Supreme Court orders gov’t to comment on detainees’ petition for temporary release

The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered government officials to comment on several detainees' petition for their temporary release on humanitarian grounds as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) threatens Philippine jails.

The SC gave the respondents a non-extendible period of until April 24, Friday, to comment on the petition, court spokesman Brian Keith Hosaka said Friday.

"Respondents are ordered to take the necessary interim preventive measures required by this national emergency (COVID-19) and provide a verified report to the Court within the same period," Hosaka said in a message to reporters.

More than 20 detainees asked the SC to order their temporary release through bail or personal recognizance, saying their age and/or physical or medical conditions make them vulnerable to COVID-19.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) chief Allan Iral, Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director General Gerald Bantag, and six other jail and prison officials were named respondents in the petition.

The BJMP announced on Friday that nine detainees at the Quezon City Jail and nine bureau personnel have tested positive for COVID-19.

The infected inmates have been isolated in a quarantine facility in Payatas, while the personnel are on "lockdown," BJMP spokesperson Xavier Solda said.

Several groups have called on authorities to ease prison populations by releasing detainees who are at risk of contracting the virus.

The Department of Justice said it is studying calls for the release of "low-risk offenders" in the custody of the BuCor.

Edre Olalia, president of the National Union of Peoples' Lawyers, said the urgency of the situation calls for a "more decisive, less ponderous approach even as we understand prudent and practical considerations."

"But many countries have proven it could and should be done with dispatch. The claim that it is safer inside jails is detached from reality and humanity," Olalia said in a statement.

"We just have to wait and pray it is not too late. And keep on knocking, if not banging on doors," he said. — RSJ, GMA News