Press Release
October 23, 2017

On the Observance of the 30th Celebration of the Prison Awareness Week
Laban para sa Tunay na Paglaya
Message
HON. LEILA M. DE LIMA
Senator

CBCP Chapel, Manila
23 October 2017

Good day to all of you.

First of all, I thank the organizers, particularly the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) - Episcopal Commission on Prison Pastoral Care for inviting me to be part of this meaningful occasion. Indeed, these kinds of gatherings are proof that there are still a lot of open-minded people from different sectors of society who are dedicated to uphold justice and respect for human rights.

Ang ganito nga pong pagtitipon ay hindi lamang nagpapatibay ng pagkakaisa ng mga narito ngayon, kundi nagmumulat din sa iba pa nating kababayan sa kalagayan at karapatan ng mga bilanggo.

Saludo po tayo sa patuloy na pagsisikap ng CBCP na itaguyod ang proyektong tulad nito na tumutulong upang maisaayos ang sistemang koreksyonal sa ating bansa.

Malinaw ang hangad natin: Maging lunsaran ang Bilibid at ang lahat ng bilangguan sa Pilipinas bilang lugar ng rehabilitasyon at pagbabagong buhay ng mga bilanggo.

My prior experience as Secretary of Justice gave me a clear picture of the problems in our prison system. These include the issues of congestion, inadequate facilities, lack of resources, and low staff morale--problems that make the prison a prime environment for illegal activities to thrive.

Just think: There are reports that the BJMP is currently congested by 600%. What an inhumane and barbaric state to live in!

Dahil dito, maraming nagkakasakit, nahihirapan, at nawawalan ng pag-asa. Paano nga ba makapagsisimulang magbagong buhay sa ganitong uri ng pamumuhay?

As Nelson Mandela once said: "When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."

Paano kaya ang mga kapwa nating handang pagdusahan ang kasalanan, ngunit inuudyukan pa rin ng tukso sa loob ng kulungan? Ang problemang gaya nito, nanganganak na nga ng iba pang problema, inaabuso pa ng mga corrupt at utak kriminal.

That is why during the last administration, we pushed for mechanisms to modernize and develop our prison system to address these issues that hound the national penitentiary.

Under my term as Justice Secretary, we began to clean the Bilibid. I personally led the raids and destruction of the kubols of the high-profile inmates who lorded over the prison and masterminded unthinkable illegal transactions.

All our efforts of cleaning up the Bilibid have, unfortunately, been for naught because of the massive demolition job against me by this vindictive regime.

Ang nakakatawa, yun pong mga isinisisi at ibinibintang nila sa akin--kahit sila na ang nakapuwesto, at ako po ay ipinakulong na nila-- problema pa rin hanggang ngayon. Kaya nga po sa paglipas ng mga araw, lalong lumilinaw na gawa-gawa lamang ang mga paratang nila sa akin.

Malawak ang problema sa ating sistemang koreksyonal. Dapat, sinsero ang pag-unawa sa kalagayan ng ating mga bilangguan, hindi yung magpapa-photo-op para lang masabing may malasakit sa mahihirap, at sa mga nasa proseso ng rehabilitasyon.

You might have heard already the recent PR stunt of Duterte, where he reportedly visited Camp Bagong Diwa to inspect the congested detention facility, promising inmates TV sets in each jail cell to make their detention more comfortable.

Heto na naman si Duterte, puro porma, puro propaganda. As I said, if he is really serious in addressing the issues of our prison system, Duterte should, at the very least, take note of and call on Senator Gordon, as Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights, to finally act on the Resolutions I filed (the 14-month old PSRN 97 on "the current state of jails and penitentiaries all over the country" filed on 15 August 2016, and PSRN 357 on the "secret jail found in Manila Police District Station 1," filed on 3 May 2017), and accordingly conduct investigations in aid of legislation to come up with a comprehensive solution on how to decongest and improve conditions in jails and detention facilities all over the country.

Enero pa lang, nanawagan na po ako kay Senator Gordon na aksyunan na ang mga ito. Sa kasamaang palad, wala pa ring nangyayaring pagdinig ukol sa mga ito.

Malinaw naman po: Dapat igalang ang karapatan ng bawat Pilipino, anuman po ang kanyang katayuan sa buhay.

Bilang lingkod-bayan, at ngayon, bilang isa na ring bilanggo--bilanggong politikal na ipinakulong ng mapaghiganting Pangulo--- higit pa akong nagkaroon ng mas malawak na pang-unawa at dahilan para tugunan ang mga suliranin ng kawalang katarungan at kawalan ng tunay na kalayaan sa ating lipunan.

Ang bansa po natin ngayon ay nababalot ng kadiliman, nakakulong sa rehas ng kasinungalingan at panlilinlang ng iilang lasing sa kapangyarihan.

I was imprisoned based on trumped-up charges, fabricated by Duterte and his cohorts. Despite their continuous political persecution, I will not be cowed. I will continue to have faith. I know that truth is on my side, and I am innocent.

This fight is not my fight alone. Laban din ito ng lahat ng nakulong na walang kasalanan. Laban ito ng minsang nalihis ng landas at gustong magbagong buhay. Laban ito ng mga hindi na pinalad pang mabigyan ng pagkakataong mabuhay. Laban ito ng sambayanang Pilipinong nais ng tunay na pagbabago at marangal na pamumuhay.

Alam ko, hindi ako nag-iisa sa laban na ito. Kasama ko ang Panginoon. Kasama ko kayo.

Muli, magandang araw po, at maraming salamat sa inyong pakikinig.

(Editor's Note: The message was delivered by Atty. Fhillip Sawali, Chief of Staff of the Office of Senator Leila M. de Lima)

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