Venezuela’s National Assembly announced Tuesday that more than 3,200 people have been fully released since an amnesty law took effect on Feb. 20, according to a commission overseeing the measure.
Lawmaker Jorge Arreaza, who leads the commission, told reporters that the government had received 4,203 applications for the amnesty program, and that authorities had already evaluated requests.
Arreaza said 3,052 people previously under house arrest or other restrictive measures were granted full freedom after their cases were reviewed. He also said an additional 179 people who were in prison were released.
The announcement comes after Venezuela’s government said it would release a significant number of prisoners in the days after the Jan. 3 capture of then-President Nicolás Maduro, but relatives and human rights watchdogs have criticized the pace of releases and the restrictive conditions some people faced after leaving prison.
The amnesty excludes people convicted of homicide, drug trafficking, military rebellion, or serious human rights violations, according to the commission’s presentation.
Venezuela-based prisoners’ rights group Foro Penal said it has verified only 91 “political releases” since the amnesty law took effect on Feb. 20. The group added that it requested a review of 232 cases currently excluded from the amnesty, and said nearly 600 people remain in detention.