At the City Jail: DSWD asks Talisay to separate minors

Talisay City social welfare officer Felipa Sollana yesterday asked the city government to put up a separate detention cell for juvenile offenders at the Maghaway Rehabilitation and Detention Center.

This after the Department of Social Welfare and Development regional office and a non-governmental organization found out that minors have been mixed with adult inmates at the city jail.

Sollana said she is now preparing a report to Talisay City mayor Socrates Fernandez for the immediate installation of a detention cell considering that minors are entitled to special protection.

Article 8 of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners states that "young prisoners shall be kept separate from adults."

An NGO, in a report to Fernandez, said that seven juvenile offenders are currently sharing detention cells with adult inmates. Jail warden Johnson Calub, however, said that there are actually 11 minors who are sharing detention cells with adults because there are no vacant cells in the jail.

The facility, which became operational in January 2001, can accommodate 250 persons. It has five cottages - four for the male inmates and one cottage for female inmates. At present, the city jail has 245 inmates, according to Calub, adding that the jail needs additional cottages to prevent congestion problems in the future. - Garry B. Lao