In partial fulfillment of all the requirements in CORAD 1N

Submitted By: Janrel T. Ragual

Submitted To: Brenda P. Anonuevo

NEW BILIBID PRISON (NBP): The projected increase in the prison population

prompted the government to plan and develop a new site for the national

penitentiary. The growing urbanization of Manila and constant lobbying

by conservative groups fueled the idea of transferring the Old Bilibid Prison to a new

site, which at the time was considered remote and on the outskirts of the urban

center. Accordingly, Commonwealth Act No. 67 was enacted, appropriating one

million pesos for the construction of a new national prison in Muntinlupa. On

November 15, 1940, all inmates of the Old Bilibid Prison in Manila were transferred

to the new site. The new institution had a capacity of 3,000 prisoners and it was

officially named the New Bilibid Prison on January 22, 1941. The prison reservation

had an area of 587 hectares, part of which was arable. The prison compound

proper had an area of 300 x 300 meters or a total of nine hectares..

The institution became the maximum security compound in the and continues

to be so. The camp houses not only death convicts and inmates sentenced to life

term, but also those with numerous pending cases, multiple convictions, and

sentences of more than 20 years.

After World War II, there was a surfeit of steel matting in the inventory and it was

used to improve the security fence. In the late 20s, fences were further reinforced

with concrete slabs. In the 1980s, the height of the concrete wall was increased

and another facility was constructed, 2.5 kilometers from the main

building. This became known as Camp Sampaguita or the Medium Security

Camp.

On January 22, 1941 the electric chair was transferred to New Bilibid Prison.

The death chamber was constructed in the rear area of the camp when the mode of

execution was through electrocution. Today, it is a security zone where those

convicted of drug offenses are held.

The NBP expanded with the construction of new security facilities. These

were the Medium Security Camp, which was used as a military stockade during

martial law and the Minimum Security Camp, whose first site was christened Bukang

Liwayway. This was transferred to another site within the reservation where the

former depot was situated.

The increase in the prison population has affected the segregation system.

Several foreign funded projects dot the prison reservation, among them, the Half

Way House and the Juvenile Training Center. Both projects are supported by funds

from Japan through the representation of the Interdisciplinary Committee of

NAPOLCOM.
CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION FOR WOMEN (CIW): In a report dated January

22, 1959, submitted to a committee created by Administrative Order No. 287 by the

President of the Philippines, it was noted that before a separate building was

constructed especially for women prisoners, all female convicts were confined at the

Old Bilibid Prison on Azcarraga St., Manila. The male prisoners were confined in

dormitories near the womens quarters. Because of these conditions, vocational

activities of the women prisoners were limited to embroidery. When they became ill,

the women were confined in a separate building which served as a hospital with

nurses and prison physicians. When women prisoners needed surgery, they were

operated on at the Bilibid Prison. After the operation, they were transferred to the

Prison authorities were aware of the conditions that the women prisoners had to

endure. Consequently, the transfer of the women to a separate site became

inevitable. After a series of negotiations started by Prison Director Ramon Victorio,

the Philippine Legislature passed Republic Act No. 3579 in November, 1929. It

authorized the transfer of all women inmates to a building in Welfareville at

Mandaluyong, Rizal and appropriated P60,000 for the move. n February 14, 1931,

the women prisoners were transferred from the Old Bilibid Prison to the building
especially constructed for them. Its old name, Womens Prison was changed to

Correctional Institution for Women. This was in keeping with emerging trends in

penology, which emphasized correction rather than punishment. Convicts were

brought back into the social mainstream adjusted and rehabilitated with a better

outlook in life.

CIW, according to a Senate report, occupied 18 hectares. The original structure was

a one-story building which housed the office, the brigades, mess hall, kitchen,

chapel, infirmary, bathrooms and employees restrooms. The building has a central

courtyard with trees and flowering plants. The prisoners vocational activities were

expanded to include poultry and piggery as well as cultivation of crops, flowers and

fruits. Living quarters for the institutions employees were later constructed in the

compound. During the Japanese occupation, the CIW, despite a drastic reduction in

the number of its employees, continued with its work. A number of female military

prisoners were also confined in the institution. They were later freed by the U.S.

