school education has been made compulsory by law. Recognizing that these policies should be changed, the Committee agreed to discuss these issues with the relevant institutions and policy makers.
The Committee raised the question of how many of the young offenders are likely to be re-offenders, and the officials pointed out that 9 out of 11 children are likely to be re-offenders.
The attention of the Committee was focused on providing necessary facilities to deliver language proficiency for these children and preparing some method to refer these children for foreign jobs in affiliation with the Foreign Employment Bureau.
The Committee also pointed out that community-based correctional departments can be used to avoid overcapacity in prisons, so attention should be paid to it.
The fact that about 50% of the people who should be sent to community-based corrections, but who have been imprisoned by the magistrate, are the people who can be sent to corrections was also taken into discussion. The Committee pointed out that this is a very concerning situation and informed that the magistrates be informed to take steps in this regard.
When considering government institutions, the youth representatives pointed out that the existence of several institutions for the same purpose and the lack of interrelationship between those institutions is a problem.
During the presentation of the projects, they also proposed that income generation processes can be created by introducing projects such as green projects, plastic recycling, and drinking water bottling.
Moreover, those who earn some income with the help of the government should have the ability to pay a part of that money back to the government and invest that money for the benefit of other such people to conduct such projects. By doing so, it was pointed out that they will have the opportunity to get rid of the dependence upon government institutions for public money and provide the money needed for those institutions. They also emphasized that it is important to link the research done through the universities with the policy makers.
Members of Parliament Hon. G. G. Ponnambalam, Hon. (Ms.) Rajika Wickramasinghe and officials were present at the Committee meeting held.
2025-04-23
The Ministry of Transport is also requested to submit proposals within two months Sub-Committee also looks into developing a formal system to check the suitability of public transport vehicles National Transport Commission instructed to submit proposals to increase the professionalism of public transport drivers within a month Discussions were held regarding proposals to strengthen the existing legal framework to ensure the safety of public transport, including the safety of bus passengers at the Parliamentary Sub-Committee on “Strengthening the legal framework related to the transport sector and steering the transport sector in a positive direction”, established by the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation. This Sub-Committee met on 09.04.2025 under the chairpersonship of Hon. Member of Parliament, Lakmali Hemachandra, Attorney at Law, during which attention was drawn to this matter. Accordingly, officials representing the Ministry of Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation and several institutions under its purview participated in the Sub-Committee meeting. Their views were obtained with regard to strengthening the legal framework to ensure the safety of passengers using public transport. The need to regulate the procedure for issuing fitness certificates for public transport buses was emphasized during the Sub-Committee. Officials stated that under Section 29 of the Motor Traffic Act, these fitness certificates are issued for buses, lorries, and ambulances by garages registered under the Provincial Councils, without regulation from the Department of Motor Traffic. Due to issues concerning the standards and reliability of these garages, the Chairperson of the Sub-Committee stressed the need to establish a formal procedure for this purpose. The necessity of enforcing “construction regulations” under Section 19 of the Motor Traffic Act was also discussed. Accordingly, detailed discussions were held regarding aspects such as the required spacing between seats, removal of unnecessary equipment, and installation of seat belts in both newly imported and existing buses for passenger safety. Based on the relevant data and information, the Ministry of Transport was instructed to prepare a report with proposals on the measures to be implemented concerning passenger safety in public transportation and submit it to the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Transport within two months. Furthermore, attention was drawn to the necessary steps to enhance the professionalism of public transport drivers. Accordingly, the Chairperson of the Sub-Committee directed the National Transport Commission to submit proposals for the standardization of the driving profession within one month. It was also instructed that data related to road accidents that occurred during the past three months be promptly submitted to the Sub-Committee. The Chairperson of the Sub-Committee emphasized the importance of preparing future recommendations based on this data. Attention was also drawn to strengthening the necessary legal provisions for enforcing the law against the use of drugs by bus drivers. Officials mentioned that regulations relevant to this matter under the Motor Traffic Act are currently in the final stage of preparation. The need to promptly implement these regulations and to properly establish the technological mechanisms required to detect drug substances in the bodies of drivers was highlighted. This Sub-Committee primarily examines possible short-term and long-term changes to laws and regulations related to the transport sector, following which a report containing the necessary recommendations is to be prepared. Hon. Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva also participated in this Sub-Committee meeting.
