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AMID COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Over 15,000 qualified PDLs released to decongest BJMP jails –DILG
More than 15,000 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) have been released in efforts to decongest jail facilities of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Thursday.
In a press statement, DILG Secretary Eduardo Año said the qualified PDLs were released from March 17 to June 22 "by authority of the courts with some released in accordance with new guidelines issued by the Supreme Court because of the pandemic."
"Ang paglaya ng libo-libong PDLs ay patunay na hindi sila nakakaligtaan at hindi pinapabayaan. Patunay rin itong gumagana ang justice system sa bansa kahit pa man may pandemya,” Año said.
“Kahit pa maraming responsibilidad ang ipinagkakatiwala sa DILG ngayong COVID-19 crisis ay hindi isinasantabi ng Kagawaran at ng BJMP ang PDLs. Tinitiyak namin ang kapakanan at kaligtasan nila,” he added.
Of the 15,322 PDLs released, 5,910 are from the National Capital Region; 1,557 are from CALABARZON; 1,487 from Central Visayas; 1,041 from Central Luzon; 897 from Zamboanga Peninsula; 762 from Northern Mindanao; and the rest are from other regions.
Año said the majority of those released are elderly or those with light or bailable offenses.
The DILG also said of the more than 15,000 PDLs released, a total of 1,312 were released because of the new Supreme Court guidelines issued to decongest the jails.
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Among such circulars are Administrative Circular (AC) No. 33 –2020 supplemented by the Office of the Court Administrator (OCA) Circular No. 89 –2020, which allowed the electronic filing of information and transmission of release orders; OCA Circular No. 91 –2020 which reiterated the guidelines on the release of qualified PDLs through self-recognizance and provisional dismissal; and AC No. 37 –2020 which allowed pilot testing of videoconference hearings of urgent matters in criminal cases involving PDLs.
COVID-19 recoveries among PDLs
Año said the number of PDLs recovering from the disease has continued to increase. So far, 549 out of 783 confirmed cases among PDLs, and 90 out of 135 cases among BJMP personnel have already recovered.
In efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the BJMP, through the help of other agencies, have established isolation facilities for those who need to undergo quarantine.
The DILG said six Ligtas COVID centers, with a total of 918-bed capacity, were established in strategic areas, particularly in Quezon City, San Fernando City, Cebu City, Mandaue City, Pagbilao in Quezon province, and Zamboanga City.
The BJMP also enhanced the triaging process, provision of more focused medical care to patients, conduct of daily disinfection of jails, targeted and expanded testing, and massive health education campaigns inside jails.
These are on top of the usual precautionary measures such as wearing of face mask, thermal scanning, use of foot baths, hand washing, and maintaining good hygiene. —Anna Felicia Bajo/KBK, GMA News