22.11.2025 12:00
Amnesty is coming for those who committed crimes before July 31, 2023. 50,000 people will benefit from the regulation that will be presented to the Parliament. Regarding the regulation included in the 11th Judicial Package, Bahçeli's legal advisor Feti Yıldız stated, "Relying on the date of the crime instead of the date of the final judgment has created a serious inequality. Now is the time to rectify this."
During the coronavirus pandemic, the demands for the expansion of the regulation that foresees the execution of the remaining sentences of prisoners in open prisons under supervised release have once again come to the agenda of the Parliament.
TO BE ADDED TO THE JUDICIARY PACKAGE
The 11th Judiciary Package, which the AK Party and the Ministry of Justice have been working on for a long time, was expected to be presented to the Parliament this week. However, with the request of the MHP and the Ministry of Justice, the addition of a provision that expands the scope of the regulation, which foresees the execution of the remaining sentences of prisoners in open prisons under supervised release during the COVID-19 pandemic, has come to the agenda. For this reason, the presentation of the Judiciary Package to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey has been postponed to next week.
COMMENTS AGAINST THE PRINCIPLE OF EQUALITY WERE MADE
The previously issued regulation covered those whose sentences were finalized before July 31, 2023. The new regulation will also open the way for those who committed crimes before July 31, 2023, but whose convictions have not been finalized, to be released early from prison. If the regulation passes through the Parliament, those who committed crimes before July 31, 2023, will also complete their remaining sentences under supervised release. Those who have committed crimes before July 31, 2023, and have 5 years or less remaining until their supervised release will serve their remaining time under supervised release.
50 THOUSAND INMATES WILL BENEFIT
It is stated that approximately 50 thousand convicts will initially benefit from the regulation, which will exclude organized crimes and terrorism offenses. However, it is expressed that this number will increase as the ongoing court processes progress.
FETİ YILDIZ SENT A MESSAGE
MHP Deputy Chairman Feti Yıldız shared his evaluations regarding the new execution regulation, which is being prepared by the AK Party and the Ministry of Justice and is planned to be added to the 11th Judiciary Package, on his social media account.
According to the draft of the Ministry of Justice, convicts who committed crimes before July 31, 2023, and have 5 years or less remaining until their supervised release will be granted the opportunity for early release, regardless of the date of finalization of their sentence.
The regulation is seen as an expanded version of the temporary Article 10 application during the COVID-19 period.
"IT HAD CREATED A SEVERE INEQUALITY"
Feti Yıldız emphasized in his post that the current system, which is applied based on the date of finalization of the sentence, is not fair.
Yıldız noted the following in his post:
The temporary Article 10 of the Execution Law had provided the opportunity for early transfer from closed prison to open prison and early separation for supervised release. Instead of taking the date of the crime into account, basing it on the date of finalization of the sentence had created a severe inequality. Now is the time to rectify this.
CONSIDERED AS A PARTIAL AMNESTY
Although the AK Party and the Ministry of Justice argue that the upcoming regulation is not a form of 'amnesty', it is considered a kind of 'partial amnesty' since thousands of people will be released from their prisons.
MINISTER TUNÇ HAD EVALUATED
Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç had recently given the message that a regulation could be made on this issue.
Tunç stated, "There is a lot of demand due to the law known as COVID leave. At that time, only those whose sentences were finalized benefited. Those who committed crimes before July 31, 2023, and whose cases have not been concluded are asking, 'Why can't I benefit?' For this reason, a regulation can be made in terms of the principle of equality."