10 July 2024 (Iloilo City) – The Local Amnesty Board (LAB) in Iloilo City and Bacolod City conducted a meeting with Jail Chief Superintendent Simeon Dolojo Jr., the Regional Director of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) Regional Office VI. Last month, the LAB Secretariat paid a courtesy visit to the same office in the presence of Assistant Regional Director Senior Superintendent Marie Rose Laguyo. The goal of these interactions was to clarify the role of the BJMP Region VI and the process of amnesty.

The meeting focused on the request of the LAB to visit BJMP’s facilities and prison centers within Panay Island. The purpose of this access is to meet with potential applicants and assist them in applying for amnesty. This request arose due to initial concerns regarding the standard operating procedures and protocols of the jails, as well as issues related to the release of personal information of persons deprived of liberty (PDLs).

JCInsp. Dolojo Jr. and JCInsp. Mark P Malhabour, the Chief of the Legal Service Section of BJMP Region VI, expressed that the β€œAmnesty program is a big help to the BJMP in terms of decongestion because PDLs will be forgiven by the government and released from our custody.”

Furthermore, JCInsp. Malhabour mentioned regarding personal data, β€œWe are constrained from providing it pursuant to data privacy. Ang akon ma-suggest (What I can suggest) is maybe we could assist you in some areas like information dissemination in jail booths for all PDLs with crimes or charges that fall under the amnesty program. If they approach us and they want to apply, then BJMP can get the data and coordinate with the LAB.”

Also present at the meeting were JSI Rev. Fr. Ricardo Panghulan, JSSupt. Vicente Papelera, representatives from the Iloilo arm of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU), Head of the Area Management Unit in Western Visayas Juniel Guath, Area Coordinator Hennie Dionela, and Fr. Ildefonso Cachuela, representing the religious sector of LAB Iloilo City.

The meeting concluded with the BJMP affirming their commitment to assist the LAB in information dissemination, particularly within their facilities and prison centers, to ensure the effective implementation of the government’s amnesty program.

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