Africa-Press – Cape verde. The President of Cape Verde today granted a pardon to inmates sentenced in the country’s jails who meet the requirements to return to freedom within a framework of “personal dignity, individual responsibility and effective social reintegration”, announced the Presidency.
In a note, the source cited by Lusa said that the decision of the head of state, José Maria Neves, is imbued with the spirit of the festive season of Christmas and the new year that proclaims the ” values of humanism, tolerance and compassion, as well as the profound feeling of family celebration ”.
The pardon is granted to prisoners sentenced to a sentence of no more than eight years who, by December 31, 2023, have served 2/3 of their sentence.
Pardons are also granted to those sentenced to a sentence of more than eight years who, by December 31, 2023, have turned 60 years of age and served half of their sentence.
They also benefit inmates affected by a serious and incurable illness, by a highly disabling physical or mental condition duly proven by a medical entity and which require continued care that cannot be provided in the prison establishment.
Prisoners convicted of crimes of torture, terrorism, murder, crimes against the State, drug trafficking, crimes of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) or crimes committed against the elderly, children, money laundering and other forms of organized crime are excluded.
Also, Lusa continues, those who are complying with security measures, preventive prisoners, repeat offenders and in the case of other pending cases in which preventive detention is determined do not benefit from this measure.
Also according to the note, all beneficiaries must be accompanied by social reintegration services until the date on which they complete the fulfillment of the respective sentences originally decreed.
When asked by Lusa about the number of inmates covered by the pardon, a Presidency source referred to the Ministry of Justice, which said that only now, after the President grants the pardon, will it be verified how many meet the conditions to be pardoned. The Week with Lusa
According to the latest official figures, Cape Verde has around 2,100 inmates – a third more than in 2018, the year of the last prison census -, distributed across five regional and two central prison establishments.
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