CHR supports Senate Bill on Jails and Prisons Monitoring Act
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) expressed its full support to the enactment into law of Senate Bill (SB) No. 2031 on Jails and Prisons Monitoring Act of 2023 that would help ensure the safety and security of persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) inside detention centers.
Filed by Sen. Raffy Tulfo, SB 2031 "seeks to promote the safety and security of inmates and prison personnel by providing an additional layer of security inside prison cells."
The bill states that the safety and security of PDLs can be accomplished through the use of security monitoring systems composed of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, motion sensors, and other relevant equipment.
In a statement, the CHR said that the additional layer of security is needed as it stressed that even PDLs deserve to have their human rights and dignity preserved at all times.
At the same time, SB 2031 would provide additional protection for prison personnel. The extra security measures that will be installed in jails can even be used as a guide by prison administration to create better human rights-based policies, the CHR said.
"In the larger view, CHR, in fulfillment of our advisory mandate under the Constitution, also continues to urge the government to pass into law the creation of the country's National Preventive Mechanism (NPM)—another obligation of the Philippines under Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT)," it said.
"The said NPM is envisioned to carry out the important role of preventing torture, initiating reforms, and upholding domestic and international standards relating to PDLs and jails and places of detention," it added.
"More importantly, a dedicated NPM will similarly allow the government to give better meaning to its human rights obligations because the mandate's character is preventive, that is, to decrease acts of torture and ill-treatment by regular visits, promoting institutional reform, and good practices for the management of jails and other places of detention," it stressed.