DOJ: 600 PDLs released from BuCor prisons and penal farms

More than 600 persons deprived of liberty on Tuesday were released from various prisons and penal farms of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

In a separate statement, BuCor said that the total number of released PDLs was 632. From that number, 86 were acquitted, 503 served their maximum sentence, 19 were granted probation, and 24 were granted parole.

“We hope to release more qualified PDLs once the Supreme Court resolved the issue on GCTA (Good Conduct Time Allowance) with regards to heinous crime offenders,” BuCor Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. said.

“Kung maresolba yung issue na yan na they are qualified, meron 5,000 to 10,000 na pwedeng makinabang na mapalaya,” he added.

(If that issue will be resolved, we may release 5,000 to 10,000 PDLs.)

The DOJ said this brings the number of released PDLs to 9,228 since July 2022.

“This is a significant progress in addressing prison congestion and enhancing the treatment of PDLs, adhering to the United Nations (UN) Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners,” the agency said in a statement.

According to the agency, it has implemented measures to streamline the release process and improve management such as the digitalization of the single carpeta system and the lowered bail for indigent litigants.

"The reforms we've introduced are not just about improving systems; they're about recognizing the potential in every individual and fostering their contribution to society," Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla said.

“Witnessing the successful reintegration of PDLs into our communities underscores our pursuit of a justice system that champions rehabilitation and collective progress,” he added.

In December 2023, top officials from various government agencies and diplomats came together to address the congestion in the country’s prison and penal facilities through a National Jail Decongestion Summit.

BuCor, meanwhile, said that 500 PDLs were transferred from the New Bilibid Prison to the Davao Prison and Penal Farm (DPPF) over the weekend.

A total of 2,902 PDLs have been transferred to various prisons and penal farms outside of Metro Manila since June 2023.

Of this, it said 1,147 were transferred to the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm, 950 to DPPF, 607 to the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm, 150 to the Correctional Institution for Women, and 48 to the Leyte Regional Prison.

— RSJ/ VAL, GMA Integrated News