HC Deb 02 November 1908 vol 195 c772
SIR H. COTTON

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that in the year 1907 corporal punishment was inflicted on prisoners in Ceylon in 128 cases for breach of prison discipline and generally for working short task; and whether, having regard to the general diminution of corporal punishment in prisons in India, and in the United Kingdom, with the best results, he will cause inquiry to be made into the excessive prevalence of flogging in the Ceylon gaols.

COLONEL SEELY

The number of cases of corporal punishment inflicted in Ceylon in 1907 for breaches of prison discipline was well below the average of the last five years. The increase over the figures for 1906 appears to be due to changes in the tasks required, and the figures for the second half of the year were more favourable than for the first half. The question of corporal punishment in Ceylon prisons was carefully inquired into less than three years ago, and the Colonial Government are fully aware of the desirability of limiting such punishment as far as is compatible with proper discipline. However, the Governor's attention will be called to the matter.