The Ministry of Interior Affairs has removed limitations on the passports of 51,171 people, Turkish media reported on Friday, despite claims that previous similar decisions were not implemented.
Following a coup attempt in July 2016 the government imposed restrictions on the passports of hundreds of thousands of people without justification and limited their right to travel. Many people, unaware of the move, realized their passports were unusable when they attempted to travel abroad.
In 2018 the government had removed the restrictions on 155,350 passports. However, as the Ahval news website reported, despite the removal of the limitations, many people have not been able to get their passport privileges reinstated by authorities without any explanation offered.
Most of the people who were affected by the passport restrictions were civil servants who were purged in the wake of the failed coup and their family members.