Jakarta, Dec. 24 -- The Indonesian government has granted special remissions and sentence reductions to over 16 thousand Catholic and Protestant inmates across Indonesia on the occasion of this year's Christmas Day.

"This is our form of appreciation for achievements, dedication, and discipline (of the inmates) while serving their sentences," Immigration and Correction Affairs Minister Agus Andrianto stated in his written remarks on Wednesday.

This year's Christmas remission was granted to a total of 16,078 prisoners, comprising 15,927 adult inmates and 151 children in conflict with the law, of whom 174 were declared free immediately.

The minister said that remissions and sentence reductions reflect the government's leniency toward inma...