The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) is opposed to the plan of the Supreme Court (SC) to adopt a "Writ of Kalayaan" to address issues of "congestion and sub-standard" prison facilities in the country.

In a statement, BuCor Director General Gregorio Pio P. Catapang Jr. said the bureau has made known its opposition in a position paper it submitted to Senior Associate Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen, chairperson of the SC's Committees on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law. 

Catapang said that BuCor has assured the SC that  “the problems of congestion is now being addressed by the Bureau on the basis of the passage of two laws, namely: Republic Act No. 10575, the Bureau of Corrections Act of 2013 which provides for the modernization, professionalization and restructuring of the BuCor, and RA11928 which provides for the establishment of a separate facility for PDLs convicted of heinous crimes.”

He said that "based on the proposed Writ of Kalayaan, it will be a continuing order that those in charge of the custody of the persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) to comply with the court-sanctioned plan to rectify or improve the substandard or inadequate conditions of prison facilities within a reasonable time and if not met, an order will be issued for the release of the PDLs, either thru bail, recognizance or probation, following the order of precedence until the facility have been brought to a humane level."

But Catapang said that BuCor "has formulated a five-year Development and Modernization Plan 2023-2028 to build regional prison facilities to decongest and modernize the existing penal institution and accommodate the increasing number of PDLs committed to the agency.”

He said the plan includes “reconfiguration of all prison facilities to house only 2,500 PDLs per prison compound to address congestion and make our prison compounds world class standard prison facilities.”

“Meanwhile, in order to implement RA 11928 on the establishment of separate facilities for PDLs convicted of heinous crimes, some portions of the existing military reservations in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao will be utilized through Presidential Proclamation,” he said.

“Parts of Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, Camp Peralta in Jamindan, Capiz  and Camp Kibaritan in Butuan will be utilized for this purpose in exchange for 1,500 hectares of BuCor lot in Palawan,” he also said. 

At the same time, Catapang said that BuCor will begin construction of the heinous crime facilities in the military reservations in 2024. 

“In the meantime, the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm will be converted into a heinous crime facility in order to immediately implement RA 11928 and this will be funded from the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) 2023 funds,” he noted. 

He told the SC that PDLs released by the Executive Department are “also subject to the laws on bail, recognizance and probation enacted by the Legislature”, while, executive clemency issued by the President is “governed by executive issuances emanating from the Executive Department.”

“Indeed, matters on jail conditions, treatment of PDLs, mode of releases and the like are best left to the discretion of the Legislature and the Executive,” he added.