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Saturday, June 24, 2006
Libre: Improving the condition of our jails
By Mel Libre
Seriously Now
The death of five inmates at the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center (BBRC) brings to mind once again the utter failure of government to raise the standards, as well as the administration, of prison facilities. It is no secret that facilities like BBRC face such problems as congestion, drug trafficking, diseases, limited budget, politics, etc.
Congestion is primarily the result of the rise in crimes, lack of money to post bail and the failure to track detainees who have stayed in jail more than the maximum number of years pegged as penalty for the crime they are charged with.
Improvement of jail facilities is not a popular issue for those in power. There seems to be a notion that those charged with crime deserve punishment--–and what better place to do that than the dreadful Philippine prisons. We must realize, however, that a good number of those in jail are not convicts but are detention prisoners undergoing trial.
Drug trafficking has also become a persistent problem. Every now and then, we learn about visitors caught attempting to smuggle drugs inside.
The good news is that we have yet to hear of prison officials/guards themselves involved in this nefarious trade. The bad news is that the public believe that for so long as drug trafficking exists, some insiders are making dirty money.
With the poor facilities and congestion, diseases easily spread among prisoners. When I was chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross-Cebu chapter, lawyer Esperanza Valenzona asked me to donate used promo streamers and cartons, which she would give to prisoners who could use them as blankets and beds. I guess the need is as urgent now as it was then.
With government red tape, it does take a lot of creativity and budget stretching for jailers to feed all prisoners. Which reminds me of Fr. Vic Labao, SJ, who served as chaplain in the Bilibid prison. He initiated a livelihood program that allowed convicted criminals to earn stipend and thus obtain additional provisions to keep their bodies and spirits intact.
Politics has much to do with the state of affairs of our prisons. Not only do politicians hold the purse for the operation of our jails, they have a hand in the appointment of wardens and even guards. Some politicians play God, knowing well that their decisions usually determine how good or miserable the lives of prisoners will be.
If we want to see improvements in our prisons, it would be best that each and every politician be required to take a day off from their work and spend a day in jail as a “prisoner” without special treatment. They will be shocked, like they were electrocuted.
They may not die though. Hopefully they will live to turn our jails into rehabilitation centers in the true sense of the word.
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (June 24, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
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