Muscat: An Omani lawyers’ group is planning to get freedom for 750 Omanis and expats who were sentenced to prison because of debt, according to Times of Oman.
The campaign, Fak Kurba – which is Arabic for redeeming anguish – was launched by the Oman Lawyers Association (OLA) in 2012. Since then the campaign has helped free more than 400 prisoners in the Sultanate.
Khalifah Al Rahbi a lawyer and member of the Oman Lawyers Association said: “The number of cases that have been released so far was 441. These cases involve citizens and residents of different nationalities. The amounts paid to released persons ranged from OMR100 to a maximum of OMR2,000.
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“We have found that some debt cases involve detainees who entered prison because they had to pay debts of less than OMR100, which is very sad,” Al Rahbi added.
Over the years, Fak Kurba has become more popular among the community, receiving larger donations every year.
“The interactions between the community with the campaign this year is remarkable. It seems that the initiative has become known to a large segment of donors, whether institutions or individuals, and we are receiving continuous support from people who have the desire to support the initiative with some funds to help get the prisoners out,” said Al Rahbi.The biggest contribution received by the initiative so far was from Bank Muscat after the company announced its commitment to contribute to the release of 220 detainees who meet the terms of the initiative.
