SC, DOJ, DILG to hold jail decongestion summit

Plan are afoot to hold a National Jail Decongestion Summit to determine causes of prolonged detention of persons deprived of liberty (PDLS) and address overcrowding in the country’s prison facilities.

Jail congestion in the facilities being managed by the Bureau of Corrections (Bucor) as of May 2023 ranged from 148 percent in Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm in Occidental Mindoro to 373 percent in the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City.

Bucor has been addressing the congestion by expediting the release of qualified PDLS either through parole or executive clemency on top of the court-ordered releases.

Published reports stated that there are about 180,000 PDLS in the facilities managed by Bucor and in those supervised by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) in towns, cities, and provinces.

The plan to hold a summit was disclosed by Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo during his visit to the Pasay City jail last Sunday, Oct. 29, as part of his jail visitations during the National Correctional Consciousness Week held every last week of October.

During his visit, Chief Justice Gesmundo – who also visited the NBP -- underscored the importance of jail visitations by concerned government officials “to determine the actual conditions of the PDLS and the detention facilities, in order to formulate policies that shall enhance jail management and ensure the humane safekeeping of PDLS.”

Gesmundo acknowledged the difficulties faced by PDLS, “particularly the deficiency in facilities and space within the prisons.”

Thus, he disclosed the plan of the Supreme Court (SC) to hold a summit in coordination with the Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC) composed of the SC, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

During the summit, Gesmundo said that the SC, DOJ and DILG “shall collaborate to identify the root causes of prolonged detention in jails, which contribute to prison overcrowding.”

“We aim to establish new policies and initiatives that shall expedite the processing of criminal cases and alleviate jail congestion,” he said.