Wednesday, April 10, 2013

New Program to rehabilitate drug related offenders in SL

DrugsThe Bureau of the Commissioner General of Rehabilitation plans to commence a new programme to rehabilitate minor offenders of drug related crimes in the country. Instead of jailing the drug related offenders, the government has decided to enroll them in a rehabilitation programme. In the first stage of the programme, 250 inmates who have been convicted for minor drug offenses will undergo a six month rehabilitation programme at the Kandakadu Protective Accommodation & Rehabilitation Center, Welikanda, in Polonnaruwa district. The Commissioner General of Rehabilitation Brigadier Darshana Hettiarachchi said the number of inmates would be increased up to 1,000 soon.
The Kandakadu Rehabilitation Centre which rehabilitates former LTTE cadres offers programs in vocational training, language development, and psychosocial counseling, among others to the inmates. Around 45 percent of the people sentenced by Sri Lankan courts are charged with drug related crimes.

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