The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
April 15, 2020

Turkey's Release of 45,000 Prisoners Won't Include Political Prisoners
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Turkey's Parliament voted Tuesday to temporarily free 45,000 prisoners -
about a third of its prison population - to limit the spread of
COVID-19. The prisoner release will exclude critics of authoritarian
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who've been convicted of terrorism
charges. In a statement, Amnesty international called for the release of
all political prisoners, adding, "Those convicted in unfair trials under
Turkey's overly broad anti-terrorism laws are also now condemned to face
the prospect of infection from this deadly disease."


.