Coronavirus: Turkey to free thousands of convicted criminals but keep journalists behind bars

‘Journalists, political activists, and bloggers will remain in prison and be at risk of being infected with coronavirus,’ says lawyer

Silivri prison near Istanbul, Turkey (REUTERS)

Gangsters, thieves and attempted killers will be freed from prison while bloggers, journalists and lawyers are to remain behind bars, under a new law passed by Turkey's parliament.

Up to 90,000 people - roughly one third of the country's prison population - are set to be released in a bid to stop coronavirus spreading in overcrowded jails. At least three prisoners have died of Covid-19 and 17 have tested positive, justice minister Abdulhamit Gul told reporters on Monday.

The new law comes as cases of coronavirus in the country continue to rise. At least 61,000 cases of coronavirus have been recorded in the country of 82 million and at least 1,296 deaths attributed to Covid-19. The level of infection is, however, still low compared to western Europe; in the UK, more than 12,000 people have died and a further 93,873 infected.

Some blasted the new law as unfair.

“If you organised a criminal enterprise, or you stole someone’s money, or if you tried to kill someone, you can be freed, “ Veysel Ok, co-director of the Media and Law Studies Association, an advocacy group, told The Independent. “But if you shared something on Facebook, you won’t be. Journalists, political activists, and bloggers will remain in prison and be at risk of being infected with coronavirus.”

Turkey joins a number of countries throughout the world that have furloughed or released prisoners from overcrowded detention centres where the risk of coronavirus outbreaks is heightened. In recent weeks, the Democratic Republic of Congo has released 1,200 prisoners, Indonesia 22,000, and Iran some 85,000.

In the wake of the global pandemic, the United Nations has urged governments to alleviate crowded detention centres where maintaining physical distancing is difficult and both prisoners and staff are vulnerable to infection by the airborne virus.

"Covid-19 has begun to strike prisons, jails and immigration detention centres," UN human rights chief Michele Bachelet said in a statement last month. "Authorities should examine ways to release those particularly vulnerable to Covid-19, among them older detainees and those who are sick, as well as low-risk offenders.”

But pressure to release prisoners has run up against some governments’ use of criminal justice systems to silence political opponents. Iran, for example, has kept noted human rights lawyer Nasrine Sotoudeh locked up even as it has released many non-violent offenders.

Turkey’s new law was approved with the support of president Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP). It cuts in half the sentences of prisoners except those locked up on charges of terrorism, first-degree murder, drug trafficking, sexual abuse or violence against women or children.

It will also allow house arrest for inmates over 65 years old, prisoners with illness and women with small children.

Amnesty International praised the passage of the law but pointed out what it describes as serious shortcomings, such as not releasing some 40,000 people who are being detained without any criminal conviction.

“It is deeply disappointing that the tens of thousands of prisoners in pretrial detention – a measure that must only be used when there are no alternatives to custody – will not be considered for release,” Turkey campaigner Milena Buyum said in a statement.

Those held in Turkey on terrorism charges include those thought to belong to the movement of exiled spiritual leader Fethullah Gulen ​– accused of masterminding a devastating 2016 coup attempt that left hundreds dead – Isis supporters, and those linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party, a leftist separatist group.

But a number of journalists, lawyers and activists have also been charged with what critics call specious terrorist charges. “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,” said Ms Buyum.