Sri Lanka establishes voluntary rehabilitation center for addicts: justice minister

Colombo [Sri Lanka], October 18: Sri Lanka will establish 10 voluntary rehabilitation centers across the country for addicts, a minister said on Thursday.
Justice minister Harshana Nanayakkara said this while participating in a ceremony to inaugurate the country's first voluntary rehabilitation center in Welikanda in North Central Province.
Nanayakkara said that to eradicate drug menace from the country, both demand and supply must be halted, stressing that law enforcement agencies, including police, are already carrying out operations to curb supply, and expanded rehabilitation initiatives will reduce demand.
The minister said that organized crime networks have expanded through money generated by drug trade, and 72 percent of inmates in Sri Lankan prisons are serving time for drug-related offenses.
The government is going to launch a nationwide campaign to eradicate drug menace in the coming weeks, he said.
In the first nine months of 2025, Sri Lanka has seized over three tons of heroin and methamphetamine.
Source: Xinhua