1990 Strangeways Prison riot courts, hangings, castrations and that between eleven and twenty prisoners had been killed. On 3 April the front page of the "Daily Mirror" read "Prison Mob 'Hang Cop' ", and claimed a former policeman imprisoned at Strangeways for rape had been killed by prisoners. The newspaper was forced to publish a retraction admitting that "reliable police sources" had been mistaken, when it transpired that the man was actually alive and imprisoned in HM Prison Leeds. Following the end of the rooftop protest the newspapers condemned the prisoners, with "The Daily Telegraph" describing the riot as "a degrading public spectacle", and
2012 Welikada prison riot the searches. The police have defended their actions, saying "By killing the prisoners who were armed, we prevented a much bigger disaster". Minister of Rehabilitation and Prison Reforms Chandrasiri Gajadeera announced on 10 November 2012 that he had appointed a three-member committee to investigate the riot. A second investigation is to be carried out by Prisons Commissioner General P. W. Kodippili. The opposition has described the riot as a massacre and called for a parliamentary select committee to investigate the riot. Civil rights groups have also called for an independent investigation. The Asian Human Rights Commission has condemned the authorities