MOSCOW, December 6 (RIA Novosti) − Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Friday that a mass amnesty proposed by the Russian government should not be limited to high-profile prisoners.
When asked whether the amnesty proposed to mark the 20th anniversary of the constitution should include famed inmates such as tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky and members of the feminist punk group Pussy Riot, Medvedev said there were many more prisoners who could be freed and that the criterion for amnesty should be the nature of their crime and not their name.
“One should not forget about the 700,000 people currently incarcerated in prison facilities,” Medvedev said during an interview with prominent TV anchors. He suggested that the amnesty should include minors, pregnant women and pensioners.
"Why do we only ever think about those who are lucky enough to be in the spotlight, who are at the center of an international dispute?" Medvedev said.
According to a report in Kommersant daily published Friday, more than 30,000 people could be amnestied under the proposal to mark the 20th anniversary later this month of the adoption of Russia’s constitution. The report said about 1,300 people currently serving prison sentences could be released, while the rest would be people serving suspended sentences or still on trial.
Human rights activists have called for the release of prisoners whose cases have been classified by rights groups as politically motivated, including some of the protesters arrested for alleged non-violent crimes after the May 2012 anti-Kremlin rally.
On Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin expressed his support for the amnesty but didn’t indicate who would be released.
Kommersant said there would be no amnesty for people who had committed crimes against representatives of the state, primarily law enforcement officers.
