MOSCOW, August 17 (RIA Novosti) - Over 1,000 prisoners will soon be granted amnesty in Kyrgyzstan in line with President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's law on amnesty in honor of the 60th anniversary of the end of WWII, the presidential Web site said.
According to the document, 1,124 prisoners will be released and another 1,500 prisoners will have their prison terms reduced.
The law adopted by the republic's parliament on June 28, 2005 calls for a release from criminal responsibility for those who had not committed serious or especially serious crimes.
"The necessity to adopt this law is connected with the current status of the penitentiary system, which is characterized by the overcrowding of prisons and high rates of TB, AIDS, other infections, and drug addiction," the press release said.
According to the republic's prison service, some 17,000 criminals and detainees are being held in Kyrgyz prisons.
