Parliamentarians: Govt should grant early, conditional release to prisoners with minor offences to curb Covid-19 spread

PETALING JAYA: The government should grant “managed early or conditional release” from prisons and detention centres to reduce overcrowding and curb the spread of Covid-19, says a group of parliamentarians and experts.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia for the Reform of All Places of Detention (APPGM) said the Prisons Department has already initiated the process by identifying some 11,018 people in prisons with non-violent minor offences who are sentenced to less than one year for the Release on License (ROL) programme.