By Benjamin Pulta | Philippine News Agency
The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) said Tuesday that strip search on visitors of persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) is being strictly implemented “without exception” in all prison facilities amid the increasing number of visitors caught sneaking in contraband concealed in their private parts.
BuCor Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. issued the statement after the reported complaint filed by the wives of political prisoners who were subjected to a strip search during their recent visit to the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City.
A strip search is the practice of searching a person for weapons or other contraband suspected of being hidden on their body or inside their clothing, by requiring the person to remove some or all clothing.
“We have to be strict, without fear or favor in the implementation of strip search, otherwise we will negate our responsibility of protecting our PDLs. And if we exempt an individual, we might be accused of giving VIP treatment,” Catapang said.
He said this is also why the agency is appealing to Congress for an additional budget to buy full-body scanner machines just like those being used in airports.
He said the machine costs between P20 million and P25 million, and BuCor initially needs at least five “to ensure security in prison facilities.”
“With this, it can detect objects, even those inside a person’s body for security screening purposes, without physically removing the person’s clothes or making any physical contact,” Catapang said.
The strip search policy was implemented following the report of acting NBP Superintendent Corrections Chief Insp. Roger Boncales that random and frisk searches have proven ineffective against the entry of contraband in prison facilities.
About 30 PDL visitors were caught from October 2023 to March 8 this year trying to sneak in suspected illegal drugs and tobacco hidden inside their private parts, or tucked or sewn in their underwear.
Under the BuCor Operating Manual on visitor control, all visitors shall be subjected to a thorough body search, and their belongings or packages screened for contraband before entering the security camp.
Women visitors shall be searched only by female corrections officers and it is done in a private area with the consent of the concerned visitor.
Meanwhile, Catapang said BuCor fully supports the passage on the third and final reading of House Bill (HB) 9153, or the “Contraband Detection and Control System Act,” which aims to prevent the proliferation of contraband in prison facilities.
The bill, principally authored by House of Representatives Committee on Dangerous Drugs chairperson, Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, provides for the establishment and implementation of a contraband detection and control system through the use of modern technologies in correctional, custodial, or detention facilities nationwide.
