Turkey's parliament has sharply reduced prison terms for match-fixing in a move that could lead to lighter sentences for more than 30 club officials and players arrested in a recent rigging scandal.
It is a dramatic U-turn by the government, coming eight months after it introduced prison sentences of a maximum of 12 years for people convicted of bribing players or paying fees to teams as incentives.
The parliament, with the support of lawmakers from the ruling party, voted Thursday to reduce that term to three years.
Sports Minister Suat Kilic has rejected accusations from some opposition lawmakers that the change is designed to save Fenerbahce President Aziz Yildirim, who is among those awaiting trial in an investigation that allegedly involves 19 games last season.
