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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider BJMP: Over 74K PDLs freed from jail from January to October

BJMP: Over 74K PDLs freed from jail from January to October

Published Dec 1, 2023 09:08 am

A total of 74,590 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) were released from January to October this year through the government’s various decongestion programs, according to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP).

In a press briefing on Friday, Dec. 1, BJMP spokesperson Chief Inspector Jayrex Bustinera explained that certain considerations must be met by the PDLs for them to qualify for the early release privilege offered by the government.

He cited that the BJMP decongestion woes can be eased through the issuance of a court order, good conduct time allowance (GCTA), bureau’s paralegal assistance program aside from the assistance provided for the regular release of the PDLs who have served their sentences.

Out of the 74,590 released PDLs, Bustinera noted that 10,000 had served their jail time; 6,000 were transferred to the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) while the others were provided with paralegal assistance.

Despite the limited government lawyers, the BJMP paralegal officers were able to help the PDLs understand their cases, assist them attend court hearings, confer with their lawyers outside the jail facility and facilitate the court hearing of their cases for their possible early release from incarceration, Bustinera shared.

He added the paralegal officers also played vital roles in informing the PDLs understand the legal intricacies and processes involved in their respective cases.

The BJMP officer stated that the country’s path to resolving the jail congestion issues in the country is moving on the right track through an inter-agency coordination among BJMP, Department of Justice (DOJ), Supreme Court (SC) and DILG as they will hold a "Decongestion Summit" slated from Dec. 6 to 7.

Bustinera noted the urgency of conducting repairs and construction of jail facilities considering that only 142 out of the 482 were completed, meaning that the others are not according to international standards.

Aside from offering paralegal assistance and other programs, Bustinera pointed out that the BJMP has started the classification system to determine who among the PDLs have the propensity to be "recidivist" to make the bureau undertake measures to address their concerns right inside the jail facility.

He added that the BJMP also has the development opportunity programs which allows the PDLs to finish junior or senior high school via the Alternative Learning System (ALS) that will decrease their chances of going back to jail once they are released from prison.

Further, Bustinera said that the BJMP is also providing a college education program dubbed as “College Behind Bars" where qualified PDLs can continue their studies in the select BJMP facilities.

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