A comparative study on parole as a post-conviction correction mechanism with special reference to Sri Lanka

Abstract

Parole, as an instrument of conditional release, has emerged as a critical post-conviction correction mechanism in modern criminal justice systems, aimed not only at reducing prisons’ overcrowding, but also at facilitating the rehabilitation and reintegration of prisoners into society to reach decreasing reconviction and recidivism. However, the efficacy of parole in achieving these objectives differs substantially across jurisdictions. This study adopts a doctrinal and comparative research method coupled with a critical analysis of the framework relating to parole systems in Sri Lanka. The study also examines parole in countries like Canada, UK and USA, in reducing reconviction and recidivism through the philosophy of rehabilitation and reintegration. The background to this study is rooted in the global shift from punitive incarceration to rehabilitative correctional models, which increasingly recognize the need for community reintegration. Despite this trend, Sri Lanka does not have a parole system and the prevailing early release systems employed by the Department of Prisons remain at an infant stage, lacking consistency, rehabilitative orientation, and procedural transparency. This study attempts to achieve four objectives: to assess parole concept in the criminal justice system; to examine the legal, procedural, and institutional framework governing parole in Sri Lanka; to compare this framework with the parole systems in Canada...