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Reuters
Reuters
Entertainment
Monica Machicao

Pages for pardons? In Bolivia, inmates can cut jail time by reading

Bolivia Prison Brazil
An inmate reads the bible in prison where she and fellow inmates have access to a small library as part of a program that aims to spread literacy and offer the chance to get out of jail earlier, in La Paz, Bolivia April 29, 2022. REUTERS/Claudia Morales

Inmates in Bolivia's overcrowded prisons are now able to reduce their jail time by reading books in a new program influenced by one in Brazil that aims to spread literacy and give hope despite a notoriously slow judicial process.

The state program "Books behind bars" offers detainees a chance get out of jail days or weeks in advance of their release date. Bolivia does not have a life sentence or death penalty, but pre-trial detention can last for many years due to a slow judicial system.

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