NCJ Number
214100
Date Published
December 2005
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This paper briefly describes the Philippine Corrections System, its institutional framework, and initiatives to improve the treatment of offenders.
Abstract
The Philippine Government, despite prison overcrowding, lack of information technology systems and expertise, and inadequate training, continues to take concrete steps towards the improvement of its prison and jail conditions and the treatment of offenders. However, the improvement of the corrections system and the inmates’ successful reintegration into the mainstream society is not the sole responsibility of the corrections system; it needs the support and cooperation of all society. The government plays a dominant and significant role in the correction and rehabilitation of offenders. The Philippine Correction System is composed of the institutions in the government, civil society, and the business sector which are involved in the confinement, correction, and restoration of those individuals charged for and/or convicted of delinquent acts or crime. In this paper, an overview of the Philippine Correction System is presented describing the role of the various government agencies (Department of Justice, Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the Department of Social Welfare and Development), civil society and business sector, the institutional framework, the impact of overcrowding and inadequate training and information systems, and initiatives undertaken to improve the treatment of offenders (i.e., privatization projects, early release programs, proposed jail integration, jail decongestion plan, development of juvenile facilities). Appendix A-B