2025-04-23
The second Parliamentary Sub-Committee on “Strengthening the legal framework related to the transport sector and steering the transport sector in a positive direction”, established by the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation discussed the need to focus on the transport needs of the community with disabilities. This sub-committee meeting was held on 10.04.2025 at the Parliament premises, chaired by the Hon. Member of Parliament, Lakmali Hemachandra, Attorney-at-Law. Hon. Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva, Chair of the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities and a member of the sub-committee, also participated in the meeting. In addition, a group of representatives, including heads of organizations and institutions representing various segments of the community with disabilities, attended the Committee meeting. Accordingly, the challenges encountered in fulfilling the transport needs of the community with disabilities and the proposals to address these issues were extensively discussed during the sub-committee meeting. It was identified that the lack of proper accessibility to transportation modes is a major issue faced by the community with disabilities. Due to the absence of appropriate access facilities for buses and trains, persons with disabilities are often compelled to rely on hired vehicles, which results in them incurring significant expenses, a concern they highlighted to the sub-committee. The representatives pointed out that although the Gazette Notification issued under the Disabled Persons (Accessibility) Regulations, No. 1 of. 2006 mandates the provision of proper facilities for this community, many institutions and individuals fail to comply with these regulations. They also brought to the attention of the sub-committee the need to ensure the effective implementation of these laws in order to deliver tangible benefits to the community with disabilities. Representatives from these organizations also indicated to the sub-committee that certain conduct by bus conductors causes serious inconvenience to individuals with disabilities. They emphasized the necessity of not only legislative reforms but also improving attitudes towards persons with disabilities The need for legislation to allocate seats on buses and trains specifically for personas with disabilities, allowing them to board buses without the need for conductors’ assistance, and ensuring appropriate communication facilities at railway stations for the convenience of the disabled. Additionally, several other issues impacting this community were addressed. Furthermore, it was pointed out that the issuance of driving licenses to individuals with hearing impairments has been discontinued. The representatives appealed to the sub-committee to intervene and ensure that this facility is reinstated for those individuals. Accordingly, the Committee Chair stated that the issues and proposals submitted by the community with disabilities should be sent in writing to the sub-committee within two weeks. She further stated that after reviewing these submissions, a final report would be submitted to the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation.
2025-04-10
The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) of Parliament, chaired by Hon. Member of Parliament (Dr.) Nishantha Samaraweera, conducted a field investigation at the Bandaranaike International Airport on 09.04.2025. The COPE recently (2025.04.02) reviewed the Bandaranaike International Airport Development Project in connection with the Auditor General's Reports for the years 2022 and 2023 and the current performance of the Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) Limited (AASL), and accordingly conducted this field investigation. It was expected that the number of aircraft stands at Bandaranaike International Airport would be increased through the construction of a Remote Apron and Taxiways as part of the Bandaranaike International Airport Development Project. However, it was observed that both the AASL and the Japanese joint venture company hired for design and consultancy services had undertaken these activities without proper technical or operational analysis. As a result, achieving the project's objectives proved challenging. Despite several weaknesses and practical challenges identified at the planning stage, the Committee noted that steps were taken to complete the project. Accordingly, the solutions already proposed by AASL to achieve the desired objectives of the project were also observed. The COPE members held extensive discussions with local representatives from the Japanese joint venture and senior officials from relevant institutions. During these discussions, the Committee expressed displeasure over the financial losses incurred by the government due to these oversight issues and poor planning. The Committee recommended that, to prevent further misuse of public funds in future development activities, attention must be given to the issues arising during planning stages. The Committee decided to reconvene with the officials from AASL in the near future to continue discussions on the matter. The field inspection was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament M.K.M. Aslam, Samanmali Gunasinghe, Lieutenant Commander (Retd.) Prageeth Madhuranga, Ruwan Mapalagama, Sunil Rajapaksa, Thilina Samarakoon, and Chandima Hettiarachchi, along with officials from relevant institutions and parliamentary officials.
2025-04-10
More than 80 of the recommendations made by the Committee on Public Petitions during the fifth session of the ninth Parliament have not been implemented A decision was taken by the Committee to Review Non-Implementation of Recommendations of the Parliamentary Committees to grant a period of one month for the implementation of recommendations given by the Parliamentary Committees, which have not yet been implemented. This decision was taken during the meeting of the Committee held yesterday (Apr. 09) at the Parliament under the chairmanship of Hon. Minister Harshana Nanayakkara, Attorney at Law Accordingly, discussions were held on identifying the priority non-implemented recommendations that should be reviewed by the Committee. During the discussion, it was disclosed that over 80 recommendations issued by the Committee on Public Petitions during the Fifth Session of the Ninth Parliament have not been implemented. Furthermore, the Committee also decided to grant a period of one month for the implementation of recommendations that have not been acted upon, which were issued by the Committee on Public Enterprises (CoPE), Committee on Public Accounts (CoPA), and Committee on Public Finance (CoPF). As such, the Committee decided to issue letters to the respective Ministry Secretaries requesting the implementation of these non-implemented recommendations. If it is not possible to implement them within one month, the reasons for the non-implementation must be submitted in writing to the Committee. Hon. Members of Parliament Ravi Karunanayake, Oshani Umanga, and several Parliamentary officials were present at this meeting
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