(ReliableNews.org) – The Iranian government has a bright idea to contain the coronavirus in their country — temporarily release 54,000 prisoners.
More than 102,000 people have contracted the virus worldwide and as of March 7, 2020, and 3,495 have died. In Iran, the numbers have increased dramatically in recent weeks, leaving the government scrambling to contain it. There are more than 4,700 cases in the country and at least 124 deaths.
Ironically, Amnesty Iran claims the country’s decision to release prisoners does not include people who have fought for human rights.
Iran’s authorities have announced they are temporarily releasing 54,000 prisoners to tackle the threat of coronavirus spreading in prisons. While this sounds like good news, it doesn’t help all the prisoners of conscience, including human rights defenders, not being released. pic.twitter.com/je4oxXzP3Z
— Amnesty Iran (@AmnestyIran) March 4, 2020
Iranian officials say prisoners who test negative for the virus will be able to bail out of jail. They claim those whose sentences are more than five years won’t be let go. It’ll be interesting to see if this stops the spread or just creates a bigger problem.
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