Tunis releases more than 3,000 prisoners

Tunis released yesterday more than 3,000 prisoners on the anniversary of Tunisian President Zein El-Abiudin Bin Ali's assumption of power after discharging former President al-Habib Bourqiba for health reasons.

The leader of the Tunisian Renaissance Movement, Sheikh Rashed El-Ghanoush, stated that the release included 600 members of the movement, saying that no less than 2,000 of the movement's followers are still in prison.

He said, "We see that the release is not considered a positive step unless followed by serious steps by the government to release all the prisoners and to remove all laws that restrict public and private life like the press law, parties, the associations and the mosques."