Army.

After the war, the CIW resumed its normal operations. Weekly catechism classes

were introduced. A dental clinic was built. Local telephones were installed in the

guards quarters. The Bureau of Public Works made major repairs on the main

building and a workshop and infirmary were constructed for the inmates use. The

infirmary during that time could accommodate around 16 patients.

In 2000, a new four-story building was constructed by the Department of Public

Works within the grounds of CIW. It eased the growing congestion in the

facility. The CIW, with a capacity for only 200 inmates, had to accommodate 1,000

inmates.
WAHIG PENAL COLONY: This facility was established during the American

occupation. It was however, during the Spanish regime that Puerto Princesa was

designated as a place where offenders sentenced to banishment were exiled. A

specific area of Puerto Princesa was selected as the site for a correctional

facility. The American military carved out a prison facility in the rain forest of Puerto

Princesa. The institution had for its first Superintendent Lt. George Wolfe,

a member of the U.S. expeditionary force, who later became the first prisons

director.

Governor Luke Wright authorized the establishment of a penal colony in the

province of Palawan on November 16, 1904. This penal settlement, which originally

comprised an area of 22 acres, originally served as a depository for prisoners who

could not be accommodated at the Bilibid Prison in Manila. In 1906, however, the

Department of Commerce and Police (which later became the Department of Public

Instruction) moved to turn the institution into the center of a penal

colony supervised in accordance with trends at the time. Through the

departments efforts, the Philippine Commission of the United States government

passed Act No. 1723 in 1907 classifying the settlement as a penal institution.

The settlement was at first beset by attempted escapes. But under the supervision

of Col. John R. White of the Philippine Constabulary, who would become

superintendent of Iwahig in 1906, the colony became a successful settlement. A

merit system was devised for the prisoners and vocational activities were

offered. These included farming, fishing, forestry, carpentry, and hospital

paramedical work. Prisoners could choose the vocational activities they wanted.

In 1955, Administrative Order No. 20 was promulgated by the President and

implemented by the Secretary of Justice and the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural

Resources. The order also contained a list of qualifications for colonists who wished

to apply for a lot to cultivate, the conditions for the settlers stay in his land, loan

requirements and marketing of the settlers produce. Lots granted did not exceed six

hectares.

On August 16, 1959, a committee was created by President Carlos P. Garcia to

study the state of national prisons. Accordingly, prisoners in Iwahig were divided into

two groups: the settlers and colonists. The settlers are those engaged in farming for

their own benefit; they are the ones whose applications for land to cultivate have

been approved. The government furnishes the land and initial requirements for tools,

dwellings and beast of burden. They are required to reimburse expenditures

incurred for their maintenance and that of their families out of the products of their

farms. Upon their release from the colony, they receive whatever amount of money

they have credited in their favor, after deducting the obligations they have.
 Iwahig is subdivided into four zones or districts: Central sub-colony with an

area of 14,700 hectares; Sta. Lucia with 9,685 hectares; Montible with 8,000

hectares and Inagawan with 13,000 hectares.

SABLAYAN PRISON AND PENAL FARM: Nearer to Manila than other penal

colonies, the Sablayan Penal Colony is located in Occidental Mindoro and relatively

new. Established on September 26, 1954 by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No.

72, the penal colony has a total land area of approximately 16,190 hectares.

Prison records show that the first colonists and employees arrived in Sablayan on

January 15, 1955. Since then several buildings have been constructed, including the

colonists dormitories, employees quarters, guardhouse, schoolhouse, chapel,

recreation hall, and post exchange.

Three sub-colonies were later organized. One is a reservation which this day

remains part of a protected rainforest. Another is in a coastal area. The third was
used by the national government as a relocation site for refugees from the eruption

of Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991.

Sablayan prison is a facility where prisoners from NBP are brought for decongestion

purposes. It follows the same colony standards as other penal farms.

