Citing Pope Francis' call to end life imprisonment, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines is pushing for the replacement of life terms with "indefinite" prison terms.<br /><br />The <a target="_blank" class="external" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.cbcpnews.com/cbcpnews/?p=43925">CBCP Episcopal Commission on Prison Pastoral Care</a> (ECPPC) said life imprisonment is an “inhuman concept,” adding those sentenced to life should be eligible for parole.<br /><br />“Indeed, long sentences must be abolished and let’s instead work for justice that enhances, restores and respects human dignity,” said CBCP ECPPC executive secretary Rodolfo Diamante.<br /><br />The ECPPC also lauded Pope Francis for reaffirming the call to abolish the death penalty and life imprisonment. Such a stand is a “defense to the dignity of human life,” it said.<br /><br />An article posted on the CBCP news site late Friday quoted Pope Francis as seeking an end not only to capital punishment, but also to life-long imprisonment.<br /><br />Speaking to a delegation from the International Association of Penal Law in Rome, the pope branded life imprisonment as “a hidden death sentence.”<br /><br />He also called on Christians to campaign for improved prison conditions, “out of respect for the human dignity of persons deprived of their liberty.”<br /><br />In the Philippines, Diamante said the local prison ministry has been pushing for a justice system that transitions from the punitive to restorative.<br /><br />Under a restorative justice system, Diamante said offenders have opportunities to repair the damage they have done through creative ways.<br /><br />“That has been our advocacy — justice that moves beyond punishment. Justice with mercy and compassion,” he said.<br /><br /><strong>Prison Awareness Sunday</strong><br /><br />The ECPPC said it believes in the capacity of a person to transform and reform his behavior, especially with the help of society “which, in the first place, has much to do in creating an environment for the commission of crime, intended or not.”<br /><br />“Each crime committed has a social context and society as a whole, for creating an environment vulnerable to the commission of crime, is as guilty as its erring member,” it said. <strong>—<a href="http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/archives/authors/joellocsin"> Joel Locsin</a>/JDS, GMA News</strong>