Around 38,000 prisoners are set to be conditionally released in an apparent move to reduce the country’s prison population to make space for thousands arrested with suspected links to last month’s failed military coup.
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Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag posted on Twitter on August 17 that a government decree on the releases had been approved.
The move will free up space in crowded prisons as Turkish authorities continue a sweeping purge in the wake of the failed coup, which has resulted in the arrest or detention of more than 23,000 now. Gulen has denied any prior knowledge or involvement in the coup but Turkey is demanding that the United States extradite him.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan says he will clean the country of the “virus” responsible for July’s coup attempt.
“If the U.S. does not send him (Gulen) to Turkey, relations will not be the same as they were before July 15”, Bozdag said, warning Washington not to “lose” the Turkish people. The government gave no reason for the reform.
Further sackings were announced Wednesday – 2,360 police officers, 112 military personnel and 24 members of the coast guard, according to a decree in the official government gazette.
Those dismissed were described as having links to US -based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara accuses of orchestrating the putsch when rogue troops commandeered tanks and jets in an attempt to overthrow the government. Convicts who have already served more than half of their sentence will also be eligible for parole.
In addition to the immediate release, the Turkish justice minister said the new regulations will speed up the release of 93,000 more inmates, but people convicted of terrorism, violent crimes or sexual offenses won’t be getting out early.
Amnesty International recently said it had gathered “credible evidence that detainees in Turkey are subjected to beatings and torture, including rape”. Under another move, the TIB telecoms authority will be closed. Turkey’s foreign minister spoke to US Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday about Gulen’s extradition, foreign ministry sources said. “If you did not consciously support FETO after December, 17, you should not be anxious”, Yildirim said, using the acronym for “Gulenist Terror Group”, as Ankara refers to Gulen’s movement.
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Those dismissed were said to have links to cleric Gulen, a former ally of Erdogan turned enemy.
