Coronavirus: 365 prisoners released in Congo due to coronavirus

09 Mai 2020

Brazzaville, Congo, May 9  (Infosplusgabon) - Some 365 prisoners have been released from the prisons in Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Congolese government spokesperson Thierry Moungalla announced on Friday after the Council of Ministers meeting.

In Brazzaville, for example, 276 out of  835 prisoners were released, while in Pointe-Noire 89 out of 492 were released, Thierry Moungalla, minister of communication and media, said.

According to him, these releases concerned detainees awaiting trial, who had exceeded the deadlines for preventive detention and those awaiting trial, who were detained for minor offences.

In addition, the competent prison authorities have taken all measures to ensure the safety of prisoners in prison, in close liaison with the medical professionals in charge of the coronavirus response.

There are 17 prisons in Congo, 16 of which are operational, with a total number of prisoners in Congo being 1622.

FIN/ INFOSPLUSGABON/VVG/GABON2020

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