Mary Rose S.
Baluran BSCrim-1
The Bureau of Corrections (Filipino: Kawanihan ng mga Bilangguan, literally "Bureau of
Prisons", which was the old name of the agency from 1905 to 1989; abbreviated BuCor) is an
agency of the Department of Justice which is charged with the custody and rehabilitation of
national offenders, who have been sentenced to three years of imprisonment or more. The agency
has its headquarters in the New Bilibid Prison Reservation in Muntinlupa.
The Bureau of Corrections currently have 7 operating units located nationwide:
The New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City
The Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) in Mandaluyong City / and The CIW
Mindanao, Panabo, Davao
Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan
Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm in Occidental Mindoro
San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm in Zamboanga City
Leyte Regional Prison in Abuyog, Leyte
Davao Prison and Penal Farm in Panabo, Davao
New Bilibid Prison
The New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa, Philippines, is
the main insular penitentiary designed to house the prison
population of the Philippines. It is maintained by
the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) under the Department of Justice. As of October 2004, it has
an inmate population of 16,747. The penitentiary had an initial land area of 551 hectares
(1,360 acres). One hundred four hectares (260 acres) of the facility were transferred to a housing
project of the Department of Justice. The Bureau of Corrections has its headquarters in the NBP
Reservation.
The government of the Philippines plans to create a regional prison in Nueva Ecija through a
public-private partnership.
During World War II, Bilibid was a prisoner of war and civilian internee camp where American
soldiers and civilians were held by the Japanese. Twelve hundred internees and POWs were
freed by the American army on February 4, 1945 during the Battle of Manila.
Correctional Institution for Women
(Mandaluyong)
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 women’s 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 infirmary for convalescence
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.
On February 14, 1931, the women prisoners were transferred from the Old Bilibid Prison to the
building especially constructed for them. Its old name, “Women’s 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.
Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm
Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm in Puerto Princesa
City, Palawan, Philippines is one of seven operating units of
the Bureau of Corrections under the Department of Justice.
IWAHIG 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 department’s
efforts, the Philippine Commission of the United States government passed Act No. 1723 in
1907 classifying the settlement as a penal institution.
Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm
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
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.
Davao Prison and Penal Farm
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
enal 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 weretreated in accordance with the orders of the American commanding officer.
Leyte Regional Prison
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.
