Prisons must not force released inmates to quarantine: minister
Prisons nationwide have been ordered not to force inmates into quarantine on their release date, Justice Minister Somsak Thepsuthin said on Saturday.
Somsak said he had received complaints from inmates’ relatives that prisons were placing convicts in Covid-19 quarantine convicts for 15-21 days before releasing them.
“Keeping prisoners after their release date is not right, as the prisons are supposed to test them for Covid-19 before their sentence is up,” said Somsak.
He added that the Corrections Department had no policy to quarantine released prisoners, so any prisons found doing so would face disciplinary punishment.
Somsak said he had instructed prison chiefs nationwide to stick to protocol and make sure that prisoners are released when their sentence is up. He also ensured prisoners’ relatives that he would make sure that such violations do not happen again.
On Friday, the Corrections Department reported 16 new Covid-19 infections among prisoners, while another 122 inmates tested positive via ATKs and are awaiting confirmation.
Cumulative cases of Covid-19 reported among prisoners nationwide stand at 95,101, with 206 total deaths and 404 still undergoing treatment.
On Saturday, Thailand recorded 6,736 new Covid-19 cases and 54 deaths. Cumulative cases in the country this year number 2,144,317.