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Tripoli, 24 March 2103:
Twenty-three Libyan prisoners have been released by Tunisia. The 23 are part of a larger group of prisoners . . .[restrict]granted an amnesty by the Tunisian president to mark the occasion of the country’s 57th independence anniversary on 20 March.
Their identities have yet been revealed. “They are ordinary criminals. Most were convicted for drugs offences,” explains Tripoli Local Council member Taha Shakshuki who also works with the Libyan Group for Demanding Libyan Prisoners Abroad. There are over 100 Libyans in Tunisian jails, he says.
The group has been trying to get Tunisia to agree to transfer Libyan prisoners back to finish their sentences in Libya. One of the problems blocking this is the issue of fines. According to Shakshuki many of the prisoners were also fined on conviction. Tunisia has said that if Libya wants to transfer them, it must also pay their fines. “Some fines are very high”, says Shahshuki.
This is the fifth time that Tunisia has included Libyans in its general amnesty. It did same thing on Tunisian Independence day last year as well as on its Republic Day last 25 July as well as on Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha. Prior to the Tunisian and Libyan revolutions, Libyans were not included in Tunisian general amnesties. [/restrict]
