The Welikada Prison (also known as the ''Magazine Prison'') is a maximum security prison and the largest prison in

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. It was built in 1841 by the

British colonial The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

government under Governor Cameron. The prison covers an area of . It is overcrowded with about 1700 detainees exceeding the actual number that could be accommodated. The prison also has a

gallows A gallows (or scaffold) is a frame or elevated beam, typically wooden, from which objects can be suspended (i.e., hung) or "weighed". Gallows were thus widely used to suspend public weighing scales for large and heavy objects such as sacks ...

(unused since 1959) and its own hospital. The prison is administered by the

Department of Prisons The Department of Prisons ( Sinhala: බන්ධනාගාර දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව ''Bandhanagara Departhamenthuwa'') is a department of the Government of Sri Lanka responsible for the incarceration and rehabilitation of ...

. Following the attempted military coup in 1962, the arrested military and police officers were remanded pending trial in a special section at Welikada prison called the Magazine Section. To guard these officers, a special security detachment called the ''composite guard'' was selected from the

Ceylon Light Infantry Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, with Major A Hulangamuwa in charge. In November 2012, 27 people died in clashes between inmates and prison guards.

Core functions

*Detention of prisoners on first conviction *Categorization of convicted prisoners on admission and transferring them to relevant prisons *Detention of condemned prisoners *Production of suspects to Kesbewa and Moratuwa courts *Provision of vocational training to prisoners *Launching of welfare and rehabilitation programs for prisoners

Relocation

It is proposed to relocate the prison to Horana by 2024. The existing complex will be opened for investments.

Notable inmates

* D S Senanayake - National hero, independence activist and first prime minister of Ceylon * F R Senanayake - National hero and independence activist *

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Henry Pedris Duenuge Edward Henry Pedris ( si, හෙන්රි පේද්රිස්; 16 August 1888 – 7 July 1915) was a Ceylonese militia officer and a prominent socialite. Pedris was executed for treason by the 17th Punjab Regiment of the British ...

- National hero and

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

of the independence movement *

Anagarika Dharmapala Anagārika Dharmapāla (Pali: ''Anagārika'', ; Sinhala: Anagārika, lit., si, අනගාරික ධර්මපාල; 17 September 1864 – 29 April 1933) was a Sri Lankan Buddhist revivalist and a writer. Anagarika Dharmapāla is not ...

- National hero, independence activist and leading figure of the Buddhist revival *

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

F. C. de Saram Colonel Frederick Cecil "Derek" de Saram, OBE, ED (5 September 1912 – 11 April 1983) was a Sri Lankan lawyer, a Ceylon cricket captain, and an officer of the Ceylon Army. He led the attempted military coup of 1962. Early life and educ ...

- A leader of the attempted military corp of 1962 *

Talduwe Somarama Talduwe Ratugama Rallage Weris Singho, better known as Talduwe Somarama Thero (27 August 1915 – 6 July 1962), shot and killed S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, the fourth Prime Minister of Ceylon (later Sri Lanka), who served from 1956 until his assas ...

- The assassin of

S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike ( si, සොලොමන් වෙස්ට් රිජ්වේ ඩයස් බණ්ඩාරනායක; ta, சாலமன் வெஸ்ட் ரிட்ஜ்வே டயஸ் ப� ...

, who was executed in 1962 * Bombardier

Gratien Fernando Wathumullage Gratien Hubert Fernando CGA (1915 – 5 August 1942) was the leader of the Cocos Islands Mutiny, an agitator for the independence of Sri Lanka from the British. Fernando was born to Sinhalese Buddhist parents. His father was a sup ...

- Leader of the Cocos islands mutiny *

Douglas Devananda Kathiravelu Nythiananda Devananda, commonly known as Douglas Devananda ( ta, டக்ளஸ் தேவானந்தா), is a Sri Lankan Tamil politician, Cabinet Minister and leader of the Eelam People's Democratic Party. Originally a Sri ...

- Tamil politician and cabinet minister *

Sepala Ekanayake Sepala Ekanayake (or Ekanayaka; born June 3, 1949, in Karatota, Tissamaharama, Sri Lanka) gained international notoriety after hijacking an Alitalia Boeing 747 with 340 passengers on June 30, 1982. Life and career Early life Ekanayake atte ...

- Airline hijacker *

Sarath Fonseka Field Marshal Gardihewa Sarath Chandralal Fonseka ( si, ගාර්දිහේවා සරත් චන්ද්‍රලාල් ෆොන්සේකා, ta, சரத் பொன்சேகா; born 18 December 1950), commonly know ...

- Former Commander of the Army and Chief of Defence Staff who led the army for a win against the LTTE *

Selvarajah Yogachandran Selvarajah Yogachandran, ( ta, செல்வராஜா யோகசந்திரன்) (died 25 July 1983) also known as Kuttimani was one of the leaders of the former Tamil militant organization TELO from Sri Lanka. He was arrested and ...

- also known as Kuttimani was one of the leaders of former Tamil militant organization TELO, killed in

Welikada prison massacre The Welikada Prison Massacre took place during the 1983 Black July pogrom against Sri Lankan Tamil minority in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Fifty-three prisoners were killed inside a high-security prison. No one has been convicted of crimes relating to t ...

Nadarajah Thangathurai Nadarajah Thangavelu ( ta, நடராசா தங்கவேல்; died 25 July 1983; commonly known by the nom-de-guerre Thangadurai) was a Sri Lankan Tamil rebel and one of the founders of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization, a separ ...

- one of the leaders of former Tamil militant organization TELO, killed in

Scouting

The world's first prison Scout Group registered by Imperial Scout Headquarters started at Welikada Prison in 1926.

References

External links