Turkey's parliament has approved legislation that will free some 90,000 prisoners to ease overcrowding in prisons amid the coronavirus pandemic. The legislation, approved early today, reduces some sentences and places 45,000 convicts who are currently serving terms in open prisons, under temporary house arrest. As well as reducing some prison terms, the legislation releases women with young children, the sick and prisoners above the age of 65. The prison releases were expected to begin this week. On Monday, the justice minister announced that 17 prisoners in open prisons were infected and three of them died.-AP

Source: The Standard April 14, 2020 06:56 UTC