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Thursday, March 24, 2005
Rigid inspections instituted in jails
THE Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) regional office is undertaking stricter measures to address future recurrences of unwanted incidents among inmates as what happened in the recent "Bicutan Siege."
BJMP Regional Director Ruben Bonavente said among the measures being undertaken are the following:
* stricter searching of incoming visitors,
* prohibiting jail personnel from bringing their firearms inside the cell buildings
* conducting regular dialogue with inmates,
* conducting rehabilitation activities such as sports, spiritual and religious activities and educational events,
* distributing rehabilitation materials such as hygiene and recreational materials,
* uplifting personnel's morale as embodied under Republic Act 9263 and conducts regular personnel education and information projects.
On the part of the inmates, BJMP has been conducting regular inspection of prisoners like strip-searching and inspection of their belongings upon entry into the jail facility, banning of cellphones inside the facility (this is for all inmates, visitors and BJMP personnel), conducting surprise inspection of inmates and their belongings, and conducting regular inspection around the vicinity of all jail facilities.
The BJMP regional office exercises supervision and control over city, district and municipal jails within Davao City and the four provinces of the region: Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte, Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental.
The BJMP regional office is based at Barangay Maa, Davao City beside the Davao City Jail, near the heart of the city and just a 20-minute ride from the Davao International Airport.
Bonavente said there is insufficient number of custodial personnel guarding the jails considering the fast increase in number of detainees coming in to serve their sentences.
The current ratio of jail guard to detention prisoner is 1:11.
"The most prevalent problem among the jails region-wide is the "overcrowding" or "congestion" of our jail facilities.
Seven out of the 12 jails located under BJMP XI are terribly congested", he said.
"The jail facilities, aside from being old and dilapidated, are "too small" to accommodate the present jail population.
The lack of communication equipment aggravates the current situation", Director
Bonavente added. (PIA/RPalacio)
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (March 24, 2005 issue)
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