SAN RAMON PRISON AND PENAL FARM: According to historical accounts, the

San Ramon Prison was established in southern Zamboanga on August 21,1870

through a royal decree promulgated in 1869. Established during the tenure of

Governor General Ramon Blanco (whose patron saint the prison was named after),

the facility was originally established for persons convicted of political crimes.

Considered the oldest penal facility in the country, prisoners in San Ramon were

required to do agricultural work.

During the Spanish-American War in 1898, the prisoners in San Ramon were

hastily released and the buildings destroyed. In 1907, the American administration
re-established the prison farm. In 1912, Gen. John Pershing, chief executive of the

Department of Mindanao and Sulu, classified the institution as a prison and penal

colony and therein confined people sentenced by the courts under his

jurisdiction. Under Pershings supervision, several buildings with a capacity for 600

prisoners were

Constructed. After several years, the colony became practically self supporting, with

75,000 coconut trees, which were planted at the beginning of Pershings

administration, contributing to the colonys self-sufficiency. Aside from coconuts,

rice, corn, papaya and other crops were also cultivated.

On November 1, 1905, Reorganization Act No. 1407 was approved creating the

Bureau of Prisons under the Department of Commerce and Police, integrating the

Old Bilibid Prison, San Ramon Penal Colony and Iwahig Penal. The Philippine

Coconut Authority took over management of the coconut farm from San Ramon.

In 1995, Congresswoman Maria Clara Lobregat proposed the transfer of San Ramon

Prison to Bongiao town, in the mountainous area of Zamboanga, to give way to a

special economic zone.

LEYTE REGIONAL PRISON: The Leyte Regional Prison, situated in Abuyog,

Southern Leyte, was established a year after the declaration of martial law in 1972

by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 28. While its plantilla and institutional plan were

almost ideal, lack of funds made the prison unable to realize its full potential and its

facilities are often below par compared with those of other established penal farms.

The LRP has an inmate capacity of 500. It follows the same agricultural format as

the main correctional program in addition to some rehabilitation activities. The prison

admits convicted offenders from Region VI and from the national penitentiary in

Muntinlupa.
DAVAO PENAL COLONY: The Davao Penal Colony is the first penal settlement

founded and organized under Filipino administration. The settlement, which originally

had an area of approximately 30,000 hectares in the districts of Panabo and Tagum,

Davao del Norte, was formally established on January 21, 1932 by virtue of Act No.

3732. This Act authorized the Governor-General to lease or sell the lands, buildings

and improvements in San Ramon Prison and Iwahig Penal Colony. It also granted

authority to the Secretary of Justice to establish a new prison and penal colony in a

suitable public land. A budget of P500,000 was allocated. Several committees were

created to pick a suitable site for the penal settlement. In accordance with the

recommendation of these committees, Governor Dwight Davis signed Proclamation

No. 414 on October 7, 1931, which reserved a site for the penal colony in Davao

province in Mindandao. The site offered ideal conditions for agricultural activities.

During World War II, the colony was converted into a concentration camp where

more than 1,000 Japanese internees were committed by the Philippine-American

Armed Forces. The Japanese we treated in accordance with the orders of the

American commanding officer.

On December 20, 1941, the Japanese Imperial Forces attacked Davao and the

colony was among the establishments taken over by the invading army. The entire

settlement was thrown into confusion and a great number of prisoners escaped.

Normal operations were inevitably disturbed. November 8, 1942, a representative of

the Director of Prisons transferred the colony and its properties to the Japanese

authorities. The remaining colony employees, their families and the inmates

evacuated to Iwahig where they organized the Davao Penal Colony at Inagawan sub

colony (Palawan). The organization of the colony in exile was authorized by virtue of

Memorandum Order No. 60 dated June 28, 1943 and signed by the Director of

Prisons.

After the liberation of the Philippines, the colony-in-exile in Palawan returned to its

old site in Davao. A great deal of rebuilding and repair had to be done because the

war had almost completely destroyed the colony.