Burundi freed some 1,300 prisoners at the beginning of a presidential pardon, which aims to free up overcrowded jails.
At a prison in Bujumbura, almost 1,000 inmates left their cells at a ceremony attended by President Evariste Ndayishimiye.
A total of 5,255 inmates, 40 percent of Burundi’s prison population, will be released in the coming weeks. 3,000 will be imminently released and another 2,000 will have their sentences cut.
President Evariste, warning detainees against a relapse said, in Burundi, what has crippled citizens is a lot of crimes, offenses committed that the state has not sanctioned so that some people have thought that committing a crime is a sign of bravery.
The detainees, including those arrested in 2015 following the demonstrations against the third term of the late President Nkurunziza, say they are relieved.
They also thanked the President and hope that others will have the same chance.
