BJMP

The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) exercises supervision and control
over all
city and municipal jails, including their establishment and maintenance in every
district, city and
municipality for a secure, clean, adequately equipped and sanitary jail for the
custody and safekeeping of city and municipal prisoners, any fugitive from justice,
or person detained awaiting
investigation or trial and/or transfer to the national penitentiary, including
violent mentally ill person
who endangers himself or the safety of others, duly certified as such by the proper
medical or
health officer, pending transfer to a mental institution.

During this time of pandemic, not only Department of Health should take an aciton
against COVID-19 but also other Department including BJMP, to lessen the
transmission of this disease, BJMP freed over 15,000 prisoners to decongest jails.

FACTS OF THE CASE

The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology has released more than 15,000 prisoners
as the Philippines races to halt coronavirus infections in its overcrowded jail
(DILG July 02, 2020)

The 15,322 persons deprived of liberty were released from March 17 to June 22 by
the “authority of courts” following a directive by the Supreme Court to send home
those awaiting trial but remain in prison because they could not afford bail.

Of the total number of released prisoners, the DILG said 5,910 are from Metro
Manila, 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.

The majority of the freed inmates were senior citizens and those with “light or
bailable offenses,” the DILG said in a statement.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said there are 783 COVID-19 cases in various BJMP
detention centers and 549 of those who tested positive for the virus have
recovered.

Meanwhile, the total count of infected BJMP personnel now stands at 135 with 90
recoveries.

Personnal Insights:

The action taken by BJMP is a must to lessen the transmission of the said disease
inside jails and not all prisoners were freed, they were the senior citizens and
those with light or bailable offenses.