ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Metro Manila devider People's lawyers urge Manila court to allow detainee to stay with newborn child

People's lawyers urge Manila court to allow detainee to stay with newborn child

Published Jul 3, 2020 10:15 pm

A group of people's lawyers appealed to the Manila Regional Trial Court to allow a political detainee to stay with her newborn child for at least a year.

Activist Reina Mae Nasino, who was detained at the Manila City Jail, gave birth on Wednesday (July 1). She was admitted at Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital and was scheduled to be discharged on Friday.

The National Union of People's Lawyers (NUPL) requested for Nasino to be allowed to stay in the hospital or a prison nursery inside the female dormitory of the Manila City Jail so she can breastfeed her daughter.

"Immediate separation by the child from her mother is not in the best interest of the baby, since she will be deprived of motherly care at a very early age," the NUPL's supplemental urgent motion dated July 1 read.

"The cruel and inhumane conditions of her detention at the Female Dormitory of the Manila City Jail are disadvantageous for breastfeeding. This is even aggravated by the outbreak of the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) virus," it added.

According to the motion, Nasino said there are 80 detainees cramped in her jail cell, that supposedly should hold a maximum of 40 inmates only.

Citing news reports, the group pointed out that 517 persons deprived of liberty at Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) prisons have tested positive for COVID-19 as of May 2020.

The NUPL also argued that it was the State that adopted "rooming in" as a national policy to promote breastfeeding for infants. Studies show that breast milk has health advantages and essential benefits for the growth and well-being of infants.

"Even babies born from mothers who are 'deprived of liberty' are entitled to the same rights as those born from mothers who are not similarly situated," the group said in their motion.

Earlier, the lawyers group also filed a motion for Nasino to be allowed to undergo a pre-natal check-up at the same hospital.

But Asst. City Prosecutor Rosalie Mazo-Atienza on Thursday said granting Nasino's request would not only cost the government too much money, it would also be unsafe for her and her child in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The undersigned understands the plight of the accused who will be separated from her child at the very early stage of the latter's life, where mother-and-child bonding should supposedly commence," her comment read.

"However, she is charged with a crime which carries a grave penalty and her staying in the hospital would cost much on the part of the government as it has to provide and maintain escorts 24/7," she said.

"With the pandemic the country and the whole world is currently facing right now, it would not be safe and would only pose a great risk to the child as well as to the accused herself to stay in the hospital for a long time just to be with each other," she added.

Nasino, along with two other activists, was arrested in November 2019 at the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) Manila Office in Tondo. Police claimed that they found firearms and explosives at the office. Perjury charges were filed against the arrested activists, who have yet to be arraigned as of June 2020.

NUPL Secretary General Rey Cortez told the Manila Bulletin that they were given until Monday to file their reply to the assistant prosecutor's comment.

ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.