CHR backs centralized management of all jails under BJMP
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) supports legislative measures to transfer the supervision and control of provincial and sub-provincial jails from the provincial government to the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP). Mandated to monitor jail conditions and ensure the protection of the basic human rights of Persons Deprived of Liberty […]
Statement of the Commission on Human Rights on the alleged strip search of relatives of political prisoners in Metro Manila District Jail Annex 4
Rules 51 and 52(1) of the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, or the Mandela Rules, state that security searches “shall not be used to harass, intimidate or unnecessarily intrude upon a prisoner’s privacy” and that “intrusive searches shall be conducted in private and by trained staff of the same sex […]
Statement of CHR Executive Director, Atty Jacqueline Ann de Guia, on the decongestion efforts of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) recognises the recent efforts of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) to decongest jail facilities in the country. In a recent statement, BJMP spokesperson JSupt. Xavier Solda reports a decrease at 397% congestion rate in jails as of July 2022. In past years, the congestion rate of […]
Statement of CHR Spokesperson, Atty. Jacqueline Ann de Guia, commending BuCor and BJMP for the orderly conduct of PDL voting rights during the May 9 elections
The Commission on Human Rights lauds the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) for the peaceful and orderly exercise of voting rights of Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDL) under their custody during the 2022 Philippine National Elections. A total of 1,732 PDLs voted for a president, vice president, […]
Statement of CHR Spokesperson, Atty. Jacqueline Ann de Guia, on the recent Caloocan jail riot
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) will be conducting a motu propio investigation on the Caloocan jail riot that occurred Monday, 10 January 2022. Reports indicate at least six persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) have died as a result of the incident while at least thirty PDLs were injured in the altercation between rival groups. […]